Presses

[BEANC0UNTER]

It seems from reading that if you can afford it you should buy a Dillon 500 for reloading. My question is why? How does a Hornaday LNL or a RCBS 2000 compare?

I think I am looking for a progressive press but I am not sure which brand to get.

 

[gregkl]

 

[silentvoice71]

I have a 550b and i love it. I had a lee progressive get rid of it after i won my dillon. Nice solid press will last a lifetime.

 

[BEANC0UNTER]

Like I said, I cannot find anything to steer me away from a Dillon but I do know if there are advantages to other presses. I will primarily use it for .223

 

[HamsterStyle]

From my research and understanding, it is best to start out with a single stage press. The RCBS rockchucker comes highly recommended. It is considerably cheaper than the dillon and you can decide if reloading is for you. It also seems to be the general concensus that for rifle rounds you are better off with a single stage press.

Disclaimer: I do not reload yet but I did just take a class at Profire arms and supply.

 

[45calibre]

i think dillon is over hyped. im sure it is a good press no doubt, but im a lee fane because they are so simple. i love lee's case feeding design over the electric ones dillon/rcbs/hornady use.

 

[John Galt]

I have a Dillon 650 and LOVE it! Once you get it set up, you can crank out some serious rounds. I recently purchased a Redding T-7 turret press for a caliber that the Dillon won't work for and while not as fast as the Dillon, it is a great press none the less. I don't have any experience with any other presses but can say that I highly recommend either of what I just mentioned.

 

[blurr95]

We used the Redding T-7 in Andrews class. They are very nice, wouldn't mind having one of my own.

Jason

 

[Hookeye]

Dillon makes nice stuff, and if one shoots a lot, and a variety of cartridges, might be great.

But swapping plates and setting up over and over can be a bit much for some folks.

I shoot .243 and .44 mag. My choice was to use a turret press and leave my dies for both in it at all times. I don't experiment after finding the loads I like, and shoot pretty much one load per gun.

Plus my dad runs his 650 for my .45 acp needs.

If I go to .35 Rem and reload, and or .357 mag..........I'll just equip another turret press and leave them set up.

Two Lyman turret presses used is pretty cheap and doesn't take much space

 

[downzero]

Dillon's warranty and quality are the reasons people choose Dillon. Basically every major competitor outside of benchrest is probably loading his/her ammo on a Dillon.

I had a 550 and recently switched to a 650 with casefeeder. For a new reloader, you can't go wrong with a 550.

There's very little that a turret or single stage press could offer that a 550 does not.

 

[Iroquois]

I hear a lot of people rave about progressive presses and Dillon seems to get the most praise.
I would never suggest a progressive for a noob. Just my 2 cents, but reloading has a lot of variables
that can be dangerous. I think it's foolish to get in a big hurry before you learn to spot
problems and flaws. Besides, an o type press is always useful even if you "graduate " to a
progressive.

 

[BEANC0UNTER]

My other thought was to take a look at a turret press. It would have fewer changes to get the job done.

 

[mac45]

You said you were doing .223.
Unless you're in a big hurry for some reason, I'd suggest the Lee Classic Turret.
Don't get me wrong, I love my Dillon, but I batch load all my rifle rounds on the turret. Reason being is I like to tumble the lube off after I size, and to me at least, it's simpler on the turret.
If you have your heart set on a progressive, the 550 is great. It does have a little bit of a steeper learning curve, but if I can learn on one, anyone can. Just take your time.

 

[BEANC0UNTER]

My only hurry is having a 6 year old so I was thinking the faster I could load the better. I think a turret may be sufficient enough.

 

[ssblair]

I have a Hornady LnL AP press and it is solidly built and easy to use. I don't have the case or bullet feeders yet.

Only have 2 complaints: 1) that 30-06 needs to be manually indexed when used with Forster Benchrest bullet seater die and Lee FCD because the auto-index doesn't rotate soon enough, causing the bullets to hit the sides of the dies rather than get into the dies. I only have that problem on 30-06 (308, 7.62x54R, & 45AUTO work fine). 2) That there could be a better way to empty the primer stack without making a big mess of primers. That would be an easy fix, now that I think about it (just drill a hole for a small cotter pin at the base of the primer tube), but its kind of silly to think that the folks at Hornady didnt think of it.

Overall: I'm happy with mine.

 

[Cerberus]

I owned a LnLAP for a few years and never quite got used to the auto indexing. Solidly built press that work as it was designed, just not my cup o' tea. When I decide to go progressive again I will get the RCBS Pro 2000 with manual index.

 

[BEANC0UNTER]

I still have not decided what to get. I am more of a buy once and be done with it type of person, meaning I do not mind spending the extra money as long as it gives me the bang for the buck.

 

[raggedoutcummins77]

Once u get the taste of blue kool ad u wont go back to anything but a filling.

 

[spencer rifle]

Y
Unless you're in a big hurry for some reason, I'd suggest the Lee Classic Turret.

^This. After about 5000 9mm rounds all it needed was a new plastic square drive washer - 50 cents. No problems, fast enough for me, visual check on each round, built to last, changing calibers is so easy.

 

[Matt52]

I got a dillion 550 from a buddy before I knew anything about reloading. I figured I would get into it sooner or later so I bought the press and the large dillon case vibrator and powder scale for 250 dollars. It was new in the box so I figured I was gettin a deal and boy was I right. It has already made its money back for me.