lee pro progressive loaders

[Mystic Precision]

wow i was just talking to my dad earlier tonight about this very subject. Great to know Mysticplayer. So how difficult is it to change from 9mm to .223? i have the lee dies. Sounds like i should just get a caliber i eventually want (.45) and switch the dies when needed.

From 9mm to 223, if you have a complete shell plate carrier ready to swap, only takes a few minutes. So much easier and you have all the different rods and so forth.

Then you just pull the turrent WITH powder measure off and replace with a complete second unit. Hook up the pull cord and you are done.

Would also apply to a 45ACP swap as you need a large primer feed anyways.

For the cost of a turrent and powder measure, it will make life so much easier then trying to swap out dies and readjust everything.

I have found it is easier to put the 223 cases in by hand and also to grab the finished 223 case before it ejects. Because it is such a tall case, both feed and extractor parts aren't as smooth as they are for pistol.

Where things can slow down is in the case feed swap. This set up works quite well but all the parts need to be swapped between HG cartridges. Because of how it attaches, it is a pain/slow to swap.

When I was loading for HG, I just had 1 press for my 9mm and 1 for my 45ACP. Still cost less then the other presses and for the volume I was reloading, wasn't loosing anything.

Now the 9mm loads 40S&W and the 45ACP is happily loading 223.

Jerry

 

[easyrider604]

And is there a quality difference between the loadmaster and pro series?
I find their bullet and case feeders nice and simple.

IMO, yes.

The PRO1000 is flimsy (IMO), needs to be kept clean and as mentioned earlier, has only 3 dies stations. I had one 21 yrs ago, was my first reloader ever and its problems were probably a result of my ignorance than the machine itself.

The Loadmaster is heavier built and way more rugged, has 5 stations (one more than I need) and just feels and operates better all around.
I don't use the case and bullet feeders because I got used to the Dillon 550B anyway. A properly set-up Loadmaster is better than an equally well set-up 550B, IMO...but the LM requires more fiddling to get right.

For the price difference between Pro1000 and LM, I would go with the Loadmaster. The LM is just a little faster than the 550B (both with no bullet and case feeder) probably because the LM has auto-indexing.

My Dillon 550Bs had a few problems, but easy to fix or too petty to even bother discussing. They are great presses but do not use them enough, so sold one many years ago, the other early this year. All I have and need are the Classic Cast Single, Classic Turret and the LM.