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Hey guys,

It's been 1 month, and I've learned a lot with my first reloading press. It's been a fun experience and I take a lot of joy in reloading my own ammo.

Here's my Lee Loadmaster with upgrades/mods galore. Very happy with how it runs. The total up front cost is equitable to a barebones Dillon 550XL.

 
I get it that most people tumble/clean deprimed brass before loading (I don't, just wash it before loading) but to me, that'd about defeat the benefit of having a progressive.
 
Thanks guys! Man this thing is fast. I used to help my Uncle on his RCBS single stage and it took a lot longer.

I plan on wet tumbling, and the depriming. I don't want to deprime dirty brass.
 
All my range pickups go into my Thumlr dry tumblers before depriming to knock the crud off. I then deprime on the ole RCBS RS single stage press then do a through wet clean. I do the priming off press because there is too much bad stuff that can happen on the press.

I had a Loadmaster, I tried to load 40S&W and it but it did not work well with the indexing. It was not consistent, I was not confident with it so I sold it. I have a classic turret, classic cast single stage and a Pro 1000 that I am very comfortable with. I am retired so going slow is ok with me...
 
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It def took some tuning, friends told me to go straight to the blue but I really wanted to see if I could get a workhorse for less than a barebones Dillon
 
Glad you got a good Lee Load of Something. Mine was warped from improper heat treating at the factory (from Lee letter when they returned it to me the first time, when I returned it to Lee after three days of trying to load on it, because "improper heat treating at the factory is NOT covered under either the 'LOVE IT OR RETURN IT' 30 day guarantee OR the 2 year warranty"!). Called, the repair dept head "send it back and it would be repaired/replaced." It wasn't. "That's impossible! I PERSONALLY check each press being returned and if it won't work with two fingers, it is repaired or replaced!" THAT is a lie because out of the 25 times it was returned to Lee in the first 2 years, it often came back with the broken parts on it and still jammed tight.

Bought a used Dillon 550 for retail price, with $250 worth of accessories/dies/con kits included. Guess what? LIFE TIME warranty they STAND BEHIND! Got a problem? They talk you through it! Break/lose something? They send you a new part, FREE! WOW! How cool is that?! Well, sure, Lee will send you a new pin or other small part, but that's IT!

THAT is why I am a Dillon fan!

Now try to sell your Lee and see what you can get for it. Half of what you spent? Less? Now sell Dillon you bought and see how much you can get. 80% of new?

THAT is why I'm a Dillon fan.

Sure, I have lots of Lee stuff, dies, primer tool, disk measure, but also have tried nearly everything Lee makes (literally) and about 50% (possibly slightly more) has been useless trash.

That is why I'm a Dillon fan.

OK, I do not expect to change your mind, I am actually happy you got a "working" (or were able to make a working) Lee LM, and am happy for you that you are happy, but I refuse to buy any Lee pot metal presses (having tried all Lee presses except the Cast Classics) ever again.

Has Lee quality improved since Dickie Lee died? Don't know, but from what I've heard/seen, probably not. Has Lee QC/CS improved lately? Not from the bullet molds and other items I've bought from Lee. Like I said, Lee makes some great stuff, but a LOT of it ISN'T. At my age and as broke as I am, I can no longer afford cheap junk tools/equipment. I find SnapOn tools cheaper in the long run than Dollar Tree tools, even if the Dollar Tree stuff was given to me. Well that's what makes horse races, you like the bay and I like the blond.

May your Lee press always work for you, and may you will be happy with it.
 
Glad you got a good Lee Load of Something. Mine was warped from improper heat treating at the factory (from Lee letter when they returned it to me the first time, when I returned it to Lee after three days of trying to load on it, because "improper heat treating at the factory is NOT covered under either the 'LOVE IT OR RETURN IT' 30 day guarantee OR the 2 year warranty"!). Called, the repair dept head "send it back and it would be repaired/replaced." It wasn't. "That's impossible! I PERSONALLY check each press being returned and if it won't work with two fingers, it is repaired or replaced!" THAT is a lie because out of the 25 times it was returned to Lee in the first 2 years, it often came back with the broken parts on it and still jammed tight.

