My first Freedom Seeds with the new Dillon!

[Ironbar]

Well, I FINALLY got the thing all set up and running! This after owning it FOR MONTHS!



I had a couple mishaps with unseated primers, and of course dumped the entire powder charge. I have come to know that this
appears to be something everyone experiences from time to time. However, after the second occurrence I now know what
the handle feels like when there's no primer in the seating pocket.



The Inline Fabrication accessories are already paying off. I now need to make just a couple more tweaks and I'll have it down pat I think.





I managed to crank out 200 rounds in about an hour and a half of just taking it nice & slow, getting the feel of the machine, and understanding
the things I need to change and/or do differently. The powder measure seems quite accurate with this powder. Every test throw I measured came out exactly 3.8gr. Every test round I pulled case gauged perfectly.

One thing is for sure though: I NEED MORE PRIMERS!

Read More

 

[partsed]

Congrats!!! My buddy and I have yet to produce a single round of ammo as both of our schedules haven't allowed for us to spend a Saturday in his garage getting the dies dialed in.

 

[edzz]

I don't see the chip brush and can of air on the bench.

 

[ageingstudent]

Well, I FINALLY got the thing all set up and running! This after owning it FOR MONTHS!

View attachment 846765

I had a couple mishaps with unseated primers, and of course dumped the entire powder charge. I have come to know that this
appears to be something everyone experiences from time to time. However, after the second occurrence I now know what
the handle feels like when there's no primer in the seating pocket.

View attachment 846760

The Inline Fabrication accessories are already paying off. I now need to make just a couple more tweaks and I'll have it down pat I think.

View attachment 846762
View attachment 846763
View attachment 846764

I managed to crank out 200 rounds in about an hour and a half of just taking it nice & slow, getting the feel of the machine, and understanding
the things I need to change and/or do differently. The powder measure seems quite accurate with this powder. Every test throw I measured came out exactly 3.8gr. Every test round I pulled case gauged perfectly.

One thing is for sure though: I NEED MORE PRIMERS!

Good heavens that thing is a monster. Congrats rolling your own is a fine thing. This shortage won't last forever. When everything catches up buy ahead when things are reasonably priced. Primers are always the pinch-point...gotta have em.

 

[Member 5605]

Well done!
May I suggest getting the light for that press? Dan has one listed and it is well worth it.

 

[msgriff]

Here's a loadin' song for you

 

[Ironbar]

Well done!
May I suggest getting the light for that press? Dan has one listed and it is well worth it.

That, and the Inline Fab roller handle are next on the list! I was considering a Mr. Bullet Feeder, but the bullets are so easy to seat by hand that I'm not going to bother with it.

 

[Member 5605]

That, and the Inline Fab roller handle are next on the list! I was considering a Mr. Bullet Feeder, but the bullets are so easy to seat by hand that I'm not going to bother with it.

Good deal! Yeah, skip the bullet feeder and invest in a power alarm.
I have two alarms but with These... (I also used the disconnect for the powder measure with extra powder dies on every head until I can get a hopper for every one.)

Quick Disconnect for Dillon Powder Alarm or Dillon Square Deal Powder Measure

Quick and tool-less removal and installation of Dillon Powder Check Alarm OR Dillon Square Deal Powder Measure. This does NOT work with any other powder measures, only the Square Deal. For all other Dillon Powder Measures CLICK HERE When used for powder alarm, it may not fit next to oversized...

entirelycrimson.com

And with the additional base dies, I can switch the alarm to any of my heads fairly quickly. Using a standard height on the die, the powder alarm is standardized across all heads. Save that bullet feeder money and make safety a priority, especially when cranking out a lot of 9mm when primers come back into play.

 

[v0lcom13sn0w]

I don't see the chip brush and can of air on the bench.

whats this chip brush and canned air sorcery you speak of?!

 

[Ironbar]

Good deal! Yeah, skip the bullet feeder and invest in a power alarm.
I have two alarms but with These... (I also used the disconnect for the powder measure with extra powder dies on every head until I can get a hopper for every one.)

Quick Disconnect for Dillon Powder Alarm or Dillon Square Deal Powder Measure

Quick and tool-less removal and installation of Dillon Powder Check Alarm OR Dillon Square Deal Powder Measure. This does NOT work with any other powder measures, only the Square Deal. For all other Dillon Powder Measures CLICK HERE When used for powder alarm, it may not fit next to oversized...

entirelycrimson.com

And with the additional base dies, I can switch the alarm to any of my heads fairly quickly. Using a standard height on the die, the powder alarm is standardized across all heads. Save that bullet feeder money and make safety a priority, especially when cranking out a lot of 9mm when primers come back into play.

I'm using an RCBS Lock Out Die, and it works- I had a powder spillage issue on one case, and the die functioned exactly as intended!

 

[Fishjager]

Chip brush and canned air are used by people who have been reloading for a long time. They are used to clean the press of residue from the brass and spilled powder. When you get cranking with these things you really find out that things can get dirty. When you de-prime brass the residue has to go somewhere, so it usually falls straight down. Shotgun shells are the worst.

 

[Lesliet]

Canned air is $$$ but the air hose from my compressor reaches into the reloading room. Seems like about every 1k-2k rounds, the press is pretty filthy and needs a good cleanup. Stray powder, lanolin, brass dust...

Congrats on getting your first rounds made! Very nice and capable press, there. I use the lockout dies, too, have one for .45acp and one for everything else, so I can just leave the nylon foot installed. Saved my heinie more than once, especially when cranking out huge lots of 9mm.

 

[v0lcom13sn0w]

Ohhhh so dont use a shop vac to clean up powder and primers then?


my original question was rhetorical/sarcastic.


@Ironbar congrats on the awesome set up! cheers to many years reloading 100s of 1000s of rounds!

 

[deadeye]

Well, I FINALLY got the thing all set up and running! This after owning it FOR MONTHS!

View attachment 846765

Looks good. I'm not too familiar with this type of set up but I would like to see you load the brass in the hopper, how's that work? I would love to have a set up like this but I dont load enough anymore to take the plunge.

 

[No_Regerts]

Here's a loadin' song for you

This is more like it:

 

[DizzyJ]

Congrats!

 

[Ironbar]

Looks good. I'm not too familiar with this type of set up but I would like to see you load the brass in the hopper, how's that work? I would love to have a set up like this but I dont load enough anymore to take the plunge.

The camera perspective and shadows make it look like the case feeder is practically touching the ceiling. There's actually plenty of room above the case feeder. I just dump the empty shells inside, and the the case feeder plate rotates around and drops the shells bottom first into the clear plastic feed tube. A sensor shuts off the feeder when the tube is full. Every time I crank the handle, a new case drops from the feed tube and it is pushed on to the shell plate. It advances around the five stations, and then drops into the outfeed bin as a finished round!

 

[Lesliet]

Out of curiosity, how many cases can you put in your feeder before it messes up? On my LnL, I put about a level binful at a time in there. ( Same bins you're using)

 

[Ironbar]

Out of curiosity, how many cases can you put in your feeder before it messes up? On my LnL, I put about a level binful at a time in there. ( Same bins you're using)

Heck I didn't count. I just grabbed about three or four big handfuls and dropped them in. Probably around 500.

 

[Pops1911]

Excellent. Welcome to Dillon mania!