Progressive Reloading Presses, Dillion, Hornady or Lee?

[Boxer]

Progressive Reloading Presses, Dillion, Hornady and Lee?

I was thinking of getting the Dillion 650 and then read a few threads about Hornady and Lee.

Items that I would like in the progressive besides the noramal are:
Auto case feeder.
Auto bullet feeder (not critical, but seems nice)
Auto primer feeder, although I hear this is a real pain.
Ease in use.
Least amount of plastic in the press itself.
Price is not a factor, ease of use, and durabillity are the main factors.

I was leaning towards a Dillion, but am now thinking of the Hornady.

[RaymondMillbrae]

Shooter,

I am a reloader who uses the Dillon XL650.

I can attest to the fact that "if" you decide on a Dillon, you will not be disappointed.

I have also read many favorable things about the Hornady LNL.

If I had to do it again, I tend to think that I would lean towards the Dillon.

Why?

Because afetr MANY YEARS od constant use, things wear-out and break down. (2nd law of thermodynamics). And when this did happen, Dillon has been on it in a heartbeat.

Recently the "indexing ring" broke on my press. A phone call and two days later I had TWO replacement indexing rings...and a few other parts Dillon recommended I swap-ou,t as part of getting everything up to snuff again.

Did I mention that it cost me nothing?!

I am not a blind blue Kool-aid drinker. But I can asay that Dillon makes exceptional products, and more importantly, stand behind their products.

In closing, both the Dillon and Hornady LNL will have you a happy camper.

Just my input.

In Christ: Raymond

PS: Look at my signature below, and click on the "RELOADING .223" tutorial.

[Boxer]

Raymondmilbrae,

Thanks for the reply. Still hoping to hear from Hornady users. But Ray your avitar give me the tweeps.....LOL

[Chief-7700]

I have been using Dillon reloading machines for a few years and recommend them.
Started out with the:
400 series
then
500 series
now
the XL-650
Will I go to the 1050? That remains to be seen.
I have read on numerous forums that the Red Machine seems to have more problems out of the box than the Blue machine.

[XDRoX]

If you spend enough time on reloading forums you learn one thing. Don't buy a Lee progressive. Their turrets and single stage presses are fine, but their progressives just don't stack up against the competition. You can't go wrong with either the Dillon or the Hornady. Personally I, like Raymond, prefer Dillon. I would also consider the 550 especially if you load a lot of calibers. It's a simple but effective machine.

[CSACANNONEER]

The more automated the press is, the more complicated it is to set up, adjust, etc. I have never used the Hornady progressive press (I have a 550 and a 650) so, I don't have an opinion about it. IIRC, 50BMGBOB has one. Shoot him a PM and ask him about it.

[Boxer]

The change over of dies on the Hornady is a quick 1/8" turn to change calibers...seems very nice. All in all so far most say the Dillion. I wonder how many Hornady users would say that? I will PM 50BMGBOB and ask.

[OB_WAN]

I purchased the Hornady LnL AP about a month ago. I've run about 500rds through it so far. As long as you follow the setup instructions(clean off all mfg lube), you should be good to go. The only two probs I had on this thing was 1: the retainer spring wasn't dropping down right away to make for easy shell insertion. I took a break, came back, and it worked. 2: my powder charges started increasing after ~100rds. I hadn't tightened the powder set screw tight enough.

One caveat, I haven't tried the primer feed yet. Still have to process a bunch of primed brass. I don't expect any probs with it but just in case I do run in to a priming prob, there's a few writeups on this board to get it dialed in just fine or I can call Hornady and they'll help me fix it.

I'm glad I purchased the Hornady LnL. Auto progressive features of the 650. Cheaper than the 550. Caliber conversions are the price of dies, 4 die quick release nuts, and a shellholder. Cheap conversion.

there's a doc writeup somewhere around here on the comparison of the 3 progressives.

You won't go wrong with either the 650 or the LnL.

Happy loading.

[50BMGBOB]

I figured I would answer your PM here. When I was looking for a progressive press I looked at both the 650 and the LNL. Both are great presses. Those I talked to that had tried both said they recommended the LNL. Once outfitted, they will set you back the same but caliber changes are cheaper on the LNL.

I bought the LNL and I am really pleased with it. I am not a big time reloader and I am still getting the feel of loading on a progressive press. What I like about the LNL is how easy to change set-ups. I can run my brass thru with a Lee universal deprimer and trim with a dillion trimer. Whith the case feeder brass prep is quick. I can run it thru with a resizer and you can even have multible seating dies, one for match grade and another for plinking rounds. With a twist of the LNL bushings you can change without losing your settings. You have to have different top plates to do that with the Dillion. If you can afford and have the room to have a press for each caliber you are better off than me. If you want one press that is quick and easy to change set ups, the LNL is the way to go.

[Boxer]

I figured I would answer your PM here. When I was looking for a progressive press I looked at both the 650 and the LNL. Both are great presses. Those I talked to that had tried both said they recommended the LNL. Once outfitted, they will set you back the same but caliber changes are cheaper on the LNL.