Bought a used Dillon 550 for retail price, with $250 worth of accessories/dies/con kits included. Guess what? LIFE TIME warranty they STAND BEHIND! Got a problem? They talk you through it! Break/lose something? They send you a new part, FREE! WOW! How cool is that?! Well, sure, Lee will send you a new pin or other small part, but that's IT!

THAT is why I am a Dillon fan!

Now try to sell your Lee and see what you can get for it. Half of what you spent? Less? Now sell Dillon you bought and see how much you can get. 80% of new?

THAT is why I'm a Dillon fan.

Sure, I have lots of Lee stuff, dies, primer tool, disk measure, but also have tried nearly everything Lee makes (literally) and about 50% (possibly slightly more) has been useless trash.

That is why I'm a Dillon fan.

OK, I do not expect to change your mind, I am actually happy you got a "working" (or were able to make a working) Lee LM, and am happy for you that you are happy, but I refuse to buy any Lee pot metal presses (having tried all Lee presses except the Cast Classics) ever again.

Has Lee quality improved since Dickie Lee died? Don't know, but from what I've heard/seen, probably not. Has Lee QC/CS improved lately? Not from the bullet molds and other items I've bought from Lee. Like I said, Lee makes some great stuff, but a LOT of it ISN'T. At my age and as broke as I am, I can no longer afford cheap junk tools/equipment. I find SnapOn tools cheaper in the long run than Dollar Tree tools, even if the Dollar Tree stuff was given to me. Well that's what makes horse races, you like the bay and I like the blond.

May your Lee press always work for you, and may you will be happy with it.
You know aluminum really isn't heat treated. It can be stress relieved, but there is no heat treat for aluminum. And as a person that worked with machine tools for better than 30 years with all kinds of metals, making parts from hay balers to nuclear submarines I'm kind of wondering why anybody would stress relieve such an aluminum casting. Oh, I had a Lee Load Master, it worked like a champ. I got rid of it as I just didn't need to reload 500 or more cartridges at one time anymore.
 
Glad you got a good Lee Load of Something. Mine was warped from improper heat treating at the factory (from Lee letter when they returned it to me the first time, when I returned it to Lee after three days of trying to load on it, because "improper heat treating at the factory is NOT covered under either the 'LOVE IT OR RETURN IT' 30 day guarantee OR the 2 year warranty"!). Called, the repair dept head "send it back and it would be repaired/replaced." It wasn't. "That's impossible! I PERSONALLY check each press being returned and if it won't work with two fingers, it is repaired or replaced!" THAT is a lie because out of the 25 times it was returned to Lee in the first 2 years, it often came back with the broken parts on it and still jammed tight.

Bought a used Dillon 550 for retail price, with $250 worth of accessories/dies/con kits included. Guess what? LIFE TIME warranty they STAND BEHIND! Got a problem? They talk you through it! Break/lose something? They send you a new part, FREE! WOW! How cool is that?! Well, sure, Lee will send you a new pin or other small part, but that's IT!

THAT is why I am a Dillon fan!

Now try to sell your Lee and see what you can get for it. Half of what you spent? Less? Now sell Dillon you bought and see how much you can get. 80% of new?

THAT is why I'm a Dillon fan.

Sure, I have lots of Lee stuff, dies, primer tool, disk measure, but also have tried nearly everything Lee makes (literally) and about 50% (possibly slightly more) has been useless trash.

That is why I'm a Dillon fan.

OK, I do not expect to change your mind, I am actually happy you got a "working" (or were able to make a working) Lee LM, and am happy for you that you are happy, but I refuse to buy any Lee pot metal presses (having tried all Lee presses except the Cast Classics) ever again.

Has Lee quality improved since Dickie Lee died? Don't know, but from what I've heard/seen, probably not. Has Lee QC/CS improved lately? Not from the bullet molds and other items I've bought from Lee. Like I said, Lee makes some great stuff, but a LOT of it ISN'T. At my age and as broke as I am, I can no longer afford cheap junk tools/equipment. I find SnapOn tools cheaper in the long run than Dollar Tree tools, even if the Dollar Tree stuff was given to me. Well that's what makes horse races, you like the bay and I like the blond.

May your Lee press always work for you, and may you will be happy with it.
Lee makes the best stuff in the world.
 
