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Old August 17, 2011, 09:24 AM   #1
praetorian97
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Good time?

So dont chastise me. Im not trying to set a land speed record and know that slow and steady is better.

I timed myself with my new Lee Classic Turret press and was able to complete 100 rounds of 223/5.56 in about 52 minutes.

Thats Priming, Charging, Seating, Crimping. And weighing every five charges.

Decent rate of completion?
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Old August 17, 2011, 06:30 PM   #2
Lost Sheep
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Yep, pretty good

The first 100 rounds I loaded with my brand-new Classic Turret (which included filling the powder hopper in my Auto-Disk and filling the primer flipper tray, but not verifying the powder charge dropped - did that outside of the timing run - or setting up the press itself) took me 47 minutes for the 100 rounds.

I did not weigh the powder charges and these were .357 Magnum cases using a 4-die setup.

This was after one untimed practice run to make sure the Lee Safety Prime and the dies were properly installed. In the year since then I have not timed myself.

Yeah. I think you are doing well.

Observing yourself against the clock is a nice way to evaluate your skill level as long as it does not become the goal. The goal is uniform ammunition, both safe and accurate. It is kind of like the pianist who can do the minute waltz in 30 seconds. Skilled and facile, maybe, but the music suffers and the artistry goes out the window.

Good luck.

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Old August 17, 2011, 06:47 PM   #3
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Hey, it is whatever it is ....and like you said / be confident and satisfied with your process - its not just about speed.

Time is a precious commodity ...so I choose to use a self-indexing progressive on my metallic reloading...with a powder check so I don't have to weigh every 5th or 10th round or whatever .../ but nothing wrong with a good turret operation.

I don't think 100 rds and hour is too bad ..../ and reloading is a satisfying part of the gun hobby ...
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Old August 17, 2011, 10:16 PM   #4
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Yes, a good rate of speed.

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Old August 18, 2011, 08:46 AM   #5
praetorian97
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Thanks guys. I definitely dont want to substitute quality over quantity. But wasnt sure if I was losing out on the turrets potential.

Im try to let go a little more and trust the turret is dropping the powder and just measuring every so many rounds instead.
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Old August 18, 2011, 11:29 AM   #6
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If speed were really important, loaders would come with meters on them.
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Old August 18, 2011, 09:01 PM   #7
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I would say that is pretty good time. I am usually somewhere around 50-60 rounds an hour with my single stage, but am usually not in much of a rush when I am reloading.
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Old August 19, 2011, 09:45 AM   #8
Brian Pfleuger
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That's pretty good time for rifle loads.... I load about 200/hr with the turret for handgun but I don't use the Auto-disk for rifle charging so I get much, much lower rates. I've never timed it but I'd say it's 50, maybe up to 65, an hour. That's actual loading rate, not including case prep time for the rifle, no "real" case prep for the handguns.
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Old August 19, 2011, 10:04 AM   #9
praetorian97
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It would take me 2 hours to a 100 rounds taking all the Quality Control steps that would make me warm and fuzzy.

Which in turn negates the whole turret need.

I did 100 in about 40 min last night. I did not feel good after that lot. Kept having that "What If" feeling in the back of my head.

I still weighed the charge every 5 rounds.
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Old August 21, 2011, 04:21 PM   #10
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id like to say that seems like a great time. sometimes time can show that things have stayed uniform. however, when i reload if it takes me an hour to load 100 bullets weighing charges checking cases, lubing cases (my dies are carbide type they say idont have to but i do anyway) then so be it. what makes me feel good is a great trip to the range not the time ive made. but anyways great time and good luck with it
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Old August 21, 2011, 11:51 PM   #11
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I loaded 100 45acp rds on my Dillon 550 today in under 30 minutes. Normal pace was about 300-400 when loading .38's but that was several years ago, I'm not in any hurry these days.
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Old August 22, 2011, 06:56 AM   #12
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I do not worry how fast I reload. I try to be consistant on all rifle or pistol loads. Its like my own therapy. In the garage away from the wife, it doesn't get much better. By the way I only use 3 single stage presses.
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Old August 26, 2011, 02:12 PM   #13
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The more important question is:

Did you have a good time while you did it?

If I didn't enjoy reloading I wouldn't do it. If I finish a reloading session too quickly, I could end up doing something much less enjoyable with the the time I "saved".
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Old August 26, 2011, 03:40 PM   #14
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Yes that's good timing i guess but alot of the work for me is case prepping and i love it all. Don't care if i do 100 or only 1 I'n an hour. For me it's all about the whole process which i love and the other is they have to be accurate!!!! Nothing about time!
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Old August 26, 2011, 03:58 PM   #15
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I just wanted to make sure I wasnt being too critical (taking too much time) or blowing through the rounds (not paying too much attention).
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Old August 26, 2011, 04:17 PM   #16
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wasnt being too critical or wasting too much time according to who???? Just do your own thing, time is nothing. Have a blast, While reloading and on the range!!!!!! then do it all again
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Old August 26, 2011, 04:33 PM   #17
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Oh I didnt take it as anything bad
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