In what order would you rank your reloading dies in quality ?
eg (Maybe) Whidden, Mighty Armory, Forster, Redding, RCBS etc etc .... and why if you have time.

I have most every make ever made including some Herters, adding cup to at least 60 sets; they all work; no best or worse; each has its own characteristics. I find some operators have problems because they do not know how to manage basic reloading principles. Not saying every die is perfect.....

1 - everything but Hornady
2 - Hornady

Curious about your problem with Hornady's. I have used lots of them and have had no more issue with them than any of the others. Thanks, Lance

finger bushing decapping rod instead of a threaded rod. 6.5 swed, 30-06 and 8mm all have pulled out of the dies no matter how tight I made them.

All my brass is commercial

Have had no issues with the common brands except that darn collet held decapping rod in the Hornady dies, just a plain stupid bit of engineering that one, whoever came up that that wizz should find a hole to hide in.

Best dies I've got are the dies made by RCBS for my 404J, nicely made and finished, the bullet seating die beautifully irons down the case mouth flare applied for loading cast bullets and the combination of this die and neck sizing button on the decapping rod in the F/L die ensure a good neck tension is applied without the need for crimping.

I started out with Lee,now I have RCBS and one Herters in 300 savage I have never had any problems

I have been reloading for over 50 years and have well over 100 sets of dies of almost every make ever made. I have to agree with dpcd, they all work if you use them in the manner they were intended to be used

I have had the same problems with the Hornady decapping die.

Would like to see them “improve” it even though it might mean adopting something more consistent with the rest of industry.

Redding may be finished a little smoother than some of them, but I've had no problems with RCBS, Lyman, Lee, or any of the other currently produced brands. Like others, I regard the non-threaded Hornady decap/expander rod as a poor idea, but I can live with it. I own some obsolete dies like the old C&H, Pacific, Herter's, Ruhr-American, Texan, and even have some Bonanza's on the way from a fellow AR member who answered my cal for a relatively scarce caliber. Sometimes you'll come across a particular gun's chamber which is not compatible with a particular sizing die, but it's not the fault of the die's quality or design.

I like Hornady as well as any others. Have at least ten sets of them.
Now, sure, sometimes a chamber/brass/die/expander/etc, will be incompatible, but that is not the fault of the die, as Stone said.
As for non threaded decappers/expanders, all Lee bottlenecks are like that. That is actually an intended design feature, to prevent broken decapping pins, which as everyone knows, are part of the expanders in Lee.
I have actually knurled the rods a bit to get more grip, as you have to tighten them really tight. But for the average guy, that feature will prevent some problems, like trying to decap a Berdan primer.
Note that Hornady now uses a threaded rod.

Redding and rcbs

I had some issues with both Lyman and RCBS expander balls stretching case necks, and was very happy with Hornady's elliptical ball.
Just counted and I have three Lee sets, four Hornady, four RCBS and two CH4D.
I do admire the Lyman M-die, however.
No Reddings currently, but they make a great die.

1. RCBS 18 sets. Haven't had any problems
2. Hornady 11 sets Haven't had any problems
3. Lyman 5 sets. Only had one problem and that was with a lock ring which they corrected immediately.
4. Redding 3 sets. Had a problem with a sizing die that would prominently scratch a case and sent it back (with cases) twice with Redding saying 'it is within spec's' each time. They make great dies but failed to correct this problem.
5. Lee 3 sets now. Had many sets in the past when I couldn't afford better dies. Over the years I have had problems with at least 5 sets of Lee dies, mostly small problems though.

The ones I like the best are Redding and Forster’s competition sets. More due to the micrometer seating die.

The ones I like the least are the hornady and lee smooth decapping pin sets.

It’s not a quality thing, it’s the design.

I’ve used Redding, Forster, RCBS, Dillon, Hornady, Lee, Bonanza, Herters, and I’m probably forgetting some.

The only one I’ve ever permanently buggered was a hornady .416 Rigby die, it was a little rough to start with, and then I accidentally ran a case without lube in. Couldn’t get it out with a stuck case extractor and they wanted replacement cost after you figured in shipping. Not their fault really, but since RCBS and Dillon had replaced things for free (and they were less dramatic than that) that was when I quit buying hornady.

I have owned probably 20 die sets. They include Redding, Hornady, Lee, RCBS, Lyman & CH4D

My conclusion after 25 years of reloading is
1. Lube the case properly
2. Lube the case properly
3. If your case neck stretches, lube the case properly.

What does "Lube the case properly" mean.
a. IMHO, apply a light coating of Imperial lube from the bottom web of the case to the case mouth.
b. If you have some lube on your fingers, just roll the case mouth on the fingers and you will get a tiny ring of lube inside the case mouth. THAT little ring of lube will prevent your case neck stretching. Remember to clean the inside of the case neck with tissue paper or even IPA soaked cloth

I have broken decap pins, I have bent decap rods, I have got cases stuck and the rim pulled off, .... Every single problem was operator error and not the fault of the tools.

1) Foster
2) RCBS
3) Redding
4) Hornady
5) Lee

Redding . . .thats it for me.

I had others in the early days. I gave it all away. When I built the new set up I started with Redding and right away the quality was better across the the board. Yes I gained more experience but the equipment helped too. Especially the Redding Competition Mic Seaters Dies. The work for me and I bit the bullet and got them in all calibers I load for.

That said, there are guys who can make quality ammo with just about anything. For me I want and use the Redding's.

I will say on a separate note, that Dillons dies work very well in their progressive machines.