Glad you got a good Lee Load of Something. Mine was warped from improper heat treating at the factory (from Lee letter when they returned it to me the first time, when I returned it to Lee after three days of trying to load on it, because "improper heat treating at the factory is NOT covered under either the 'LOVE IT OR RETURN IT' 30 day guarantee OR the 2 year warranty"!). Called, the repair dept head "send it back and it would be repaired/replaced." It wasn't. "That's impossible! I PERSONALLY check each press being returned and if it won't work with two fingers, it is repaired or replaced!" THAT is a lie because out of the 25 times it was returned to Lee in the first 2 years, it often came back with the broken parts on it and still jammed tight.

Bought a used Dillon 550 for retail price, with $250 worth of accessories/dies/con kits included. Guess what? LIFE TIME warranty they STAND BEHIND! Got a problem? They talk you through it! Break/lose something? They send you a new part, FREE! WOW! How cool is that?! Well, sure, Lee will send you a new pin or other small part, but that's IT!

THAT is why I am a Dillon fan!

Now try to sell your Lee and see what you can get for it. Half of what you spent? Less? Now sell Dillon you bought and see how much you can get. 80% of new?

THAT is why I'm a Dillon fan.

Sure, I have lots of Lee stuff, dies, primer tool, disk measure, but also have tried nearly everything Lee makes (literally) and about 50% (possibly slightly more) has been useless trash.

That is why I'm a Dillon fan.

OK, I do not expect to change your mind, I am actually happy you got a "working" (or were able to make a working) Lee LM, and am happy for you that you are happy, but I refuse to buy any Lee pot metal presses (having tried all Lee presses except the Cast Classics) ever again.

Has Lee quality improved since Dickie Lee died? Don't know, but from what I've heard/seen, probably not. Has Lee QC/CS improved lately? Not from the bullet molds and other items I've bought from Lee. Like I said, Lee makes some great stuff, but a LOT of it ISN'T. At my age and as broke as I am, I can no longer afford cheap junk tools/equipment. I find SnapOn tools cheaper in the long run than Dollar Tree tools, even if the Dollar Tree stuff was given to me. Well that's what makes horse races, you like the bay and I like the blond.

May your Lee press always work for you, and may you will be happy with it.
Sorry man, I like Dillon - my friends do too. Looks like you got a dud. To me the Lee LM is a lot like a 1911 build kit, you tune/hand fit it yourself, but once you get it dialed in it runs like a scalded wookie.
 
You know aluminum really isn't heat treated. It can be stress relieved, but there is no heat treat for aluminum. And as a person that worked with machine tools for better than 30 years with all kinds of metals, making parts from hay balers to nuclear submarines I'm kind of wondering why anybody would stress relieve such an aluminum casting. Oh, I had a Lee Load Master, it worked like a champ. I got rid of it as I just didn't need to reload 500 or more cartridges at one time anymore.
Don't know either, that's just what the Lee letter said, which I still have here somewhere (in a box). But as bad as their QC/CS is, they may have warped it some other way and that was the easy way out/excuse/they knew it was warped for some reason and that was that. Anyway, the Lee "30 days love it or return it" and 2 year warranty are both useless/worthless if needed.

I keep hearing of a working Lee Loadmaster, but have NEVER seen one! The guy who publishes Rifle and Handloader said, IN PRINT, in his mags, that HE has never seen a working Lee LM either! Back when I traveled a bit, I would hear of a working LM and would stop by to see it. "The wife/kids sick", "just leaving", "have company", "house a mess", "going to bed". "gotta go!", "packed away", "loaned out", etc., etc., over and over and over, long story short, NONE of the few hundred people who CLAIMED they had a working POS could actually SHOW me a working POS! Do they exist? Don't know, but so far I've seen far more proof of a Big Foot than a working LM.
 
Don't know either, that's just what the Lee letter said, which I still have here somewhere (in a box). But as bad as their QC/CS is, they may have warped it some other way and that was the easy way out/excuse/they knew it was warped for some reason and that was that. Anyway, the Lee "30 days love it or return it" and 2 year warranty are both useless/worthless if needed.

I keep hearing of a working Lee Loadmaster, but have NEVER seen one! The guy who publishes Rifle and Handloader said, IN PRINT, in his mags, that HE has never seen a working Lee LM either! Back when I traveled a bit, I would hear of a working LM and would stop by to see it. "The wife/kids sick", "just leaving", "have company", "house a mess", "going to bed". "gotta go!", "packed away", "loaned out", etc., etc., over and over and over, long story short, NONE of the few hundred people who CLAIMED they had a working POS could actually SHOW me a working POS! Do they exist? Don't know, but so far I've seen far more proof of a Big Foot than a working LM.

