Question about shellholders

[CrazyFingers]

I am reloading on a Redding T-7, using Lee dies (9mm, .45, .223). The dies themselves work fine, but the shellholders are the "universal" models intended to be used with the widest variety of calibers. Of course, this means they're pretty sloppy and don't hold the shells very well. This means I have to be very careful when running the press or the shells get off-center and cause problems.
I have done some research and apparently this is not an uncommon complaint with users of Lee shellholders. The most frequent recommendation is to replace them with RCBS, Redding, or Hornady shellholders which are engineered for tighter tolerances and fit fewer calibers, but fit them better.

My questions to the knowledgeable reloaders here:
How well do these other shellholders fit the brass compared to Lee?
Is it worth it to replace them, and if so, are any one of the three brands I mentioned obviously superior to the others?
All three brands are in-stock at Midway right now, and the price differences are negligible, so my purchasing decision would be based on how well they hold the shells, durability, any additional features, etc.

I appreciate any advice given.

[Airhasz]

I have used many lee shell holders that come with the die sets and never had a problem with them. They are not universal though and each caliber/die set has it's own size.

[Pork Chop]

I use Hornady and they fit pretty tight in my experience with them. I find that if there is even a slight bur on the case rim that I have to twist them into the shellholder. .

[m1a_scoutguy]

There lies the problem "Universal" means good for some,,,crappy for most,, Lee Caliber Specific Shell holders work fine,,along with all the other name brands !! Get whatever one you can find local and go from there.

[CrazyFingers]

Maybe "universal" was not the best term. The Lee shellholders I have (which came with their respective caliber-specific dies) are designed by Lee to fit a wide variety of calibers, within a certain range. This means looser tolerances than with the other manufacturers I mentioned. Don't get me wrong, the Lee shellholders work, I've reloaded over 400 9mm this week so far. But the loose tolerances for these holders mean the shells move around quite freely, which causes issues.

[CrazyFingers]

I have used many lee shell holders that come with the die sets and never had a problem with them. They are not universal though and each caliber/die set has it's own size.

Each die set ships with a Lee shellholder, but they are manufactured to fit a variety of calibers within that range, more so than other manufacturers.

[m1a_scoutguy]

Ah,,I hear ya,,when I looked up Universal,,it says just what you said,,fits a "variety" of Calibers,,the reg. Lee holders that come with there Dies work fine & I have never had a issue with them. I mean some holders fit "multiple" calibers anyways,,,45acp/308/30/06/270,,,etc,,but others need a specific one for that type !!

[CrazyFingers]

Lee holders that come with there Dies work fine & I have never had a issue with them.

The ones that came with my dies work, I was just hoping someone here might be familiar with Hornady, RCBS, or Redding shellholders (thanks Pork Chop). On other forums, other people have discussed Lee shellholders being looser than other manufacturers. They have the same issues I do, where the shellholders allow the shells to move around in the holder. The recommended solution is to replace the Lee shellholders with one of the other mentioned brands, since they seem to have tighter tolerances and hold the shells tighter.
I was hoping someone here might have been able to say something like "yeah, I've used Redding and RCBS shellholders, and I like Redding better because <insert reason>." Or Hornady, etc.

[StingerDan]

I have used RCBS for years. Recently I bought some Redding in a couple calibers, thinking they would be tighter. well they weren't so they sit in my junk drawer and I still use RCBS. You can and I have heard of guys using shim stock to take up up and down play. Just food for thought. Dan.

[CrazyFingers]

Thanks StingerDan. My main issue is not vertical play, but horizontal. Basically, when going from one station to the next, the shell shifts out of alignment with the die in the shellholder, so on the next ram stroke the shell is off and causes problems with the die.
For example, on the downstroke from the resizing die, the shell shifts in the shellholder, so that the primer insertion is slightly off, mashing the primer sometimes. I've trained myself to always carefully push the shell back to the center of the shellholder before seating the primer. Or, the shell shifts slightly before the expander die, so occasionally the edge of the case mouth whacks the die and dings it, same with bullet seater and factory crimp die. These problems would disappear if the shellholder held the shell a little tighter and didn't allow it to shift back and forth so easily. I have to move the shell back into the proper position with my left pinky before each stroke, wasting a motion and slowing down the process. This happens with all three Lee shellholders.
It's not the end of the world, and I have loaded a lot of quality reloads with the current set up. However, if I had shellholders that held the shells tighter, I think it would speed things up. I've heard good things about the RCBS shellholders, including the cutout that RCBS puts in them to allow the removal of a shell with a mis-seated primer. This is an example of a real value-added feature that would sway my purchasing decision.