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444 · July 10, 2001, 11:31 PM

I started out loading in high school with a Lee Loader for .38 Special. I loaded a lot of ammo with that tool. Since then, I have spent quite a bit of money on reloading equipment and components. There is a guy that I work with that has been talking about reloading for years but never did anything about it. I saw a Lee Loader in .30-06 for like $8 on the used rack at a store, so I bought it to demonstrate to him, how easy it was to reload. I loaded 20 rounds for him and it was fun. About the same time I got interested in old milsurp rifles. I bought a few and decided that instead of buying the dies, I would just buy Lee Loaders. I have been loading .303 Brit, and 7.62x54R since then using the Lee Loader. I actually think it is faster than using a press since you are neck sizing only and don't have to go through the trauma of lubing the cases and all that. Of course I am not doing "pure" Lee Loading. I am priming with a Lee hand priming tool, and throwing the powder charges with my regular RCBS Uniflow measure with the weight checked by an electronic scale. I also am trimming the cases with either my Forster tool or the Lee trim tool. With the .38 loader, I never had a primer detonate while I was seating it with the Lee Loader. However, with the rifle cases, I was setting them off regularly, so I went with my priming tool. These are real cheap and I recommend that you buy one to use with your Lee Loader. I bought mine around 1980 and have used it to load 10s of thousands of rounds since. A note on the powder dippers. The charges thrown with the powder dippers supplied with the Lee Loaders are generally very light (meaning the loads given are light loads, so it would be hard to get in trouble as long as you follow the load table supplied). Just for the heck of it, I threw 50 charges of Allient Power Pistol powder with the scoop to see how accurate it was. I dipped it just like they tell you in the directions, then leveled it off with a business card. I weighed all 50 charges on an electronic scale and had three of the 50 measure 1/10 of a grain off. The rest were right on the money. I didn't try this with any other powder, but I consider this very accurate. Another point I mentioned before, you are only neck sizing with the Lee Loader. Therefore, you can only fire your brass in the one gun that it was originally fired from since the case is fireformed to your chamber. I have three Enfields and have to keep the brass seperated as to what gun it was used in.

July 10, 2001, 11:31 PM	#7
444 Senior Member Join Date: November 20, 2000 Location: Ohio Posts: 3,968	I started out loading in high school with a Lee Loader for .38 Special. I loaded a lot of ammo with that tool. Since then, I have spent quite a bit of money on reloading equipment and components. There is a guy that I work with that has been talking about reloading for years but never did anything about it. I saw a Lee Loader in .30-06 for like $8 on the used rack at a store, so I bought it to demonstrate to him, how easy it was to reload. I loaded 20 rounds for him and it was fun. About the same time I got interested in old milsurp rifles. I bought a few and decided that instead of buying the dies, I would just buy Lee Loaders. I have been loading .303 Brit, and 7.62x54R since then using the Lee Loader. I actually think it is faster than using a press since you are neck sizing only and don't have to go through the trauma of lubing the cases and all that. Of course I am not doing "pure" Lee Loading. I am priming with a Lee hand priming tool, and throwing the powder charges with my regular RCBS Uniflow measure with the weight checked by an electronic scale. I also am trimming the cases with either my Forster tool or the Lee trim tool. With the .38 loader, I never had a primer detonate while I was seating it with the Lee Loader. However, with the rifle cases, I was setting them off regularly, so I went with my priming tool. These are real cheap and I recommend that you buy one to use with your Lee Loader. I bought mine around 1980 and have used it to load 10s of thousands of rounds since. A note on the powder dippers. The charges thrown with the powder dippers supplied with the Lee Loaders are generally very light (meaning the loads given are light loads, so it would be hard to get in trouble as long as you follow the load table supplied). Just for the heck of it, I threw 50 charges of Allient Power Pistol powder with the scoop to see how accurate it was. I dipped it just like they tell you in the directions, then leveled it off with a business card. I weighed all 50 charges on an electronic scale and had three of the 50 measure 1/10 of a grain off. The rest were right on the money. I didn't try this with any other powder, but I consider this very accurate. Another point I mentioned before, you are only neck sizing with the Lee Loader. Therefore, you can only fire your brass in the one gun that it was originally fired from since the case is fireformed to your chamber. I have three Enfields and have to keep the brass seperated as to what gun it was used in. __________________ You know the rest. In the books you have read How the British Regulars fired and fled, How the farmers gave them ball for ball, From behind each fence and farmyard wall, Chasing the redcoats down the lane, Then crossing the fields to emerge again Under the trees at the turn of the road, And only pausing to fire and load.