What reloading setup should I buy?

[beckty]

I've finally decided to start reloading but can't decide on what to buy. I think I've narrowed it down to the rcbs pro 2000, Dillon 550 or 650. I don't know much about all the different features and plan to do alot of reading. Just hoping some of you guys can help me out. Calibers I want to reload are .380, 38/357, 357 sig, 40, 45, 223, 308, 7mm. I will eventually buy a single stage for precision rifle rounds, but want to start out on a progressive due to the amount of pistol I shoot.

Manual indexing vs auto? What does this even mean?

I'm not really concerned with the price difference in the units. I would rather spend the money and be happy with it.

Besides fabbing up the security doors my reloading room/armory is complete. Ready to build my bench and order my reloading equipment. Here's some pics for your enjoyment.

[1lostinspace]

teach that dog to reload, and spend more time at the range.

[Someguy925]

Manual indexing vs auto? What does this even mean?

Manual means that you have to rotate the shellplate yourself. Auto means that the action of pulling the lever will automatically rotate the shellplate itself.

[dstewart]

beckty, with all the calibers you want to reload I would recommend the Dillon due to easy caliber setup change with the modular tool heads. As far as manual indexing vs auto it depends on how much you intend to reload and how much time you want to spend doing it. Auto indexing automatically rotates your ammunition to the next stage with each stoke of the lever. Manual indexing relies on the armstrong method. The auto indexing can be a little more fool prof once you get the hang of it. I would reload 500 45acp in about 2 to 3 hours with my XL650 and I really take my time.

[RaymondMillbrae]

Why do you have a goat sitting on that cute throw in the corner of your room?

Ha ha ha Sorry, couldn't help it.

Theres a whole bunch of threads covering this very same topic.

Do a little searching, and be surprised at finding your questions answered in full.

In Christ: Raymond

[kmca]

You might want to consider getting the single stage now. I use mine for a variety or utility tasks, swaging, decapping, bullet pulling. For precision, I use a turret loader. I also have 2 Dillons mounted and a couple shotgun loaders. I hardly have enough room on my bench to make a mess

I have Dillons because that's what most of my friends have. I have one friend that uses a RCBS and Dillon. He likes them both, they're just different. Both have excellent customer service.

[Josh3239]

I'll throw another name in there, Hornady Lock'n'Load. I learned on the Hornady LNL single stage and now own one and it is a great press. The progressive Hornady still has the LNL features, which allows you to change the dies very fast. Just turn the die 1/8'' (IIRC) and the die comes out, pop a new one in and turn (again IIRC) 1/8'' and it is locked in. Hornady CS is very very good, but I don't know if any CS could beat out Dillon. Both have excellent CS and make great presses.

[CSACANNONEER]

I would recommend getting at least one single stage press and a progressive or two. You need to figure out what will suit your needs best. I would suggest getting a little hands on experience with the different presses that you are considering. I have a 550, a 650, RCBS ammo master progressive, a few shotshell presses and several different single stage presses that you are more than welcome to fondle.

[grammaton76]

First... you're going to need a single stage press for goofy calibers at a bare minimum. I am partial to the Lee hand press for this.

For a progressive, I'd go Dillon - a good chunk of this is because you see folks moving to Dillon after buying something else, but if you step up from a Dillon it's generally because you bought a Camdex.

550's a good choice because you'll still want to use it for low-volume stuff later on down the line, and the 650 can be your press for churning out your primary calibers. http://brianenos.com/ has some excellent reading on the Dillons.

[Cowboy T]

I too do a lot of handgun shooting, and therefore I need to make lots of quality ammo. Here's my setup.

- Two Lee Pro 1000 progressives for handgun cartridges (one for small primers, one for large primers).
- One Lee Classic Turret for the rifle cartridges.
- One Lee Reloader Single-Stage Press for boolit sizing (I also cast) and fixing the occasional misbehaving round.

All of this cost me less than $500, and I get great performance and functionality. Lee's customer service is also very good.

[Enter_the_Dragon]

When I decided to start reloading I decided on the Dillon 550. No regrets and they offer a no B.S. warranty. Bought my from BrianEnos.com.

[Chief-7700]

Blue, Red, Green and Lee, buy what will serve you the best. Blue happens to work for me. Dillon reloading machines can be used as a single stage press, just don't feed them any more brass.