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Press for beginner

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7X57

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Good morning,

I have interest in the 7mm-08 Ackley cartridge and know this would be a handload only option. I've never handloaded any ammunition and wanted y'all's opinion on a good and affordable press for a beginner. I'm not looking to make lots of ammo, so a single stage press would be fine for me. I'm not aware of any companies that load this cartridge as I'd also be interested in that as well. Thank you.
 
Cannot go wrong with the RCBS line. Really great and well deserved customer service reputation.

I happen to like the Lee line and my BIL swears by his Forster.

Any of the single stage presses will do fine.

You will need 7-08 brass. Brassmanbrass.com has inventory roll in and out....you must be timely so bookmark the site and hit it often---2, 3, 4 times a day.

7mm-08 Remington – Federal Head Stamped Brass – 100 ct

100 once fired 7mm-08 Remington brass. Federal head stamped. From a major firearms manufacturer. USPS shipping included.
brassmanbrass.com brassmanbrass.com

As for bullets, hmm, easy as can be. 120 or 140 Nosler's. Skip the rest, they are just trying to catch up. Accuracy will be plenty good. Go here

ShootersProShop

Explore the world of Nosler, renowned for crafting the finest bullets, ammunition, rifles, and brass. Discover our extensive lineup, including Partition, AccuBond, E-Tip, Ballistic Tip, Custom Competition, and more. Experience superior quality and performance with Nosler products.
www.shootersproshop.com www.shootersproshop.com

Primers will be tough. You will have to find them in your local guns store-Bass Pro, Academy, Sportman's Warehouse, even Walmart--- are also possible spots

Same goes for Powder. Take a hard look at the Alliant line

Alliant Powder ⊕ Reloading and Reloading Data ⊕ Shotgun, Centerfire Rifle, Handgun, Cowboy, International Loads

www.alliantpowder.com www.alliantpowder.com
 
Forster is pretty awesome, but I hear the wait time is long. I've never used RCBS presses but I do use a few of their other tools, all work well.

My single stage is a Lee Classic single stage. Built like a tank, affordable, nice system for dealing with spent primers, and I get repeatable results with the right dies and ring locks. I like to use Hornadys ring locks instead of the Lee style or any others.

Reloading is like just about everything else - everyone has their preferences and favorite components. Like mentioned above, Nosler makes a good bullet, but for my target .308 and .223 I get better and more accurate performance from Sierra. I don't load either of these rifles for hunting. I prefer Varget for my target loads, but I was about to start trying go hunt down some vhitvouri to develop another load for my .308 when all the panic buying, pandemic, and shortages started happening so I was never able to look any further into that.

BT
 
I am going to recommend a Lee Turret press, first because you can get them rather inexpensively, and second, you can start using them as a single stage press while you get the hang of the reloading process, then reinstall the index rod and go semi-progressive if you so desire (after 30 years I still do single). Unless you are competing, and or loading thousands of bullets in one session, you don't need much more than this, save your money for the other supplies and equipment you will need.
 
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Omega said:
I am going to recommend a Lee Turret press, first because you can get them rather inexpensively, and second, you can start using them as a single stage press while you get the hang of the reloading process, then reinstall the index rod and go semi-progressive if you so desire (after 30 years I still do single). Unless you are competing, and or loading thousands of bullets in one session, you don't need much more than this, save your money for the other supplies and equipment you will need.
Click to expand...

That's a great kit, and what I started on! The only thing about that kit is I could never get repeatable accurate readings out of that scale. Yes, it balances on a razor edge, but the plastic beam and slider, with painted markings, I just couldn't get on with it. I upgraded the scale and kept the rest.

I use a Dillon beam scale, if you can find one. RCBS makes a good scale as well.

www.creedmoorsports.com

Dillon Eliminator Beam Scale

Dillon Eliminator Beam Scale The Dillon Precision Eliminator Scale is accurate, reliable and easy to use. With a magnetically dampened 511 grain capacity accurate to within +/- 0.1 grain the Eliminator will help you zero in on the perfect powder charge every time. The Eliminator has...
www.creedmoorsports.com

BT
 
The kit Omega mentioned is what I have and it has been pretty easy to start with. There is a bunch of Youtube videos on set up. I would recommend a digital scale and calibers. I just find them quicker and easier to use as my eyes aren't as good as they once were. Also, get a couple of reloading trays. The reloading manual in the kit has a bunch of data but seems to be missing some of the latest info. The internet has it all covered anyway. The automatic powder dispenser is decent once dialed in and for 5.56 large batch it's what I use but I check about every 5th bullet to make sure it's kicking out the right amount of powder. For my 300wm, 308, and 7mm-08 I measure the powder for each round because I only do about 20-30 at a time and I don't want to mess with adjusting the powder dispenser. I think if I were reloading just one caliber a single-stage press would be more than sufficient. Please take all information in this post with several huge grains of salt, I have only been reloading for a few months.
 
Thank you guys for your insight. Much appreciated! My gunsmith suggested a single stage press and starting with a 2-die set of a full length sizer and seating die to get started. He felt that I would likely not need a neck sizer with any Ackley cartridge.
 
Don't think you could go wrong with rcbs, hornady, or lyman. When I started, I bought a hornady lock n load classic kit. The press is about the only thing from that kit that I still use, other than the manual.
 
7X57 said:
Thank you guys for your insight. Much appreciated! My gunsmith suggested a single stage press and starting with a 2-die set of a full length sizer and seating die to get started. He felt that I would likely not need a neck sizer with any Ackley cartridge.
Click to expand...
I too recommend starting with a single stage process, but not the press. The pros to having a turret press, any model with removeable turrets, is that your dies stay set, and when changing calibers, you just swap out the turret. Some single stage presses have bushings which stay with the die and can be swapped out quickly, but I find it tedious to change out dies like that, instead of having all my dies on the turret.
Having said that, the Forster Co-Ax, ($376.94 for just the press vs $238.89 for the Lee Kit), which is a single stage press is pretty neat in that no turrets or bushings are necessary and do not need case holders with the built in jaws that hold the case. The only downside to me is the price, and since I already have the turret press I won't be looking at the Co-Ax any time soon, but for someone just getting started and plans on doing many calibers, it may be worth it since the turrets, even Lee, are over $10 a piece.
 
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Thanks for all of the input everyone. I have a Savage Model 11 at Kampfeld Customs right now that's getting reamed for 7mm-08 Ack Imp. I bought a couple boxes of Norma 7mm-08 Rem to fireform brass. Gotta find some components and a few book loads to start with.
 
I favor Federal primers-particularly those with the M designation.
We have fired well over 5,000 centerfire rounds in multiple calibers without a primer fail. Never. Not ever.

When I was forced to use Tula primers I had so many fails I put them on the shelf and have been trying to give them away.

We have some Winchester LRM primers that had two primer fails in one box of 100.

We have been forced to use winchester SP primers. No fails but a noticeable number of half-fails. The round fires and practically falls out the barrel.

Even the vaunted CCI line has had more than a few SP primer fails in one 5,000 item case.

Supposedly, reportedly, the M designation means the line that produced them was operated by the most talented and skilled people at the Federal sites.

I don't care if its your granny running the line. The Federals are just of higher quality.
 

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