Thinking of a Progressive Press to Augment my Forster Co-Ax

I as we'll have had a few presses over the years.....started loading handgun on a single like probably most. That didn't last too long..
Tried the Lee turret press was ok, Pro 1000 little better.... Then a friend bought a Square Deal let me try it... I had one a week later..
I love it it's not a 650 but produces very well. I wouldn't hesitate to buy one.
 
Just my personal thought, buy the best one you can afford right from the start. I have a Lee Turret press, and it is ok, just a bit tedious after an hour or so. I wish I would have spent the extra money and got the Dillion to begin with as I am looking at getting it now anyway.
 
caperaway said:
I have a Pro 1000,a Loadmaster and a Hornady LNL. They all have their pros and cons. I started with the Loadmaster and after fighting with the priming system for awhile I finally just gave up on priming on the press and just set up a turret with a universal decapper. I run all the brass through the case feeder and decap a few hundred then use a hand priming tool while watching tv.I do the same with my Pro1000. Basically Lee's priming system just sucks. Other than that I've had zero issue with the Lee presses. They've been running great for a few years now and caliber changes are cheap and easy with extra turrets.
I picked up a deal on a Hornady LNL that had only loaded about 100rds so I bought it thinking I was upgrading from my Lee's. Umm,not so much. It's a nice press but it has it's issues. The priming system definitly works better than Lee's but I still get flipped/jammed primers occaisionally and sometimes a jam occurs. The plastic arm that holds the metal bar that actuates the primer feeder has broken several times on mine,enough that I now keep extras on hand. Without the case feeder,which is an expensive option for Hornady and standard for Lee,it is a lot slower than the Lee.
All things considered I enjoy loading on my Loadmaster the most.
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This may well be a problem that is easy to fix if your press came delivered like mine. On mine the pressure required to seat a primer was way too high and the primers were flush with the case base. Looking at the cases with the new primers seated I could see that the anvil was actually pressing the brass around the primer pocket. I took the anvil out of the press and saw that it had no radius at the top edge. I put it in my lathe and slowly put a radius on this edge and tried it in the press. After a few iterations I had a primer set .003" below the base, no marks on the brass, and greatly reduced pressure at the lever. Problem solved.
 
had a couple of lee turrets in the early 80's broke down a lot


then a dillon square deal B and a 550B I like both

used the square deal b for 9mm and it works flawlessly

for 357 you could also use the SDb

for rifle I used the 550b and single staged it (full length resize, then prime off the machine, then powder and bullet on the machine and I loved it)



so in sum

IF JUST 9MM THEN sdb BUT IF RIFLE LATER ON THEN 550B or larger

have fun and go shooting and enjoy life

some actually good info here as I have a couple of co-ax and 3 harrels presses for rifle now

Jefferson
 
Jefferson said:
so in sum

IF JUST 9MM THEN sdb BUT IF RIFLE LATER ON THEN 550B or larger

have fun and go shooting and enjoy life

some actually good info here as I have a couple of co-ax and 3 harrels presses for rifle now

Jefferson
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Thanks Jefferson, looks like the Square Deal B might be the best choice for me for 9mm. I will, however continue to use my Forster press for rifle ammo.
 
I purchased a Hornady progressive/turret press, does not have case or bullet feeder, thats a pain, but I will load 45s all day, only issue is once in a wile the index does not align with the primer seat, must be a way to adjust this but have loaded 4000 rounds last 12 months
 
I own an RCBS Supreme and a Dillon 650 and find I use both, often to do various stages of work. What I mean by that, is I often use the 650 to decap and size both rifle and pistol cases, which then get thrown into an ultrasonic cleaner. It just saves time. Once they're dry, especially for rifle cases, I'll prime a few hundred on the 650 and store them. When It comes time to make some rifle loads, I'll use the pre-primed cases and my Hdy powder dispenser to load, and the RCBS to seat and crimp (If I'm crimping). It's funny, it seems like it's much less work to simply pull 50 cases out of the cabinet pre-primed and fill and seat them.
If I'm doing plinking rifle, I make them on the 650 - way faster of course. If I'm making volume pistol, 650 all the way. Still do the decap and size first then US clean, so it's kind of a 2 stage process.
When I'm doing 50-100 piston rounds (say 44 mag or 357) I'll prime, load and seat/crimp on the rcbs using the powder dispenser. Doesn't really take that long and the process is a nice calming influence.

Since you already have a nice SS press, you obviously buy quality. I'd suggest you look at the Dillon 650 with a case feeder and consider it a buy once for lifetime purchase. It gives you lots of options when you have both.
 
