Have a friend with a few of these fr sale. He's more of a MEC guy, so he's selling these off. He's checking on the model number.

I'm looking to reload 12GA for trap, so nothing fancy. 7/8 or 1oz, 2 3/4".

Are there any PW models I should steer clear of?

P&W are the Cadillacs of shotshell loaders. The model 375 is a single stage loader and works very well. The model 800 is a progressive machine and I wouldnt recommend it unless you are going to load a lot of shells

quote:

Originally posted by snowman:
P&W are the Cadillacs of shotshell loaders. The model 375 is a single stage loader and works very well. The model 800 is a progressive machine and I wouldnt recommend it unless you are going to load a lot of shells

I have used several of the PW 800.

Absolutely fantastic machines.

The ARE heads and shoulders above anything else.

IMO, the only thing to watch out for is if the machine you are looking at is still in production.

I’ve got a 375 and a 1000 with the hydraulic set up.

I use the progressive infrequently because I do the target loads on it in several thousand round batches. If you get the stack height right, it will load any brand of Hull with minimal changes.

I have an 800B in 12 gauge and a 900 in 20 gauge.
Great machines.
Bought the 800 about 30 years ago?
Both machines will load a case off shells in 1- 1/2hrs, not working hard and without interruptions. I have the large shot and powder tubes. Also the shovel type handle. Price of 12 gauge shells has become competitive with cost of reloaded ammo. I am thinking of converting the 12 to 28.

I probably loaded 70,000 shells on my 800 back in the day. But components are so high you seriously cannot justify the cost of reloading a box of 12 or 20 gauge shells anymore unless your time is worth about $5 an hour or so...LOL

If your shoot 28 gauge or .410 your can make sense of it but unless you are shooting 500+ shells a month you will never recover your costs. The MEC grabber is a great machine for the money that will get you down the road...without the costs of a 800.

No question...they are a superb machine. But I quit reloading 12 and 20 gauge shotshells because you can buy new for so little money theses days.. YMMV

quote:

Originally posted by snowman:
P&W are the Cadillacs of shotshell loaders. The model 375 is a single stage loader and works very well. The model 800 is a progressive machine and I wouldnt recommend it unless you are going to load a lot of shells

The reason I suggested the 375 rather than the 800 has nothing to do with how well the machine works. They both work wonderfully. Unless you plan to load a lot of shells I wouldn't recommend the 800 or newer 1000 because they cost a lot more and you will not likely see the benifit dollar wise.. But whatever floats your boat. When I sold my 800 it made room on my bench for 2 model 375's One set up for 410 and 28 ga.and another for 20 & 12 ga 2 3/4 in. I also have a 20 & 12 ga 3 in and a 10 ga with 2 tool heads set up for 3 1/2 and 2 7/8. No more adjusting Everything stays set up

I brought my used 800 for $100.00 dollars from and a estate.

works well.

I've got two PW 800s. One I got used in 28, and so pleased with that that I bought a new in 410 a few years ago. Both work great, but I've been equally satisfied with a couple of MEC progressives I picked up at times, and if I were starting fresh I'd probably go with a MEC.

As noted above, it hardly makes sense to load for the larger gauges unless you're doing something a bit 'one off'. I still have a 50 year old convertible MEC single stage I use for bizmuth duck loads. And, whether it makes sense or not, its always good to actually do something...

Good hunting,

I have a 375 and really like it. Had been using a MEC 650 for years, but prefer the PW 375

The nice lady at P-W is really helpful, so if you run in to any problems help won’t be far away.

I love my 800 plus.

I got to use a friends 800 for awhile. It's a real piece of machinery. However, I found that the tolerances were so tight that one #8 piece of shot would jam things up. MEC's are built loosey-goosey and don't jam as much. If you use the PW 800...pay attention to neatness.

Okay guys, how many of you remember the 600 progressive from PW?
I have 3 of the beauties and I've loved them for decades.
12 ga, 20, ga and 410. My 12 and 20 self-advance but the 410 is designed to roll the head by hand.
They haven't made them since shep was a pup and they keep on spitting out my loads like butter....unless I use Gun Club cases with the steel bases...but even those after once reloaded are just fine.

Zeke