Lee Pro 1000?

[sirmissalot]

Just thinking of some ideas for my dad for Christmas and wouldn't mind getting him one of these for 45acp. Right now he does most of our reloading and just uses a single stage press. For the price I thought this would be pretty cool, but the reviews I have read online are completely mixed, some say they are perfect and some say they absolutely suck. We don't shoot an awful lot but a decent amount in the winter at the local pistol range. I don't want to get him a piece of junk he already has pretty low patience with most things...

Thanks for any input.

[h20hunter]

I have only had one buddy with a Lee progressive. Came to work on Mondays cussing and swearing. I understand they are finicky and are easy to get out of whack. He may spend more time messing with it than actually loading. I would suggest browse CL and look for a basic Dillon 550B. They have a lifetime "NO BS" (their terms) warranty and once you get it dialed they stay that way. I'm partial becuase that is what I load with.

[wildmanoutdoors]

I have been using the pro 1000's for years. Sometimes finiky. but you get used to them and they become easier. I loaded 166 rounds of 40sw Sat night in about 30 minutes. Without a hickup!

For sure they dont suck, and are great for the price!

[sirmissalot]

The finicky part is what worries me. My dad is pretty high strung and would not hesitate to throw it away after the first use if he can't get it to work right... We aren't usually the type to buy inexpensive equipment but I just don't see a need for an expensive progressive loader as we really don't shoot all that much.

I will definitely keep an eye out for a used higher end press

[wildmanoutdoors]

I can say that most hickups are user error. Like when it gets low on primers it may miss a feed or one can flip and not get seated.
Once the press is set up it works great and they are much more consistant than one may think with there powder disc system.

When I was shooting IPSC we used to have to chrone our rounds before a match to make sure they met major power of 800FPS or more. You try to keep them down to as close to minimum as possible. I had 3 in a row that went 815, 815 and 816 FPS. Thats really consistant and it proved to stay that consistant.

if you forget to turn the shell tube when on is empty they actually do a great job of not feeding the next primer. Pretty good failsafe.

Put it this way, I dont skimp on *censored* much either. And I hate Cheap stuff. But this this is a great piece of equipment for 170 bucks. If it was not good Id have 2 Dillions!

For this price I can have 3 to 4 bolted to the bench for the cost of one Dillon. All ready to go in an instant!

Saw a used 550 on WAguns for 700! 

[sirmissalot]

Thanks wildman thats good info

[woodswalker]

I have several of them, permanently set up in .38 Spcl/.357 (two tool heads and powder measures), 9mm, .45 ACP and one in .44Spcl/.44 Mag (again two toolheads).

THe .38/357 one has loaded over 23,000 rounds with few hickups.  Most of those were operator induced.  The others have between 6000-11000, depending on caliber per each on them...

Not really finicky if you get it set up RIGHT...and take decent care of them...wipe down, clean, dont let spent primers get everywhere and LUBRICATE THEM WHERE INDICATED.

[h20hunter]

Some very good points about the cost allowing you to acquire more than one for specific calibers. Mine does take awhile to set up and quick changes can cost about the same amount as the Lee you are looking at. Space is limited for me but I'm sure that can be easily worked around.

[yorketransport]

Like the others, I think it's a good press. If you don't pay attention and let a case go through unprimed though get ready for some clean up.

I find that I have the most problems with it when I change calibers. Once it's set up all you really need to do make sure that you have a steady flow of primers.

Andrew

[sirmissalot]

Thanks for the input guys. I went ahead and ordered one for 45acp. I will let you guys know how it turns out, it may just turn into a present for myself  but I'm hoping it will do its job and we can get a couple more as well. 

[sirmissalot]

Well so far my experience with it has been so-so. The primer feed has been a little bit difficult so far but it seems like it works better with the hopper full. For the most part it seems pretty simple and I think we will be able to dial it in just fine. I will update when we get it a little more fine tuned.

[sirmissalot]

Well so far my experience with it has been so-so. The primer feed has been a little bit difficult so far but it seems like it works better with the hopper full. For the most part it seems pretty simple and I think we will be able to dial it in just fine. I will update when we get it a little more fine tuned.

Just thought I'd follow up on this. Like I kinda figured... my dad lost patience, mainly with the primer feed. We went in on a Dillion 650xl together and sold the Lee to a buddy of mine... I've been helping him out reloading on it and its been ok, a little frustrating  when a primer doesn't feed properly and powder dumps out the primer pocket into the primer feed and you've got to clean it out otherwise they really don't want to feed well... definitely not like using the Dillion. If you're patient and go slow, it seems to work pretty well, but like I said my dad doesn't have a whole lot of that kind of patience!

[Blacklab]

you definitely married up 

[Jekemi]

Let me speak from experience, lots of painful experience. I owned a Lee Loadmaster for some time and ran a few thousand rounds through it. It is a pain in the butt. Finicky is the understatement of the year. It requires a constant level of tweaking, adjusting, and calibrating. Although it is different than the Pro 1000 it uses some of the same components and mechanisms. It uses a three hole turret, very limited. The Lee case feeding and bullet feeding mechanism's are flimsy and ticky-tac. The powder measure leaks like a sieve.
On the other hand the Lee classic turret press is an excellent piece of equipment and you can crank out many rounds per hour of any caliber. If you are sold on the idea of a progressive press might I recommend the Hornady LNL Auto-progressive press. It is a substantial piece of equipment, well made, fairly easy to set up, and requires much less fidgeting to get it right (all auto-progressive presses require some tinkering). It holds 5 dies with plenty of space between the dies and the accessories, such as the bullet feeder, case feeder, and priming mechanism work flawlessly. The Hornady case activated powder measure is excellent. It's a little more expensive than the Lee AP's but well worth it. It's much less expensive than either the RCBS or Dillon, both of which are excellent AP presses.
I have used both the Lee AP and the Hornady AP and there is no comparison - The Hornady wins hands down.