lee loadmaster ?

[LeRoy]

im selling a few toys to buy a loadmaster and im curious who also has one ? anyone out here put a million rounds through their system? 

[Old Rocket]

65k 9mm thru a pro1000. The loadmaster always peeks my interest also.

[jwc007]

Had one.  Hated it as I spent more time fixing the Primer Feed than loading.    Gave it away and ordered a Dillon XL650, which I have now been loading on for years. 

[Riptide439]

im selling a few toys to buy a loadmaster and im curious who also has one ? anyone out here put a million rounds through their system?

LeRoy - I am Newbie also on the reloading side and came to this forum looking for advice on a progressive press. After posting, listening, and learning, I ended up with a Lee Single Stage Classic Press. Best decision yet!  I have loaded my first loads a couple weeks ago. Took 2 months to find press, dies, powder, & bullets BUT the learning process with a single stage is invaluable. At about $100 for the press itself it is the best jumping off point possible! I would not have done it any different.

Check this out - it may help - http://www.czfirearms.us/index.php?topic=52513.0

I plan to get a progressive once the craziness slows down but for now - I am very content with the single stage press and I was convinced to start with the single stage by all the great people on this forum.

Heed their advice - there are hundreds ( Maybe Thousands  ) of years experience on this section of the CZ forum.

[Wobbly]

I've read hundreds of "2 years later" type reviews on loading presses. The Lee Load Master and Lee Pro-1000 generally get the lowest marks. Users generally get fed up with the constant adjustments and primer feed jams.

On the opposite end of the scale is the Lee cast Classic Turret, which low budget/ moderate volume users generally rave about.


All reloading presses, used optimally, generally pay for themselves within 1 year, even a $15,000 top of the line Dillon. So IMHO, the place to start your investigation is to first sit down and calculate the calibers and volumes you'll realistically have time to reload and shoot. In the interim, the first action to take is to start saving all your brass. You can't reload without empty brass, and you should have 500-1000 cases to be successful.

Hope this helps! 

[kobus]

my first press is a Lee Pro 1000 that i loaded 1000's of rounds with.  then i bought my Dillon RL550B and now it is the only press i use for my own reloads.

some of my friends bought and donated the dies and toolheads for their calibers which i use in the Lee Pro 1000 now to reload for them (their brass, bullets, powder and primers). yes, they trust me to load for them 

i like my Lee Pro but the Dillon is better and all i need. to each his own and there are many good products available but i suggest you spend a bit extra and go for a Dillon that suits your needs.

[LeRoy]

cool guys!

well im buying it for my 40b, and i can get the pro1000 for $215 to my door,  i think im going to start with that as it seems to be a bit more cut and dry then the loadmaster, but for right now, i think ill have to just buy bulk to cal ammo. to save the brass, and collect it at my local desert

[Wobbly]

cool guys!

well im buying it for my 40b, and i can get the pro1000 for $215 to my door....

Cool. Please write us in 2 years with a review.   

[larryflew]

Have used a 1000 for about 4 years for my 9mm. Once set up I rarely have any problems.  Being set up was so fussy when I decided to do 45 also I purchased another 1000 instead of doing parts swap and set up every time.  Now I just swap loaders instead.  BTW my sale of a blue coolaid 550B funded the purchase of both with some $$ left over.

One major caution - as has been mentioned a gazillion time they ARE a PITA to set up and keep the primer area clean.  I keep a can of air blast handy and blow the primer area out every 50 or so cartridges.

[undertoad]

I bought a Loadmaster as my very first press just about 2 years ago. I load .223, 7.62x39, 9x19, and 9x18 on it. Yes, it takes some set-up time and a few tweaks, but once that's done, you can really crank out some ammo with it.

[gianmarko]

with good quality primers, and with the feed mechanism kept clean, the pro 1000 will work flawlessly. i often load 500 or more rounds without any bad priming. i have never used a dillon, but looking at videos i assume that loading primers is much slower in the dillon than in the pro 1000.

[rodolfo]

I used a Lee LoadMaster for a couple of years.  It made lots of ammo in that time and paid for itself many times over.  You need to keep lots of spare primer feed parts.  The press never sets off a primed, but some of the feed parts are wrecked if you have a jam.  The parts are plastic, cheap, and quick to change (Lord knows I had enough practice).  Keep the primer tray full and you will have a lot less jams.