Every tool, what it does, the kinds you can buy and how they compare. Each is marked Essential, Recommended or Later.
The drawings show the kind of tool, not a specific product. Models listed are examples, not recommendations, and no maker pays to appear here. Check the maker's catalog before you buy, because lines change. Cost marks ($ to $$$$) compare options within a category.
Press
Essential
The machine at the centre of the bench. A lever drives a ram that pushes the case into a die, which sizes the brass or seats the bullet. The main difference between presses is how many steps one pull of the lever gets done.
Single stage
Holds one die. One pull does one step on one case, then you change dies and do the whole batch again.
Good
Simple and rigid, so it's the classic way to learn and suits precision rifle loading.
Watch for
The slowest way to make a lot of ammunition.
Examples
RCBS Rock Chucker Supreme, Hornady Lock-N-Load Classic, Lee Breech Lock Challenger, Redding Big Boss II
Coaxial single stage
Still one step per pull, but the die and shell holder float on two rods so the case and die line up.
Good
Excellent alignment. Dies and cases change quickly, often without a separate shell holder.
Watch for
Costs more than a basic single stage, and how it works differs from most instructions you'll read.
Examples
Forster Co-Ax, Frankford Arsenal M-Press
Turret
A rotating head holds all your dies. You still work on one case at a time, but the next die is a turn away rather than a change.
Good
A middle ground: quicker than a single stage for small batches, and still one case at a time, so you see each step.
Watch for
The moving head can add a little play, which matters most for precision rifle work.
Examples
Lee Classic Turret (auto-indexing), Lyman All American 8, Redding T-7
Progressive
A rotating shell plate holds several cases at different steps. Every pull does every step, so one pull makes a finished round.
Good
Far and away the fastest. Best for volume handgun and semi-auto rifle ammunition.
Watch for
Several things happen on each stroke, so mistakes are harder to spot, including a squib or double charge. Most guides suggest learning on something simpler first.
Press types side by side. Output is the maker's figure where one is published.
Single stage
Coaxial
Turret
Progressive
Pulls per finished round
One for each step
One for each step
One for each step
One
Cases being worked at once
1
1
1
4 to 8
Changing dies
Unscrew or swap a bushing
Slide in and out
Turn the head
Set up once, swap a toolhead
Speed
Slowest
Slowest
Medium
Dillon lists up to 300 to 800 an hour by model
Learning curve
Easiest
Easy
Easy
Hardest
Cost
$ to $$
$$ to $$$
$ to $$
$$ to $$$$
Best for
Learning, rifle
Precision rifle
Learning, small handgun batches
Volume handgun and semi-auto rifle
If you shoot under a few hundred rounds a month, a single stage or turret is enough. Many people who buy a progressive keep their first press on the bench for sizing and small batches.
Dies
Essential
Hardened steel tools made for one cartridge. Each die does a job as the case passes through it. Most screw into any standard press with 7/8-14 thread, so you can mix makers. You need a set for every cartridge you load.
Two-die rifle set
A sizing die returns the fired case to shape and pushes out the old primer. A seating die presses in the bullet.
Good
All most bottleneck rifle rounds need.
Watch for
Cases need lube for sizing. Set up the sizing die by the instructions: this sets headspace.
Examples
RCBS, Hornady, Lee, Lyman, Redding, Forster
Three-die handgun set
Size and decap, expand the mouth to accept a bullet, then seat and taper or roll crimp.
Good
A carbide sizing die lets most straight cases skip lube.
Watch for
Getting the crimp type right depends on the cartridge. Semi-auto rounds that stop on the mouth take a taper crimp.
Examples
RCBS, Hornady, Lee, Lyman, Redding, Dillon
Die types and when you need them.
Die
What it does
Used for
Full-length sizing
Sizes the whole case and pushes out the primer
The default, and needed for semi-auto and lever guns
Neck sizing
Sizes only the neck
Bolt rifles, brass fired in that rifle only
Bushing
Sizes the neck through a swappable bushing, so you choose neck tension
Precision rifle
Expander
Bells the mouth so a bullet starts straight
Handgun and plated or lead bullets
Seating
Pushes the bullet in to a set depth
Every cartridge
Crimp
Closes the mouth on the bullet: taper or roll
Handgun, tube-magazine and many semi-auto loads
Shell holder or shell plate
Essential
Grips the case by its extractor groove so the ram can push it into the die and pull it back out. A shell holder is for a single-stage or turret press; a shell plate does the same on a progressive. Many cartridges share one because they share a base size.
Shell holder
Slips into the top of the ram. Matches the rim and groove of the case family, not one cartridge.
Good
Cheap. One often covers several cartridges.
Watch for
Often sold separately from presses and dies. Look up the number on the maker's chart before you order.
