lee dies

[ECLIPSE45ACP]

? everyone. Are Lee dies, specifically the 4 piece set for 45 acp a good set
to use? I have heard many people say that the Lee's are inferior to an rcbs or a dillon. Is this true?

thanks

[rwilson452]

I have the 4 die set. acually it started as a 3 die set and I bought the FCD later. this was some time ago before they offered the 4 die set. I like it. I don't know what press you have I use mine in a Lee LoadMaster press. (5 hole) . Almost all my dies are Lee. I do have a few RCBS. I have had no problem with my dies. I did break the decapping pin on my 30-06 die, it was my fault but they replaced it amyway. I have made 1000s of rounds with my 45ACP dies and they still work just fine. It would seem that some people just like to rag on Lee because they are cheaper. I understand some of the more expensive rifle dies are better than Lee dies but I'm not a 1000 yard competitive shooter so I don't see the difference.
For me Lee dies work good don't cost a lot and last a long time.

[RERICK]

I don't have a problem with them.I use them in 40 and 38/357 mostly.They work well.All my ammo functions properly so I do and will continue to use them.I don't think you will see any bench rest guys using them but for every day ammo they are fine.Although I do love those Redding competition seating dies.

[Mike Irwin]

Right now I have Lee die sets in:

.32-20, .32 Long, .38 Spl., .357 Mag., .41 Magnum, .44 Special, .45 ACP, and possibly a couple of others, as well.

I've never had a single problem with a Lee die and have never found the ammo they product to be any better or worse than ammo done on any of my RCBS, Lyman, or Redding dies.

[ECLIPSE45ACP]

thanks guys, I am new to this and using the lee turret press with 45 acp
4 piece set. the information has been very useful, and will be purchasing lee dies.

[Ausserordeutlich]

I'm not big on Lee presses and some of their other products, but I've found their dies to be excellent. I use Lee dies on a Dillon press. The Lee dies work great for me, and for the price, you don't have much invested when you give them a try.

[JJB2]

here's another completely satisfied lee customer....................... i use the lee speed dies in .38spl-.357 magnum and 9mm..........

[Smokey Joe]

Eclipse45ACP--You hear this and that bad thing, about this or that Lee product. But you NEVER hear anyone knock their dies.

I have Lee, RCBS, Pacific, and Redding dies, in various cartridges. They ALL work just fine.

I really like the Lee collet neck-size-only dies.

[Zippy06]

I have Lee dies.
Since, '86.
9mm, .357, .223, 30-30.
Recently .40 S&W.
Next .308.
Handgun are carbide.
Great price.

[Trapper L]

I've been reloading since 1974. Almost all of my equipment is RCBS. I had problems with a set of RCBS 9mm dies and I really didn't want to wait for RCBS to get them exchanged so I bought a set of the Lee carbide dies which has the 4 dies. Lee pistol dies are now the die set of choice. Far better functioning and engineering than the RCBS. I haven't had good luck with the Redding competition dies either. The Reddings for my 30/338 Mag bench rifle wouldn't size correctly and I ended up with a set of RCBS. Another Lee item that is far ahead of everybody else- try the Lee reloading manual. It has as much information in it as ten of the other manuals. I don't like how the pistol and rifle data is mixed together but if there is data available for a cartridge, it's in the Lee manual.

[XD-Guy]

I have 6 sets of dies, all are Lee and they work great. I couldn't say anything bad about Lee products

[Rimrod]

I prefer RCBS, especially for rifle, but I have 30+ sets of Lee dies and they work alright. The only thing I don't like about their handgun dies are the seating stems. They are all made for round nose bullets and will deform JHPs with an exposed lead nose. Other than that, for general purpose, they are hard to beat.

[KW-Bane]

I have used the 3 pc set in .45 acp and a set in .45 colt. I've not had any troubles with either loading thousands (& etc & etc) of rnds.

I have not used any others....why get something else, if what I have works just fine?

[viper1216]

I have Lee dies in

9mm
.45 ACP
.223 Remington

I also load on the Lee Turret and they have worked flawlessly.

[cheygriz]

I've had three sets of Lee dies over the years, and had to ship all three sets back to Lee for repair. I wouldn't have another set of Lee dies as a gift.

I do, however use their FCD.

[CERBERUS]

Originally Posted by cheygriz

I've had three sets of Lee dies over the years, and had to ship all three sets back to Lee for repair. I wouldn't have another set of Lee dies as a gift.

I do, however use their FCD.

I agree, I started with a lee package, the one with there O(?) press. I like the primer seater, and I like the press, but I did not care for the scale, or powder measure. I bought a set of 30-06 lee dies and wasn't to impressed, but I do like the FCD. All my dies are RCBS as of right now, with a set of hornady dies. except for the 06 dies, they were all bought used.

