Dillon 550B?

[SoCalAR]

I've decided I'd like to try my hand at loading my own rounds for both my pistols and rifles. I'll need dies for 45ACP, 40S&W, .223REM, and .308WIN and I'm wondering if anyone could recommend a good press. The reputation of Dillon and the price make the 550B seem like a good choice but I don't really know much about reloading.

Anyone feel like shedding some light for a noob?

Thanks.

[hawk1]

Try this site for some info on the various Dillon setups

http://www.brianenos.com/pages/dillon.html

Enjoy,

[Jicko]

It is GREAT.... just pricy...

I've decided I'd like to try my hand at loading my own rounds for both my pistols and rifles. I'll need dies for 45ACP, 40S&W, .223REM, and .308WIN and I'm wondering if anyone could recommend a good press. The reputation of Dillon and the price make the 550B seem like a good choice but I don't really know much about reloading.

Anyone feel like shedding some light for a noob?

Thanks.

[1911jerry]

Go to Glock Talk reloading section and ask which is better.... Lee or Dillon presses. Then sit back for a few days and watch the forworks.

JS

[PistolPete75]

Dillon 550 rocks, I got one. over 10 years old and works like a charm. If you can spend a little extra get the 650!

[Waldog]

The Dillon is an excellent press and has a VERY STRONG following. There is another option that is a newer design and easier to use, at least IMHO.

Read the following links:

http://www.cs.odu.edu/~rtompkin/hornady/blue.php

http://www.comrace.ca/cmfiles/dillonLeeHornadyComparison.pdf

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHCYnILM6u8

And, finally my ramblings on the subject:

The Dillon has been on the market a long time and have great customer service, as a result, Dillon users are EXTREMELY dedicated to their blue presses. The Dillon's are EXCEPTIONAL presses and do an exceptional job in reloading. . The competition to the Dillon is the Hornady Lock and Load Auto Progressive. When I was researching which progressive press to buy I found most of the Dillon users are so satisfied I was swamped with comments like, "The Hornady L-n-L is Junk!" When I asked if they had ever loaded on the L-n-L and 99% said no. When I did find someone that had experience with both presses, most liked the L-n-L and some had sold their Dillon's and bought the L-n-L.

IMHO the Dillon has one major shortcoming and most Dillon owners will agree if they are honest. The Dillon powder measure is sorely lacking in ease of use and adjustability. It meters ball type powder very well but flake type powder less so. And, extruded stick type powder is VERY troublesome and not all that accurate. To be fair, extruded powder is difficult in all powder measures. But, the L-n-L powder measure handles all types of powder MUCH better than the Dillon. Also, it is a pain to swap out the Dillon powder measure to another die plate. As a result, many owners have several powder measures on separate die plates for changing calibers. This significantly drives UP the COST.

Also, the Dillon gets filthy as the old primers are caught in a cup after they have rolled off the side of the press. The L-N-L spent primers are dropped thru a plastic tube and into the trash or bottle or whatever you want to use. The point is, the dirt off the spent primers does not foul the workings of the press. As a result, the L-N-L IS MUCH CLEANER TO USE THAN THE DILLON.

The Dillon 550 has 4 die stations and the L-N-L has 5 stations. The Dillon 650 has 5 stations but, costs significantly more. Also, the Dillon 550 does not auto index, the L-n-L does. The Dillon 650 DOES auto index, but again, at more cost.

Next, the L-N-L uses a really slick bushing system for mounting loading dies to the press. It makes changing calipers and SNAP. After a die is adjusted for whatever you are loading you can remove the die from the press with an 1/8 turn and insert a different die. Each die has it's own bushing. The Dillon uses a die plate. The Dillon die plate costs more than L-N-L bushings. Another neat feature with the Hornady is that you can buy a bushing conversion setup and use the same bushings on your RCBS, Lyman or other single stage press and the L-N-L!

Additionally, the L-N-L seems to be built like a tank! The ram is about 2"+ in diameter and the basic press is similar in construction to the RCBS Rockchucker. I would say that a side-by-side comparison to the either the Dillon 550 OR 650, the L-N-L is at least as sturdily built. And, In some areas I think the L-N-L is better built. i.e., The massive ram, powder measure, and primer system. The head/top of the press is solid except for where the dies are inserted. The Dillon has a large cutout that is needed for their die plates. By just looking, it would seem the L-N-L would be stronger. But, of course, that may not be the case.
There is one piece that can get damaged on the L-N-L. There is a coil spring that holds the cases in the shell holder that can get crushed if you improperly change shell holders. That's the bad news. The good news is that they are only about $2-3 and they won't get crushed if you change shell plates correctly. The other good news is that this spring is the primary reason that while loading you can easily remove a case at any station. With the Dillon you have to remove pins in order to take a shell out of a shell plate.

You can load anything on both the Dillon and L-N-L from .25 ACP to 500 N.E. Realistically, I would say that people with progressive loaders mostly load pistol ammo about 99% of the time. After using the L-N-L for while I feel confident that my Grandkids will be using when I'm gone.

In summary, the Hornady L-N-L has all the features of the Dillon 650 but is cheaper. Changing calipers is faster and cheaper. The powder measure on the L-N-L is VASTLY SUPERIOR TO THE DILLON, at least in my opinion. I bought the L-N-L and am very satisfied. A shooting buddy of mine is a long time, dedicated Dillon user. He has three! After giving me a ration of "stuff" about my choice, he came over and used my L-N-L and sheepishly said, "That's a very nice setup!!"

Also, until the end of 2007 Hornady will give you 1000 FREE bullets of your choice with a purchase of the LNL. That in itself is up to a $250 giveaway.

[PLINK]

Nice review Waldog.

I do agree with you on the powder measure. It is not that easy to fine tune your powder measure but once it is set I leave it alone. The powder measure does fluctuate on the Dillon (in my experience). I currently have my powder measure set at 4.0 grains. I randomly measure my charges and found them to be 3.9 to 4.1 grains. This is using Titegroup which is a flake powder. I have more consistant charges using Clays Universal (for .45 ACP). Cal Gunner Wulf tought me to take 4 charges, measure it and come up with an average. I started with a beam scale. These work but the digital scale makes it much easier seting up the powder measure.

I also reload for .45 ACP and .40 S&W. I do have a quick change kit which makes changing calibers easy. I would not do it with out the quick change kit. And yes it is initially expensive to run two different calibers especially if you go the quick change kit route.

Overal the Dillon 550 is very easy to use. I never did any reloading before and the Dillon has made my experience enjoyable. I am completely satisfied with it.

Last but not least, a BIG +++++1 for Brianenos.com for your Dillon needs.