I started with RCBS but, and only because they can use a carbide expander ball, I now use Redding.

quote:

I have to agree with dpcd, they all work if you use them in the manner they were intended to be used

+ 1

Since I switched to Redding Master Hunter die sets with Micrometer Competition Seating Dies I have produced the most accurate handloads I ever made ( given that modern bullets and powders also contributed ). The Micrometer Competition Seaters seat so straight that measured runout is really minimal and I think this the major factor in better accuracy.
Redding is No. 1 for me. There isn't anything else I rate as No.2, 3 and so on. I have used RCBS and Hornady dies, and one set of CH4D. None were bad by any means and all produced quite acceptable run of the mill handloads, but Redding's dies are just a cut above.

quote:

Originally posted by crbutler:
The ones I like the best are Redding and Forster’s competition sets. More due to the micrometer seating die.

The ones I like the least are the hornady and lee smooth decapping pin sets.

It’s not a quality thing, it’s the design.

I’ve used Redding, Forster, RCBS, Dillon, Hornady, Lee, Bonanza, Herters, and I’m probably forgetting some.

The only one I’ve ever permanently buggered was a hornady .416 Rigby die, it was a little rough to start with, and then I accidentally ran a case without lube in. Couldn’t get it out with a stuck case extractor and they wanted replacement cost after you figured in shipping. Not their fault really, but since RCBS and Dillon had replaced things for free (and they were less dramatic than that) that was when I quit buying hornady.

Throwing them in the freezer helps if there stick bad.

quote:

Originally posted by Johnny reb:

quote:

Originally posted by crbutler:
The ones I like the best are Redding and Forster’s competition sets. More due to the micrometer seating die.

The ones I like the least are the hornady and lee smooth decapping pin sets.

It’s not a quality thing, it’s the design.

I’ve used Redding, Forster, RCBS, Dillon, Hornady, Lee, Bonanza, Herters, and I’m probably forgetting some.

The only one I’ve ever permanently buggered was a hornady .416 Rigby die, it was a little rough to start with, and then I accidentally ran a case without lube in. Couldn’t get it out with a stuck case extractor and they wanted replacement cost after you figured in shipping. Not their fault really, but since RCBS and Dillon had replaced things for free (and they were less dramatic than that) that was when I quit buying hornady.

Throwing them in the freezer helps if there stick bad.

Tried freezer, liquid nitrogen, torch heat(after they wanted too much $), and even took them in to a gunsmith.

Hot reload, no lube, and a rough finish were a perfect storm.

The gunsmith said he could try a chamber reamer, but wasn’t worth it.

I have several different brands to load 23 different cartridge chamberings (as I recall) but my favorite dies have bushing neck sizing (whether full length sizing or not) and micrometer seating.
They're just better....for me!

Zeke

forster fl sizing die and redding competition seaters

I started handloading in the early 70s + have more die sets than I can count. I started out with Lyman but over the years have bought everyone else's too. I only have a couple of Lee dies. I know it is only a personal prejudice but I have always found that you can't but a truly quality product cheap.

in the "normal" dies,
REDDING
hornday/rcbs
lyman/dillon
lee

but, frankly, just like a guitar, it aint the tool, it's the artist

Funny how a non threaded decapping rod is a problem with Hornady but not Lee.

That is the only issue I have with Lee dies really. Dont like it.

I would rank Redding just slightly over RCBS from strictly a quality perspective. But RCBS gets the nod with me for availability, value and customer service. RCBS = #1 for me.

I use Lyman "M" dies to do case mouth expansion on my pistol cartridges and their Universal decapper die - everything else has always been Redding dies.

quote:

Funny how a non threaded decapping rod is a problem with Hornady but not Lee. That is the only issue I have with Lee dies really. Dont like it.

I think it is one of Lee's best features has saved a broken decapping pin several times.

I have mostly RCBS and Redding...You can get a tapered expander ball from either company if you must..some come with such btw..

I have some special stuff of various makes like Lee tapered crimp dies, Special order stuff etc

By the way I have had some dies of one caliber softened and chamber to a different caliber or neck sized to a different bore then hardened for $35. from Dennis Olson, a money savor in high dollar special dies for instance, and they have worked fine..

Can't say as I have had any major issues with any die set I've bought. I did have one expander ball that was undersized, but , was easily curable. These days I have been using predominantly Forster as I like their bushing/bump dies, and Sinclair expanders for the ones I can't get the bushing dies for. I may be biased, as I started off with Bonanza Benxhrest, I like their seaters, haven't had any issues with Hornady seaters or RCBS competition seaters. I'd likely be happy with a Redding competition style seater. Only dies I haven't bothered trying were Lee. That's a possibility down the road perhaps, may give a collet die a whirl one day.

CM, the Lyman M die has been a great boon in loading my cast 250 G. 44 Keith bullets w/an obvious square base. Just a little bit of ease makes the loading much smoother in the press cycle

For me it's
1) Neil Jones
2) LE Wilson
3) Redding
4) RCBS
5) CH4D

quote:

Originally posted by dpcd:
I have most every make ever made including some Herters, adding cup to at least 60 sets; they all work; no best or worse; each has its own characteristics. I find some operators have problems because they do not know how to manage basic reloading principles. Not saying every die is perfect.....

+1 more
I have never had a problem with any brand of die that I didn't create myself. With the smooth decap/expand rod take off the pussy mits & tighten the collet nut or lube the case neck

I really don't have a rank.

There are so many rifles/pistols i load for that i just get a set of dies.

I have Redding,RCBS,Hornady,Lee and even Herters,they all perform the job they were built for.

quote:

Originally posted by dpcd:
I have most every make ever made including some Herters, adding cup to at least 60 sets; they all work; no best or worse; each has its own characteristics. I find some operators have problems because they do not know how to manage basic reloading principles. Not saying every die is perfect.....

Agree. Well said

Forster is my Go-To. If they don't have it, then Redding usually does. If I need to crimp, I get an RCBS seating die.