Value of a used Lee Loadmater

[Livin_cincy]

So I saw this used Lee Loadmaster auction on eBay.   It looks like 80% -85% of new cost.

http://m.ebay.com/itm/182352661767?_mwBanner=1

 

Edited November 18, 2016 by Livin_cincy

[missed it by that much]

You can buy a refurbished one from Lee cheaper when they have them

[Livin_cincy]

1 hour ago, missed it by that much said:

You can buy a refurbished one from Lee cheaper when they have them

That is a nice piece of information !!!

http://leeprecision.com/reconditioned-loadmaster-only.html

Edited November 18, 2016 by Livin_cincy

[missed it by that much]

That is a nice piece of information !!!

Thanks bought my second one there about two months ago

[jmorris]

The last one I had was given to me by it frustrated owner that gave up on trying to get it to work.

You can get a brand new one from Titan for $165.

http://www.titanreloading.com/lee-load-master/lee-load-master-press-only

 

[mlmiller1]

My opinion is if cost were 10 to 15% of new price it would only be a little bit overpriced.  Been there, bought 1, sent it back 3 times never fixed but to be fully honest, lee rep called me during its last trip to & from factory to tell me how to fix it....?????  I asked why they didnt fix it using these instructions he was giving me & he said "we dont do that"??????   Soon as it came back & like he said, they dont do that & it wasnt fixed, found some looney that likes fixing things & unloaded it on him with complete disclosure.  I saw he had it for sale a few months later.

Edit to add YMMV.  Some folks have good luck with them.  

Edited November 20, 2016 by mlmiller1

[jmorris]

I guess that's one good thing about them.  Once you have one working well, you will have all the knowledge to keep it running well.

Took me about a week of learning, tinkering and ordering parts before I could crank out 100 rounds in under 4 minutes with one.

[NuJudge]

The Lee Loadmaster has to be bolted down to a mounting that has no movement to it.  The chief problem after that is the priming system.  Regarding the former, just have a really steady bench.  

I don't like priming on the Loadmaster, so the second problem does not exist for me.  If you choose to prime on the Loadmaster, there is a Forum just for it that has lots of very helpful videos, and there is an aftermarket vendor who reworks the priming system into something far less problematic:  

http://forums.loadmastervideos.com/forums/index.php  

http://www.mikesreloadingbench.com

[jmorris]

I don't like priming on the Loadmaster, so the second problem does not exist for me.

And that is one reason why so many looking into progressive loading avoid problematic machines and why the LM has poor resale value vs others.

Running multiple passes and performing operations manually off the press make the operation much less appealing.

[johnbu]

The LLM is a royal PITA...when it's grumpy, but decent when running right.  for the 300ish I have into it, it works good enough. Only 1-2 primer goofs in the last 1000 rounds. Did about 12- 13,000 rounds of in 2016

Edited November 26, 2016 by johnbu

[jmorris]

14 hours ago, ARy said:

Is your second station empty? You need to run an empty powder through die - it keeps the case lined up with the primer arm. 

The Loadmaster is a great press, esp for the money. You just need to set it up correctly. 

That's really only important if you are loading a round that is "loose" in their somewhat generic shell plates, like 9mm in the 19s shell plate that works even with .40 cases.

If the case is located right. the most important part would be having the latest "system", that is the plastic parts that gets primers from the tray over the anvil.

Edited December 3, 2016 by jmorris

[Absocold]

I use a LLM for processing brass and loading small runs of ammo I don't use a lot of. Priming system works fine once you take the chute/slider assembly apart and file down all the casting flash and burrs (Hornady LnL has the same problem). Use a sizing die at this station to ensure the brass is properly positioned for priming.

 

The biggest cause of stoppages for me is the case slider assembly that moves brass from the feed tubes to the shell plate. Since the brass isn't fully captured in this area, anything that upsets the system causes issues. I find this part needs frequent re-adjustment.

 

Once you get a LLM tuned right and perfect your "Lee rhythm" (slow at top and bottom of the stroke, fast in the middle) they are a pretty decent press for the money. If you have no prior experience with running a LLM, I would just buy a new one. I would not recommend buying someone else's problems and would only buy a used press that was demonstrated to run well.

 

And the standard Lee caveat: if you're not mechanically inclined and don't want to tinker with it a lot, move along, a LLM isn't for you.

[RJH]

I had one for a couple days. got it midway an sent it back.  It was a huge POS, tried all the "fixes" on youtube that everyone recommended and that did not help.  I am a guy who fixes just about everything, but the LLM that I had was beyond help.  I sent it back to midway, so luckily some crushed brass, spilt powder, and thrashed primers was all I was out.  I like and own a bunch of lee products, presses included, but when it comes to progressives, they suck.  Even people who get them "working great" seem to still have issues.  Save a little longer and get a 550 or SDB, I have had both of these presses and they are great and crank out thousands of rounds with no issues, I am sure 650s and 1050s are great too, but they are out of my price range.  DONT buy a progressive press that people say is great, but you need to prime off the press, this is a sign that the press sucks.  Good luck and please for your sanity, don't buy a lee progressive:-)

[RJH]

8 hours ago, ARy said:

With all due respect - if you had crushed brass, spilled powder, and thrashed primers... the problem wasn't the press. I have a 1050 with a auto drive at my father-in-laws, but I still love to load on my LoadMaster - it runs flawless. I load minor and major on it. 9/38SC/45.

