turret press

d_mikey · January 2, 2005, 03:01 AM

Hi there,
Still just toying with idea of reloading. I am considering a turret for a first press, as I agree with the idea that a progressive can be too much to keep an eye on when learning.
By the looks of things, the Redding T7 seems to be the ultimate turret press, but the price reflects that. It might be worth the investment though.
I was also looking at the Lyman Tmag. It seems pretty sturdy, but I haven't heard anyone comment on it. Any users out there? What do you think?

Mike

hivel37 · January 2, 2005, 03:10 AM

My press for the last 30 odd years has been a RCBS JR2, and it has served well. Lately, I've been thinking about the Redding turret. I have read that the Lyman T Mag has more "slop", but this is second-hand information. Maybe you'll have input from users of both units.

dromia · January 2, 2005, 10:25 AM

A mate of mine who is a retired engineer and now a dealer did a comparison between the T7 the T Mag and the RCBS turret to see how much head flex there was under pressure.

The Redding job was first with no measurable flex in relation to cartridge concentricity, the Lyman was a close second with surpisingly the RCBS turret a poor third with visible head movement under pressure.

I've just added a T7 to my reloading bench along with an Ultramag to keep my Rockchucker and Ammomaster Progressive company.

The T7 replaces the older Redding turret which has given sterling service but I found it a touch wanting on the leverage stakes, the T7 has the same power as the Rockchucker and I really like it.

The Ultra Mag also continues to impress me as I crank ammo through it, I wonder if it will supplant the Chucker in my heart or are we just having a honeymoon period.

Dead-Nuts-Zero · January 2, 2005, 11:44 AM

I have a Lyman turret press but not sure the model. It was purchased new in about 1978 - 1980. It is painted orange and has 6 positions. The handle has a soft rubber sleve fitted over the end of the shaft. I purchased this in a kit with scales, trimmer, powder measurer etc. If anyone would know this model from my discription, please tell me.

I used Lyman 3 piece carbide die sets. I loaded for .38/.357 and .44 mag. I have loaded an estimated 8,000 - 12,000 rounds based on my memory of primers purchased. I mainly loaded .38 semi wad cutters for practice. I worked up several loads for practice and a few assorted for hunting for my four .38 and .357 guns.

In .357, I loaded a few medium to heavy hollow points for practice and hunting.

.44 mag, I loaded only jacketed hollow points for practice. Once finding an ideal load for my gun, I loaded tons of rounds for practice and hunting. (personal note, it's nice to have the same round for hunting and practice. If I fired my gun it was always the same perfect hand load for that gun and factory loads did not come close in performance) Now, after many years, I am almost completly shot out of my .44 mag loads. I am now ready to dust it off and begin my retirement hobby of shooting and loading.

In my opinion, this has been an excellent loader. I have loaded many rounds but as you can see, the variety is limited. I had no problem with this machine as I recall. It always was "right on" when I changed from .38 to .357 to .44 as I kept them mounted on the turret. only a few changes with .38 to .357 each time. When I turn it to a different station, I always worked the turret back and forth a few times to make sure it settled into the preset indent. I never applied tons of pressure on the lever but it always seemed plenty rugged for my needs. I have nothing to compare to, as this is my only bullet press. I tried to research and buy quality the first time. Hopefully this paid off and I won't have much trouble from old age and technology changes. There is a large "nut" on the top of the turret that is spring loaded as I recall. I assume it was adjustible to keep the turret tuned. I don't recall ever changing it. Perhaps it is to compensate for wear after much use. I would have to find the manual to be sure.

If anyone knows of a newer or a better brand of turret (or progressive style) loader at reasonible price, I would be interested in how well it works for handgun loads. Once I get setup again to load, I plan to load semi-auto loads. I would be interested in any comments for this use.

This is only basic experience and maybe not much to help you, but I am happy with my choice. I made plenty of quality rounds and had "loads"

of fun with this loader. I plan to pick up where I left off about 20 some years ago.
Good Luck and keep shooting..........

bird_dog · January 2, 2005, 11:04 PM

I've used a Lee Turret press for the last year. I load .357, .44 mag, and (just recently started) .45 acp. I find the Turret system easy enough to be fairly fast, yet still allows you to pay attention to every round as you make it. I'd recommend it, and the price is right too. When you want to add more calibers, just buy a new turret for 8 bucks, add your dies, and you're ready to go. It takes about 15 seconds to switch between calibers.

