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Getting Ready for the Plunge

HAIRY
into reloading. Is it possible to use the dies from one manufacturer to another? For example, if I have a RCBS press, can I use the dies from Lee? or visa versa?[?]

It's not what you know that gets you in trouble, it's what you know that just ain't so!
Resident Pyrrhonist
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Comments

6 comments

Date Votes
  • Hangfire
    Yep=7/8" threads are standard-Bob

    Gun control is a steady hand
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  • moose56
    Own a Pacific press (old one) and have Lyman, RCBS, Lee and Pacific dies and they all fit! Enjoy!

    Moose
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  • bobski
    take all those sets and tag sale them. go out and get a dillon 550 and set up all your turrets for every caliber you want and never have to fiddle again. trust me, if youre gonna take the plunge, wear the best mask and fins! youll be glad you did around the 5th box you load.

    former air operations officer SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 2. former navy skeet team, navy rifle/pistol team member. co-owner skeetmaster tubes inc.. owner/operator professional shooting instruction.
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  • Joker
    Be on the lookout for any dies stamped "Herter's", and steer well clear. I trouble to insert this because of the generational gap that seems to be widening daily.
    A young friend of mine, some years ago, inherited his grandfather's
    reloading stuff. Thinking that it was all "standardized", he sold off the entire batch, and could not understand the storm of irate feedback he got.
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  • Throckmorton
    If you're trying to get by on a budget and get used dies,be aware that older dies don't have a tapered mouth and may not be good to use on a turret or progressive press.The brass can hang up on the way in if you're trying for any speed at all.Also,older pistol dies may be steel,not carbid3e,and will REQUIRE lubing the brass before sizing.
    I'll echo the sentiments on the Dillon 550b.You can run this as a single stage press until you've learned the operation of each station,then load 'er up and do several operations at once.
    Good luck,and load safe...s**t happens at a loading bench sometimes.

    Throckmortons' the alias,cas is the game.
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  • e8gm
    I own both a RCBS Rock Chucker and a Dillon 550. Both are the best at what they are designed for. You didn't mention what type of reloading you'd be doing ie; pistol or rifle. The Dillon is a great machine for loading straight wall pistol cases. It works well for bottle neck rifle also if you do all your brass prep on a single stage (the Rock Chucker). The single stage will load whatever you want to it just doesn't do it as fast as a progressive Dillon. My biggest recommendation is buy quality. Don't scrimp on dies or presses. After all these are the heart of your reloading equipment. Cheap equipment will only turn out inferior ammo not to mention the frustration of trying to cope with a machine that breaks every other round. You can't go wrong with either the RCBS line or Dillon.
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