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home load dies....

mondmond Member Posts: 6,458
edited September 2007 in Ask the Experts
hi guys,,
looking for recommendations for a die manufacturer,please, as im not impressed with 'LEE'
cheers [:)]
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    MIKE WISKEYMIKE WISKEY Member, Moderator Posts: 9,977 ******
    edited November -1
    REDDING, RCBS, HORNADY (IN THAT ORDER, IMO).
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    Sig220_Ruger77Sig220_Ruger77 Member Posts: 12,748 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I have used Lee products and nothing else and I have had no problems with them. Of course, I might me a little biased towards them because they are made in Hartford, WI I believe[;)]. I know a lot of people use RCBS dies and I don't hear too many bad things about them. There is also Hornady, Redding, and Lyman, but I am not real familiar with them three.

    Jon
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    PA ShootistPA Shootist Member Posts: 690 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I have used Lyman dies since the 1960's, still have them all, never any problems. I have also used RCBS dies for many years, again never any problems. I have more recently bought Lee dies for a couple unusual calibers (e.g. 11.15x60R, 8x56R, 7.5 Swiss, 7.62x54R) because they were readily available only in Lee brand, and they have also worked fine. They seem rugged and well-machined. I do typically replace the "locking" ring on the Lee dies with a "real" locking ring that utilizes a set screw. I find Lee's set-up to be not precise enough, and it is very inexpensive to acquire another brand's lock rings that lock the die-ring with a set screw. I have never, ever, experienced a broken decapping pin with the Lee dies, that set-up is rugged and foolproof.
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    bgjohnbgjohn Member Posts: 2,275 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I replace my locking rings too. I love the LEE rings.
    JM[^]
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    ern98ern98 Member Posts: 1,725 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    If you are reloading to build "blasting" ammo for semi auto fun then most any brand dies will do. If however you are looking to build high quality customised loads for target or hunting application then you will need better equipment. My favorite brands for this are Redding and then RCBS, but that doesn't really matter. What matters is that the reformed brass is straight, true and round to very tight tolerences. One of the better way to judge this is with a RCBS case master which amongst other things will let you measure the run out of the case after being resized. My better dies hold the brass to like .0015" of runout/out of round, which helps in building up very uniform custom loads. After that it is just a matter of uniform powder measuring and getting the bullets in straight........
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    NwcidNwcid Member Posts: 10,674 ✭
    edited November -1
    I love the Hornady pistol dies and that is all I have for pistol dies. For my rifles I use RCBS and have never had a problem with them. I know there are higher end dies out there but these work for me.
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    1KYDSTR1KYDSTR Member Posts: 2,361 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Di you have a problem with their customer service? I use anything I can get, to include RCBS (my favorite commercially available brand), Pacific PRecision, Redding and Lee too. I have about 35 die sets and almost 20 of them are Lee. I had a 7.62 x 54R set with factory crimp die that was waaaay out of center (run out) and sized the necks too tight as I use ".311 to ".313 bullets and the necks would split after the second to fourth reloading (Norma hung in there for four...I nearly cried throwing those out after 4 reloads[:(]). After sending them back I got a die set that was within ".0010 and formed a neck at ".3115. I paid about $30 for these dies and they shipped them back after fixing/replacing them for free and absorbing the shipping. My Finn Nagants shoot like no one's business as a result! My main message here is don't give up on them in terms of customer service. For the most part, they seem to be Good Wisonsin folk and are really interested in helping out! Hope you get this resolved, but the other brands mentioned are all somewhere between good and excellent.
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    mondmond Member Posts: 6,458
    edited November -1
    thanks guys..here we mainly use the 22 cal rounds
    22/22H/223/243 6/6.5/7..some 25-06/30-06

    recently i have had lee dies split,on the 223, resize wrong & pins bend & oooooooops!! imo, poo quality,

    i borrowed some RCBS from a bud,tday. & the quality was immediatley noticed, better quality & grade steel.
    think these are the ones.[;)]

    thanks for pointing me in the right direction, once again..have a great weekend.[:)]
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