Good to see you where the libs aren't cluttering up the airwaves. I agree, I've also wore out a primer seater, because it is so darn good. I bought a RCBS copy of the Lee because I don't have to buy special shell holders for it, but I don't like it nearly as much. A real hassle to change shell holders and not nearly as ergonomic. Makes my hand tired after just a few cases. I wish the other makers would come up with a sprue cutter as good as the one on the Lee 6 hole mold.

Seems to me the Lee stuff is great for beginners on a budget or the guy who reloads occasionally. Don't expect the plastic stuff to last for ever.

I'm surprised you wore out the case trimmer. I just got one last year and I can't believe I got by without it before. I like the simple design and how fast they trim the cases. They are so cheap that I guess it won't matter to have to replace the cutter on it someday.

How many cases do you estimate that trimmed with it before it wore out?

If it weren't for the affordability of the Lee products I would not have been able to start handloading a few years ago. Folks kept saying to wait until I could do better, but that would have put-off the hobby, and there are always bills coming in, so who knows? So, Lee made it possible for me to start when I did.

Now that I can afford better I have upgraded in some areas, but there are always a few well-designed Lee products on my bench. The only item to fail me was a press arm after many rounds.

Like 'Borealis Bob' I started out with Lee produsts. A Lee 12 ga. Hand Loader and a .30-06 Hand loader were my first(still got both and a number of other calibers too. Many not available today). I still use an old Lee hand primer for priming all my brass. Just prefer to feel the primers going home. I got a RCBS hand primer but don't like it as well as the old Lee hand primers. Some Lee products are better than what other manufactures make. Lawdog

Curly, I didn't wear out the cutter I wore out the base that attaches to a power drill. It developed a crater a few thousandsth deep in it where the pin guide was pressing in.

I've been using one of the new RCBS APS strip handprimers lately and very much like it. It's a bit of a hassle to load the strips but to me it's worth it for the universal shellholder and being able to start priming without counting etc. - You just load the strip and go.......DJ

Oh, I see. So after a while you start cutting the cases a little shorter than you would like. I'll have to keep an eye on that with mine.

good grief, DJ, you mean you wore out a Lee Auto-Prime? i have had one for more than 10 years and it shows no wear on it. maybe the older versions were made a little more durable. i have seated a whopping number of primers and it still looks good.

Hey Bill, Are you the same Gentleman that I used to shoot silhouette with at OKC Gun Club? I bought one of the very first Lee Auto-Primes that came out. The crosspeice that the thumb-lever rotates wore out/sagged enough that it wouldn't completely seat a primer. I do shoot and reload quite a bit. A normal shooter might not use one as much in 20 years as I did in a few......DJ

I did break the handle on my first Auto-Prime after about 5000 rounds. Oh well, as inexpensive as they are I didn't mind buying another one. I started out Reloading 15 years ago with the attitude that Lee was junk. I hate to say this but I probably own more Lee stuff than any other brand.

I still use my RCBS Rockchucker press, but own 2 Lee Challenger presses for sizing cast bullets and a Lee Handpress for seating bullets at the range while conducting load data development. I have two Lee perfect powder measures. One for home and one for the range. Can't say enough good things about these items. I also enjoy their factory crimp dies for my lever gun cartridges. Just my 2 cents worth.

I haven't worn out my Lee 3-Jaw chuck yet. I can't believe one would wear out. I suppose anything is possible.

DJ, I had the same thing happen to my Lee trimmer. But, I'd been using >25 years so seems to me I got my money's worth out of it. Will probably cost me <$5 to replace it. Although I've got a fancy, top of the line, Redding lathe type trimmer, I find myself using the Lee trimmers as much as possible; they trim faster and have basically no set-up time. I broke a metal part on my Lee hand primer some years ago, but again, this was after about 15 years of use. The replacement part cost a couple $'s. To this day, my one and only press is my original Lee turret press. Although I'm a lot more "sophisticated" reloader now than I was when I first started >25 years ago and now have shinier, fancier, and more expensive dies other than Lee, I still find myself using a lot of Lee reloading tools. All in all, I've been more than pleased w/ my Lee tools. Gary T.

