Rock Chucker Supreme Master Reloading Kit

I thoroughly enjoyed looking over the items in this Rock Chucker Supreme Master Reloading Kit and putting them to work. My familiarity with RCBS gear dates back to the 1970s with my father’s RCBS press. In the mid-1980s, I bought my own Rock Chucker press which I still use 40 years later!

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About the Rock Chucker Supreme Master Reloading Kit

From RCBS:

The Rock Chucker Supreme Master Reloading Kit has long been the king of reloading kits. We took the benchmark of single stage presses (Rock Chucker Supreme) and surrounded it with the equipment you need (except dies and shell holders) to start handloading ammunition like a pro.

This kit is a simple solution if you are just dipping your toes into hand loading or have been reloading for decades.

What’s in the Box

Included in the Rock Chucker Supreme Master Reloading Kit is:

Rock Chucker Supreme Press
Uniflow-III Powder Measure
M500 Mechanical Scale
Hand Priming Tool
.17-.60 Debur Tool
Accessory Handle – 2 with two case neck brushes
Universal Case Loading Block
Hex Key Set
Case Lube Kit
Powder Funnel
Speer Reloading Manual

On the Bench

After unboxing the kit at Ultimate Reloader, I took it home and set it up on my own bench. Setting up the press was simple and took just a few minutes. Be careful with the little spring for the primer arm—it can get away and hide pretty easily!

While auditing my ammo supply, I realized I’d gone through much of my .30-06 hunting ammo and decided to replenish the supply.

I quickly settled on loading the 130 grain Barnes TTSX over a max charge of Varget with a CCI #200 large rifle primer.

.30-06 Round loaded with Barnes 130 grain TTSX

This load previously yielded a blistering 3,273 fps from my Springfield 03A3 rifle with good accuracy and lighter recoil than with heavier bullet .30-06 loads I’d previously used.

Three shots at 100 yards measured 0.416” when fired from Gavin’s .30-06 Savage rifle.

Back at UR

To demonstrate the use of the RCBS Rock Chucker Supreme Master Reloading Kit, I brought all of the equipment back to Ultimate Reloader and reloaded several clean .30-06 cases.

The first step was to lube the cases. (The kit includes case lube and a case lube pad.) Simply squirt a little case lube onto the pad and work it into the surface. Next, roll the case back and forth across the pad, taking care not to get lube on the case shoulders.

Excess lube makes a mess and can result in dents in the case shoulders while sizing. Use the RCBS case neck brush to apply a tiny bit of lube inside the case mouths. (The brush handle is large and well cushioned—easy to grip and easy to use.)

Insert the cleaned and lubed case into the shell holder, then up into the sizing and decapping die. I like to adjust the die so the ram just contacts it and does a slight “cam over” to fully size the case. The Rock Chucker Supreme press’s comfortable lever can be attached for left or right hand use and provides a lot of leverage. A fully sized case leads to flawless feeding from a magazine into the chamber. While the case is being resized, the primer is also being popped out. If this isn’t happening reliably, adjust the decapping pin.

Today’s Rock Chucker Supreme reloading press is an evolution of the original and in my estimation is better than ever. It’s easier to use and just as robust.

The on-press priming system is simple and effective with a primer catch tray assembly that actually works! Instead of sending spent primers flying across my reloading bench, it contained them nicely time after time.

RCBS also includes a nice-sized chamfering and deburring tool that is much larger than the old ones and very comfortable to use by hand. (Now is also the time to think about trimming.)

The RCBS Supreme Master Kit offers two priming options. The on-press priming arm works quite well and is easy to use. The only drawbacks to this system are that each primer must be handled individually — increasing the risk of case lube contamination — and that the massive leverage of this press deprives one of the tactile feel of the primer being seated.

RCBS’s hand priming tool avoids those two inconveniences and makes the priming process more mobile. I found it to be much faster than priming on the press.

After the cases are sized and primed, it’s time to charge them. The included Uniflow-III powder measure is a newer version of the old Uniflow I’ve been using for 40 years. This one seems better in every way. Assembly was easy, and so were adjustments.

Because I was using a stick powder, Varget, I set the powder measure to throw just a bit under my desired charge weight, then used my old RCBS powder trickler to bring the charge weight up to 56.5 grains on the mechanical scale.

If I had selected a spherical ball powder, I wouldn’t have needed the powder trickler. (Ball powders meter through a powder measure with greater uniformity from charge to charge than stick powders.) I also noted that disassembly for cleaning out all of the old powder was quite easy.

Once they’re charged, it’s time to seat the bullet! This has always been my favorite step of the reloading process. There were no surprises while loading this ammo on the RCBS equipment.

The press handled the job easily and I used a trusty set of RCBS dies. This 2-die set and RCBS #3 shellholder have served me well for many years, loading a wide range of .30-06 hunting loads for deer, black bear, elk, pronghorn antelope and even grizzly hunting. They’ve always produced high quality hunting ammunition for me with no fuss.

The kit does not come with dies, but these have performed well for me for years.

Also included in the kit is Speer’s Handloading Manual Number 15. It contains in-depth cartridge articles, discusses pressure limits, and provides a useful history of various cartridges. It also has good step-by-step instructions on how to reload—something very worthwhile for a beginner and worth reviewing now and then for those of us who’ve been loading for a while.

Conclusion

I started with RCBS gear 50 years ago, and this story just continued that journey. Celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, it’s nice to see RCBS is still producing high quality, reliable gear. This was my first experience with the Rock Chucker Supreme press and the Rock Chucker Supreme Master Kit. Most of my RCBS gear is decades old but still working fine. The new press and new powder measure are improvements on my old gear. Even the case chamfering tool and the brush handle are improved! Everything is easier to use, yet appears to retain the rugged reliability of the older designs. It’s worth noting that RCBS still provides a great warranty.

This versatile kit is great for beginning and veteran reloaders. This cast iron O frame press has a large opening, enabling it to easily accommodate large cartridges like the 375 H&H, but you still need the appropriate dies and shellholder for your particular cartridge. (RCBS Supreme Die sets come with both!) You also need calipers, a powder trickler for bringing a charge up to the exact weight desired, a case trimmer and a brass cleaning system.