Examples
RCBS, Hornady, Lee, Lyman, Redding
Powder scale
Essential
Weighs each charge, in grains (7,000 to the pound). This is the safety-critical measurement on the bench: too much powder can destroy a gun. Whichever you pick, buy check weights and check it every session.
Beam scale
A balance with sliding poises you set to the charge you want. Add powder until the pointer lines up.
Good
No batteries and no electronic drift. Cheap and dependable when kept level and away from drafts.
Watch for
Slow, and easy to misread by a full grain if you don't check both poises.
Examples
RCBS M500, Lee Safety Scale, Redding
Digital scale
Reads the weight straight off a screen, commonly to .1 grain.
Good
Fast, easy to read, costs little.
Watch for
Budget units can drift with temperature, drafts and fluorescent lights. Warm it up, zero it and check it often.
Examples
Frankford Arsenal DS-750, Hornady digital bench scales, Lyman
Dispensing scale
Enter the weight and it throws and trickles the charge onto its own built-in scale.
Good
Speeds up weighing every charge, and it stays out of the way while you do other steps.
Watch for
Costs much more. Takes longer per charge than a mechanical measure, and still needs to be checked.
Examples
RCBS ChargeMaster Supreme, Lyman Gen6, Hornady Auto Charge, Frankford Arsenal Intellidropper
Lab-grade balance
A force-restoration balance that reads finer than .1 grain, often with a trickler added to it.
Good
The stable reading long-range competitors want.
Watch for
A lot of money and not needed to start. Solves a problem you won't have for years.
Examples
A&D FX-120i, often with an AutoTrickler
Scale types side by side.
Beam
Digital
Dispensing
Lab-grade
Typically reads to
.1 gr
.1 gr
.1 gr
Finer than .1 gr
Needs power
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Dispenses powder
No
No
Yes
With an add-on
Speed per charge
Slow
Medium
Medium, hands-free
Medium, hands-free with add-on
Main weakness
Slow, can misread
Drift
Cost, drift
Cost
Cost
$
$
$$ to $$$
$$$$
Powder measure and funnel
Recommended
A measure throws a set volume of powder, faster than weighing every charge by hand. You set it, check its throw on your scale, and check again as you go. A funnel gets the charge into the case without spilling; it's cheap and comes in most kits.
Rotary measure
A drum with an adjustable cavity carries a set volume of powder from the hopper to a drop tube.
Good
Fast. Works very well with ball and small-grain powders.
Watch for
Long stick powders can cut and meter less evenly. Always check throws on your scale.
Examples
RCBS Uniflow III, Hornady Lock-N-Load, Lee Perfect Powder Measure, Redding
Trickler
Turning the knob feeds powder a kernel or two at a time onto the scale pan to top up a charge.
Good
Hits an exact weight cheaply.
Watch for
Slow for big batches. Great for small precision batches.
Examples
RCBS, Hornady, Lyman, Frankford Arsenal
Powder funnel
Guides the charge into the case mouth.
Good
A basic part of every bench.
Watch for
A long drop tube can help powder settle in small necks.
Examples
RCBS, Hornady, Lee, Frankford Arsenal
Calipers and gauges
Essential
You can't reload without measuring. Calipers read case length and overall length, to .001 in. Other gauges come later, once you know what you want to measure.
Calipers
Measure case length, overall length and diameters, to about .001 in.
Good
Every reloader needs a pair. A dial or digital caliper both work.
Watch for
Keep the jaws clean and zero before you measure. Cheap ones can be off; test on a known gauge.
Examples
Mitutoyo, Hornady, Frankford Arsenal, RCBS, Lyman
Comparators and case gauges
A comparator clamps to your caliper to measure base to ogive or head to shoulder. A case gauge shows if a round is in spec.
Good
CBTO and shoulder bump become repeatable numbers. A case gauge catches problems before you're at the range.
Watch for
Later for most rifle work; a case gauge is well worth it early for pistol.
Seats a new primer in the primer pocket. The primer has to sit just below flush with the case head. Primers are explosive, so keep them away from powder and wear safety glasses.
Hand primer
You squeeze a primer into each case by hand, away from the press.
Good
You can feel each primer seat, and it's cheap.
Watch for
Hand fatigue on big batches. Needs its own shell holder on some models.
Examples
RCBS Universal, Lee, Hornady, Lyman E-ZEE, Frankford Arsenal Perfect Seat
On-press priming
An arm or a system built into the press seats the primer as part of the ram's stroke.
Good
Nothing extra to buy, and already part of progressives.
Watch for
Less feel than a hand primer and it takes more force on the same stroke as sizing.
Examples
Lee Safety Prime, Hornady Positive Priming, RCBS, Dillon
Bench primer
Bolted to the bench with a long lever to seat primers.