Joel

Dead-Nuts-Zero · January 4, 2005, 01:46 PM

A new turret for 8 bucks? I had no idea they would be so cheep. That solves my potiential problems that I would have had, once I get into more cal. dies. Sounds perfect to me. Thanks for the tip! I assume they (the extra turrets) are all machined to close tolorence so that every turret fits perfect and registration would not be a problem when changing?

Happy Shooting!

Nortonics · January 4, 2005, 03:15 PM

The turrets are made well enough that you won't experience any problems with 'em.

If you're after straight walled hand gun cartridge reloading, I'd recommend my setup as follows:

- Lee 4 Hole Turret Press with Auto Index
- Lee Pro Auto Disk Powder Measure
- Lee Adjustable Charge Bar Auto Disk
- Lee Extra Turret for 4 Hole Press

Add your dies such as these .

I crank out between 100 and 200 rounds of perfect handloads per hour with this setup using the removable turrets for 6 different handgun calibers. Easily over 8000+ rounds so far and you couldn't tell it from new. For about $130 for your first caliber, and about $40 for each additional caliber (4-die setup and a new turret) you can hardly go wrong.

oldschool · January 4, 2005, 04:08 PM

I’ll have to second, or third, the Lee advice. I’ve been using just about that exact setup for .45 ACP since March to the tune of ~4000 rounds. If I working up precision rifle loads or necked handgun loads (i.e., 357SIG) I’d probably go with a studier press. But for punching out cheap match ammo at 200/hour it has already paid for itself.
www.Midwayusa.com sells good kits and offers you a price break for 1 order for your birthday and get your components at gunshows (hazmat on shipping powder & primers kills and weight on bullets also make them cost prohibitive. I would add a good digital caliper and maybe a go/ no-go gauge.

Sam Adams · January 4, 2005, 06:19 PM

I've got a very good friend who's reloaded a ton of handgun ammo (as well as some bottle-necked rifle ammo) on the Redding T-7 (which he got prior to the improvements of 2003). He swears by it.

However, he's also just about got money to burn and he shoots so much because he doesn't have to work. I do, and I have a family to support. I'm glad to hear from several of you that the Lee press is just fine. I like its price, the price of the extra turrets, and Lee's reputation (I love my Lee dies and the Challenger single-stage that I've had for years). Methinks that I'll be getting the Lee - and if it is insufficient for some reason, I'll get the Redding later. In the meantime, I can buy lots of powder, primers and bullets for the price differential.

frag · January 4, 2005, 07:06 PM

I gotta agree with Bird Dog. I've used my Lee 3 hole turret for a couple of years now with good results. It's faster than a single stage, but not so fast that you can't lose track of what your doing. I can crank out 150-200 rounds/ hour once I get everything set up. I also keep all my calibers on their own turret so I don't have to reset the dies every time.

Dead-Nuts-Zero · January 5, 2005, 01:51 AM

Sorry folks, I made an error here. I mis-read and was thinking that someone said the Lyman turrets were 8 bucks. The mistake being, it was said the Lee turrets are 8 bucks. "L" Lyman ..."L" Lee, I need to wake up I guess.

Anyway, as I already have the Lyman turret press, does anyone know if the extra Lyman turrets are availible? If so, where and how much? My guess is that they (Lyman) are alot more than 8 bucks. However, unless they are terribly expensive, it is a perfect solution for me.

When I did my pre-purchase research years ago, I felt at the time, the Lyman turret was a better (better than Lee) machine. I'm not even sure Lee had a turret back then. Much of this decision was based on some of my younger days with the Lee Load All (I think this was the name) and it was more like a toy than a serious loader. (I have 4 "MEC" shotshell loaders and have had them for many years. They were not a toy in my opinion). It sounds like Lee is still the cheeper bullet press, but the quality may be much better than I once thought.

I am very happy with my Lyman thus far and probably won't change unless I start loading tons of ammo. I won't forget to look at the Lee if I do make a change.

