Does anyone use a Dillon 550 for both pistol and rifle ?

jacky

jacky

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Ok I have been thinking about upgrading my reloading press and stuff. I load about 50-100 7mm mag, 50 -100 7X57, and I use about 1500 9mm per year. I don't reload the 9mm yet but current load my 7mm's without any problems using my Redding single stage. I have all the stuff like scales, powder measure ( RCBS ) hand primer...etc

The cost of 9mm isn't that bad but it would be fun to reload. Is it worth it to invest in a Dillon that would do all three?
Does anyone else do this amount and kind of reloading?
Any better ideas ?
 
I have a single stage press, and a 6 station manual turret. I really like the tinkering and stuff that goes with reloading. Last year loaded 1400 .40 cal, 800, .223, and a few hundred .308. I'd love a dillon, but i do pretty good with my current setup, so I'm sticking with it for now.
 
I have one Dillon 550B. On it I load:
9mm
38 spl
357
44 mag
308 win
45/70
223
It does all of them quite well. I also have a rock chucker for other calibers that I don't shoot as much of.
 
I really like my Dillon 550 and recommend it to anyone who asks, with a few caveats.

To make it efficient I have tool heads (and stands) for all my main calibers with 3 dedicated powder measures plus a floater:

.338WM
.308
.30-06
.243
.223
.45 ACP
9mm

I then have one tool head that I use for any other caliber (another half dozen or so of both pistol and rifle)

One powder measure is for my 338 as it takes the magnum powder measure and of the other three, two are always in H-38 and W735 and the forth floats depending on what I am loading. You also need all the caliber conversion "kits". This includes having all the correct shell plates, pins and powder funnels. With enough calibers stuff starts to over lap, but you still need it all. (you can buy individual parts to complete the caliber conversion kits and mix and match etc.)

My point, it can get expensive to realize the full efficiency of loading multiple calibers on a 550, but it can be done. I can be reloading any of my favorites in a couple minutes. There's no setting up dies, it's just a simple swap, check the powder measure and I am off to the races. Literally 50 rounds in under 15minutes (after case prep, man do I hate case prep!)

Without the above expense, and if you are just doing up 10-20 rounds, it's most likely as fast to do it on a single stage.
 
No not worth it from a dollar perspective. You are saving about a hundred per thousand on your 9 so at the rate you are shooting you will eirther have to shoo a hole lot more or will take years to recoup the investment. Your rifle is a wash as you are already reloading for it.

I actually like my 550, though it has not saved me a penny. It is like knitting for gun enthousiasts. Insert a bullet and a brass, crank it, push down on the leaver till the primer seats, the repeat, and repeat, and repeat. You can watch a movie, help the kids with homework, and still crank out hundreds of rounds.
 
I load both with my 550 and in the 22 years since it's purchase it has paid for it's self so many times over. Like JBD said there may not be great savings in reloading 9mm but move off to 45 or 44 mag and the savings are significant and chances are you will get another handgun other than 9mm in the future. For rifle I load 30 carbine, 223, 308 and 45-70, handgun is from 500 S&W down to .380 only because there isn't a shell plate for 25 auto.
 
Very fast loading and makes great ammo. It is expensive, but I can't imagine it every wearing out, so you should get decades of service (put it in your will...).

If you have a few close friends who shoot, you could offer to "split it". I have one mounted on a small pallet that I clamp to a table. That way It's semi-portable and I can pass it off to a friend. Realistically, it only takes me a few hours to load enough ammo for several trips to the range. As has been mentionned, an extra tool-head or two would be convenient.
 
I built a tool head stand that holds 10 tool heads out of a piece of scrap metal. In each tool head I have all the dies and the powder die adjusted and ready to go. I have a small plastic plano box that I have a chart with all the calibers I load and there corresponding locator pins, shell plate and powder funnel numbers. I simply change the tool head, look at the chart and change the shell plate, grad the correct pins and put the powder funnel in the adapter and screw on the large powder measure or small powder measure and change the primer if needed. I can change from 44 Mag to 9mm in under 10 minutes and away I go.

