Lee handheld

[Powder_Burns]

Anyone ever resize rifle brass with one of those lee handheld presses before? I know they were pretty much for straight walled pistol stuff, I don’t really have the room currently to set up all of my reloading stuff here so was curious if this was viable or not. Thinking about doing .308 handloads like this temporarily until I have the space to set up a reloading room.

 

[918v]

I have five of them. They’re fine for resizing 308.

 

[Steel head]

I started with one of them.
The 260 loads that busted my 1000 cherry we’re loaded with it.
I actually sized some 338NM on it to see if it would do it and it did.

 

[Deleted member 113831]

I had one for a couple decades. I used it occasionally to deprime brass or resize 223. The problem isn't the sizing stroke, it is the return stroke having to pull the thing apart again. I sized a lot of 308 in it, mostly LC brass in the beginning.

I would skip it. I quickly graduated to a small RCBS partner press bolted to the top of an old steel 4 legged stool.

At the time, I lived in a little bitty 14'x52' trailer so room was at a premium. When I was finished the stool just went back into the closet and the dies and components went back into a tackle box under the bed. Another guy I knew used a fold up Black and Decker workmate bench to accomplish the same thing.

 

[Kimber.204]

I used one a couple years ago when I was working an extended job away from home. Didn't have anywhere to mount a press, so I picked up one of these. I sized thousands of rounds on it that summer, mostly .243/6mm Comp Match and some .223. I had no issues. It is a work out though, if I didn't have a tight chamber on my 6mm Comp Match rifles it would have been.....tough.

 

[MarinePMI]

I had one for a couple decades. I used it occasionally to deprime brass or resize 223. The problem isn't the sizing stroke, it is the return stroke having to pull the thing apart again. I sized a lot of 308 in it, mostly LC brass in the beginning.

I would skip it. I quickly graduated to a small RCBS partner press bolted to the top of an old steel 4 legged stool.

At the time, I lived in a little bitty 14'x52' trailer so room was at a premium. When I was finished the stool just went back into the closet and the dies and components went back into a tackle box under the bed. Another guy I knew used a fold up Black and Decker workmate bench to accomplish the same thing.

This^^^^^^

I used a partner press on a B&D folding work bench for years when I was single and living in a 1 bedroom apartment. It worked well; much better than a hand press. There's also plans floating around on the net for a portable reloading box mount that works well for many.

Looks like this...

 

[fdkay]

Anyone ever resize rifle brass with one of those lee handheld presses before? I know they were pretty much for straight walled pistol stuff, I don’t really have the room currently to set up all of my reloading stuff here so was curious if this was viable or not. Thinking about doing .308 handloads like this temporarily until I have the space to set up a reloading room.

If your loading for a bolt gun, neck size.

 

[Powder_Burns]

If your loading for a bolt gun, neck size.

This would be for a gasser.

 

[Steel head]

I had one for a couple decades. I used it occasionally to deprime brass or resize 223. The problem isn't the sizing stroke, it is the return stroke having to pull the thing apart again. I sized a lot of 308 in it, mostly LC brass in the beginning.

I would skip it. I quickly graduated to a small RCBS partner press bolted to the top of an old steel 4 legged stool.

At the time, I lived in a little bitty 14'x52' trailer so room was at a premium. When I was finished the stool just went back into the closet and the dies and components went back into a tackle box under the bed. Another guy I knew used a fold up Black and Decker workmate bench to accomplish the same thing.

It’s a great titty exerciser!

 

[Limedust]

Agree with most of what was said here about it. Started in a small apartment with the Lee Loader and then got the arm-bender. Will say ... haven't gotten rid of either of them. Still use the hand-press for sizing/depriming .308 and .223 when I don't want to be stuck at the bench. It works, and works fairly well. Like others said, .308 will give your arms a workout on the backstroke, and after 300 .223, your hands feel like burger.

That said, I'd get one and use it until you have the space for something more.