Cal4D4 · January 5, 2005, 02:01 AM

T-Mag Turret spare head

Is yours the t-Mag?

crazylegs · January 6, 2005, 12:15 PM

If you'd rather get a progressive but are intimidated by it, please think again.
Progressive presses can be run like a turret (one round at a time) untill you feel comfortable enough to go full blast. I'm not saying don't get a turret, but your post leads me to believe that's what you really want. Some turrets out there are ultra nice (T7) but think twice on it. I use my Dillon 550B in turret mode for all work-ups and go to progressive once I have what I want. If progressive intimidation is not the issue, then by all means, I'd spring for the T7. If you're going to load 300+ rounds a week, a progressive, to me, would be the way to go. I'm not telling you what to get, just reading between the lines of your post.
crazylegs

Dead-Nuts-Zero · January 6, 2005, 08:23 PM

Cal4D4

Yes, I think this is the same turret I have. I would need to dig it out and compare it to be sure. So it looks like 30 bucks plus S & H from this place. Thats a bit more than the 8 bucks, but if I get back into loading I think it may be worth it to have my extra dies all set and ready to go. I could get 2 sets or maybe even three on the one new turret if I were to share some of my other operations like depriming and resizing if the cal. is compatible. I would need to think that out a bit, maybe not. Anyway, it would a nice addition to save some time and most of all, the quality once I have it set perfectly.

thanks for the info.

Kyote · January 10, 2005, 09:31 AM

I'm wondering why no one has really mentioned the Dillon? I know it is not a "turret" but it is a manual progressive. Just curious.

RUT · January 10, 2005, 11:33 AM

Cuz it's probably more money than he's prepared to spend.

MADISON · January 15, 2005, 08:58 AM

If we didn't have 9 Lyman T-Mag presses in operation I would buy the
Redding T-7. The T-7 has a better on press priming system than any I have seen.

January 2, 2005, 03:01 AM	#1
d_mikey Senior Member Join Date: December 4, 2004 Posts: 104	turret press Hi there, Still just toying with idea of reloading. I am considering a turret for a first press, as I agree with the idea that a progressive can be too much to keep an eye on when learning. By the looks of things, the Redding T7 seems to be the ultimate turret press, but the price reflects that. It might be worth the investment though. I was also looking at the Lyman Tmag. It seems pretty sturdy, but I haven't heard anyone comment on it. Any users out there? What do you think? Mike

January 2, 2005, 03:10 AM	#2
hivel37 Senior Member Join Date: August 24, 2004 Location: Hill Country Posts: 522	My press for the last 30 odd years has been a RCBS JR2, and it has served well. Lately, I've been thinking about the Redding turret. I have read that the Lyman T Mag has more "slop", but this is second-hand information. Maybe you'll have input from users of both units. Last edited by hivel37; January 3, 2005 at 12:42 AM.

January 2, 2005, 10:25 AM	#3
dromia Junior Member Join Date: December 19, 2004 Posts: 13	Redding T7 A mate of mine who is a retired engineer and now a dealer did a comparison between the T7 the T Mag and the RCBS turret to see how much head flex there was under pressure. The Redding job was first with no measurable flex in relation to cartridge concentricity, the Lyman was a close second with surpisingly the RCBS turret a poor third with visible head movement under pressure. I've just added a T7 to my reloading bench along with an Ultramag to keep my Rockchucker and Ammomaster Progressive company. The T7 replaces the older Redding turret which has given sterling service but I found it a touch wanting on the leverage stakes, the T7 has the same power as the Rockchucker and I really like it. The Ultra Mag also continues to impress me as I crank ammo through it, I wonder if it will supplant the Chucker in my heart or are we just having a honeymoon period.

January 4, 2005, 03:15 PM	#7
Nortonics Senior Member Join Date: December 2, 2004 Location: Murderapolis Posts: 521	The turrets are made well enough that you won't experience any problems with 'em. If you're after straight walled hand gun cartridge reloading, I'd recommend my setup as follows: - Lee 4 Hole Turret Press with Auto Index - Lee Pro Auto Disk Powder Measure - Lee Adjustable Charge Bar Auto Disk - Lee Extra Turret for 4 Hole Press Add your dies such as these . I crank out between 100 and 200 rounds of perfect handloads per hour with this setup using the removable turrets for 6 different handgun calibers. Easily over 8000+ rounds so far and you couldn't tell it from new. For about $130 for your first caliber, and about $40 for each additional caliber (4-die setup and a new turret) you can hardly go wrong. __________________ Tom.

January 4, 2005, 04:08 PM	#8
oldschool Junior Member Join Date: September 9, 2004 Location: N. Kentucky Posts: 6	Cheap Turret I’ll have to second, or third, the Lee advice. I’ve been using just about that exact setup for .45 ACP since March to the tune of ~4000 rounds. If I working up precision rifle loads or necked handgun loads (i.e., 357SIG) I’d probably go with a studier press. But for punching out cheap match ammo at 200/hour it has already paid for itself. www.Midwayusa.com sells good kits and offers you a price break for 1 order for your birthday and get your components at gunshows (hazmat on shipping powder & primers kills and weight on bullets also make them cost prohibitive. I would add a good digital caliper and maybe a go/ no-go gauge.

