I have always used RCBS and Redding dies.
What’s the opinion on Lyman and hornady dies. How do they compare to RCBS and Redding?
I’m talking bottle neck rifle dies.
Thanks

I really like the Hornady Custom Grade dies. I have not used their newer American dies. I had an issue once where I wanted the seater stem just a little different and they modified mine for no charge and I got it back the same week.

I have not used Lyman.

I've used lyman dies (belonged to a friend) years ago and had no complaints with them, the quality seemed the same as RCBS. Like you I own RCBS, and Redding dies. I also own Lee "Factory Crimp" dies but nothing made by Hornady.

RCBS has the best backup service and are top of the range quality. Redding is also top of the range but their expander balls requires more lube unless you replace them with carbide expander balls. I would place Foster die sets also in the top range. Their expander balls slips through case necks very easily and it is placed a little higher up in the die for better alignment. Lyman also have good die sets, but their decapping pins break easily and therefor requires frequent alignment and making sure the decapping rod is fastened properly. Lee is surely good die sets and many people swear by them (and they are good value for less money), so are Hornady die sets, but I would not put them in the same catagory as RCBS, Foster and Redding.

Lee makes some good stuff. It may not look as slick on the outside as some of the higher priced items but they do well what they're intended to do.

I like Redding and RCBS, but I like Redding the best for bottleneck cartridges and RCBS best for straight wall cases. I have used some Hornady dies for pistol and they are just OK but I have a set of Hornady 22/250Rem dies that are terrible, and the problem with this set of dies is the cases get stuck in the sizer no matter how much lube is used. I replaced them with RCBS that a buddy had and didn't need and never looked back. I would advise you to stick to Redding or RCBS. As far as Lee dies are concerned they work ok but they are kind of junky IMO, by that I mean they are made of inferior steel compared to the Redding and RCBS and they also don't come with a solid locking ring and the only thing that tries to keep them from moving out of adjustment is a rubber O-ring. I will say it again, they are junk IMO.

Lee dies are not junk; they just work differently and for those who do not like the O ring, they will not understand them. The lock ring can be replaced, but the O ring works. But they are not made from "inferior" steel for sure.
I have all makes of dies, Lyman, RCBS, CH, Lee, Redding, Honady, including some Herter's from the 60s. They all have their place. None is junk.

I've used most of the standard dies and find them pretty much of equal quality. I would give the nod to the Hornady because of their seater die that uses a collar and bullet guide to line things up. Also their seater is not cartridge specific in that you can use it for other cartridges of the same caliber. I also agree with dpcd in that Lee standard dies are are every bit as good as dies of the same class. Granted their lock ring is not the best design, but you can change that. One of the best sizing die I ever owned was a Lee die for my 7mm/08. Kept my neck run out under .001 Going a few steps up the Forster die are really good and not that much more in cost. JMO

I have various makes of dies and all are good. BUTTTT, I would like to say that dies with a tapered expander are more useful as I make brass for calibers that are not all that common. I.E. 9.3x57 outa 8x57, .375 AI outa .300 WBY magnum. You get the jist.

Hip

Lees have tapered expanders too and it is easy to make custom ones as they are not threaded. I have made many of them to open up cases for various things. And custom expanders as well are very easy as the expanders are separate non threaded pieces.

Simple answer?

They all work.

We have dies from every manufacturer, and they all do a good job.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
Simple answer?

They all work.

We have dies from every manufacturer, and they all do a good job.

This has been my experience also

I have more lees then anything else but I have most of them last time I counted I could load for 50 different calibers and most likely added some more.

I prefer the RCBS and Lyman to Lee or Hornady in ease of cleaning. I have one Hornady die, in 35 Whelen, and the decapping spindle requires a wrench to remove. It actually takes a wrench on the spindle and a wrench on the die body. This is true for the Lee dies.

After having dies rust out inside, I am now disassembling the die, wiping the lube out, then oiling the interior, before storing the things. Just spraying the things with oil did not protect the dies from rust, I am having to positively remove all case lube, then after that, positively oiling the spindle and die interior. RCBS and Lyman spindles are much easier to remove and install than Hornady or Lee.

I have and use RCBS, Lee and Redding dies. All work as designed, but Lee dies are hands-down my favorite. I really could care less about how they look. For me, they are the easiest to set up and use and the O-rings are what set's them apart from other dies. Lee's factory crimp dies are the absolute best IMHO. I also like the way their bullet seating die works and particularly, the ease of making the adjustments. No tools are necessary, and once the adjustments are made, they hold the adjustment.

the only complaint i would have is reddings refusal to use a bleed hole in their sizers - that has flocked up alot of cases for me

Any and all of these dies (Redding, RCBS, Lee, Forster, Wilson) can produce ammo more accurate than I can take advantage of.

I can't shoot to the potential of my rifles, nor can I take advantage of the full quality of my dies.

But I try. I want to improve.

Lee dies are very good and do a great job like someone already posted.

I have owned Lee, Hornady, RCBS, Redding, Lyman and Ch4D in many calibers and all have been excellent with not a single problem with the dies.

I done know what other people's experience is with Lee equipment is but back in the 1970's I got tired of waiting for parts to fix their stuff or packing up their stuff for them to fix or replace and then sending it back. Their dies may be as good as any other die makers but I'm a “little gun shy” about their stuff. I do own Crimp dies and they are pretty good except for the locking rings,,, Really! That's the best you can do? A rubber O ring?

I've used may different manuf. dies. The only ones I don't care for are the ones that don't have threaded decapping rods.

