First press for a begginer

[clunker]

I just started looking at dies. I had no idea there were so many options. I've been reviewing different manufacturers, and one possibility has caught my interest. Anyone ever used the Redding Premium Series Deluxe 3-Die Set? It's not the competition set, but the price tag is much more reasonable.

 

[dcali]

I don't know anything about the premium series deluxe, but all you need are two dies - a full length sizer and a seater. Indeed, that's all you want. Full length sizing is by far the more popular choice (vs neck sizing), and for good reasons. Do not bother with a neck sizer at all.

For full legnth sizers, there are two schools of thought- bushing or regular (no bushing). If you will not be turning necks, and I don't suggest you do to start, the simplest is to get a normal full length sizer (no bushing). If you think you will turn necks at some point, it might be worth getting a bushing full length sizer.

For seaters, the micrometer top (AKA "competition") seaters are very convenient, and worth the extra money (to me at least). Another thing to consider is a wilson arbor press seater. They're no better than other seaters, but you can take an arbor press to the range and do a final seat as you're working up a load. This will pay for itself in saved rounds during load development in short order (you just seat them all long at home, and then depending on how well they're shooting, you can adjust seating depth as you shoot). Again, the micrometer top is a good thing. The down side is you need to buy an arbor press, but they're not terribly expensive.

Other than that, it's mostly marketing. Get good dies - they last forever. Redding seems to be the most popular among competition shooters, but RCBS makes good stuff as well. I haven't used the other makers' stuff. My go-to these days is a Redding type S (bushing) full length sizer and a micrometer topped wilson (Stainless! some wilsons are not, and they rust. They're still good dies, but it's a pain to keep them from rusting). It's a little more complex than the simplest way you can go, but it sounds like you're pretty mechanically inclined, so it shouldn't be too big a deal. The main difficulty is sorting out what sized bushing to get. otherwise, it's the same. People here can point you in the right direction on bushing sizes when the time comes.

I would not worry about custom dies at all right now, if ever. You can go a long way with good off the shelf dies. Custom dies are for benchrest or weird stuff, and a whole 'nother can of worms.

 

[clunker]

I don't know anything about the premium series deluxe, but all you need are two dies - a full length sizer and a seater. Indeed, that's all you want. Full length sizing is by far the more popular choice (vs neck sizing), and for good reasons. Do not bother with a neck sizer at all.

For full legnth sizers, there are two schools of thought- bushing or regular (no bushing). If you will not be turning necks, and I don't suggest you do to start, the simplest is to get a normal full length sizer (no bushing). If you think you will turn necks at some point, it might be worth getting a bushing full length sizer.

For seaters, the micrometer top (AKA "competition") seaters are very convenient, and worth the extra money (to me at least). Another thing to consider is a wilson arbor press seater. They're no better than other seaters, but you can take an arbor press to the range and do a final seat as you're working up a load. This will pay for itself in saved rounds during load development in short order (you just seat them all long at home, and then depending on how well they're shooting, you can adjust seating depth as you shoot). Again, the micrometer top is a good thing. The down side is you need to buy an arbor press, but they're not terribly expensive.

Other than that, it's mostly marketing. Get good dies - they last forever. Redding seems to be the most popular among competition shooters, but RCBS makes good stuff as well. I haven't used the other makers' stuff. My go-to these days is a Redding type S (bushing) full length sizer and a micrometer topped wilson (Stainless! some wilsons are not, and they rust. They're still good dies, but it's a pain to keep them from rusting). It's a little more complex than the simplest way you can go, but it sounds like you're pretty mechanically inclined, so it shouldn't be too big a deal. The main difficulty is sorting out what sized bushing to get. otherwise, it's the same. People here can point you in the right direction on bushing sizes when the time comes.

I would not worry about custom dies at all right now, if ever. You can go a long way with good off the shelf dies. Custom dies are for benchrest or weird stuff, and a whole 'nother can of worms.

Thank you so much for the detailed info. I discovered after my last post exactly what you just stated, I only need two dies. I am definitely sold on the micrometer seating die. I don't mind spending $150 or more on a set of dies as long as they are accurate/precise and are the last dies I will ever have to purchase for that caliber.

 

[dcali]

I don't mind spending $150 or more on a set of dies as long as they are accurate/precise and are the last dies I will ever have to purchase for that caliber.

Ha! famous last words. Technically, you won't *have* to buy new dies ever again. I can't guarantee you won't want to. And all bets are off if you get into benchrest.

Seriously, though, the Redding comp dies or the equivalent will serve you well and will last longer than we will. Buy with confidence.

 

[GSPV]

Get a Redding Type S bushing FL resize die and a Competition Seater with an internal sleeve. (Or the equivalent from any top of the line die). You’ll be good to go.

I, personally, like to use a Wilson chamber type seater cut with my own reamer. But, I’m in the minority in that preference.

At the end of the day, the question is how well your dies match your chamber. They have to be “not too much, not too little...just right” (but I’d rather have a little too much as a little too little).

Addendum:

I have a set of RCBS Gold dies that I got for a very, very good price that I have to rate as the best *value* die set that I own. Note the emphasis on “value”.