With all due respect, you did not see the press.....  However I am not going to get in an internet pissing match on the virtues of a Loadmaster.  There is a reason it is the most maligned progressive press on the market, if all, most, or even half of them worked anywhere near correctly they might get better reviews.  FYI on the press I had the brass feeder mostly didn't, the auto index did not rotate, the auto primer feeder did not feed primers.  After much work and only mediocre results, I realized that the press was not worth the effort and decided to get a better press.   I am not a Dillon fanboy by any means, 99 percent of my equipment is Lee, but the loadmaster I had was a POS, and if anyone is going to spend their money on one I recommend first that they don't, but if they decide to anyway, at least get one somewhere with a good return policy. 

PS I am glad you got one of the few Loadmasters that work somewhat reliably, and wish you luck with it in the future

[jmorris]

Priming system works fine once you take the chute/slider assembly apart and file down all the casting flash and burrs (Hornady LnL has the same problem).

Can you post photos of the areas you are talking about, I am having a hard time visualizing.

 

 

[jmorris]

Quote

I had one for a couple days. got it midway an sent it back.  It was a huge POS, tried all the "fixes" on youtube that everyone recommended and that did not help.  I am a guy who fixes just about everything, but the LLM that I had was beyond help. 

The one that was given to me was a box of parts a frustrated owner had given up on.  I ordered a few parts that it obviously needed and tinkered with it for a few days learning how they work.

They wouldn't be my first choice in a progressive press or 2nd (maybe around #7) but if you have the time, patience and are somewhat mechanically inclined to see how things have a cause and effect relationship with one another they can keep up with the best presses out there (how long they can continue to do so without further adjustment is another matter).

 

 

Edited December 4, 2016 by jmorris

[Dirtchevy841]

I had a Lee many years ago before switching to Dillon's. It about worth a happy meal from mcdonalds. Had nothing but headaches with that damn press. 

[hceuterpe]

Maybe you'll get lucky and get a match grade LLM[emoji23]

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

[BeerBaron]

On 4 December 2016 at 10:55 AM, ARy said:

Using a sizing die will add resistance. Use an empty powder through die. 

Umm they have to be sized somewhere? An empty powder die may not locate the case very precisely. When I had a llm running well I used a lee universal decapping die in s1 and a lee sizing die (decapper pin removed) in s2 and it definitely helped get more consistent primer depth and more reliable priming in general. 

[Absocold]

Never had much luck with trying to size in station 1. The finicky nature of the llm in pushing cases into the shell plate means the small mouth on a sizing die was a problem. The generous mouth on the universal decapping die placed at station 1 means fewer jams.

 

Sizing at 1 may work fine for you, but if you look around at what most others are doing you'll find that the most common setup by far is Lee Universal Decapper (preferably with squirrel daddy pins) in 1 for getting the brass fully into the plate, sizer in 2 for precision centering of the brass for trouble free priming. Even if you have no problems with sizing at 1, there's no reason to do it since you'd have to buy an extra die to center the brass at 2. No one has to buy a Lee decapper, pretty sure every reloader on the planet already owns one.

[BeerBaron]

8 hours ago, ARy said:

Umm I'm talking about station 2. Decap/size station 1, empty powder die in station 2. Adding another sizing die adds resistance. I've never had a single issue with primers using a empty powder die in station 2. I've used this method for thousands of rounds of 9 and 38sc. Actually out of the thousands I rolled on the llm, I had 1 primer issue and that was due to a bad pocket. 

Yes I know, so am I. As I said. Universal decap in s1, sizing die in s2. There is no 'adding another sizing die'. There's one. It holds the case firmly during priming and also helps primer seat depth be more consistent. 

[jmorris]

In the 100 rounds in under 4 min video above I used a regular die in station 1.  If a case won't enter a regular die you likely won't have the flash hole line up with the decapping pin on a universal die either.

An extra powder die was used in station 2 to align the case, if your loading a round that fits the shell plate, it won't be as important.

[pineyjustice]

I know this is an older thread, that said

 

When I bought my 223 load master kit, lee mixed up my dies, including the wrong charging die and a quick trim die, I know a lot of people either leave 2 empty or advise putting a resizer there with the decapping stem removed, but I've been using the quick trim die as an alignment die, it adds almost no resistance and as long as I don't spill powder in my primer assembly or let a crimped case through it runs flawlessly.

 

FWIW when I do get around to getting another plate and doing a 9mm conversion, I'll have another quick trim die in 2.

[magpulled]

I love my loadmaster. I bought it 4 years ago and it's been flawless. It's been so good I've got conversions for 3 different calibers. I've got a 650 too and it's definitely a great press, besides priming in the up stroke, but with the loadmaster I can load 500 ish and hour too and still use it weekly. 

[zombywoof]

I've been loading on a LM for 25 years. I have two now, they work great. Priming is much better with the Gen 3 priming system. A few tweaks and it runs very well.