What's hot, and what's not!!

I am doing some polls to find out the trends and preferences in handloading.

It is only covering the popular, major manufacturers... companies that you would be able to buy through common outlets, like your local "Gun shoppe" or major mail order outlets like MidwayUSA

It will not cover companies like CH4D or Harrells (although CH4D is one of my favorites), or narrow spectrum specialty companies like Dillon.

And I have misgivings about including Lee, because they are not in the same category as the other companies.
It's like doing a poll on Toyota, Audi, Honda, Mitsubishi, Nissan...

... and Yugo. But since Lee is sold through most mail order dealers, I put Lee in the poll.

You have to answer the question to see the results. When you enter the answer to one poll, the page reappears so you can see that answer, and then answer the next question.

Some of the questions allow only one choice, and some multiple choices.

It runs until Saturday night at 11 PM

Thanks guys - this might actually make a difference, because I am going to present the results in a report that I am preparing to a major USA manufacturer.

There is no bias - the companies are listed in alphabetical order.

I wish you would have included Berger, and Nosler in your list of reloading manuals.

The only problem I see (if you want to call it that) is that your answers are going to be influenced by folks that have only owned 1 of the choices. If a person always uses RCBS and has never used Redding or Lee, he would obviously vote for RCBS because he has no experience with anything else.

I don't know how you would fix that, though ......

Or ....... is that what you are trying to find out?

And the Hornady manual. That's three of the best five printed resources left off the list.

In that situation I abstained. For instance, I've only used the RCBS electronic scale, so to me it's the best...and worst. I didn't vote on a couple others for the same reason.

I think if you dont have enough experience to truly have an opinion on one of the questions you just shouldn't submit an answer for that question. It doesn't say anywhere you have to answer them all.

I left three unanswered.

I forgot Nosler - my badd, and it is not possible to edit the polls once you hit "enter".

I would NOT include Berger, as it is not widely distributed, and Berger bullets are used by a very small segment of the shooting population..

There is some logic to that on the surface... but, people these days do a lot of research on the net, and usually have one or more friends that advise them - so they might not have used everything, there is weight to their opinion.

If you limit the poll to people that have used it all - you will get three answers.

So far, the results are reflecting other sources I have access to.

Sorry for leaving out one or two things - I can't tell you how much time it took to get this one done (after two other efforts that were deleted))... the poll program is very user unfriendly.

This last one (after getting training on the first two) took almost an hour and a half to get right.

I am already seeing some surprising results. Who would have thought the folks who have brought out 49 reloading manuals about twice as many as the rest would have received as many votes for worst manual??? Hodgdon has to be doing so well in the polling due to their excellent website manual I am guessing.
Just to give Nosler some love I have never cared much for their manuals until this recent one came out and it has quickly become one of my favorites.

Regardless of the problems setting up this poll, thank you for your time and effort, it is very educational and makes me glad that I listened to me dear old dad in the early years, you would have liked him!!!

i left one blank 2...
should have had other for dies i really like c&h dies...

Lookie... there are a tons of die makers, and people will always want to know why I left out some die maker in Pennsylvania, who works at the post office during the week, but makes outstanding, winning benchrest dies on Sunday, after he gets back from church.

There is a company that makes individual loading manuals for each caliber.

I got a PM and was chastised because I didn't include Harrells power measures. Gee, they make a whopping 5 a week.

My God, man where and when does it stop.

I Love CH - I have their HUMONGOUS 30 pound single station press as my main press (it will crush RockChucker like a ball of aluminum foil)...

... and I have their monster 4 station "H" press for loading at the range - but CH doesn't even advertise anywhere and 99 percent of shooters never heard of them... so they would show up at the bottom of the poll, when they do not deserve to be at the bottom... and then people would avoid them cuz...

"... and I didn't get a CH press cuz I saw this poll on PM and they came out at the bottom of the press and dies sections".

See what I'm talking about - when you design a poll, you have responsibility to the makers not to skew that data in any way that is unfair.



No poll can include everything.

First, it would take three weeks to set up the poll... and second, there would be so many choices that no one would complete it.

With that said Lee figured into the mix just about exactly the way I thought. Actually most categories came out about the way I thought.

I answered to the best of my ability and knowledge I left several blank because I felt unqualified to choose hope it helps

The customer service is a tough one. I've called Redding, Hornady, and RCBS. That being said they all were amazing going above and beyond. But Hornady's answering service made me choose them