Good
Very consistent seating depth and feel. Easy on the hands for batches.
Watch for
One more tool and a bit of bench space.
Examples
RCBS, Forster Co-Ax Primer Seater
Case prep
Essential
Fired brass stretches and gets dirty. Sizing lube stops cases sticking in the die. Trimming brings a case back within maximum length. Chamfering smooths the mouth after that, so it doesn't shave the bullet.
Case lube
Lets the case slide through a sizing die. Skipping it is the usual way to get a case stuck.
Good
Cheap, and a pad or spray works fine.
Watch for
Clean it off after sizing. Too much can dent shoulders.
Examples
Hornady One Shot, Lee Sizing Lube, RCBS, Imperial Sizing Die Wax
Manual trimmer
You clamp a case and turn a cutter against it to a set length.
Good
Accurate and inexpensive, and fine if you trim in small batches.
Watch for
Cranking a large batch is hard on your wrists.
Examples
Lyman Universal, Forster, RCBS, Lee Case Trim with lock stud
Power trimmer
A motor drives the cutter, and some models chamfer and deburr too.
Good
Saves a lot of time and wrist on big batches.
Watch for
Costs more, and you only need it for volume.
Examples
Lyman Case Trim Xpress, Frankford Arsenal Platinum, Giraud
Chamfer and deburr tool
Bevels the inside and outside of the case mouth after trimming.
Good
Very cheap. Comes in most kits.
Watch for
A light touch is enough.
Examples
RCBS .17 to .60, Lyman, Hornady, Lee
Brass cleaner
Recommended
Clean brass is easier on dies and easier to inspect. Cleaning is about function, not looks, so a shine is a bonus. Work with good ventilation and wash your hands: spent primers and fired brass carry lead residue.
Vibratory tumbler
Shakes cases in dry media such as corn cob or walnut for a few hours.
Good
Cheap, simple and dry. The usual first choice.
Watch for
Doesn't clean primer pockets or the inside of cases much. Dusty, so use it outside or in good air, and sift media out of flash holes.
Examples
Lyman Turbo, Frankford Arsenal, RCBS, Hornady
Wet rotary tumbler
Rolls cases in water, cleaner and stainless steel pins.
Good
Cleanest of all, inside and out, including primer pockets.
Watch for
Takes more kit and time: pins to sort, then cases to dry.
Examples
Frankford Arsenal Platinum, Thumler's
Ultrasonic cleaner
Sound waves in a heated solution knock dirt off the brass.
Good
Quick, and also useful for cleaning gun parts.
Watch for
Cases come out clean, not shiny, and still need drying.
Examples
Hornady, Lyman, RCBS, Frankford Arsenal
Brass cleaners side by side.
Vibratory
Wet rotary
Ultrasonic
Cleans inside and primer pocket
A little
Yes
Mostly
Shine
Good
Like new
Clean, not shiny
Cases need drying
No
Yes
Yes
Typical cycle
Hours
Hours
Minutes
Main mess
Dust
Water and pins
Water
Cost
$
$$
$$
The small things
Essential
Cheap items that make a difference, and that kits sometimes leave out.
Reloading manuals
Published load data plus an explanation of each step. Buy at least one and read it before you buy anything else.
Good
Bullet makers' books list their own bullets, so it pays to own two.
Watch for
Only trust data from the powder or bullet maker. Hodgdon also publishes data online.
Examples
Lyman, Hornady, Speer, Nosler, Sierra, Hodgdon
Loading block
Holds cases mouth-up so you can see every powder charge at a glance.
Good
Very cheap. It's the easy way to spot a missed or double charge.
Watch for
Check that it fits your case size.
Examples
RCBS, Hornady, Lyman, Frankford Arsenal
Bullet puller
Lets you take apart a round you got wrong. An inertia puller looks like a hammer.
Good
You will need one. Better to take a round apart than fire one you doubt.
Watch for
Wear safety glasses, and don't reuse the powder from pulled rounds if you can't identify it.
Examples
RCBS, Hornady, Lyman, Frankford Arsenal
Chronograph
Measures bullet speed so you can compare loads against published velocities.
Good
A useful later step for load development.
Watch for
Not needed to start.
Examples
Garmin Xero, LabRadar, Caldwell
Starter kits compared
A kit bundles a press with most of the small tools, and usually costs less than buying them one at a time. None of these lists dies, so budget for them either way. Contents below are from retailer listings and can change, so check before you order.
Five common starter kits. "Budget for" means the listing doesn't name it.
Kit
Press
Comes with
Budget for
Lee Breech Lock Challenger Anniversary Kit
Single stage
Press, priming, powder measure, Safety Scale, funnel, trimmer cutter and lock stud, chamfer tool, primer pocket cleaner, case lube