I think you've got it right about Lee's stuff being well designed, but poorly made. Didn't bother with anything they made until I discovered their factory crimp die. It seems well made and it works perfectly.

Y'all want a Rolls Royce for a Chevvy price?

I'll stay away from Lee progressive presses in the future, but other than that I'm happy with Lee stuff, even the stuff I broke. Broke a couple of AutoPrimes, but only after about 50,000 rounds each. Broke one of the little C presses, but I shoulda known better than to be doing heavy full length sizing on it and I had gotten my $10 worth out of it years before. Bought another of those, use it for light jobs, and will buy another when it breaks.

Went to the AutoPrimeII for priming. Might have to buy a few chutes and trays along the way, but the rest is steel and should last me my time.

I love the pushthrough sizers and the hollow expanders in pistol calibers. The six cavity moulds are as good as some at three times the price, even if the ones and twos leave a lot to be desired. The universal decapper and the belling tool do as good a job as anyone elses, just a lot cheaper.

I just bought upgrade kits for my AutoDisk measures that corrected the problems of those gadgets. They now do a much better job with small charges for pistols than my RCBS Uniflow ever did.

Don't bother me none to have a ten dollar gadget break after 5-10 years. Didn't expect it to last forever, anyway. Bothers me a lot to have to pay $50 for something simple that I ain't gonna come close to living long enough to wear out.

I don't think Lee products are that well made or designed. I'd rather spend a bit more and have something that works EVERY time.

I think Lee products fit their niche quite well. They are ideal for a casual reloader and good learning tools for the beginner. And as they break or wear out, you can replace them with better stuff that you can hand down to your children. By then, you will also know what you really need and what is the latest nice to have fad item.
You don't really have to break or wear out the items before you replace them. Just find a budding reloader and pass the stuff along.

I do have say I just got their new Classic Cast Press and it is well designed and well made. I was deciding between a rockchucker and the lee and I took a gamble on this new press and I have to say I like it. They took all the positives from the other brand presses and incorporated it in to this Classic press. Oh and the best part is U can own one for 59.99 from Midway. I think it is a bargain!

I just re-entered the reloading hobby after a 6 or 7 year hiatus. In the past I have loaded enough rounds to founder a good size ship, but got away from it for a while due to a very heavy work load. I gave all of my old reloading equipment to a friend.

When I started looking around for some new stuff, I stumbled across the Lee Classic cast iron press. It was priced right and it sounded good. I'm VERY pleased with it,... all steel and iron with an oversized ram, adjustable handle,.. huge window. If I have any complaint with it, it's that it's overbuilt. My advice to anyone who is contemplating the purchase of a new heavy duty press is to get the Lee Classic. It sells for about half of the other presses in it's catagory and it's a true "hoss".

I'll also say that I'm a big fan of Lee dies. When I first became involved with loading I bought the Lee dies because they were low priced. After a while I decided to "step up" and buy some of the more expensive dies. I found that there were many things about the Lee dies that I liked better than the more expensive brands,.. especially their crimp. Now, they've introduced their factory crimp die and it's a great product. I'll pass on their powder measure, however. To me,.. there's none worth having except the Redding.

Maybe someday I'll find a reason to buy another brand of dies,.. but it hasn't happened yet.

IMHO I like some of lee's stuff, Factory crimp dies are by far the best along with there molds, some of the hand stuff reamers and trimers work great, there presses are OK at best, there shell holders and dies are one step up from poor.

I own RCBS, Dillon, Redding, Lyman along with Lee you name it.

What about the Lee target/benchrest die set? In my opinion they were a steal! All that was needed was a plastic or leather mallet and possibly a powder measure to turn out some quality loads. You could do the whole thing, including neck reaming for about $20 when they came out.Just a trip down memory lane. I still have several.
Stepchild

I'll agree that their aluminum presses are mediocre, but the cast iron and steel Classic is a dandy.

What is it that you dislike about their dies?

I've got mixed feelings about Lee. I admire them for their innovation in making products most of us can afford. Unfortunately they keep costs down by using a lot of cast metal and plastic parts, neither of which is noted for long life. I still have some minor Lee parts, but not many. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

Fazak, The Lock rings......DJ