hornady, or rcbs dies?

Originally Posted By: driftbusterIs one better than the other?

I prefer the Hornady but the RCBS is fine. I really like the floating seater of the Hornady. I started with the Green but went to the Red. Now I using Redding Green.

Greg
 
Originally Posted By: GLShooterOriginally Posted By: driftbusterIs one better than the other?

I prefer the Hornady but the RCBS is fine. I really like the floating seater of the Hornady. I started with the Green but went to the Red. Now I using Redding Green.

Greg

I too like the Hornady because of that neato seating die. But since I started buying RCBS about 30 years earlier that I what I have the most of. But hey, I even like the Lee die sets that I have and some of my most accurate ammo ever came out of them.
 
These would be for 7mm-08, and 300wm. I have some rcbs and that's mostly what everyone carries around here but I am going to be heading to cabelas and they both.
 
If they have them in stock, don`t be afraid of the Lee Deluxe Die Set..
Get the full length size, neck size, and bullet seat die for half the price, sometimes a crimp die included.
 
If you look around there are a lot of negative reviews on the Hornady dies, I just don't see why. I use almost strictly Hornady Dies and have zero complaints what so ever, granted I'm not shooting BR competitions, I am however rolling out ammo that had been very accurate. The seater die has been particularly handy especially on small calibers and with flat base bullets.
 
A lot of good info guys! Seems like the hornady seating die has the edge, I never considered the Lee even when I got my Dillon it came with 4 sets of Lee for pistol and 308.
 
Originally Posted By: HookedIf they have them in stock, don`t be afraid of the Lee Deluxe Die Set..
Get the full length size, neck size, and bullet seat die for half the price, sometimes a crimp die included.

Totally agree. Have several sets and absolutely nothing wrong with Lee for the price. Have loaded thousands of .22-250 rounds with Lee dies, not a single issue.

All of my other dies are RCBS brand. Again, why mess with success? Some of these dies are almost 40 years old and still getting it done.

Grouse
 
I have a set of Hornady dies in .204, but the sizer die overworks the brass. However, I do use the seating die. I think Redding dies are probably the best overall. RCBS does make some good equipment, and their warranty is very good.
 
I use more Redding than anything. Followed by RCBS.

When I was younger and starting out, I used Lees mostly because they were/are more affordable. I still have many Lee dies as well. I mostly only use the Lees on straight walled cartridges now, and the factory crimp dies. Most are on 4-hole turrets. I do not like the lack of a lock ring, but the turret makes it a non-issue. The FCDs are great. The Lees are a bit less polished internally sometimes, and I do not like their seaters that much. This is why they see limited use and only certain cartridges.

As for Hornady, I absolutely HATE them. MOF, this thread right here is the most positive press I've ever seen them given at one time.....
 
There are really no bad dies out there. I have had the Hornady dies scratch up inside from a little dirt or grit. They seem to do this when others I have will not. I guess they are a little softer. I now clean with sts and only ever size perfectly clean brass so it is no longer an issue. All of the companies listed so far have beyond excellent customer service. One brand not mentioned is Lyman...I have some of them and they also work great. My favorite is Redding.
 
why not say why you hate them? All the negative I see is like your post, "hate them", "worst doies ever", "won't buy them" or some such but no one EVER says what it is they don't like.

I have one set of Hornady, 444 Marlin and based on that set I see no reason to not buy more.
 
I purposefully left that out Stu. Reason being, is that I've not tried any of the most recent Hornady dies. They may be better, but Hornady missed the 2muchgun boat long ago. Those that have been around, know they have changed their die designs multiple times over the years. Up until I gave up on them, they never got it right. Never. PITA to set up, and more runout than any other dies I have used. Simply put, I found them irritating to use, and the results were not worth it.

The only Hornady I still have here, are a set of "Custom Grade New Dimension Dies" in 300 Wby. I hate them just like I hated every one of Hornady's previous die designs......
 
I find it harder to use the 17 cal seater with the Hornady. The floating seater head just doesn't come down for enough for my fingers and sometimes they get started crooked. Works OK for 223 and such. I do have an older set and the FL sizer seems to way oversize compared to the RCBS and Redding S-dies. I prefer the Wilson Seater for my 17 Rem loadings.
 
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