Does anyone like Lee Loaders for 12 ga?

[BeeKay]

I bought a Lee Loader for 12 ga, decades ago, and I'm thinking about putting it to use, finally.
To be clear: It is not a press, it's one of the kind that you tap with a hammer.
Maybe someday I'll get a press - But for now this is what I have
Anyhow - I have some new Fiocchi hulls and when I get to the crimp, I have to beat it down to get a clean crimp. And I'm figuring that it probably is beginning to collapse the cushion in the wad already, by the time I've got a crimp that doesn't stick out on the corners and jam the gun.
Has anyone had good success with Lee loaders?
Is it OK to compress the cushion in the wad a bit to get a nice crimp?

Thanks - Any feedback appreciated - Stay well

 

[Blindstitch]

Mine is pure novelty. I knock out primers and make dummy rounds. Beyond that if I was serious i would get a mec or load all.

 

[big al hunter]

I have a few presses, not the whack-a-mole set you have. But with new shells, getting the first crimp is harder than with a previous fired shell. I feel like I am pushing extra hard on my press with new shells. If the crimp is coming together in the middle of the circle, and is not swirling, it is ok to have to work harder to get a good crimp. It doesn't have to be perfect, but the more it looks like factory ammo, the more consistent it will shoot. I thought about getting a hammer type loader for fun, but it looks like more effort than I wanted to spend.

I recently picked up a Lee Load all in 20 gauge. New they are around $65. On the used market I paid $35. A MEC single stage used is between $50 and $150. You can produce decent loads with the Load all for not much money. I have several MEC presses, and I can't tell what shells were loaded on the Lee vs the MEC. But the MEC is faster. The hammer type loader kit is the least expensive, but it takes the longest time to load.

 

[FrankenMauser]

Like?
No.
They are no replacement for a proper press - especially a proper crimp.

Useful?
Somewhat.
I have one and don't plan to dispose of it any time soon. It gets the job done, even if only half-decently.
But when I want to reload shells that will be reliable and 'good', I use a press. (Load-All or MEC 625N)

The Loader, as mentioned above, probably also falls into the category of "novelty" for me.

 

[dahermit]

They worked better (crimps) with paper shells than that new-fangled plastic...that should give an indication of how long ago I bought my fires Lee Loader.

 

[BeeKay]

Thanks for taking the time to chime in.
My main concern was that pressure curve might be changed by compressing the wad cushion..
I guess it's okay to do that, somewhat

 

[TruthTellers]

I got mine from someone on here years ago. Have yet to use it, but the intention at the time was to use it, possibly modify it to make my own 1.75" mini shells.

I think for something like that, if Lee bothered to start making them again or someone else did, it would be a good choice for that. I can't see a reason to buy a second press just to load that short shell.

Same with .410. If you're loading 000 Buck, you're only doing 3, 4, or 5 pellets at a time. Birdshot, the charge is so small you can use a dipper to do it just fine.

For the price they could sell for, yes, I love them and are frankly the only type of loader that I find practical that uses a mallet to make the ammo.

 

[dahermit]

Thanks for taking the time to chime in.
My main concern was that pressure curve might be changed by compressing the wad cushion..
I guess it's okay to do that, somewhat

I remember reading in an old handloading manual that wad presser was no longer relavent with plastic wads inasmuch as the space in them under the shot part of the cup would collapse when pressure was applied releasing it.

With the old Lee Loaders the instructions used to explain how to set the wad pressure for paper shells using fiber and cardboard wads by using the Lee tool atop of a bathroom scale.

 

[stuckinthe60s]

i got a nib/nos lee 20ga press sitting in the corner collecting dust. it was intended to be a prize at a shoot, but no one wanted it.
im a mec man myself.

i friend of mine swears by the lee 12ga loader for fiochi and rio hulls. but it just seems cheap to me.

 

[Old Stony]

The Lee type loaders you are talking about was my first reloading experience, probably around 55 years ago. I had a Winchester 37 shotgun given to me by my father, and it was my first firearm. I was loading paper shells then, and not plastic, but it worked just fine for me....and a lot of pheasants paid the price for it.
I eventually moved on to .38 specials and 30/30 shells with the same type of loaders and they worked just fine.
Granted there has been a lot of improvements to reloading systems since that time, but in their day, those Lee loaders did their job, and probably still could.

 

[Virginian]

I like Lee stuff. I started reloading in 1971 with a $9.95 Lee Loader in .25-06. Never stopped using that neck sizing resizing die. Made the most accurate loads ever. Later on when I was shooting 7mm by .300 Weatherby at 1,000 yards, I got them to make me a neck sizing die for that. I also bought a 28 gauge Lee Press and all kinds of other stuff.

 

[darkgael]

I try to keep Lee Loaders on the shelf for every cartridge that I load....and for which Lee made a Loader. I have the shotshell kits in 12, 16, 20, .410. For volume, I use a MEC. For the occasional oddball load....I use the Lee Loader.

 

[stuckinthe60s]

they do a better job of discouraging people from wanting to reload. too much work.
whack a moles are like having a wang computer.

 

[FITASC]

I would rather spend the money for factory ammo than use that cheap Whack-a-mole contraption.

 

[jaguarxk120]

I tried a Whack-a-mole once, fired two primers during seating---
sent the thing to the land fill!!