I usually will start with everything I need to load in the small primer group first and then the large primer group.

.32 ACP
9mm
.223
.38 spl
.357 Mag
.40 S&W
.45 ACP
.44 Spl
.44 Mag
30-06


You don't have to buy everything at once, look for deals in the EE forum or on websites with sales on. Usually the cheapest place to get stuff is on various gun sites "for sales" forums. Most times you can get parts and accessories for nearly 1/2 off and watch this time of year especially for Dillon independent dealers who need to sell a certain amount of Dillon stuff to keep there license going. You can usually get slightly above cost in most cases if you time it right.
 
If you want a turret press, the T-7 might be a good alternative to the 550. Another alternative would be to get the Hornady bushing conversion kit for that Redding press. Drop in dies speed things up a LOT ! After getting a L&L AP I converted my Redding Ultramag and now have L&L bushings on every die I own.
 
On my Dillon i load...
308
223
270
44 mag
357mag
300mag
7mm
22-250
500 S&W
and very soon 300WSM... JP.
 
Well ok. From what I have read, (all of it is very much appreciated) maybe I should stick to loading the rifle cartridges with the redding and consider a cheaper unit for the nine. Is the Dillon square deal a good alternative? I have only heard good things about the Dillon, the others like Hornady or Lee seem to get mixed reviews around here.
 
@jacky, I have a Dillon 650, in theory I use it to load .45 ACP, .223, .30-06 and .308. In reality I load perhaps 500 rounds of .45 ACP per decade; I mostly use it to load high-precision .308 target ammo, perhaps 2000 rounds a year.

For the quantities you mention, you don't _need_ a progressive press, but I would be the last person to tell you that you shouldn't buy a nice piece of shooting gear that you'd like to have.

One thing about a progressive press is that it is *much* slower than a single stage to change over for a different cartridge, when the other cartridge is of a different "family" - for example, large vs. small primers, or a different shellholder size, or a different case length.

To change from .308 to .30-06 on my XL650 takes about 20 seconds (I take out the .308 toolhead, I insert the .30-06 toolhead). Nothing else needs to be changed, since they use the same size primers and they use the same size shellholders.

To change from .308 to .45 ACP takes me about 90 seconds. There's no need to change shellholders or primer system, but I do need to change the feed plate in the case feeder, and a couple of plastic bushings in the case feeder system.

To change from .308 to .223 takes about 10 minutes. The shellholder has to be changed, and so does the primer system.

In your case, the three calibers you mention all use different size shellholders, so you're looking at a 5-10 minute job to change between calibers.

If I were you I might buy a progressive and just use it for 9mm (running a progressive to make pistol ammo, on a well set up press, is a *lot* of fun...!), and continue to load your rifle ammo on a single stage. For those quantities of rifle ammo it would probably be faster to do them on a single stage than on a progressive.
 
Thanks. I tend to only load one caliber at a time so even if it takes 20min to get going it is not a big deal.
But if I get a square deal always set up for 9mm then I really should be better off than I am now :)
 
As identified newbie on here, I'd just like to thank all of you for commenting on this forum I've just sat back and read all the remarks and must say have learned very much.I have a Dillon 550 for about 6 months and reload 38 specials and 45 acp,but I'm looking forward to loading 223, 7mm08,308's in the near future.

Thanks again
 
Much like many others have stated above, I too run a Dillon 550b for those calibers that see a lot of volume - 9mm, 45acp, and 5.56 each with quick change set ups on stands so swapping is quick and simple - where I keep the Dillon from stretching it's legs is I prefer to de-prime and then clean the cases before running them through the 550. For that prep work I keep a Lee classic at one end of the bench on a modified Dillon strong mount. For hunting and precision rounds - .30-06, 300 win mag, 338LapuaMag - again prep on the Lee, tumble, then load on a Forster Co-ax.

If you're looking at the Square Deal - be fully aware they're calibre specific.
 
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