Newbie buying first reloader for rifle Maybe Hornady Lock-n-Load Progressive

[Bleuz]

Hello All, New member here. Just bought a new Tikka T3X Tac A1 cm, promptly sent it back to Barretta for a rail mount issue. It should be back in my hands in 4 weeks and then I hope to get started shooting. I have no reloading experience for rifles only shotgun. I only at this time need to reload for one caliber 6.5 CM. I have been looking at new kits or individual parts and am wondering if anyone here has experience with the Hornady lock - n -load progressive like this one

https://www.midsouthshooterssupply....MI-Kvwj6qy3wIVpiCtBh0IYAfhEAQYASABEgKqH_D_BwE

My concerns and they may be valid or newbie hogwash are 1 can you set the primer to varying depths or is it one size fits all and two can you make very small incremental adjustments on the powder charge or are the increments pretty course?

Any experience with this rig would be appreciated. Thank you!
Michael

 

[JimLee]

I personally wouldn't go progressive, if you get into long range precision shooting you will appreciate the consistency and accuracy you get out of a single stage setup. My opinion.

 

[shooter98]

As the owner of two Hornady lnl presses( which I love) I can tell you that I’m very happy to have had a fair amount of experience under my belt before trying to set up the progressives. My main concern with loading rookies and progressives is it’s VERY easy to get distracted and you forget a step and now all of a sudden it could get very dangerous.

 

[Pilotscrappy]

I started with the single stage hornady kit. I considered it my training wheels, It served it's purpose as I was in early stages of learning. That being said I have bought numerous more parts to upgrade some of the hornady stuff I have been using.

It's a great kit to start out with I would recommend it for sure.

 

[XLR308]

Unless you just have to have a progressive go for it but I would recommend a standard press.
If you planned on shooting a high volume of pistol rounds or 556 and would be using mostly ball powders it would make more sense.
But reloading only 65 Creedmoor and most likely using single base stick powders that don't like to play nice with a standard set and throw measure you will find yourself using it as a single stage set up more often than not.

 

[Hawk in WY]

I have both.

Single stage for load development and precision rifle.

Two progressives: one for high volume rifle and one for pistol.

My advice is to start with a single stage press. You will find it useful even if you have a progressive down the road.

I have a Forster Co-Ax but their customer service is the worst in the industry.

Good luck.

 

[Jayjay1]

If you planned on shooting a high volume of pistol rounds or 556 and would be using mostly ball powders it would make more sense.

Exactly!
As a owner of three presses (Lee Classic Cast (single), Dillon 550 (semi-progressive) and Dillon 650 (progressive) for over 10 years now I would fully subscribe that statement!

For precision rifle loading I would never use a progressive press.
You will have differences in OAL and powder charge no matter what!

I´m using the single stage press for precision rifle loads, where I can control and adjust every single step of the process, to get as much consistency as possible.

The semi-progressive press is set for large primers, and I´m loading there the 45 ACP and the 44 Magnum, which both are not shot to often by me.

The progressive 650 Dillon is set for small primers, where I´m loading a lot of 9mm Luger, .40 S&W and .223 Remington.
For the pistols it is always precise enough, and with the .223 it is okay for me, if I can hit the 10 on 100m which means accuracy should be slightly under 2".

That´s my experience and where I settled it.

 

[Bleuz]

Thank you all for your input. I ordered a Forster from PlanetOptics. Being a hobby machinist, I appreciate their floating set up for the die and case. Kind of spendy, hopefully their customer service won't be an issue. Its been 30 years since I did any reloading and that was all 20ga and 12ga. Thanks again

 

[Jayjay1]

Good choice!

Let´s talk about dies then?!
For seating Forster or Redding ist the way to go, imo.

 

[Bleuz]

I ordered at same time as press, a Forster micrometer Seater Die and a Forster Bump neck sizing die. Anything else do you think I need to get started besides scale? Obviously I need brass and powder and primers. I ordered H4350 and am considering my brass and primer options.

thank you
michael

 

[Jayjay1]

I don´t know about the neck bump dies, never used one.
I don´t like or trust the idea of backbumping the brass, might work for a few times, but then?
Like I said, I have no experience, just think it is a failure-in-progress, without knowing it.

Some bullets might be helpful, too. (Just joking.)

A caliper is obvious, an unloading hammer, that should be the minimum to start with.
And then you will find out that you need this-n´-that time after time and your equipment will grow.

 

[Quackaddict]

The things that speed up my case prep the most are a case prep center (RCBS) and a chargemaster lite. I enjoy both of them. You will also need a shell plate for the press, a trimmer, and some load manuals.

Its easy to get sucked in and spend a lot of money but the savings are easy to justify and the fact that you can customize ammo makes it all the better.

 

[PinesAndProjectiles]

I would go with a single stage if you're just learning the ropes. I just upgraded to a Forster Co-Ax so I have an older Rockchucker for sale. Send me a PM if you're interested in it.

 

[Rimfiremike]

For reloading pistol or high volume varmint/target rifle ammo, a progressive is awesome and is capable of loading very accurate ammo.
I have both a Dillon 550 and 650 and they are great for that as would be the Hornady you mentioned.
That being said, I also have a turret press that I run in single stage mode for all my lower volume rifle rounds.
I recommend you start with a single stage or turret press for a first press for the 6.5 you currently have. You can always add a progressive press later if you need it for other calibers. Make sure this press can easily switch dies without having to reset them. Most will do this with their die sleeves or turrets (Lee, Hornady) or the Forster with its unique design to remove/replace dies.
I picked a turret press because I like being able to keep individual turrets set up for each caliber and swap them onto the press depending on what caliber I am loading that session.
One of the main reasons for not using a progressive for 6.5 Creedmoor is that you will likely use H4350 powder or something similar which does not run through a progressive powder measure with any sort of consistency that you will want... need to measure each charge separately which defeats the point of the progressive.

Start with a single stage type press... there will always be a need for one on every reloading bench regardless of whether you also get a progressive later.

 

[jungle45]

Running a Redding Big Boss 2 and I would suggest hand seating your primers also. The hand seater will give you a better feel on the seating depth and you can do it while watching tv if you wish.

 

[SporterII]

Wear Safety glasses

 

[omgtkk]

Yep, What they said above. I guarantee you if you buy a single stage press, you'll never regret that purchase. I use a Redding turret press and a Dillon 550, but I also have a 30 year old Lee classic single stage on my bench and it gets used constantly. This week I used it to decap my brass before tumbling. I also use it to swage primer pockets and occasionally prime cases when I'm just doing a few. When your ready to move up to a turret or a progressive I promise you'll still find use for that single stage.