January 2, 2005, 11:44 AM	#4
Dead-Nuts-Zero Senior Member Join Date: August 26, 2004 Posts: 579	I have a Lyman turret press but not sure the model. It was purchased new in about 1978 - 1980. It is painted orange and has 6 positions. The handle has a soft rubber sleve fitted over the end of the shaft. I purchased this in a kit with scales, trimmer, powder measurer etc. If anyone would know this model from my discription, please tell me. I used Lyman 3 piece carbide die sets. I loaded for .38/.357 and .44 mag. I have loaded an estimated 8,000 - 12,000 rounds based on my memory of primers purchased. I mainly loaded .38 semi wad cutters for practice. I worked up several loads for practice and a few assorted for hunting for my four .38 and .357 guns. In .357, I loaded a few medium to heavy hollow points for practice and hunting. .44 mag, I loaded only jacketed hollow points for practice. Once finding an ideal load for my gun, I loaded tons of rounds for practice and hunting. (personal note, it's nice to have the same round for hunting and practice. If I fired my gun it was always the same perfect hand load for that gun and factory loads did not come close in performance) Now, after many years, I am almost completly shot out of my .44 mag loads. I am now ready to dust it off and begin my retirement hobby of shooting and loading. In my opinion, this has been an excellent loader. I have loaded many rounds but as you can see, the variety is limited. I had no problem with this machine as I recall. It always was "right on" when I changed from .38 to .357 to .44 as I kept them mounted on the turret. only a few changes with .38 to .357 each time. When I turn it to a different station, I always worked the turret back and forth a few times to make sure it settled into the preset indent. I never applied tons of pressure on the lever but it always seemed plenty rugged for my needs. I have nothing to compare to, as this is my only bullet press. I tried to research and buy quality the first time. Hopefully this paid off and I won't have much trouble from old age and technology changes. There is a large "nut" on the top of the turret that is spring loaded as I recall. I assume it was adjustible to keep the turret tuned. I don't recall ever changing it. Perhaps it is to compensate for wear after much use. I would have to find the manual to be sure. If anyone knows of a newer or a better brand of turret (or progressive style) loader at reasonible price, I would be interested in how well it works for handgun loads. Once I get setup again to load, I plan to load semi-auto loads. I would be interested in any comments for this use. This is only basic experience and maybe not much to help you, but I am happy with my choice. I made plenty of quality rounds and had "loads" of fun with this loader. I plan to pick up where I left off about 20 some years ago. Good Luck and keep shooting..........

January 2, 2005, 11:04 PM	#5
bird_dog Senior Member Join Date: May 26, 2004 Posts: 225	I've used a Lee Turret press for the last year. I load .357, .44 mag, and (just recently started) .45 acp. I find the Turret system easy enough to be fairly fast, yet still allows you to pay attention to every round as you make it. I'd recommend it, and the price is right too. When you want to add more calibers, just buy a new turret for 8 bucks, add your dies, and you're ready to go. It takes about 15 seconds to switch between calibers. Joel

January 4, 2005, 01:46 PM	#6
Dead-Nuts-Zero Senior Member Join Date: August 26, 2004 Posts: 579	A new turret for 8 bucks? I had no idea they would be so cheep. That solves my potiential problems that I would have had, once I get into more cal. dies. Sounds perfect to me. Thanks for the tip! I assume they (the extra turrets) are all machined to close tolorence so that every turret fits perfect and registration would not be a problem when changing? Happy Shooting!

January 4, 2005, 06:19 PM	#9
Sam Adams Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2001 Location: Somewhere in the Republic of Texas Posts: 250	I've got a very good friend who's reloaded a ton of handgun ammo (as well as some bottle-necked rifle ammo) on the Redding T-7 (which he got prior to the improvements of 2003). He swears by it. However, he's also just about got money to burn and he shoots so much because he doesn't have to work. I do, and I have a family to support. I'm glad to hear from several of you that the Lee press is just fine. I like its price, the price of the extra turrets, and Lee's reputation (I love my Lee dies and the Challenger single-stage that I've had for years). Methinks that I'll be getting the Lee - and if it is insufficient for some reason, I'll get the Redding later. In the meantime, I can buy lots of powder, primers and bullets for the price differential. __________________ "The Constitution shall never be construed to prevent the people of the United States who are peaceable citizens from keeping their own arms." Samuel Adams "Congress have no power to disarm the militia. Their swords, and every other terrible implement of the soldier, are the birth-right of an American." Tench Coxe 2/20/1788 "If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or your arms. Crouch down and lick the hands, which feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen." Samuel Adams "Love work, hate domination, and do not let your name come to the attention of the ruling powers." -- The Talmud, "Sayings of the Fathers"

