What do you think of lee dies? - Page 2

gandog56 · April 30, 2007, 10:15 PM

Quote:

I love Lee dies. I hate Lee lock rings. If you order a 4 die set, order 4 Hornady lock rings to go along with them.

The only thing is, if you do all your dies like that, they don't really fit in the plastic case anymore. I do the expander and the sizer only.

gandog56 · April 30, 2007, 10:20 PM

Quote:

I'm going to be the odd man out on this one. I got a set of Lee 38/357 carbide dies when I first started loading 38/357. It sounded like I was sizing sand when I sized the brass. I got a set of RCBS carbides, the sand sound went away, and the press handle stroke was way smoother. Today I use only RCBS carbides for pistol cartridges.

That's funny. I have two sets of Lee carbides, one set up for 38 special, and one set up for .357 mag. Never had a problem with either. You sure they weren't steel ones?

gandog56 · April 30, 2007, 10:23 PM

Actually I phrased that bad, I have 8 different caliber Lee pistol carbide dies and 2 sets of Lee steel ones for bottleneck pistol cartridges. And 5 different sets of Lee steel ones for rifles.

Tim R · April 30, 2007, 11:01 PM

Quote:

That's funny. I have two sets of Lee carbides, one set up for 38 special, and one set up for .357 mag. Never had a problem with either. You sure they weren't steel ones?

Gandog, I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt here as I'm sure you didn't really mean to ask me that. By the way the only steel dies I have are for rifle calibers from 223 to 300 H&H.

Like I said I knew I was going to be the odd man out but I will not own Lee dies. I do have RCBS, Hornaday, Redding and Forster though.

jamaica · May 1, 2007, 12:30 AM

I recently purchased Lee dies, the three die sets, for 38spl and 45 auto. They are set up a little different than most of the other brands, but they worked fine for me. The idea of loading the powder through the expander die would be nice if the top nut had been tapped to accept the powder measure. Other wise that feature is of no use to me.

I like tha fact that the shell holder is included. The powder dipper is of no use to me. I use a powder measure.

As has been said, I did not like the lock rings either.

The price was good.

gandog56 · May 1, 2007, 07:46 AM

TimR, it means I have two sets of the exact same dies, 38special/.357 mag. I have one set up for the 38 special, and one set up for .357 magnum. This way I don't have to keep adjusting the dies from one caliber to the other. Basically being lazy I guess. I also have two sets of the .44 special/44 mag dies I do the same thing with. One is dedicated for making 44 specials, and the other for making 44 mags.

And god help me if I ever run across some 44 Russian Brass.

roy reali · May 1, 2007, 08:51 AM

I like Lee dies in that they include the shellholder with the set.

Ranger61 · May 1, 2007, 11:29 PM

To CrustyFN:I change calibers alot and I don't load more than 300-400 at a time so I mostly use my old reliable RCBS Rock Chucker (no turret). To the people that had complaint with the Lee expander dies I will admit that Lee's quality control is much more erratic than others, but the last couple of years their dies seem to have gotten more consistent than in the past. Its true that some dies I bought about 5 years ago I had to pull out the expanders and polish them on my lathe before I was happy with the way they worked.

April 30, 2007, 10:23 PM	#28
gandog56 Senior Member Join Date: May 31, 2006 Location: Mobile, Alabama Posts: 949	Actually I phrased that bad, I have 8 different caliber Lee pistol carbide dies and 2 sets of Lee steel ones for bottleneck pistol cartridges. And 5 different sets of Lee steel ones for rifles. __________________ Some people think I'm paranoid because I have guns. If I have guns, what do I have to be paranoid about? Last edited by gandog56; April 30, 2007 at 10:24 PM. Reason: Typos

May 1, 2007, 07:46 AM	#31
gandog56 Senior Member Join Date: May 31, 2006 Location: Mobile, Alabama Posts: 949	TimR, it means I have two sets of the exact same dies, 38special/.357 mag. I have one set up for the 38 special, and one set up for .357 magnum. This way I don't have to keep adjusting the dies from one caliber to the other. Basically being lazy I guess. I also have two sets of the .44 special/44 mag dies I do the same thing with. One is dedicated for making 44 specials, and the other for making 44 mags. And god help me if I ever run across some 44 Russian Brass. __________________ Some people think I'm paranoid because I have guns. If I have guns, what do I have to be paranoid about?

May 1, 2007, 08:51 AM	#32
roy reali Senior Member Join Date: August 23, 2005 Posts: 3,248	A Little Extra I like Lee dies in that they include the shellholder with the set.

May 1, 2007, 12:30 AM	#30
jamaica Senior Member Join Date: March 24, 2006 Location: Northern Utah Posts: 441	I recently purchased Lee dies, the three die sets, for 38spl and 45 auto. They are set up a little different than most of the other brands, but they worked fine for me. The idea of loading the powder through the expander die would be nice if the top nut had been tapped to accept the powder measure. Other wise that feature is of no use to me. I like tha fact that the shell holder is included. The powder dipper is of no use to me. I use a powder measure. As has been said, I did not like the lock rings either. The price was good.

May 1, 2007, 11:29 PM	#33
Ranger61 Senior Member Join Date: September 3, 2004 Posts: 213	To CrustyFN:I change calibers alot and I don't load more than 300-400 at a time so I mostly use my old reliable RCBS Rock Chucker (no turret). To the people that had complaint with the Lee expander dies I will admit that Lee's quality control is much more erratic than others, but the last couple of years their dies seem to have gotten more consistent than in the past. Its true that some dies I bought about 5 years ago I had to pull out the expanders and polish them on my lathe before I was happy with the way they worked.