I personally like RCBS best, Reddings may actually be a tad better???? but they are more expensive by a good bit, So almost all my dies are RCBS. but I have a set or two of Lees, Foresters and Hornady off and on. MOst of todays dies get along with me..I guess I care less for HOrnady dies as I don't care for the set up..

quote:

Originally posted by dpcd:
Lee dies are not junk; they just work differently and for those who do not like the O ring, they will not understand them. The lock ring can be replaced, but the O ring works. But they are not made from "inferior" steel for sure.
I have all makes of dies, Lyman, RCBS, CH, Lee, Redding, Honady, including some Herter's from the 60s. They all have their place. None is junk.

I have some Lee dies for 223 and also a dead stop bullet seating die for 7mm-08 which is a good concept. I just can't understand the stupid o'ringed lock nut or for that matter on the dead stop bullet seater, no positive lock on the seating depth stem.

I have drilled and tapped the Lee lock nuts and use a grub screw to positively lock to the die threads. Don't like things that can go out of adjustment. Apart from that little engineering misstep, IMO, the Lee dies work like any others.

The only dies I would consider not buying would be Lyman, BTDT.

quote:

Originally posted by craigster:
The only dies I would consider not buying would be Lyman, BTDT.

Why not?

quote:

Originally posted by B L O'Connor:

quote:

Originally posted by craigster:
The only dies I would consider not buying would be Lyman, BTDT.

Why not?

I should have said not buying another set. The "finish and fit" seemed to be not as good as the competion. Could have been they were Monday or Friday produced or just slipped thru quality control and/or final inspection.

I love RCBS dies, but absolutely abhor their lock rings. I have put shot behind the set screw, and even then in order to get the damn thing tight enough to lock I was stripping out the brass set screw. They've known this design sucks and haven't done anything to fix it other than sending out set screws.

quote:

Originally posted by model7LSS:
I love RCBS dies, but absolutely abhor their lock rings. I have put shot behind the set screw, and even then in order to get the damn thing tight enough to lock I was stripping out the brass set screw. They've known this design sucks and haven't done anything to fix it other than sending out set screws.

Yeah, I got annoyed at the ring too. So I just went to these for some of my dies. Problem solved. (I have installed the Lee "O-Ring" locks on some of my dies and they work fine too.)

Yeah, I like the Hornady Lock ring design too, just don't feel like I should have to retrofit. May just end up going with Hornady's quick change system in my press.

I've been slowly moving the rifle reloading to a co-ax press so I just dump the rcbs rings and buy the forster rings.


these

RCBS has great customer service. I have one set of Lyman dies and they work fine but their customer service is nowhere near as good as RCBS. I bent the decapping pin on my lyman resizing die and called to get a replacement. They charged me for the pin and more for shipping than the cost of the pins.

That got me to thinking that I should keep some extra pins on hand for all my RCBS dies. I called RCBS to buy some and was told they would just ship me a pack for free.

I can't tell you how many times RCBS has sent me parts that I ADMITTEDLY screwed up myself.

Labman, that's a bonus that I really appreciate. RCBS, who make great dies to begin with, have helped me out two or three times by replacing parts of reloading equipment I've lost or broken. I always offer to pay, but they sent stuff promptly and without charge. Talk about great customer service.

About a month ago I purchased some reloading stuff from a friend that was moving. Paid $20 for a RCBS 505 scale and a Hornady cam lock bullet puller.The reason for the price was that there were pieces missing. The scale had no pan and the bullet puller had no internal plunger. Called Hornady for the part, no problem $4.55 for the part plus shipping came to $17.05. Sent RCBS an email for the pan. Asked for the price and what shipping would be. Got a return email stating that the part was in the mail NO CHARGE
How can you ask for better service than that.Rest assured I will not forget RCBS in the future.

The order I like dies in is RCBS, Hornady, Lyman, Lee and lastly Redding. I have over 52 sets of dies and probably 45 of them are RCBS. The reason Redding is last is because I have a set that from brand new would scratch brass, I called them and wound sending it in three times and each time they returned it within a week saying it was in 'specs'. I kept a case that I sized from before I sent it in the first time and after sending it in the third time it still scratched the brass the same. It was bad enough that I don't believe anyone would like the way it scratched brass.

Steve........

I really like the Forster Ultra Micrometer Seater Die and Redding Bushing Dies. Most of my dies are RBCS though. I also use the Lee Crimp Dies on all my strait wall cases.

quote:

Originally posted by df06:
I have always used RCBS and Redding dies.
What’s the opinion on Lyman and hornady dies. How do they compare to RCBS and Redding?
I’m talking bottle neck rifle dies.
Thanks

I have RCBS, Redding, Hornady, Lee, old Pacific, and Forster dies. It may have been a
mistake getting the first set of Forster's, since I have replaced most of the rest with
them, if that tells you anything.

Ive got dies by RCBS, Redding, Lee & CH4D. I would say Redding has the best finish, with RCBS being a close second. All work as intended. I've never had to use RCBS customer service for a die issue but they were awesome the one time I had to use them on what I thought was an out of spec shell holder.

almost all my dies are RCBS.....and no complaints at all.

I've switched to Hornady for two reasons

The split ring lock nuts are great and Hornady sells a $20 interchangeable micrometer seating stem that I move from one set of dies to the next.

The micrometer system alone saves time and eliminates guesswork in bullet seating from cartridge to cartridge or bullet to bullet.

Just record the mics. # with the load data and you can return to that length from that point forward.

quote:

Originally posted by ted thorn:
I've switched to Hornady for two reasons

The split ring lock nuts are great and Hornady sells a $20 interchangeable micrometer seating stem that I move from one set of dies to the next.

The micrometer system alone saves time and eliminates guesswork in bullet seating from cartridge to cartridge or bullet to bullet.

Just record the mics. # with the load data and you can return to that length from that point forward.

+1 on micrometer seaters, especially if you load for more than one rifle in the same caliber.