Considering a Dillon 650

Bolivar

Bolivar

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Hey all

I'm considering getting a Dillon 650 for loading 223/5.56 in bulk (I tend to load 1000 rounds at a time) and I have some questions.

1) How much depth to I need on bench to set up and operate this unit. The spot I am considering on my bench has a cabinet above and I am not sure if I will have clearance. By depth, I mean from the front edge of the bench where the unit would be bolted down.

2) How loud are they to operate with the power trimmer and auto case feed. I nomally reload after the kids go to bed or early in the morning when everybody else is asleep. If the thing is too loud I won't be able to use it except when everybody is up and wanting me to actually be an active Dad :)

3) A lot of my brass tends to be pickups from Service and CQB shoots so it is a mix with un-prepped brass with crimped primers. As such it pretty much have to plan to remove the primer crimp on each round on loading.

Since decrimping is not part of the 650 offering, am I really saving that much time in brass prep stage? Seems I would have to de-prime and the swage or ream the primer pocket as a separate operation to cycling through the machine.

4) Right now I use a single stage rock chucker. I tumble them before I start and lube each case to size and deprime. Then I tumble again to remove the lube before trimming / chamfering / deburing / de-crimping. It seems to me that if use a progressive, I would have to tumble the cases after they are loaded which I believe is questionable. Either that or wipe each case down with a rag (uggggg).

Am I off base with worrying about tumbling after loading?
 
I am looking into setting up my 650 for bulk .223 as well. It seems most people run two separate tool heads, with the first being resize/trim (if running the dillon trimmer) and then the second pass being prime, powder, bullet and crimp if desired. From what I have seen/heard on youtube videos the dillon trimmer seems quite loud, especially since you have to have a vacuum running to remove the trimming chips.

Removing primer crimps will still be a separate operation.
 
My 650 is setup for all you have in mind... I swage primer pockets with the dillon bench top unit around 600 cases per hour or more... To actually size/trim/clean/load 1000 cases... Maybe 3hrs... The ultimate .223 setup is the 1050 and keep in mind it comes with the case feeder and has the swager built in... Worth the extra money if you have it.
 
You need to be able to deal with the primer crimp. If I can't talk you into the 1050, you'll want to get the Dillon super swage.

Your best bet will be to gather several thousand cases. Think 5 gallon pail or better.
Clean it all in fresh walnut media for 24 hours, then in corn cob for at least a few hours.
Sort your brass by headstamp.

Buy the Dillon Carbide dies. You still need lube, but a little goes a long way. I recommend the Dillon pump lube, and you can store the cases lubed.

Buy a case guage. Brass from different manufacturers may spring back differently. Dies adjusted to produce perfect cases using Winchester brass, may produce drasticly oversized Federals.
 
Just to give you an idea, when I trim with my Dillon, I wear my hear protection. It's that loud! The trimmer alone is tolerable but combined with the vacuum, it's quite loud.
 
x2 what's been said above.

Having just processed 2,000+ .223 rounds with my 650, it ended up being a somewhat drawn-out (but manageable) process.

Brass needs to be tumbled and lubed for mass trimming and sizing (used the Dillon trimmer for that). - That's one pass and, as has been pointed out above, it's loud. Use your hearing protection for sure. On the other hand, it's extremely quick. Once it's all set up, you can size and trim almost as fast as you can pull the handle. Lube the cases in a big Tupperware bin with Dillon spray lube and swirl it around to distribute the lube over the cases.

I chamfer and de-burr the trimmer brass using a Giraud case trimmer. Yes, that's a bit redundant however, I think that, at the end of the day, it still saves time. The results were pretty acceptable - however, it is, again, a separate process.

Military/crimped primer pockets need to be swaged. The Dillon table-mounted unit does a good job but it is, again, a separate process. That said, it gives you an opportunity to sort the brass by case head stamp.

At this point you can run your (now sorted) brass through the 650 to load your rounds. At that point your main challenge will be to keep your primer tubes full.

