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Old November 3, 2011, 05:02 PM   #26
coltonjdavis
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Does anyone have anything against the RCBS rock chucker supreme kit?
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Old November 3, 2011, 05:27 PM   #27
George H
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"Does anyone have anything against the RCBS rock chucker supreme kit? "


That is what I started with and still use.
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Old November 3, 2011, 05:44 PM   #28
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I think a Rock Chucker kit is just right!

I always think what else did you go cheap on when I see die cast parts on a loading press.
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Old November 3, 2011, 09:48 PM   #29
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I believe the Rockchucker is one of the best presses available, the 5-0-5 scale that comes with the kit is the standard by which others are judged. The powder measure that comes with the kit is so good Hornady copied it under license from RCBS. If you look in the thread showing pictures of reloading setups you will see many that include a Rockchucker. You will not be sorry with the supreme kit.
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Old November 4, 2011, 10:19 AM   #30
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I think I may go with that one for now because its 320 for everything you need except calipers, brass, powder, primers. Am I wrong on this?
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Old November 4, 2011, 10:30 AM   #31
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"I think I may go with that one for now because its 320 for everything you need except calipers, brass, powder, primers. Am I wrong on this? "


Sounds good to me.
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Old November 4, 2011, 04:56 PM   #32
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I have a Rockchucker. Great product and it will last several lifetimes.
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Old November 4, 2011, 06:05 PM   #33
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I think I may go with that one for now because its 320 for everything you need except calipers, brass, powder, primers. Am I wrong on this?
No you are not wrong. The RC is a great press but in my opinion too slow for pistol ammo. I load on a Lee classic turret and can load close to 200 rounds per hour. The CT is a very solid press and very easy for a beginner to set up and operate.

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Old November 4, 2011, 06:12 PM   #34
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I agree with CrustyFN. The Lee Classic Turret is a great press. Rifle ammo more accurate than me or my guns and pistol ammo up to 200 rounds an hour. Cartridge changes in 30 seconds flat. It's great.
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Old November 4, 2011, 07:34 PM   #35
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I also agree with CrustyFN.

The Lee Classic Turret was my first press and it is a great press. After 6 months on my CT, I graduated to a Hornady LNL AP.

Based on my own experience, the CT was an excellent press to learn on.
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Old November 5, 2011, 01:32 AM   #36
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With the Rock Chucker you can add the Piggy Back (progressive) later.

The important thing to keep in mind is you need to learn how to build quailty reloads before opening the throttle with a progressive. you screw up here and you will have a bag of parts which used to be your pistol. Miss a double charge and it's the end of your pistol and hope you don't get hurt.

A while back I read and don't remember which board it was, a guy Loaded 1K of 223 only to find out he had missed up. I don't know about any of you but taking apart 1K of 223 is not my idea of a good time.

Some people could maybe handle a progressive and learn how to do things correctly while others should never even come close to a reloading press. If you have a reloading mentor who has run a progressive then it's a whole different story. If you are like me read the book and did it, then I would more careful.

By the way I'm still using most of the RCBS kit I bought 20 + years ago.
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Old November 7, 2011, 01:54 PM   #37
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I'm still debating. But I think I will be buying the RCBS in a month or so. New transmission in the car takes precedence.
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Old November 7, 2011, 06:55 PM   #38
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Coltjon,

Go with whichever YOU feel most comfortable with.

I will give you some final thoughts on the matter from my perspective, again this is only what I think. The 550 and 650 are Great Machines. If you are mechanicly inclined they may be for you. But if you are not, they would be a great waste of money, time, and effort. You say that you are going to load about 500 rounds a month at this point. If that is the case then you do not need either one for now.

Either the RCBS or the Lee Classic are much more suited to your needs. Even with the Rockchucker you can reload that amount leisurely(sp)?.

But I would reccomend the Lee Classic, as it is less expensive, just as easy to use, and you can load much faster with it if your needs expand. It is a breeze to use, and you can set it up for other calbers with minimal cost to the unit. The best place to buy either unit as far as I can tell is Natchezz. You can find them online.

The bottem line for me anyway is that the Lee Classic Turret is an elegently simple engineering solution that really works, and does not cost a lot of money.

JMHO, and as always, YMMV,

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Old November 8, 2011, 09:30 AM   #39
Brian Pfleuger
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Originally Posted by ipscchef
The best place to buy either unit as far as I can tell is Natchezz.
Also check Lee Factory Sales and Graf&Sons. All three well known and respected. When I bought my stuff, Factory Sales had the lowest prices, all things considered. That was 3 or so years ago in the midst of the Obama scare.... I waited months for delivery but NO ONE had ANYTHING in stock.
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Old December 12, 2011, 03:20 PM   #40
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Update and more help needed.

