Choosing a press

I don’t know about holding you back BUT I will say I use a CO-AX for precision and a Dillon for bulk loading.

Blangst1 said:

So Ive been reloading for about 5 years now, started with a lee turret and now have it and a Lyman all American 8. I am starting to get into more benchrest shooting and accuracy testing. Is the Lyman turret press holding me back? Should I get a Rock chunker or similar single stage press?

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If you're going to do precision reloading, a good single stage press is the way to go. A good Rock Chucker would not be a bad choice, like the Rock Chucker Rebel. Personally, I've gone with the Forster Co-Ax as I find it much easier and faster to do things due to just being able to slide a die in and out to as I experiment with a few cartridges at a time; and it produces very consistent results. The only pressing thing I don't use it for is seating the projectiles, which I get better results with a LE Wilson die with micrometer adjustment and a simple arbor press.

If you haven seen it already you might want to take a good look at Ultimate Reloader's review to get some idea for some good single stage presses (look close at the accompanying hard data sheets he provides too):

You didn't say what calibers you are trying to load but I doubt the Lyman is holding you back. If you are already getting consistent shoulder bump (putting words in your month) what would you gain with a new press? Presses are pretty simple machines.

I just switched from an old RCBS that I inherited to a Frankford M Press. Haven't run much of anything thru the M Press yet, but the lack of shell holder and the other features seem nicer. It looks like a copy of a Forster co-ax so I figure it'll be OK

Got a Frankford universal bullet seating die before the M Press and it certainly helps with precise depth settings of rounds. Get the thing set right and there's very little variation between rounds. Lets me load .223 and 6.5 with the same die. Bonus

M

AllenOne1 said:

You didn't say what calibers you are trying to load but I doubt the Lyman is holding you back. If you are already getting consistent shoulder bump (putting words in your month) what would you gain with a new press? Presses are pretty simple machines.

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^^^ This.

I use a nearly-three-decades-old Dillon RL550 progressive press in a "hybrid" mode for precision rifle ammo and in regular progressive mode for pistol ammo. There are a number of internet articles about improving progressive presses for precision ammo.... all I've done is put rubber washers between dies' lock rings and standard Dillon tool heads. I resize/deprime/reprime in station 1 and run a mandrel in station 2. Then I clean lube from the lot of brass and trim it, charge the cases with powder dropped light from Dillon measure and trickled to spec, and finally seat bullets. Shoulder bumps are typically within .0005" and runout around .002" - this with mid-tier (Starline) or good (Peterson) brass.

While I've been handloading shotshells and pistol and hunting rifle ammo for over 50 years, I got into loading for precision rifle about four years ago. I figured there was no reason not to try using my old Dillon before spending $$$ on a single-stage press. So glad I didn't waste that money - heaven knows there were plenty of other gadgets (scale, annealer, caliper, etc.) to consume dollars.

Edit: A buddy of mine competes in F-class benchrest as well as PRS, and he's anal enough that he cuts H4350 kernels to achieve +/- 0.01 grain powder weights for benchrest ammo. I know from discussing with him that, when we use the exact same brass, primers, powder and bullets without the uber-anal steps like kernel-cutting and neck turning, our rounds perform identically.

I have the Lyman all American 8 press. If I hold the base the turret has a slight bit of play in it if you put pressure on it. It does fine for normal loads. I switched to LE Wilson dies and press for my PRC and the concentricity of my loads did improve. improve. YMMV

Turban is all you need, no regret.

If I were you, I'd not spend money on a new or different press if the old crappy stuff you are currently using is providing you with accurate results. Also, I'd use that old crappy equipment on the new calibers....if you ever get them.....and continue to use that old crappy equipment for as long as you are seeing accurate results.

Or....go 100% all out on the latest and greatest and glitziest and most expensive gear. Keep that old crappy stuff. Compare your downrange results and decide for yourself if it was worth it.

Blangst1 said:

So Ive been reloading for about 5 years now, started with a lee turret and now have it and a Lyman all American 8. I am starting to get into more benchrest shooting and accuracy testing. Is the Lyman turret press holding me back? Should I get a Rock chunker or similar single stage press?

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I have a sloppy ass Lyman tmag2 and a tight rcbs rebel that is a monster, groups are the same. Maybe I'm lucky? Maybe all the loosey goosey helps? I just use the Lyman for convenience now. I really like the rebel though. I still want a Dillon though.
Edit* All the loosey goosey is in the linkage, the ram has a tiny wiggle and the turret slop on the tmag2 can be adjusted out so that's not an issue. This is after thousands upon thousands of rounds and brass prep.

You don't need a single stage, especially if you already have a press that works. You absolutely can make world class ammo on a progressive or turret and any given single stage is not better(or worse necessarily) than something like a Dillon for precision ammo.

Slow down a bit and make sure you're working your press consistently every time. If you end up with ammo that doesn't meet your expectations after quality load development then maybe think about a different press...or different dies. I would honestly put more emphasis on quality dies than some single stage press.

Plenty of guys make F-class and better ammo on progressives and turrets. Theres nothing inherently precise about a single stage press.

@Blangst1
Just curious....
What did you decide to do?

Blangst1 said:

I just have my all american 8 still. Saving for a xl750 to reload 9mm

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I just got a 750 dedicated for 9mm.
I’ve done a few thousand on my 750 so far and I’m loving it. Definitely more to figure out and tweak over my 550 but worth it.

Besides having to polish and flare my primer cup for Ginex primers, my only issue has been cases getting stuck on the case feeder tube adapter on the press. I think it just needs a little sanding and it should be good.

I can consistently crank out ammo at the rate of 700-800 per hour, with primer tube filling.

I personally use a RCBS at home to do my brass prep on. At my range, I use a Frankford M-Press to seat my bullets on. The press isn't what's going to hold you back accuracy wise.

Im starting to think it all comes down to brass prep. I load on a cheap ass lee classic turret and make one hole ammo. Id invest in things that will make brass more consistent like annealers or 3 way trimmers. Havent even upgraded to the fx scale yet. I dont see the need when my sd is routinely in the 4-6 fps range

Without measurements from your loaded rounds there is no way of knowing your press is holding you back.

I still wish I had gone with a turret press instead of a single stage ( way less changing of the dies ) just set em up and pull the leaver . with a single stage unless your only reloading one type of round over and over needing that one die your going to be switching your die over and over and over . and the money is pretty much the same rather than buying one and having to upgrade buy once cry once type of deal . best of luck with which ever brand you go with .

sonichanxiao said:

Turban is all you need, no regret.

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^ If I had an issue with my Coax this is what I'd get.