Looking at Lee Classic Turret for first press

[Dr. Phil]

I have a Lee Turret (not the classic, they weren't around when I bought this one in the early 80s LOL) which has loaded somewhere in the 300,000 rounds. I used it for about 15 or 20 years as my primary press. I also loaded all of my match 9mm ammo on it until about 10 years ago, because you can make perfect ammo on it all the time. I have setups for about 5 or 6 calibers. I like the way you can change caliber in 30 sec. I use it now for smaller runs of 44 mag, 357 mag, etc. I believe it is the #1 best press for a first. Don't believe their "200 rnds/hr" tho. More like 150 if you keep at it. Agree with the powder measure and scale advice. The auto disc powder measures are EXCELLENT! If you can get the one with the spring on the measure they are nearly foolproof. You still need a scale to check, etc. Happy loading!

[BeerBaron]

Funny you should say that. I had 2 pro auto disk powder measures. One on the turret with spring and one on the loadmaster with fail safe chain. I ended up swapping that one for the spring type. I can see why they think the chain 'might' be safer but my spring returned pro auto disk has been 100% reliable over many thousands of rounds. One of them now lives on one of my dillon 650 toolheads and is every bit as good of the dillon measure. Just holds less powder.

[Steve RA]

AD2296 Lee Precision Spring $ 0.59 1 $ 0.59 AD2309 Lee Precision POWDER MEA Lever F $ 2.09 1 $ 2.09

These two parts will convert from a "chain pull" measure to a spring type.

The Dillon measures also work better - IMHO - if changed back to spring operation.

[tcoz]

I ran the Pro Auto Disk for a few years and it was mostly ok. The problem that I had with it though was that every so often it would just start throwing strangely inconsistent charges for no discernible reason. I would then notice that the disk wasn't making its full travel and all of the powder then wouldn't drop into the case. I tried everything including tearing the whole thing down and lubricating it with graphite. Then it would be fine for a while but then it would start doing it again. Lee gave me all kinds of suggestions to try but none of them worked for long. As a result of this, I would check weigh every third charge to make sure it hadn't changed. I was only loading pistol at that time and the charges would change by as much as 0.5gr which is way too much. I couldn't screw the die in farther to increase the disk travel because it would increase the flare of the case at the same time. When I started loading rifle, I bought a Chargemaster 1500 and have never looked back. It's the best investment I've ever made in reloading equipment.

So even though I love my LCT press and think it's the best choice for many of us, I'd caution you to just be aware of any potential charge weight issues with the PAD....and if you can swing it, buy a Chargemaster, you'll never regret it.

Edited August 5, 2015 by tcoz

[Dr. Phil]

Funny you should say that. I had 2 pro auto disk powder measures. One on the turret with spring and one on the loadmaster with fail safe chain. I ended up swapping that one for the spring type. I can see why they think the chain 'might' be safer but my spring returned pro auto disk has been 100% reliable over many thousands of rounds. One of them now lives on one of my dillon 650 toolheads and is every bit as good of the dillon measure. Just holds less powder.

Now that is funny! I have (had) one of the pull chain types. What were they thinking? Changed to spring. Life is gooooooood!

[Kaldor]

Nothing wrong with a Lee Classic Turret Kit. Only thing Id do is pick up a decent scale. RCBS 505's are going for less the $50 right now. The on ther thing Id do is pick up the ejector kit from Inline Fabrication to speed up operation slightly.

Why'd you make me look at that site!! Now I want one of those Ergo Roller Handles! But it's half the price of the whole press so I must resist

The handles are very nice. Best $60 I ever spent on my LnL. The short ergo version saves my back and shoulder from getting irritated from dipping my shoulder on every down stroke. The long ergo version probably would require the finish on the up stroke to push too far over the bench for my liking. You may not want the ergo version though for the Lee. Run the press with the standard handle to decide if you need the ergo version. You might find that the ergo version requires you to push too far over your bench, and the straight version is better.

Edited August 5, 2015 by Kaldor

[vixty]

As others have said, the turret is better for smaller runs of ammo. I use one for 380 and 44mag. However if your going to be shooting 10k rounds a year then go with the dillon. It not that complicated to learn on. I started with a lee turret and I started to get tendenitus pretty quick when loading 500 rounds a week. Now that I have my dillion I just do a run of 500 every once and a while and its quick and simple.