So I bought the RCBS rock chucker. I will be picking up my carbide dies on the way home tonight. Now the question I have is what order should I do things. From a coworker he says that for the 45ACP which is what I am loading tonight is that I first should Deprime, tumble, case trim, resize, prime, load. What do you guys think? I want to do this right and right the first time.

Thanks for all of your help.
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Old December 12, 2011, 03:28 PM   #41
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Deprime, tumble, case trim, resize, prime, load. What do you guys think? I want to do this right and right the first time.
Read the instructions in your manual. What do they tell you to do?


......

Me, I deprime and size my pistol ammo in one operation (making sure that the cases are not covered in mud first) and then tumble.... I've never needed to trim .45 ACP ...... you missed belling the case mouth, and charging in there ......
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Old December 12, 2011, 03:48 PM   #42
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First step is get a reloading manual and read it front to back a few times before doing anything else.
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Old December 12, 2011, 05:00 PM   #43
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From a coworker he says that for the 45ACP which is what I am loading tonight is that I first should Deprime, tumble, case trim, resize, prime, load. What do you guys think? I want to do this right and right the first time.
This is all you need to do for 45 auto.

Clean the cases,
size and deprime,
prime the cases,
charge the cases,
seat and crimp the bullet.

You should never need to trim 45 brass. It doesn't help to deprime then tumble if you use a vibratory tumbler because the primer pockets won't get cleaned anyway. Like some others said read a manual before you do anything else.
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Old December 12, 2011, 05:08 PM   #44
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I've been reloading 7.62x39mm on a single stage press for a few years now, what are you loading for? I also home cast lead for that caliber, works great in my CZ 527M. For cheap AND good bullets, try Berry's new 125grain plated .311 for 7.62x39mm - they work great for me.
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Old December 12, 2011, 05:14 PM   #45
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While you pick up your dies, pick up the Lyman Pistol & Revolver 3rd edition. $15 well spent. Read the introductory chapters before attemting to start reloading. For the 7.62x39 get the one for all caliber book for it.

Oh and there is not realy a need to trim .45 acp cases. I have been loading them for 2 years. I pick up over 500 cases every other weekend. I have not had to trim a single one yet.
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Old December 12, 2011, 05:29 PM   #46
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First, Congratulations on the new Rockchucker.
You will not need to trim the 45 cases. If you have a tumbler you can tumble first, but no need to (you can just wipe any dirt off). Tumbling takes hours and if done after depriming media can get stuck in the flash hole.
Deburr case mouths and inspect brass, 2nd I always deburr new and once fired as well as trimmed brass. It sometimes helps alleviate problems.
Size and deprime, 3rd (First die)
Expand case mouth, 4th (Second die)
Reprime. 5th
Charge case, 6th
Seat bullet and crimp, 7th (Third die)
Another wipe down with a clean cloth, last
I do suggest you only load a small quantity until you can test them at the range. You do not want to have to pull a hole bunch if something is wrong.
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Old December 13, 2011, 09:49 AM   #47
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Thanks for your help. I deprimed all my brass last night. It had already been tumbled. I will have to wait till Christmas to proceed as the wife bought me calipers for Christmas to measure.
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Old December 13, 2011, 04:37 PM   #48
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Here's a thread on reloading .45ACP that discusses a number of things you're likely to run into.

Reloading .45ACP

You'll see numerous references to caliper measurements. After you've loaded a few thousands rounds, you'll probably be able to spot a problem with crimp (removing the bell) by just looking, but calipers are a nice tool to aid in die setup.

It is possible to set up dies and reload without calipers, but there really isn't anything gained by this practice. Now that decent calipers can be had for $15 or so, I'm surprised they aren't included in reloading kits.
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Old December 13, 2011, 06:28 PM   #49
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I think it also matters how much time you have available for reloading as to which way you might want to go. The Rock Chucker will last much longer then you will. If maintained your children would be hard pressed to wear one out after you are long gone. They do now make things to add to them to speed thing up.

As to reloading shotgun shells, I think a Mec 600 Jr. is a great place to start. It is a simple press compared to many of the progressives that are around. Getting the proper powder that measures well will make you reloading much easier. I started reloading on one many years ago. It just plain worked well for me.

If you later want to produce more ammo per hour you can always get a Dillon 550B or 650. Again with the right powder that measures well you can produce some pretty nice ammo much faster then with the Rock Chucker. That can wait until you're ready to move up. Even if you do move up don't give up the Rock Chucker. It is a very good press for making small amounts of excellent ammo.

Remember to keep records of everything you do for your reloading as well as how it preformed. Include the temperature of when you loaded it and the temperature of you shot it. This will help you to be able to repeat the loads that work the best and what to avoid as well.
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Old December 27, 2011, 01:44 PM   #50
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I loaded my first 21 rounds last night for my 1911. They went well. They shot fantastic. After taking them to the range I loaded 50 more. I will be taking those tomorrow.
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