I bought the LNL and I am really pleased with it. I am not a big time reloader and I am still getting the feel of loading on a progressive press. What I like about the LNL is how easy to change set-ups. I can run my brass thru with a Lee universal deprimer and trim with a dillion trimer. Whith the case feeder brass prep is quick. I can run it thru with a resizer and you can even have multible seating dies, one for match grade and another for plinking rounds. With a twist of the LNL bushings you can change without losing your settings. You have to have different top plates to do that with the Dillion. If you can afford and have the room to have a press for each caliber you are better off than me. If you want one press that is quick and easy to change set ups, the LNL is the way to go.

Thanks for the reply and answering on this thread is great.

Do you have a case feeder?
Do you have a bullet feeder?
I read several issues with the powder spilling out and plugging up the process?
What types of dies do you use i.e. Horandy or another manufactuer?
Do you need to lube the cases or are the dies carbide?
How is the crank arm?
Any primer setting issues?

I love Calguns.....

[mstlaurent]

Thanks for the reply and answering on this thread is great.

Do you have a case feeder?
Do you have a bullet feeder?
I read several issues with the powder spilling out and plugging up the process?
What types of dies do you use i.e. Horandy or another manufactuer?
Do you need to lube the cases or are the dies carbide?
How is the crank arm?
Any primer setting issues?

I love Calguns.....

I've loaded a couple thousand rounds on the Hornady LNL, and I like it, I would buy another one. I don't have a case or bullet feeder.

The one place you have to worry about debris is in the priming system, if you don't keep it completely clean you will have problems priming. I would say that I have to stop, on average, once every 100 rounds and blow out the priming system with compressed air because things are hanging up.

I use Hornady dies, I like them a lot. I had a couple of stuck cases early on, Hornady removed the stuck cases for cost of shipping. After I stopped trying to use One Shot and bought a lube die I haven't had a problem.

[Chief-7700]

Thanks for the reply and answering on this thread is great.

Do you have a case feeder? YES
Do you have a bullet feeder? NO did not want to give up the seating die like to seat and crimp with two different dies.
I read several issues with the powder spilling out and plugging up the process? Not a real problem, cut 1/2" off the coil for the shellplated detent spring. Make sure that your shellplated is tightened down and the set screw on the right hand side of the ram is screwed down
What types of dies do you use i.e. Horandy or another manufactuer? Dillon
Do you need to lube the cases or are the dies carbide? For straight walled pistol cases no, just make sure that you tumble them clean to prevent scratches to your dies.
How is the crank arm? Wonderful I have the aluminum roller handle
Any primer setting issues? Only if the reloading bench is not bolted down to mother earth. In other words no movement of the bench.

I love Calguns.....

Me too

[savasyn]

I'll throw another vote for the Dillon 650, as it's what I have. I've never seen the Hornady LnL, so I can't comment on it at all.
There is no question that Dillon stuff is pricey, so if you go that route, it's a good thing that you say price is no object You do get what you pay for though, the 650 is a solid, slick and well thought out machine. I currently load eight pistol and one rifle calibers on mine. I'll be adding .308 fairly soon as well. Doing it "right"(buying a full set-up) costs roughly $300 per caliber, but I've figured out how to share enough parts to cut that cost in half while still retaining all my settings.

If you wanted a 650, you could get it directly through Dillon or from Brian Enos. The Enos site has an option called the "As it should be", which has all the options that most people want.

I'll answer the questions you asked above:
Case feeder? Yes and it works extremely well. Definitely worth the money
Bullet feeder? No. I've read about them and for super high volume they'd be cool, but having to place a bullet keeps you involved in the process to catch anything funky that might happen.
Powder Spills? The 650 is known to snap into index sharply spilling some powder on shorter cases like the 9mm. There are a number of fixes for this, the fastest and easiest is cutting a coil to a coil and a half off the indexing ball spring. That alone handles 90% of the problem. I've never experienced a powder spill that caused any kind of a jam.
Dies? I use Dillon dies
Lube? All my pistol dies are carbide and for straight walls so no need for lube. You should lube rifle cases and shouldered pistol cases regardless of die material.
Crank arm? I started with the Dillon plastic roller handle but hated the triangle shape of the grip so I got the aluminum one and haven't looked back.
Primer issues? The only "issue" I have with the 650's primer system is that it's a PIA to remove a bunch of live primers from the system if you need to. Other than that it's pretty awesome.

I've not used a 550, but from what I understand it is as solid a machine as the 650 and only lacks auto indexing and a spot for powder checking. On the upside, it's cheaper, has more caliber options and they cost less.

I've used a 1050 a few times and it's definitely as slick as they come but they are way expensive and only carry a 1 year warranty. Doesn't sound like something you'd want to change calibers on, just set it up for one and run it.

[Boxer]

Thanks for all the replies....so where do I stand...still open. I would like to see both in person to look at quailty and construction of componets. More comments are encouraged.

[C.G.]

I think the choice is between Dillon and Hornady, I don't care for Lee much. Personally I went with Hornady LNL with a case feeder and I am very happy with it. Both the LNL and Dillon have their pluses and minuses and it is the user that needs to decide on personal basis what he can (or cannot) live with, but both are good presses.