Shadow
Junior Member
Posts: 21 
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Post by Shadow on Jan 6, 2015 15:22:54 GMT -8
In the past I have used lower end RCBS, Hornady, and Lee dies to reload everything from 9mm to 300wsm. I am currently in the market for an upgrade on my dies and have been eyeballing Redding and Whidden dies. Can anyone here explain what all these dies entail that make them that much better than a set of hornady or rcbs Dies you would grab off the shelf at cabelas. I am particularly interested in Features, design, tolerances, etc. Personal experiences are always welcome. thanks!
-Shadow
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Post by GLSHOOTER on Jan 6, 2015 16:08:17 GMT -8
For top shelf dies the Reddings are the way to go. I use a lot of them because of the bushings. They make quality standrd dies also . On most of the regular sets I go with Hornady as I like the seating set up with the sliding slevev. I have never used a Whidden. They do make custom items I know but for that CH4D gets my vote every time.
Spec wise I have never had a "bad" set of dies except some Lyman 45 LC years ago. I started with RCBS went to Hornady and then Redding. I have smattering of Dillons andalso have some straight line BR types from Wilson for use with an arbor press. I have two sets of Lee's that I got in a trade and a set I use to load for a friends 32 Special ever gun. I just like a better shiny finish I guess. I do little crimping so the factoty crimp thing holds no allure to me.
I like the locking rings on the Hornady best. I dislike the ones on RCBS and Dillon dies and swap Hornadys on to those. I like adding micrometer tops to teh Hornady seaters as they can be used for each caliber so it gets real cheap that way. One die to seat all my 6 MM's goes a long way.
They all get the job done but the Reddings just scream quaility through and through. Their CS has been good for me over the years. YMMV but I look at that Redding catalog a lot!! LOL
Greg
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Post by dinosdeuce on Jan 11, 2015 9:59:50 GMT -8
as usual Greg is spot on. I use redding bushing dies for all my bolt guns but one. For the 6mm Creedmoor I have a set of Whidden dies only because that was the only set I could find at he time. For bullet seating I like the Forster Ultra Micrometer Seater die. I fell neck sizing is the way to go. It doesn't undersized the neck and them stretch it when dragging the expander back through the neck. I have seen some of the regular full length sizing dies resize the neck .010" under a loaded round diameter. That is really working the neck. With bushing dies you can get a good .002" sizing under a loaded round. This doesn't work harden you brass as much. One die not to overlook is a Lee Collet die. If you look at concentricity it is hard to beat for the money. I too have swapped out all my locking rings with Hornadys.
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Post by varminterror on Jan 22, 2015 9:49:33 GMT -8
Take your pick. In general, there's just not THAT much difference in dies other than set-up functionality and control, so once they're set, it really doesn't matter what brand it says on the box.
I started out with Lee dies in a single stage "anniversary kit" around 20yrs ago, then went through RCBS, Redding, Hornady, and Lymans along the way. Mostly, I haven't settled on any given brand for all applications, simply because I haven't seen much difference in ammo quality produced on them for the same class of dies (i.e. standard vs. bushing vs. micrometer). There are distinct differences in set up speed for some brands, which is how I generally favor some over others, but for general reloading, Lee's are the most affordable option and have produced equivalent range performance for me for years. So all of that is meant to say that for concentricity and consistency, I haven't found that one really is superior to the other, but some are certainly easier to adjust than others.
As much as I mentally hate the Lee locking rings, on a turret or progressive press turret, or in a quick change bushing single stage press, they don't move, so it's more of a mental hang up than anything else. For someone running a single stage press without quick-change bushings, then the Hornady locking rings are worth their weight in gold.
The Lee collet die is one that stands out for me as the best of their fleet. Not the best of the neck-sizers, but it's a very high control die at a very affordable price point.
I run a Lee Classic Turret press for my hunting and bulk shooting ammo, and a Redding T-7 and a Forster Co-Ax for my precision ammo. I have had RCBS, Dillon, and Hornady presses in single, turret, and progressive presses - I haven't found that the far cheaper Lee Turret is lacking in the least for concentricity and consistency. I have turrets with mixed and matched die sets in them, have different brands for different rounds, and have multiple sets of dies for certain cartridges. RCBS, Hornady, Lee, and Redding are what I'm using for my current cartridges. All of my precision bolt action ammo is reloaded on Redding S-dies (bushing neck sizers and micrometer seaters). I'm not competing anymore, but I still like throwing long pokes hunting and plinking, so I keep them around.
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