LEE FL DIES VS RCBS FL DIES?

nicely spoken all......Maybe this should be the question if Redding, RCBS, Hornady and Lee dies were all the same which one would you pick IDBOB and Raidman??? Would you pay more for Lee??? Or is the point you are making that you can get by with them??
 
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I've loaded much ammo with Lee dies. They are what I started out with when money was more tight than now. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Lee dies can and will load accurate ammo. The two biggest problems with Lee dies IMO:

1) Less polished on the inside, will sometimes scratch brass or "stick"

2) The bullet seaters, in certain cartridges, not all, will sometimes either not seat bullets as uniformly and/or, will deform the tips

Lee collet dies work pretty well, and the Lee factory crimp dies are great.....

That said, Reddings are my favorite dies now. Hornadys my least favorite......
 
BHLBAMA, if all things were equal I would probably choose the Redding dies. All die manufacturers have strong and weak points and the point I was trying to make about Lee is that their dies do the job. I still believe that I can load ammo just as well with Lee as I can with Redding. 2muchgun makes a very valid point about the polish on the inside of dies, the first thing I do with ALL new dies is take them apart, clean them, polish the inside and clean them again. A little compound on a bore mop in a drill motor will make a noticeable difference in a short time. The bottom line is that just about all die manufacturers make decent and not so decent dies and I’m certainly not going to trash Lee just because they are cheaper.
 
My old man has rcbs I have one lee and the rest hornady. I vote for either hornady or rcbs. I just think lee isn't as good with almost all their stuff, it's cheaper and it shows. You shouldn't really wear out dyes or most the equipment you use for reloading, so spend a little extra for something you have to put up with for a very long time.
 
I saw recently that Hornady has changed the design of their "new dimension" dies. Good thing, they can't possibly be any worse than the old ones.....
 
Another thing to keep in mind is that the RCBS dies are longer. It isn't a factor unless you are using a progressive press like a Hornady LNL then you would need to do some grinding for clearance on the Lee dies to get them to go deep enough.
 
Cant give an honest comparison as I gave my Lee kit and dies to my B.I.Law when I bought the Rockchucker. No complaints or problems to mention with the RCBS dies I now have. I have a couple of the Comp. dies now and there a dream to load with.


Dave
 
I just purchased several RCBS tools. I must say These RCBS components are very stocky tools. They might not work better but they sure feel better. I think with practice I'll make better hand loads.
Thanks for the input guys.
DEFCON
 
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