Final up-side is that I now have 2,000+ loaded rounds with trimmed and prepped brass which should make it quicker next time.
 
Damn - the noise thing may be a deal breaker for me. I prep my brass on mass right now, one step at a time.....but at least I can do that while everybody else is sleeping.

If my garage was heated I would move in there and do it.....but that ain't happening.

Hmmmmm, more thinking to come on this one before I pony up any cash.

How about my question on bench depth? Anybody got a measurement on what is needed?
 
Bolivar said:
Am I off base with worrying about tumbling after loading?
Click to expand...

Tumbling rounds (rifle or pistol) long enough to remove the case lube is not a problem...

I did a test 3 years ago on pistol rounds (9 major)

I tumbled 100 rounds... over nite. I pulled a few to see if there was any effect on the powder...none that I could see.

I compared those to rounds that I tumbled for 10 mins (what i usually tumble to remove lube) on the chrony and found no difference.

I grouped them from the bench at 25 meters...again...no difference.
 
Bolivar said:
Damn - the noise thing may be a deal breaker for me. I prep my brass on mass right now, one step at a time.....but at least I can do that while everybody else is sleeping.

How about my question on bench depth? Anybody got a measurement on what is needed?
Click to expand...

As for the noise thing650 itelf, running the trimmer when everyone is sleeping won't work, depending on where you set it up in your house. That said, once you get everything set up on one toolhead, and properly configured, you could do a run of 1000 .223 brass in an hour so, if you get time away.

As for dimensions, for the base of the 650 itself, you need 5". Including the case trimmer, from the front on the bench, to the back of the case trimmer, you need about a foot.

Total height is about 34", from the base to the top of the case feeder, anything which extends below the bench isn't included in that measurement.

I absolutely love my 650, and am quite happy I upgraded. My time spent reloading has decreased drastically, which allows me to do other things.
 
My basic steps. One day I'll do a full post.

1. Decap on dedicated tool head with a decaping die so you can use the case feeder. Stupid fast due to case feeder.
2. Clean those decapped rounds (4 Hours or so in rock tumbler with SS. Use an Xmas tree timer and have it start at 3 or 4am so it's done for when you get up. Toss em on a towel for a day to dry).
3. Prep tool head (rcbs lube die, full length sizing die, powered trimmer). Super fast but loud, just do a few hundred in 15 minutes when you have a moment.
4. Clean (short cycle to remove lube). I just toss em back in the rock tumbler.
5. Loading tool head (decap just in case, powder, powder check or bullet feeder, bullet seater, bullet crimper)
6. Then I weigh each round quickly to weed out over and under charges. Takes a millisecond on a digital scale.

Done, can do 300 hundred rounds in fifteen minutes since the brass is already prepped. Once I get my bullet feeder it should really rock!

You'll spend more time loading primer tubes than you will producing rounds. There is no need to chamfer the neck with the Dillon Trimmer.

Yes it's stupid expensive to run this way but it's fun as hell, a hobby within a hobby. I used to dread loading on my old lee, now it goes so fast I need more components after just one evening.

Start with the basic press and add the toys slowly as you get coin. Dillons are like Harley's, you can accessorize them for years lol.

Cheers
 
Bolivar said:
Throvad - I think I need a full demo :)
Click to expand...

Lol already arranged :)

But first, does the 'better half' read this board? If so, I won't post how much all that stuff costs lol.

Now if only I could find the RCBS Rifle Bullet feeder in Canada... No one has it, Mr Bulletfeeder won't have his new .223 till August or so and Hornady still after two years has no released their rifle adapter.... Arghhh lol.

Cheers!
 
Thorvald said:
But first, does the 'better half' read this board? If so, I won't post how much all that stuff costs lol.
Click to expand...

I AM the better half. LOL

No, she does not surf CGN....thank goodness. I would be screwed. And yes, she does now how much #### costs. She sees me keeping track of my "debt".

If I'm going to take the plunge, I am going to have a to sell another rifle so I can either by the trimmer or case feeder. Either that or wait and save. Pffffft.
 
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