Which do you folks prefer ie. ease of use, durability etc

Does the Hornady use the RCBS shellholders and vice versa?

Thanks for the help!

Neither. Lee by a long shot ( pun intended).

Geronimo

I like the Hornady far better than the RCBS, easier to change SH & better lever system. The Lee is ok, I have two, but you have to buy extra SH & it won't take a .404/WSM case w/o modification (unless they have changed since I bought mine years ago). That's how I got onto the Hornady, needed a hand primer for my .404Jeff & 7mm Dakota.

I'm with Geronimo, the Lee works very well.

HH

Do the RCBS shellholders work with the Lee?

I have only used the rcbs and no drama's here it's fine, I can't comment on the others though.

quote:

Originally posted by Geronomo:

Neither. Lee by a long shot ( pun intended).

I agree totally with this.

The Lee priming tool uses its own shellholders; the shellholders used in loading presses will not work with the priming tool. But the shellholders for the priming tool are quite inexpensive -- about $3 each. If you want, you can get a whole set of them for about $15.

I use the Hornady. It does use the 'standard' RCBS shellholders, and works on my 300WSM (and everything else I have tried it on) just fine. We are going on 7 years together with nary a hiccup!

The Lee Auto Prime is Hard to Beat.

You can get the complete set of shell holders for it for just a few bucks.

Good Luck!

Reloader

My vote goes to the Lee Auto Prime, too!! I have 2 of em, one for small primers and one for large primers, don't have to swap the parts to switch from one to the other that way. You can get the primer and shell holders from Cabelas for less then $30 shipped.

Lee Auto Prime

The Lee is OK but doesn't use standard shellholders, feel as good in the hand as the RCBS and will wear out. My first Lee wore the pivot pin to the point were it wouldn't completely seat primers. Like most Lee stuff it's a clever design that should be made better. Addmittedly I probably load more in a year than most would in 10 but still I don't like reloading equipment that wears out.
The RCBS standard version is OK, but be carefull which shellholders you use. Even some of the older RCBS shellholders won't fit properly around the priming column.
My personal favorite is the RCBS APS strip loader. It takes a little time to load the strips, but once the strips are loaded it's the fastest to use. It has a universal shellholder which is great, you can go from 404 Jeffery to 300 Win Mag etc. instantaneously. I have 2, one each for large and small primers. You just grab a strip and start loading with no primer handling whether you are loading 6 or 600 rounds. It's also the most comfortable in my hand.
I've not tried the Hornady...........DJ

The Lee hand primer that I've been using for the last 25 years or so is still going strong. I tried the RCBS version and didn't care for it.

Haven't used any of the others, but I enjoy using my RCBS hand priming tool. Hasn't given me any problem yet.

dj,

Lee Strongly recommends that you put alittle grease on that pivot ever so often. I've primeed thousands through the one I'm using now and she still works like a charm.

I did have to ream out the opening w/ my Dremel to fit those fat WSM case in it but, it works like a charm w/ them now as well.

Have a Good One!

Reloader

I have the RCBS & it works very well. I have not tried the Hornady or the Lee so I don't really have an opinion about them.

quote:

Originally posted by djpaintles:
The Lee is OK but doesn't use standard shellholders, feel as good in the hand as the RCBS and will wear out.

True, the Lee will wear out (but will last for 10's of thousands of primings with just a dab of vasoline on the pivot points). The great thing about the Lee is that you can just go buy a new one if yours is worn, lost, or permanently "borrowed" and you're still money ahead of the other brands. As was pointed out, just a little judicious grinding on the regular .530" shellholder will make it work beautifully with the rebated WSM/Ultra series, and it will still work with the regular belted magnums.

Like others, I keep two Lee hand priming tools, one set up for small primers and one for large.

Oh, yeah, almost forgot. If you're in a bind and need a shellholder size you can't get, you CAN simply mill (or here on the farm, grind) the base off of a "standard" shellholder and it becomes, whallah!, a Lee priming tool holder. Since I happened to have two of some odd-sized shellholder, that's exactly what I did. Works like a charm.

I have used 2 Lee tools for years ( to lazy to change between L & S)

I can not even guess how many thousand cases I have primed .

Cheaper and better.

Johnch

If you want the very best, get a Sinclair:

http://www.sinclairintl.com

AD

I love the Lee unit. Buy one and take Momma out for Chinese food with the savings.

I use the RCBS. It uses the same shell holder as the press. Works great for me. Seats the primers just right.

The only problem I've had is letting the handle go when changing shell holders. Takes a bit of effort to put it back together. So I don't do that.

I have two Lee's that I love dearly.
The better half got me a RCBS Auto Prime for my Birthday (bless her heart).
It is the one that uses the strips.I love it to death.

Get a K&M. After having both RCBS and Lee tools self-destruct I went to the K&M. As someone here said a while back ..."like comparing a BMW to a Pinto".
C.G.B.

I've had a RCBS priming tool for years and really like it. I find the leverage enough to drive the primer all the way in on the first try. There may be better ones available, but the RCBS meets all my requirements. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

The only lee tool that I own is the autoprime.It works very well and mine has lasted many years.

Thanks for all of the feedback...looks like I'll try a Lee for my Service Rifle rounds and an RCBS for my specialty big bore stuff (these use "odd!?" RCBS shell holders sizes)