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Priming tools

I was thinking of getting the RCBS APS hand or maybe the bench mounted tool. I was going to get the Sinclair unit but seems like the RCBS might be as good & faster.
 
I have both the hand model sold by K&M and the RCBS bench model with the tube. I find myself using the RCBS more and can see no difference as to accuracy. It is faster and less fatigueing.

Danny
 
Jimmy
If you are doing priming on a large scale you might consider several units. RCBS tray, Hornady, Lee Tray. I would try the Lee first bearing in mind they do wear out. But the low price makes them worth it. I have the RCBS but feel it lacks in rough use. Hornady I have never tried. As for the one at a time models the Sinclair is slow and overpriced. K&M that I have is slow, priced right, and indestructible with great feel. I have a Lee that is a single primer, great price and has great feel, and is slow.
Point is Jimmy priming is an important step but they all get the job done.
Stephen Perry
 
For the price, get several of the Lee Auto prime units, I keep 3 one for large primers, 1 for small primers and 1 for 6BR that uses a large shell holder but a small primer. There fast, you get a good feel for when the primer is seated all the way, and you can easily tell when you have a loose pocket. I have found that they last a long time, but are so inexpensive you can have several on hand.
Ive been reloading for years, and after I got my first Lee, I never went back to any other brand or type.
Mike..
 
+1 for the Lee, just bought my 2nd new Lee Auto Prime for under $20 Cdn! Nothing wrong with 1st Lee after some 20,000+ rounds loaded with it, just wanted one dedicated to small and one for large primers and at this price, why not...
 
Kodiak
Have you ever tried the single primer Lee priming tools. Especially the $1.98 model that people overlooked in the old days. I still have several of those. I use one for my PPC when I tire of the rest. I could get by with a Lee and I have most of the rest. Too simple it scares people with mumbo jumbo brains that always fell pay more get more.
Stephen Perry
 
gunamonth said:
I have at least one of almost all of them.

The only one,s) that have been used in several years are the RCBS APS hand tool. I have one set up for large primers and one for small. There's no shell holder on the hand unit so anything from 22 Hornet to the Weatherby mags fits in one or the other. I've run probably a hundred thousand primers through the small one over the past several years with no major problems and very few minor ones.

CCI primers can be purchased pre-loaded in the strips for slightly more than in the regular box. Loading other brands into the strips only takes a couple minutes with the strip loader RCBS sells.

I had major problems with the bench mounted RCBS APS system which came out a couple years before the hand unit. Every once in a long while it would manage to get a primer inserted upside down. The plastic guide wears out or cracks. RCBS's solution is to send you a whole bunch of them if you ask.

In my opinion the RCBS APS hand unit is head and shoulders above the Lee and others. It's fast, works every time, no shell holder to change, and the handle is big and comfortable which helps with seating the Russian primers.
Same here, I'm a big fan of the APS hand unit. I have one for each small/large primers.
 
Thanks guys,

I was drawn towards the bench unit or the Sinclair model, but it will be the APS handjob for sure.

Are the Large Rifle BR primers the same size as Large Rifle?
Jimmy O
 
I've been using the APS hand primer for three years. I also have an APS bench unit which I use to do large quantities of varmint ammo.

I've tried the Sinclair and the K&M. They are very smooth and have a precision feel. But the Sinclair isn't particularly ergonomic--for my hands at least--and all these one-at-a-time primer tools are really slow.

For my 6BR I typically load 50 rounds for a match. I take two plastic strips out of the box and go to it. Plenty of power and you can definitely feel if the pockets are loosening up.

You can buy the CCI primers pre-loaded into strips. If you prefer Federal, Rem, or Russian primers, there is an inexpensive tool for loading into strips. But I'm quite happy with CCIs and I can run pretty high pressures without worrying about pierced primers as the CCIs have harder cups.

RCBS_Tool.jpg
 

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