Dillon Vs Lee Loader's

[bear.23]

This could easily become a husky V stihl or Ford V Chevy arguement...

I will provide my feedback to you offline so you can update your comparison should you wish...

I am not in complete agreement with your methodolgy and criteria for the comparison..

 

[Canuck44]

prosper

I am not sure one becomes part of an elite group by owning a Dillon. What I do know is the machines work, and work very well. I am sure Lee equipment works and can for a number of years. You pay more for a Dillon but over the years I have had two parts break/wear out on my dillon. Both parts were replaced free, no questions asked and in both cases I didn't have to send the parts south. A simple phone call and the parts were air mailed to me that day.

One fellow on the 1911 Forum reported his house burned down. Dillon sent him a new machine. Dillon comes with a no BS warranty. Company and owner by their actions means it. No other company to my knowledge introduced such a concept for their product and has the reputation in the marketplace for standing by their word.

If you have a choice buy used or new Dillon equipment.

Take Care

 

[SignGuy]

If you are interested in a L:ee Loadmaster for a good price.... (Shamless plug)

http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php?t=85666

any interest in trades?

 

[t-star]

I was wondering what you found wrong with the primer feed? You said it is no good?

- you have to have the primer trough at least half full in order to get it to feed as it uses an angled gravity feed to make the primers drop- they also invert and tip primers -sometimes don't feed at all ( usually due to some obstruction- even the slightest bit of powder or crap will cause a misfeed) and then you're left with powder all over that station or the next one-some of us don't have compressed air- and the primer trough itself can allow two to straddle the feed right at the neck and stop the feed-you can't see this happen- the only way to tell is if there's suddenly a gap in the trough of primers- then you have to pull the tray, spread the trough and clear the obstruction - that's why the two halves aren't guled together- not because lee was too cheap to glue it- and being plastic, the more often you spread it , the more liable it is to break- now the dillon uses a straight down feed and a mechanical primer tray- no way that thing can misfeed- as a sidenote, the loadmaster uses a seperate station for priming and avoids the powder spill thing altogther

 

[Mystic Precision]

I use the Lee1000 for my HG shooting. I am not a high volume shooter maybe 300rds per month in a few HG's. For the money and time savings OVER a single stage, there is no comparison. I wouldn't handload for a HG if I didn't have some sort of progressive press.

It is a fiddly press. Things do hang up and dirt/powder will hang up the primer feed. So if you adjust everything and keep things clean, it runs quite well. I have done about 200rds in an hour but I have no need to rush as I check all the cases at each stage.

I hear the Dhillons are just run as fast as you can put bullets into the neck. I am sure they run extremely well as they are indeed the gold standard. They also cost 6 times (?) as much.

If HG is your thing and you are going to shoot alot, forget about the 1000. Make the investment and get the Dhillon. The Loadmaster maybe similar but I have not used it.

I think the Lee primer holder is way faster then the Dhillon as you can dump on the tray and you can get back to loading. I take it the Dhillon requires you do pick up each primer into the tube before you can load.

For a very inexpensive rig that does work (fiddling aside) for low volume/low budget shooters, get a Lee1000. For those who don't know, you can buy refurb 1000 complete with dies for around $90US factory direct. They will export as this is simply a tool. The only 'extra' I paid for was the case collator (big red thing on top of the feed tubes) for another $5US or something like that.

I started with a 9mm set up and was going to buy the bits to switch to 45. Since the price was so low, I just bought one for the ACP and saved the hassle of having to switch parts and set things up.

I do load 40S&W and 9mm on the same press - just swap out die holder an do a bit of adjusting. If I ever get into high volume shooting, I will get one for each calibre.

For the 223 or 7.62X39 volume shooter, I couldn't think of a better rig. If I was able to do lots of PD shooting, I would set up a 1000 in a heart beat. Being able to load 100 or 200 rds in an hour for RIFLE shooting would be amazing. Lee collet die and no more lube.

Come to think of it, any volume shooter could use a progressive to make match ammo in volume. Collet or bushing die for sizing/decap, drop the small grain/ball powder, seat in a sleeved or reg seating die. That'll work just fine.

Jerry

 

[SandRoad]

I am currently using a Loadmaster for HG and I have to agree with most of the above positive statements about the Lee. It took a bit of fiddling to set up and my learning curve was about 1k rounds to get it running very smoothly.

I was initially looking at a Dillon 650 with casefeeder which I felt was more comparable to the Loadmaster than the 550. I just couldn't justify the cost difference since I got my Loadmaster NEW, with dies, in the US for US$190 shipped, off ebay. (shipped to a US address)

That said, I will probably get the Hornady Lock and Load progressive, with casefeeder, as a press for rifle cartridges, (even though the Loadmaster can load rifle cartidges)

 

[acrashb]

These two statements contradict each other. You can actually feel the primer not seating if it isn't there with the dillon, and that is the point.