There's a bunch on YouTube lol
Here's mine (again):
 
Looked at Lee web site and Dillon web site. A Dillon 550B costs $50 more than the Lee LM, equipped the same. LIFETIME warranty they stand behind vs. 2 year warranty they don't. Dillon -free parts that are lost/broken. Lee? Lucky to get a free decapping pin when it breaks. Dillon: Best customer service in the industry. Lee: worst customer service in the industry. All for an extra $50 up front. Well, an extra $50 spread over 30 years (so far) isn't much compared to the hassle, aggravation, irritation and cost of the LM I bought "because I couldn't afford a Dillon!"

Lee makes SOME great stuff, but the presses aren't one of them. Neither is the "Perfect" powder measure. Oh, and the ... or the ... and the ... what about the ...

If YOU are happy, good for you, but don't lead others down the primrose path to their doom.

Yup, lot's of "working" things, like a working LM, on Youtube, lol. Have not seen one of THEM in person either. Lots of stuff on Youtube, saw a dinosaur walking around, Big Foots, you name it they have one "live" and "in person". If you think seeing it on youtube makes it real, well more power to you and say "hello" to the people who bring you your meds.
 
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I keep hearing of a working Lee Loadmaster, but have NEVER seen one!
I've three or four ammo cans of 9x19, .45ACP, and .38 Super loaded on a Load Master and they are every bit as quality a product as anything any other press will make. Maybe some people aren't mechanically inclined enough to use a Load Master, or to be reloading in the first place.
 
You know aluminum really isn't heat treated. It can be stress relieved, but there is no heat treat for aluminum. And as a person that worked with machine tools for better than 30 years with all kinds of metals, making parts from hay balers to nuclear submarines I'm kind of wondering why anybody would stress relieve such an aluminum casting. Oh, I had a Lee Load Master, it worked like a champ. I got rid of it as I just didn't need to reload 500 or more cartridges at one time anymore.
As a person that worked building and repairing aircraft for many years it comes as a surprise that there is no heat treat for aluminum.
Below is a bit of information about one of my favorite metals.

HEAT TREATING 7075 aluminum

7075 may be solution annealed at 900°F for 2 hours at temperature, followed by a water quench. The alloy may then be given a precipation hardening (aging) heat treatment.

ANNEALING

Annealing is done at 775°F, holding for 3 hours at temperature. Controlled cooling at 50F per hour should then be used down to 500F from which it can be air cooled

AGING

Precipitation strengthening (aging) is done at 250°F for 24 hours and air cooled for T6. The T73 temper requires heating to 225°F for 8 hours, followed by 24 hours at 325°F and then air cool.
 
I've loaded over 20k rounds of 9mm with my Load Master. There are occasional issues that need adjustment, but overall, it's been a great machine at a very reasonable price. Tons of online videos and blogs to help you figure out what you did wrong.
 
I keep hearing of a working Lee Loadmaster, but have NEVER seen one!
I keep hearing about Ford quality but have never owned one of those unicorns. Three lemons. Only cars I've purchased in the last 30 years were Japanese, German or Swedish. Except one Suburban...

Interesting that you're so triggered by someone successfully using a Lee.

Had a Loadmaster. Cranked out tens of thousands of 9, 40 and 45. Would never dream of using it for bottle necked.
Had a Hornady LnL, cranked out thousands of 9, 40, 45, 223, and 6.8. Snapped the platten off trying to load 308. They two-day shipped a free replacement.
Have a Dillon now, but am too busy to set it up.
 
I've three or four ammo cans of 9x19, .45ACP, and .38 Super loaded on a Load Master and they are every bit as quality a product as anything any other press will make. Maybe some people aren't mechanically inclined enough to use a Load Master, or to be reloading in the first place.
I have no doubt that what you say is true, that you have some ammo cans full of ammo, nor do I doubt your claim that you aren't mechanically inclined, nor should you be reloading. I agree with what you said wholeheartedly. Really, we agree on everything you said so far, so what is the problem? I also believe some people should not be posting either, but don't feel any great need to make asinine attacks on them for no reason other than to cause strife.
 
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