Lightest and smallest reloading press?

H

HighValleyRanch

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I already have a Rock Chucker 1 press setup, but thinking about looking into a very portable, lightweight moblie setup for car, camping, prepper, etc.

This will be mainly for 9mm and .38 spl/.357 pistol/rifle loads.

Any other choices between the lyman and lee hand presses?
A super lightweight stationary press?
Advantages and disavantages of the lyman 310 tool vs. lee hand press.
The lyman looks outdated and expensive, but very portable.
 
The Buchanan Precision Machine hand reloading press is a remake of the older Huntington hand press, it's spendy but looks well made, seen here.

Another option is the Harrel's Precision compact reloading press, also expensive, at this link.

I have no experience with either press, buying one of these is too extravagant for me. :)
 
if all you are doing is seating an arbor press works great, I have also used the Lee handloader and have a Lee O press mounted on a board that I take along with a couple of woodworking bar clamps. I have used all three and if you have well prepped cases you would no difference in runout and of the three the Lee O is the most useful
 
I've used the Lee Hand Tool at the range for decades for in situ reloading. Not easy resizing bottleneck rifle cases, but for what you are doing it is a breeze. Uses standard dies.
 
The Lee breech lock reloader is small, light and cheap.

This one cost me $20 with a bunch of extra bushings.

IMG_20161105_140533_748_zpsissxlr9e.jpg


They are $35 new.

https://ads.midwayusa.com/product/8...Metallic+Reloading+Presses&utm_content=807734


It’s a lot slower than other mobile setups I have though.

3533895716_0a7f11a958.jpg
 
I bought the Lee 'C' style press for the same purpose. Mine is unusable. The ram binds terribly.
I would choose another brand and get a small 'O' frame press like the RCBS Partner.
 
I’ve been using an RCBS Partner press for over 25 years, it is a great light duty press. It may be fine for heavy duty too, but I always use my RS-5 for that. The Partner is very light and reasonably small - mine is high quality, but then it is pretty old.

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I have a Lee Turret but until I can move it to my farm house I don’t want to sit in an un heated garage. This has been the case now for about 4 years and in that time I have reloaded in the warmth with a Lee Hand Press. It’s not always the most ergonomic to use but I have done everything with from .38 to .308 with the exception of pulling rifle bullets from surplus ammo. For the price I’d say it’s hard to beat.
 
If weight is your concern, wouldn’t it be lighter to just bring lots of extra ammo to begin with? Sorry but that makes much more sense. Now if you’re just looking for an excuse to buy a new toy I can understand that.
 
jag2 said:
If weight is your concern, wouldn’t it be lighter to just bring lots of extra ammo to begin with? Sorry but that makes much more sense. Now if you’re just looking for an excuse to buy a new toy I can understand that.
Click to expand...

That's what I was thinking.

Hauling around primers, powders, and bullets seems like a much larger inconvenience then hauling around loaded ammo. Loaded ammo can be stored in anything - magazines, ammo pouch, ammo cans, ziploc baggies, etc. Unless your planning on shooting the same brass again and again and again the weight saving won't be much.
 
Hahaha, pretty sure he's talking about on-the-fly load development and testing far more than having a tiny portable setup so he can lounge around a gun range and feed his guns rather than bringing ammo.
 
I've been using two Lee Hand Presses for several years. Does all my handgun and 30-30 loading. The cost is affordable , uses standard dies and shell holders , the press and everything you need to reload fits into a gym / tote bag . I bring my "range bag" to work and do a lot of reloading at my desk ! That's important work in my book !
I have three bench mounted presses but I use the hand press most often.

The Buchanan is the Lexus model of hand press , by the time it came along I was happy with my two Lee presses.
I find the Lyman units somewhat costly .
Try a Lee Hand Press you can always upgrade and you will always find a use for the Lee doing little odd jobs.
Gary
 
It somewhat depends on the details.One cartridge,or multi-cartridge? Is a bunch of primed brass practical,or do you need to size decap? There are options.

You can charge and cork in bullets with a Wilson in line seater.

I have comfortably loaded .223 ,sizing and all,with a Lee hand press

Even if you have a Dillon 1050 a press such as a Partner is a useful tool on your bench. It can come off with wing nuts.

All around and simple? There is not much risk in the price of a Lee hand press.
Its light,compact,and capable.
 
If weight is your concern, wouldn’t it be lighter to just bring lots of extra ammo to begin with? Sorry but that makes much more sense. Now if you’re just looking for an excuse to buy a new toy I can understand that.
Click to expand...

With the setup in #9, the 2nd photo. I can work up loads to PF using 4 different powders with 4 different bullet types and load enough extra for testing in under 3 hours. Loading at home then going to the range (before I built one in my backyard) would take weeks to do the same and/or leave me with a bunch of ammunition I would need to pull down.
 
So now if your goal is load development you would need to add your calipers and scale (not sure how well that would travel) to the load and I just remembered some sort of case lube and maybe a variety of powders. Just keeps getting worse.
 
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