[StraightSh00ter]

Why'd you make me look at that site!! Now I want one of those Ergo Roller Handles! But it's half the price of the whole press so I must resist

That's how I feel about the reverse rotation rod - at $40 t's more than 30% of the cost of a new press. I don't know that I feel like making one and I wouldn't feel great about asking anyone to make one for less, so....

[PatJones]

My first press was Lee classic turret. I could load 150 rounds an hour on it. All was good until I started to load for competition on it.

I shoot about the same amount each month as you do. With the increased production, the powder measure wore out and started to malfunction giving me occasional squibs.

I now have a Dillon 550. It is a different class of machine. There is no plastic to speak of. The 550 is a fairly simple machine with no auto advance, this is a positive for a novice. I now load at a slower pace than I did with the Lee and I comfortably load 400 rounds an hour once my primer tubes are full.

I sold the Lee, and I've never missed it. With large enough batches of brass I can load almost as fast on my single stage as I could on that turret.

The Dillon is a lot of money; you're paying up front for a lifetime of spare parts and service. In my experience, the Dillon presses have longer service intervals between problems than the Lee equipment.

If I was starting over and was afraid of the cost of a Dillon, I would get a good single stage press. With large batches of brass, you can load at nearly the same speed as the Lee turret, and you will always have a use for a good single stage. I still load several pistol calibers and all my rifle ammo on the old Forster Co-Ax I picked up.

[bofe954]

I will echo pat jones a little. Started out on a turret. 150 rounds an hours for me was the max, maybe even optimistic. If you are OK with spending 10 hours a month loading, you can do it.

When I bought mine I was shooting one weekly match, a weekend or two a month and maybe some practice. I'd have to load for an hour before every weekly match, an hour and a half before every weekend match and two hours at least to practice. I bought a 550 when I had my first kid so free up time. Now I have a 650 with a bullet and case feeder, and 2 kids.

Realize that you are buying time when you are buying a press.

If all you can get is the Lee turret, it's an OK press. A 550 isn't any more difficult to learn on and you can double production.

[StraightSh00ter]

Yeah, the old time vs money problem. I would love a 650 with a bullet feeder but the up-front investment is considerably more. I still have to get brass handling equipment and whatever else on top of the press. I read the thread about people starting on the 650 - I would probably be OK if I went that route and was careful. But I like the idea of taking my time and going easy as I get started. And the LCT isn't a bad investment - I could easily get most of my money back if I wanted to sell it.

I would like to shoot a lot more than I have been (I just started shooting so hopefully that will happen). If I find that I can't keep up with the turret press, I'll consider it an accomplishment and be proud to upgrade to the 650 when I have a little more money to spend.

I've been pissing away a lot of time looking at gun stuff online - if I spent half that time making ammunition I'd probably be in pretty good shape

[biglou13]

".....I've been pissing away a lot of time looking at gun stuff online - if I spent half that time making ammunition I'd probably be in pretty good shape...... :)"

Sage advice young jedi, add shooting, and training to that statement a true jedi you will become

smartest thing ive heard in along time ..... im going to crank out some 9mm

Edited August 5, 2015 by biglou13

[FTDMFR]

In terms of volume, you're right on the border where people start considering a progressive. 1000-1200 a month is 10-12 hours a month loading at a moderate pace. If that's manageable, then I'd definitely go with the LCT to get your feet wet. IMHO it's the best press for the money. Easy to learn on, easy to deal wtih stoppages.

If you end up outgrowing it and getting a progressive, you can still use the LCT for other things. I upgraded to a 650, but I still use my LCT for load workup and for loading .223, which I only shoot in small volumes.

Edited August 5, 2015 by FTDMFR

[bofe954]

I've gone cheap on the brass handling and don't have any regrets. If you ask around at the range people may have tumblers and stuff to get rid of. I got cheap midway vibratory cleaner about 10 years ago. Still going strong. Some kind of rotary separator is a must.

[tcoz]

A turret press is the best way to go for a novice reloader. It gives you a chance to learn the fundsmentals of reloading and see what happens during every step of the process. A progressive can't be beat for volume reloading but there's a lot going on with every pull and it's easy for a novice to miss something with expensive or potentially catastrophic results.

[ArrDave]

As long as you are using a small ball powder the Lee Turret isn't that bad for light shooting. That said, I have a lee turret and am looking at stepping up to a dillon at the end of the year.

[Southpaw]

The auto disc powder measures are EXCELLENT! If you can get the one with the spring on the measure they are nearly foolproof. You still need a scale to check, etc. Happy loading!