January 4, 2005, 07:06 PM	#10
frag Member Join Date: November 15, 2004 Location: Independence, KY Posts: 59	I gotta agree with Bird Dog. I've used my Lee 3 hole turret for a couple of years now with good results. It's faster than a single stage, but not so fast that you can't lose track of what your doing. I can crank out 150-200 rounds/ hour once I get everything set up. I also keep all my calibers on their own turret so I don't have to reset the dies every time.

January 5, 2005, 01:51 AM	#11
Dead-Nuts-Zero Senior Member Join Date: August 26, 2004 Posts: 579	Sorry folks, I made an error here. I mis-read and was thinking that someone said the Lyman turrets were 8 bucks. The mistake being, it was said the Lee turrets are 8 bucks. "L" Lyman ..."L" Lee, I need to wake up I guess. Anyway, as I already have the Lyman turret press, does anyone know if the extra Lyman turrets are availible? If so, where and how much? My guess is that they (Lyman) are alot more than 8 bucks. However, unless they are terribly expensive, it is a perfect solution for me. When I did my pre-purchase research years ago, I felt at the time, the Lyman turret was a better (better than Lee) machine. I'm not even sure Lee had a turret back then. Much of this decision was based on some of my younger days with the Lee Load All (I think this was the name) and it was more like a toy than a serious loader. (I have 4 "MEC" shotshell loaders and have had them for many years. They were not a toy in my opinion). It sounds like Lee is still the cheeper bullet press, but the quality may be much better than I once thought. I am very happy with my Lyman thus far and probably won't change unless I start loading tons of ammo. I won't forget to look at the Lee if I do make a change.

January 5, 2005, 02:01 AM	#12
Cal4D4 Senior Member Join Date: June 18, 2001 Location: southern california Posts: 679	T-Mag Turret spare head Is yours the t-Mag?

January 6, 2005, 12:15 PM	#13
crazylegs Senior Member Join Date: May 29, 2004 Posts: 145	If you'd rather get a progressive but are intimidated by it, please think again. Progressive presses can be run like a turret (one round at a time) untill you feel comfortable enough to go full blast. I'm not saying don't get a turret, but your post leads me to believe that's what you really want. Some turrets out there are ultra nice (T7) but think twice on it. I use my Dillon 550B in turret mode for all work-ups and go to progressive once I have what I want. If progressive intimidation is not the issue, then by all means, I'd spring for the T7. If you're going to load 300+ rounds a week, a progressive, to me, would be the way to go. I'm not telling you what to get, just reading between the lines of your post. crazylegs

January 6, 2005, 08:23 PM	#14
Dead-Nuts-Zero Senior Member Join Date: August 26, 2004 Posts: 579	Cal4D4 Yes, I think this is the same turret I have. I would need to dig it out and compare it to be sure. So it looks like 30 bucks plus S & H from this place. Thats a bit more than the 8 bucks, but if I get back into loading I think it may be worth it to have my extra dies all set and ready to go. I could get 2 sets or maybe even three on the one new turret if I were to share some of my other operations like depriming and resizing if the cal. is compatible. I would need to think that out a bit, maybe not. Anyway, it would a nice addition to save some time and most of all, the quality once I have it set perfectly. thanks for the info.

January 10, 2005, 09:31 AM	#15
Kyote Senior Member Join Date: December 31, 2004 Location: New Mexico Posts: 183	Stund I'm wondering why no one has really mentioned the Dillon? I know it is not a "turret" but it is a manual progressive. Just curious. __________________ An armed society is a polite society.

January 10, 2005, 11:33 AM	#16
RUT Senior Member Join Date: November 17, 2004 Location: NH, USA Posts: 812	Cuz it's probably more money than he's prepared to spend.

January 15, 2005, 08:58 AM	#17
MADISON Senior Member Join Date: January 1, 2000 Location: Roanoke, Virginia Posts: 2,678	Redding T7 If we didn't have 9 Lyman T-Mag presses in operation I would buy the Redding T-7. The T-7 has a better on press priming system than any I have seen.