No they don't. The feel is a good point, which mitigates (not contradicts) the previous statement, and which I will address in the next version of the writeup. Thank-you for noting this.

Regarding the ease of powder charge setting, you said:

I've had to set it once for my .40S&W load.

Good for you, your needs match the Dillon capability. If someone else needs/wants regular charge changes - as in modest batches of various calibers, or for load development, the outcome is different. Which I identified in the writeup: "Win to Lee for multi-calibre loaders, tie for single-calibre shooters."

- 10 minutes to change calibers??

That's the consensus, and my experience, with a small/large primer swap and powder charge adjustment included. Everything can be made faster with more parts (more $), which I've identified in the writeup.

Tools? big deal.

Maybe not to you. It's a piece of information that people can use to match against their needs.

Would you like an AR15 better if you needed tools to do basic service? Or are you happy that it can be stripped with a cartridge? The answer depends on your needs.

- Space as an arguement on which press is better?

Again, this is an observation, not an argument. From the writeup: "Most people have a large enough loading space to handle this - I don't, so the Lee looks more attractive in my space. Your space may be different. " It doesn't get any more clear than that.

How can you say Dillon is 3 times more expensive when you have't factored in all of the additional costs for parts for the Lee, over the course of its' usable life?
[...]Dillon sends it free of charge, as part of the lifetime warranty.

Because the cost of acquiring the Dillon (and ancillary issues like acquiring a new calibre capability) is 3x the cost of acquiring the Lee. This is the only cost that we clearly know.

It's blindingly obvious that post-acquisition costs will be lower due to the warranty issue, but it is completely opaque as to how much lower they will be, because I am unaware of any factual study of replacement rates for the various components on the two presses. So I can't comment on it, and neither can anyone else except as a comfort level. If you're more comfortable with "the cradle-to-grave security of unlimited warrantees" (quote from the 'Longevity and Service' section'), then buy a Dillon.

I assume that both Dillon and Lee have these numbers... but they aren't going to share with us.

You claim this was an un-biased comparison

No, I didn't. Quite the opposite: I put my biases on paper under the title "My Biases". Bias is not prejudice - you may consult www.dictionary.com for the differences.

I think you have a warm spot for your Lee press.

Yes, I do, and stated so. It works for me. It may or may not work for other people with different needs.

In no way did you see benefit to what Dillon offers.

Yes, I did. Two examples, both in the conclusions:"The Dillon should, in principle, make more accurate ammo", and "Does the Lee allow for powder check and separate seat/crimp stations? No - if that's a show-stopper for you, you have to take the Dillon."

Other examples are left as an exercise for the reader.

Incidently, what came of the Dillon 650 you had?

Please re-read the writeup more carefully: "I’ll miss the Dillon – finely-made equipment is a joy to have around."


As a personal observation, and I mean this in the spirit of constructive criticism, the tone and mistakes in your post reminds me of people who bought the 1994-1995 BMW R1100RS' motorcycles. After suffering recalls and out-of-pocket expenses to correct leaking rear drive vents, out-of-sync injectors, rapid wear of the right side of the front tires, terrible turbulence and noise from the tiny windscreen, and so on (I know the list by heart, as I have one), they continued to insist, with limited critical thought evident, that the BMW was the be-all and end-all of motorcycles. The phenomenon is a defense mechanism related to high-ticket items.

 

[acrashb]

while the other is well a Lee.

Thanks, I'll add this to my dillonophile quotes.

 

[acrashb]

That is the first OBJECTIVE writeup I have seen on the 2 presses.

Thank you.

I'm very interested in the 1050, having seen one close-hand courtesy of a board member. It's smaller than the 650, corrects most of the niggles I might have had with the 650, operates as smoothly as butter and is built like a tank. It may yet happen, cost being the primary drawback.

 

[prosper]

The phenomenon is a defense mechanism related to high-ticket items.

That's actually quite a profound insight, and applicable to many situations

 

[Canuck44]

acrashb

"Thanks, I'll add this to my dillonophile quotes"

You can stick it where the sun doesn't shine for all I care.

Lee is Lee I have their 10# Drip Pot. Works and has done so for three years and will be replaced by their 20 lb dripomatic. For me I will put up with it over spending $300+ for an RCBS/Lyman melter. Just a matter of choice.

Can I do with my Lee what I could do with a RCBS Pro-Melter, yup. Would I compare the two in quality - nope!


