JAG2955 wrote:Tell me why blue is better than red.
Someplace in the dusty hallways of this computer I have a big comparison .pdf that said the Hornady was a slightly better buy.
Don't have direct experience on the hardware as I purchased my Dillon in the mid-80's when they were the only affordable (as in sub $1K) progressive in town. But I find it hard to imagine that anybody can beat their customer service.
Who else would take a take toll-free call from Hawaii (back then at least, not all 800 numbers on the mainland would accept calls from HI) on a Saturday afternoon to walk you through recovery from operator stupidity, and have new (free) parts to you by the following Friday?
Don't know about Lee dies but I have several sets of RCBS I bought before Dillon started selling their own that work fine in my 450/upgraded to 550.
I have a Lyman case trimmer which works well, but very slow. I've never worked up to the point of buying the Dillon trimmer as much as I'd like to.
...even before I read MHI, my response to seeing a poster for the stars of the latest Twilight movies was "I see 2 targets and a collaborator".
No, the 550 uses a 4-position head, and the 650 uses a 5-position one, to make room for the powder-check. Also, the 650 is auto-index, while the 550 is manual (which I like better anyway).
But there ain't many troubles that a man caint fix, with seven hundred dollars and a thirty ought six." Lindy Cooper Wisdom
Hopefully I'll be buying one in the very near future with my refund, and using it for .300 BLK along with 5.56 and .308. I'll let you know how it goes.
"The armory was even better. Above the door was a sign: You dream, we build." -Mark Owen, No Easy Day
"My assault weapon won't be 'illegal,' it will be 'undocumented.'" -KL
It sounds like the only real problems you had were with trimming and priming. I don't have any recommendations for trimmers, but I do very strongly recommend using a hand primer rather than priming on the press. I use the Lee (two of them, actually, one each for small and large), but I understand that RCBS makes a very good one, and there are probably others out there. I think that hand priming gives much better control and 'feel', and fewer primer feed issues.
"What is this, the Congress Avenue Independence Day Parade?" - Capt. Karl von Stahlberg, RTN Republic of Texas Navy Archives
I haven't primed on a single stage press in decades, and use the RCBS hand priming tool for single stage ammo. However, for the loading he is talking about doing, I can't see him being happy using a single stage, or even a turret press for very long. And there's not really any practical getting around priming on the press with a progressive. Maybe on the first run for a batch of brass where you have reforming (300blk) or pocket swaging to do, it might make sense to make priming a separate operation.
The next press I get is going to be a Dillon XL650. I want the versatility of the 5th die station (which I am pretty sure predated Dillon's powder check die), and IMO automatic index is an important part of avoiding things like double charges. I would go Dillon over Hornady not only for the warranty, but also based on the overall longevity and consistency of their product line. The presses in Dillon's product line back in 1994-95 or so when I first bought my SDB from them are pretty much all still being manufactured today. They've made improvements and additions here and there, but when you buy a press setup from Dillon, you can pretty much bet they are going to still be making it (and perhaps more importantly, the parts for it) a decade or more from now when you want to add a new accessory to it, or need the odd repair part. I can't speak to Hornady's support since about all I have of theirs is die sets and lock rings, but it seems to me their product line is far more fluid in nature than Dillon's, so your odds of having your press be "orphaned" and not be able to accept later accessories, or worse not be able to get replacement parts, would seem to be higher than with Dillon. I am all in favor of innovation and finding better/faster ways of doing things, but I think Dillon strikes the best balance between product improvement, and assuring the customer that their investment is proof against obsolescence.
Cognosce teipsum et disce pati
"People come and go in our lives, especially the online ones. Some leave a fond memory, and some a bad taste." -Aesop
I'm loading pistol on lee pro1000 and rifle on a lee 3-hole turret. If I were to upgrade it would be a dillon xl650 with case feeder. Maybe if I start ppc or ipsc or something.
Sic gorgiamus allos subjectatos nunc
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I actually never had much issue with priming on the Lee press until now. When the priming system works, it works just fine. It probably is faster to hand prime, but if I'm doing multiple steps on the turret press at the same time, it's probably a wash.
But yes, right now it's the trimming that's killing me. So I think that I'd really want the 650 with the case trimmer die. I should probably snap a photo of all of the once-fired brass that I have.
The Lee trimmer sucks hind tit. I bought a Lehman trimmer after one reloading session. I have never really had any trouble with the other stuff on my Lee turret press though. I don't use it as a progressive though, I am way too obsessive for that.
So then the Lee priming system disintegrated on me today. I got it back together, but there's about 7 unaccounted for primers in the garage. It should make the next vacuuming session a little more interesting.
