I have a post running on the Beretta Forum on this new endeavor of mine. A lot of consternation went into this purchase as I heard a lot of very good and very bad about this press. I talked to some expert users and got some good advice. Hit the link below to follow my escapades if you are interested in a progressive press that doesn't require you to mortgage your house to obtain.

A new Beretta and a lot more throughput with my 1911's led me to a progressive press to become more productive on the bench.

http://www.berettaforum.net/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=10&t=000805#000001

Send it back, and buy a blue one.(Dillon)

These progressive presses are for use only with straight-wall cases, correct? Any idea as to how I can load .223 rapidly?

You can reload bottleneck shells on the Dillons.

quote:

Originally posted by rootbeer:
These progressive presses are for use only with straight-wall cases, correct? Any idea as to how I can load .223 rapidly?

rootbeer

lee's presses are excellent......except for the loadmaster, it is a genuine "p o s". if you want a great progressive get a hornady lnl. it works and is as smooth as greased ball bearings on glass.

Keep the Loadmaster. I've had one since they came out (8-10 years I'm sure) and while it has its quirks it has done reliable work for me every time. Some of my observations:

I've only recently started loading 9mm on my machine. Until then I NEVER had a case go into the feeder upside down - 38/357, 44 mag, 45 auto, 45 Colt all stacked perfectly using the shaker bowl on top of the tubes. But the 9mm is so short and the case head so (relatively) small and light that I now watch the tube filling process very carefully - I'd rather pay attention at that step than have to watch each case drop.

Primer feed is the weakest part of the system. I find that the little jogging nubs on the frame are MORE effective at keeping the small primer feeder filled from the hopper than with large primers. YMMV depending on the tolerances of your large primer feeder.

In any case, once the last primer disappears below the cutouts in the feeder chute I either stop and refill the hopper or remove the hopper and use my "pusher" - a 4" piece of electric guitar string (a thin one, don't ask me the key) with its brass ring still on the end, and the other end stuck in a short piece of dowel. I push down gently on the primer stack after the ram is back down at the bottom of the stroke, then back off on the pressure - you don't want the end of the pusher to be fed in under a case or you'll have to disassemble things to get back in business.

Keep a couple of the primer sliders on hand - if you have 'em you won't need 'em very often, but if you run out . . . I rarely have a tipped primer (have more with the 9mm than with any other round that I can recall, but it's still not very frequent) and when it happens the handle locks up pretty solidly so you know something's not right. I've never had one go off on me (knock on wood.)

Regular greasing of the Zerk fittings on the linkage keeps things very smooth. I tend to ignore this because it's a production to get out the grease gun, but things are always much nicer after I take the trouble.

Other than that, enjoy using it, and remind yourself how little it costs to set up for another caliber (compared to the blue models, that is.)

Let me do a series of responses:

1) I wasn't asking if I should keep it, it is a keeper. BLUE takes WAY too much GREEN to start and maintain; especially when you have to change calibers.

2) You can do bottlenecks on the Lee. .223 and a whole bunch of others.

3) I have found in my investigations the people that have problems with this press do not either follow directions, set it up correctly or don't operate it right.

4) Wrangler, you're absolutly correct on all points. I just did 250 .45 ACP today and zero upside down cases, zero primer problems. It's almost as if the 9 mil is too small, but with care, I got these buggers working well. This press is a DREAM !

5) Talk about cost? Complete 9 mil set-up with powder measure, bullet catcher, feed tubes, carbide dies, spare parts and case feed & collator for $190 from Midway. I also bought a large primer assembly and large case feeder for the .45 ACP, extra turret and shellplate for the .45, factory crimp die for the 9 mil and a Lyman M-die for the 9. I already had the (5) .45 dies. Total cost for everything: $295 including shipping to Cleveland. Let's see "Blue" come even close to that for a fully progressive setup for 2 calibers. More likely it would be almost 3 times the cost.

My spare parts and expansion options are dirt cheap too.

I like my loadmaster very much. I tend to use is for pistol reloading, and my dillon 550b for rifle reloading. I just don't like lee's system for rifle. the lee is much more cost effective comparied to the others, that too me it is worth the learning curve.

There are several updates to my original posting on the press and some great productivity results for those that are interested.

The bottom line? The Loadmaster is the way to go.

I've been paying particular attention to how the Loadmaster's Case Collator puts 9mm cases down the feeder tubes since commenting in this thread earlier. As a result, I've concluded that the "problem" is that the holes in the bottom of the Collator are too large relative to the length of the 9mm case - the mouth of the case can overhang the edge of one of these holes to the point where the case will start to tip down into the tube, mouth first. This can't happen with the longer revolver cases, or with 45 Auto because of the heavier cartridge base, so these other cases don't start to tip into the holes unless it's the (heavy) head that is overhanging.

I called Lee today and talked to one of their support people about this situation. He said he had not heard of the problem, but understood what I was saying as we talked. He agreed that it might be a good idea to have smaller entry holes in the Case Collator for these small cases, but said that making a different part with smaller holes would require a new mold, which is $$$$$. Thinking out loud, he said they might be able to come up with some kind of bushing or insert that would reduce the size of the opening for a lot less $, and said he would pass that along to the decision makers to explore further.

In no way did Lee commit to make any changes in this part as a result of our conversation, but my comments were apparently welcome and there was a commitment to at least consider the situation. Thought people might like to know.

Dillon SDB $339 NEW with two calibers and that includes shipping, it does not need any extras all my parts are free for life, and send it back to factory for a free tune up any time, I have had mine for 5 years and bought it used on ebay for $145, I have loaded well over 10,000 rounds of 9mm, 357, 41 & 44 mag along with 45 ACP AND IT'S NEVER MISSED A BEAT, I broke the spent primer tray with a chair called Dillon and they sent a new one Free, nothing compairs to blue.

US1, Dillon is a great company that stands behind its product, something that is lacking in todays world. The first loadmaster I purchased was for $42.50 if my memory serves also off e-bay. While it does not have the free replacement of worn or broken parts, they are relatively inexpensive to purchase. I really do like my lee better for pistol reloading than my dillon, and by useing my dillon powder dispenser or the Hornady unit it THEN makes a great all arround reloading machine. But for about $12.00 or so I can have a powder measure set up and ready to go for all of my pistol reloading needs. This is comparing to $65.00 plus for the dillon. Yes I have a Dillon, and yes I like it very well, but there are others out there that are also very good, for the same money I think the Hornady unit is top notch, the bushings that dillon uses for its powder die as per calaber is tops, and they all seem to need a bit of tweeking when you get right down to it. Try them all, and mix and match the best of all the progressives is the ultimate in tinkering heaven.

Wrangler5:

Graet news! Thank you very much for pursing that issue with Lee. I would think a plastic plate just large enough to cover the drop zone with well-aligned and properly sized holes done at home would do the trick. Over the winter, when my shooting season is over, I'll do some experimenting.

US1 -

Is the SDB autoindexing and have a case & bullet feeder?

No doubt about it, Dillon is a great company. I just prefer the value Lee offers, in SOME of their products, certainly not all of them though.

The SDB is auto indexing (I've played with one in a local store) but does not have a case feeder. The only case feeders in the Dillon line are for the 650 and 1050, and of course the shotshell loader.