As for the Dillon warranty I have yet to spend a dime for shipping or for parts for the 550, that includes plastic primer tube tips, primer tubes with stuck primers in them due to my error and a broken powder measure that was at least eight years old.

Lee makes good equipment at a very reasonable price point but you often get what you pay for and nowhere is that more evident than when compares Dillon to Lee.

Since Dillon came along with their no BS warranty others have followed notably RCBS and Hornady. The latter two make quality presses priced somewhat lower than the Dillon with features that, depending on your needs might draw you to them over Dillon. The marketplace gives us choices.

From various polls on American Forums Dillon has between 80 to 90percent of the market. They didn't get that marketshare by making a product that was "as good" as their competition.


Take Care

 

[misfire]

I have two Lee 1000's for handgun, .357 Magnum and .45 ACP. Dillons they aren't but they do the job and I got both presses less than the price of basic 550. I reload about 300-400 rounds of each caliber per week so I don't consider myself a high volume reloader. I will admit that the 1000's require some tinkering from time to time but they work and they work well enough for me.

 

[prosper]

Lee is Lee I have their 10# Drip Pot. Works and has done so for three years and will be replaced by their 20 lb dripomatic. For me I will put up with it over spending $300+ for an RCBS/Lyman melter. Just a matter of choice.

Can I do with my Lee what I could do with a RCBS Pro-Melter, yup. Would I compare the two in quality - nope!

I think that's exactly his point. Given a desired end result, they will both perform. And the Lee is cheaper (in all meanings of the word). So, if you're 'willing to put up with it' it will serve you well.

 

[Cocked&Locked]

Have a read here.

Articulate when you sit down and type, ain't ya? Great write up, almost makes me want to lend you my hornady L'n'L to get your opinion on it. Thought hard about the lee myself, your right, you just can't beat them for value to money, and I find Dillon very expensive for what it is. (that being a very well made piece of equipment, but not as great as the hype suggests, there are other perfectly good progressives out there for less money, in Canada anyways )

Primer tubes are a pain, aren't they? I do like the lee feeder design.

 

[Steve David]

Repete,

Your wife is a very smart lady, I would listen to her.

I had a Lee 1000 that never sat on my bench properly, when I took it to a friend of mine, who is a mechanic and machinest, he found the bottom of the unit itself was not level. I thought this was rediculous, so he machined the bottom level, then I sold it to him and bought a 550, I have never looked back. It is bar none the sinlge best press in the world as far as I am concerned. I have loaded thousands of rounds and have never had to make a single adjustment. No question for me. I love the Lee loadaing book, and Steve Lee is undoubtly the father of modern reloding, but his presses suck, bottom line.

 

[acrashb]

Articulate when you sit down and type, ain't ya?
[...]
Primer tubes are a pain, aren't they? I do like the lee feeder design.

So, you're saying that I'm inarticulate while just standing around?

Since you're locked into the Hornady press with primer tubes, have a look at the Frankford Arsenal Vibra-Prime Automatic Primer Tube Filler. If I was tied to tubes I'd have one, although I don't know how to get them in Canada.

 

[Mystic Precision]

What a great gidget!!!! Now the fear of primer tubes is lifting. The Lee price was the first thing that caught my attention when looking for a low volume progressive press but not having to fill primer tubes was what sealed the deal for me.

Since this is only a handtool, you should be able to order from export friendly shops like Cabelas.

Frankford Arsenal is offered by many major shops in Canada, but never seen this little gizmo. Maybe Wholesale has them?????

Worth a call...

Jerry

 

[raks]

This could easily become a husky V stihl or Ford V Chevy arguement...

Husqvarna all the way!! LOL, I have two Lee 1000, for handgun and .223 - works good enough for me, but I am a technical person. For me, initial cost was the biggest factor in selecting a press, Lee's are cheap and they work good enough. More money for new guns!!

 

[buckbrush]

Lee is entry level equipment, good value for the money in most cases. If you like cooey's , sks's and fuller tools, Lee is for you!

 

[bear.23]

Husqvarna all the way!! LOL, I have two Lee 1000, for handgun and .223 - works good enough for me, but I am a technical person. For me, initial cost was the biggest factor in selecting a press, Lee's are cheap and they work good enough. More money for new guns!!

See here we go again.. I have a Stihl MS290 farm boss and other then the fact that I've been doing a fair bit of work in the bush and I have dulled a few chains It's a great saw...

As the dealer I bought it from well this week these are on sale!.. In the chainsaw market.. Husky and stihl are almost the same.. Hell they have so many saws that have identical specs you'd think they were the same company...