[Buckythebrewer]

Im still using my Lee 223 dies(and everything else) from when I shot an encore years ago.Now I shoot an AR15 from 100 to 600yrds+(when I find a safe place again) with those original dies..Lee is the best thing reloading has EVER seen IMO.Without Lee products I would not be able to afford to get into reloading.The LEE book has been a great thing to my mind and body as wellIm still here because I know how to read and follow directions..Im sure there are products that do some things better,But for the most part you can buy Lee products and they will do MOST everything you need(In my experience anyways)..Im not going to knock other brands,,But I will KNOCK there prices for alot of things that most people don't need(or want) ..Get a full Lee set and learn to use everything properly,If then you need a specific product for something,, your money will be well spent and you can still use your lee stuff for years to come.. If I can take a cheap Lee challenger press kit and reload accurate(better than M.O.A.) ammo for 600 yards using WELL used LEE dies. I think that the average 100 yard shooter can load some good reliable ammo.I have said this many times,,The press is the most UN-important piece of reloading IMO.I guess it could depend on the die design,but for my lee dies ,,My (VERY cheap!) press has been making accurate/and reliable ammo for years.for the record,,I love the scale and powder measure.My products are Many years old ,and for all I know there quality control could have slipped from time to time.I don't know.JMO

Don't hate me because im poor

[Tom2]

I use all Lee dies and they seem to work fine for me. Have quite a few. I started loading revolver loads with one of the little Lee Loaders where you use a mallet and do all the operations by hand, and it always worked OK and was great when I was poor. Only bad product I ever had was those hand priming tools that they used to make-they still may. The body was made of some kind of pot metal or something. They would break out at the end where the case holder was inserted. Gave up on those. I use the carbide dies for handgun loads. I find that the press has this tilting primer holder that you prime the cases with. It sometimes is fussy to handle or line up and I have crushed primers and got them in backwards etc. before if I am not careful. The rest of the operation is easy.

[JJB2]

how does a guy BREAK a reloading die?? and what kind of pressure does it take to BREAK the lee hand primer?? i have used my lee stuff to make hundreds of reloads and never had any problems at all.... i did send a bullet to lee and they made me a custom bullet seater to seat swc bullets though as the original seater was messing up the noses on em....



LIFE IS SHORT.............

[Mike Irwin]

JJB, he's not talking about a loading die. At least I don't think he is. He's talking about the priming tool body.

I figure that at this point I've used my Lee hand primer to prime between 30,000 and 40,000 cases.

Mine is still in perfect working condition.

The secret of it not breaking is keeping it well lubricated.

The only reason I'm retiring it is because I'm getting arthritis in my hands and I've upgraded to a Lee Classic cast iron turret press with the EZ prime system.

[Buckythebrewer]

Sorry Tom2,I gotta ask the same thing???How the HEL* did you break the hand primer??? I have used it for 1000's of primers(small rifle winchester,+500 +/- federal primers ,Not suppost to use federal with the hand primer).My hand primers and all my Lee stuff are many years old.
Don't hate me because im poor and don't break Lee handpriming tools .

[rem33]

The Lee dies I have have worked flawlessly.

My Lee Auto Prime did begin to wear the plastic on the small primer one where the ram was touching the plastic just below the shell holder. I didn't want to wait for a new one from Lee so I carved in a very tiny place into the plastic and replaced it with a tiny piece of aluminum from a pop can. It had done thousands of primers before the problem and has done thousands since.

[Smokey Joe]

Used one for many years, and finally it broke around the collar where it holds the shell holder. Shell holder is steel, body of the priming tool is cheap pot metal.

It finally just got tired I guess. Anyhow, I called Lee up, and their customer service guy--Dave Shono--said send it to us and we'll replace it. I said, does it matter that I Dremelled it so as to be able to prime WSM cases with it? and Dave said not a bit, it isn't supposed to break.

So I sent it in and they promptly sent me back a new one.

It seems a good idea to grease the little cam, where it pushes up the shaft to seat the primer, and the hinges the thumb lever and the cam swing on. No grease for the seating shaft--it might work up and get on the primer.

If they made the body of the tool out of steel, for, say, $2-3 more, I'd gleefully buy it, but as it is it's a useful tool, and Lee stands behind their products.

[tomf52]

I have rid myself of all my RCBS and Lyman dies and gone to Lee. Like them much more.

[cloudcroft]

OP,

Lee dies INferior? That almost makes you sound like a troll it's so erroneous.

Fact is, Lee dies are probably just the opposite: SUperior!

-- John D.