I'm just starting out reloading, but I wish the disks came in smaller increments. It seems like there's a significant difference from one to the next and you're SOL if you want to go in between. Does anyone sell disks that are sized for all the mid points between each disk size?

I know they make some kind of adjustable one, but I've heard that doesn't work well for low powder weights.

Russell92, I don't know whether you saw it, but Inline Fab also has a standard height lever with the roller handle for the LCT. If it's the handle and not necessarily the ergonomically shaped lever that you're interested in, you can save a few bucks.

http://inlinefabrication.com/products/standard-height-roller-lever-for-lee-classic-turret-press

Thanks yeah I did see that one too. I think that Ergo one would be nice since standing up I need to lean over to fully raise the ram and I'd rather stand while reloading. But I don't want to spend a lot on upgrades to my LCT since I'm sure I'll eventually be upgrading to a 650 in the not too distant future.

[tcoz]

Lee used to make a Micro Disk but their mold was somehow damaged and they said there wasn't enough demand for it to justify the cost of developing another mold.

I ran across this one on eBay and it might be what you're looking for.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CUSTOM-CAST-ENHANCED-METERING-DISK-compatible-with-LEE-AUTO-DISK-POWDER-MEASURE-/331618833319?hash=item4d3605d3a7

[StraightSh00ter]

The auto disc powder measures are EXCELLENT! If you can get the one with the spring on the measure they are nearly foolproof. You still need a scale to check, etc. Happy loading!

I'm just starting out reloading, but I wish the disks came in smaller increments. It seems like there's a significant difference from one to the next and you're SOL if you want to go in between. Does anyone sell disks that are sized for all the mid points between each disk size?

I know they make some kind of adjustable one, but I've heard that doesn't work well for low powder weights.

Just looking at the pics, it looks like you could get an extra measuring disk and modify it, like using some epoxy and microballoons to close up the holes (or completely plug and re-drill them).

Or maybe the auto-drum would do what you need to?

https://fsreloading.com/lee-precision-auto-drum-powder-measure-90811.html

Edited August 6, 2015 by StraightSh00ter

[Southpaw]

Thanks guys. That Micro Disk looks like it's for really small powder drops. I just meant offering disks where each hole is in between the sizes of the holes on the current disks. For example, I just tried a load where the .46 was a tiny bit too little, but going to the .49 would be too much of an increase, so something like a .475 would be helpful. With some fast powders it seems like you can go from being under power factor with one hole to over the max load with the next hole available.

That auto drum looks like it's not available yet. I'm sure I can make do with the auto disk since that's what I already have...

[vixty]

The auto disks work great. I only load 380 on my LTP so I needed smaller holes. I ordered one of those blank discs off ebay and drilled the holes myself. I does talk a little time to get the hole just right. Just take it slow and easy. I was a little to quick when I first started out and ended up with 3 holes that got to big before I finally got it right. Just don't use the lee powder bar.

[tcoz]

Check into the Lee double disk kit. I'm not positive about this but I think you can get just about any in between drop by combining two disks. I don't know what the minimum is though. The kit is just another set of disks and a little riser with longer screws that allow you to stack two disks under the powder hopper. Look at your disks and see if you can get what you want by adding the volume of two holes and if you can, the double disk kit is what you want.

Amen to not using the powder bar. Some people love it but I wasted a lot of time trying to get it set just right, then it wouldn't always hold the setting and then when I changed calibers I had to start the process over again. I think I might still have it in the bottom of a drawer somewhere if anybody wants it.

[bfalcon00]

Just whatever you do stay away from the Lee Loadmaster. That thing was nothing but headaches for me when I first started loading. I got sick of messing with it and sold it and bought a 650 like I should have to begin with. After that haven't had a single problem that wasn't just stupidity on my part and even those were simple easy fix. The dillon will cost you though, but in my case I factored the extra cost out over the next 20 years, which the 650 will easily do, it was pennies really. Just an all around better machine.

[biglou13]

my testing is limited to what the auto disc will throw

for pistol its accurate enough

[JJP161]

I have to mirror what everyone else has said, the Lee Classic Turret press is a great first press and a very solid press at that. Make sure you get Lee Classic Turret though and not the Lee Turret and yes go for the kit and just throw away the beam scale and get yourself a decent digital scale and a set of calipers. The Lee pro auto disk throws just fine and as was mentioned by tcoz just get yourself the double disk kit for those in between throws. I finally upgraded to a Dillon 550 about a year ago but I still load a lot on my LCT and work up my new loads on it as well. Quick easy caliber changes and very easy to load primers. You will be very happy with your LCT.