Which progressive reloader?

[Bxc53]

Hi folks,

I'm new to the forum but have been shooting and reloading for a while now. I'm doing more of both recently and am looking at adding a progressive machine. With only internet research, I've narrowed it down to a Dillon 650 or a Hornady lock n load AP. I reload the common pistol calibers and .223 mostly.

Can anyone share their experiences with one or both units?

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[techiej]

I've got the Hornady and am very happy with it. Went with it because the cost+ease of caliber changeovers, the powder drop and the priming system.

Currently I reload 9, 45, 44, 38, 308 & 30-06.

 

[Papercidal]

I would either stick with something cheap like a lee or a dillon 650 if you want a better machine. I have had both and been well served by both. The hornady is just too close in price to the dillon to be worth considering in my opinion (and every place that I have seen that had a display set up it was broken) and if i remember right with a case feeder the lock and load costs the same as the 650. Just my 2cents worth.

 

[PX4WA]

The hornady works great and factor in the rebate it's a cheap setup compared to the Dillon...

However nothing beats the Dillon 1050

 

[rgold1963]

I went with the Dillon 650 and couldn't be happier. I load 9mm, 10mm, .45, .223, .30-06, and .308 on it. My reloads have outperformed all the factory ammo I have on hand at a fraction of the cost. I have easily paid for my 650 with the savings probably just on all the 9mm my wife shoots!

 

[decay]

I have the 650 and am pretty happy with it . I have not investigated the Hornady . The customer service @ Dillon is excellent !

 

[usagi]

hornady lock & load is much better for beginners, it's also much cheaper but still very well built and functions flawlessly. and you won't be fighting the primer system like you will with other presses.

 

[PX4WA]

hornady lock & load is much better for beginners, it's also much cheaper but still very well built and functions flawlessly. and you won't be fighting the primer system like you will with other presses.

for a beginner who plans on multiple calibers, the hornady with the quick change bushings is really much easier to use and the priming system works really well...

the powder drop on the hornady is superior to dillon (I have both so i feel qualified to make this statement)... but that's my personal opinion..

 

[Bxc53]

Thanks for the suggestions. I expect that I'll be running batches of a few hundred at a time. I shoot roughly even amounts of 9mm, 40SW, 45 ACP so I see the fast easy change over on the Hornady as a good thing. I think if I was running a few thousand at a time the Dillon would have advantages. In all both look like good choices. For me' I think I'll look for a deal on the Hornady.

 

[nastybynature]

Love my 550B!!

 

[PX4WA]

Graf & Sons - HRN PRESS LOCK-N-LOAD AP EZ-JECT AUTO-PROGRESSIVE

best price you can find right now...

 

[PX4WA]

also get one of these... best thing since sliced cheese...

Frankford Arsenal Vibra-Prime Automatic Primer Tube Filler

 

[PX4WA]

Love my 550B!!

while the 550b works great, you don't really know what you're missing until you step up...

the xl650 with auto indexing is a better machine in every way...

that said, the 1050 is a work horse... I just cranked a thousand rounds today in 10 minute increments of 100 rounds each (I go slower as my arm hurts if I go too fast).. which includes loading primers and shell cases into the hopper...

and I do have the hornady bullet feeder setup as well which works great... my arm is really the only limiting factor..

although I spent 1700$ on this, when I'm done, I can sell it for 1500$ all day long.. a 200$ rental for several years or even a decade is not bad...

while there is some play/flex in the hornady and dillon 650... the 1050 does not flex at all, all steel construction where it matters, no aluminum and it is heavy as hell...

 

[usagi]

also get one of these... best thing since sliced cheese...

Frankford Arsenal Vibra-Prime Automatic Primer Tube Filler

absolutely. no more pecking at primer trays for hours... fill a tube up in mere seconds!

 

[BAMCIS]

This thread is gonna turn into a Chevy vs Ford thread. I have a Dillon 550b, but the search function and google are your friends.

 

[Bxc53]

This thread is gonna turn into a Chevy vs Ford thread. I have a Dillon 550b, but the search function and google are your friends.

I'm more of a Toyota guy myself. And I've Googled the heck out of both presses

I appreciate the local slant on the choices and, perhaps, there may be someone not too far from Arlington willing to show off one or both before I decide.

 

[mjbskwim]

Hi folks,

I'm new to the forum but have been shooting and reloading for a while now. I'm doing more of both recently and am looking at adding a progressive machine. With only internet research, I've narrowed it down to a Dillon 650 or a Hornady lock n load AP. I reload the common pistol calibers and .223 mostly.

Can anyone share their experiences with one or both units?

Look at the 2 side by side and you would buy the Dillon. Maybe I got the only lemon in the Hornady fleet,but compared to my Dillon 650,the L&L was a joke.
Yo look at how the case feeds work,how the primer feeds work and just the overall craftsmanship,the Dillon gets it hands down.

Cost? I was into the Hornady,with case feed and change kits around $1500? (+-)(sold the whole thing BTW)
And I am into the Dillon around $2k......BUT I have done more in 1 day with my Dillon than I did in 1 year with my Hornady. Hornady was always a PITA and knew it would p!ss me off by the time I was done.

With the Dillon I know I'll deplete my components real fast.

*** Prices above are for the same # of calibers**** (around 6)

 

[mjbskwim]

hornady lock & load is much better for beginners, it's also much cheaper but still very well built and functions flawlessly. and you won't be fighting the primer system like you will with other presses.

HAHAHA That's the worst part of the whole press! OMFG! There is no comparison with the 2
The caliber changes on the dillon are just as easy if you buy a tool head for each caliber. 2 pins and change the heads.

You will be much happier spending a couple hundred more on the Dillon. BTW remember the 650 COMES WITH the case feed. And the case feed is SO much more precise on the Dillon than the Hornady.

I appreciate the local slant on the choices and, perhaps, there may be someone not too far from Arlington willing to show off one or both before I decide.

deadshot is an avid reloader and is up in your area

 

[Papercidal]

This thread is gonna turn into a Chevy vs Ford thread. I have a Dillon 550b, but the search function and google are your friends.

More of a bmw/yugo debate but with both at the same price. Most of us did not start with a dillon but ended up here for a good reason. There are presses out there that are not as good but great for the money but the l&l is not even that.

 

[evltwn]

Just be aware of the many case prep steps you have to take with rifle rounds in a Dillon or any other progressive press. Personally, I prime my 223 cases in a single stage to make sure I removed all the crimp during the swaging step. Discovering an incompletely swaged case in my dillon results in a ruined primer as well as a bit of a pain to remove. I simply remove the priming tube and primer bar from the Dillon and proceed from there.