+1 I decap everything on my Forester then clean and wait till I need rounds ..rifle goes to the Forster pistol to the Dillon 650, so far that works well
 
kb007 said:
I own an RCBS Supreme and a Dillon 650 and find I use both, often to do various stages of work. What I mean by that, is I often use the 650 to decap and size both rifle and pistol cases, which then get thrown into an ultrasonic cleaner. It just saves time. Once they're dry, especially for rifle cases, I'll prime a few hundred on the 650 and store them. When It comes time to make some rifle loads, I'll use the pre-primed cases and my Hdy powder dispenser to load, and the RCBS to seat and crimp (If I'm crimping). It's funny, it seems like it's much less work to simply pull 50 cases out of the cabinet pre-primed and fill and seat them.
If I'm doing plinking rifle, I make them on the 650 - way faster of course. If I'm making volume pistol, 650 all the way. Still do the decap and size first then US clean, so it's kind of a 2 stage process.
When I'm doing 50-100 piston rounds (say 44 mag or 357) I'll prime, load and seat/crimp on the rcbs using the powder dispenser. Doesn't really take that long and the process is a nice calming influence.

Since you already have a nice SS press, you obviously buy quality. I'd suggest you look at the Dillon 650 with a case feeder and consider it a buy once for lifetime purchase. It gives you lots of options when you have both.
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While budget is ALWAYS a factor. Right now, my single biggest limiting factor is space. I live in a condo and my reloading room is literally a closet. As much as the 650 would be nice. I simply don't have room for it.
 
fingers284 said:
I've used both Loadmasters & Dillon 650's extensively. The Loadmaster has two benefits in it's favor...it has a far superior quantity/volume achievable over a given time than any single stage and a far more attractive price point than a rigged 650.

The priming system of the Loadmasters was the straw that broke the camels back for me on three different accounts.

First was the amount of stops to clear pooched/deformed primers (upwards of 10% of the primers) . I the Dillons, I can count on one hand how many crushed primers I've had.

Second was the fact that the primers are seated with the same operation as the loading stroke. I had no "seating feel" when seating the primer. My Dillons seat the primers on the "down periscope" action and I feel every one of them feed to the proper depth. While using my Loadmaster, high primers were a common stoppage during a shooting stage until I learned that I had to inspect every round before a competition. with the Dillons I can count on one hand the # of hi-primer stoppages in over 35,000 rnds.

The third would be a deal breaker all on its own if I had to use CCI primers to get the press to work. Anybody that use a gun with a modified lighter main spring (such as 1000's of cowboy guns in the country) to enhance operation, chances are they require Federal Primers to get consistent ignition. Using Federal's probably speaks to why I had so many pooched primers in my Loadmaster. While I will admit to having 2 primer detonations in my Dillons over the 35,000 rounds , I can remember having at least 3 in my loadmaster in 7-10,000 rounds.

Re; 4 holes... I will go you one better with the Dillon 650's, they have 5 holes allowing for a powder check station...again a deal breaker for me. Might not be a concern for most if they shoot alone and the consequences of a double charge are a lost firearm/investment but no third party injury is probable. In my case, 99% of the rounds I load are shot by my wife & I in a crowd situation of 50 or 60 people where shrapnel from a double charge wouldn't be a good thing. That little bit of extra safety margin against a moment of inattentiveness that is well spent I think.

Just my own observations that might interest some.
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To be fair - this year I will bite the bullet and get a 650 - and a bullet feeder. I just don't have the time that I did have to reload, and a production machine makes more sense for me now. It'll cost me almost 2 grand, so Ill be liquidating some inventory, but shooting is about shooting, not reloading and not polishing things you don't have time to shoot.
 
enefgee said:
To be fair - this year I will bite the bullet and get a 650 - and a bullet feeder. I just don't have the time that I did have to reload, and a production machine makes more sense for me now. It'll cost me almost 2 grand, so Ill be liquidating some inventory, but shooting is about shooting, not reloading and not polishing things you don't have time to shoot.
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2 grand is a sizable investment all at on time for some "hobby's" but as you said "that's shooting" I've never been around a bullet feeder but have read that they are a waste of funds for cast bullets.

One thing to pay attention too with 650 Dillon caliber changes... they have them for just about every caliber you could want and will happily sell you a different one for every caliber you reload. With a little due diligence you will discover that a lot of change kits parts can be inter changed from one caliber to another. There is a parts list available that lists every part that each kit is comprised of...study that before ordering a s#*t load of change kits I've saved a few hundred bucks doing that. Some of the shell plates will have a different parts # but if the two case heads you are loading are even close in size, they will work. Another cost saving tip is to only buy the sliding charge (a few small & a few large) bars for the powder measure...set them for a particular powder/shell... permanently mark them for such... and only change them (takes about 30 sec.) instead of splurging on several $100 powder measures. I bit the big blue hook when I started out and have 9 complete powder measures but I soon learned that a few inexpensive slides would have done the job just as well. All that being said, frugality sometimes isn't the best route, you will see a benefit to having a different powder thru die body permanently installed in each tool head.
 
Hoag said:
While budget is ALWAYS a factor. Right now, my single biggest limiting factor is space. I live in a condo and my reloading room is literally a closet. As much as the 650 would be nice. I simply don't have room for it.
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The bench space required for a SDB, 550 or 650 is pretty close to the same give or take. Obviously need more height for the 650 case feeder, but that shouldn't be an issue unless you live in a low ceiling basement underwater ;)
 
Some things to consider with respect to reloading machine costs - Dillon machines hold their value as their service and warranty is second to none. Even if one only loaded for a few years and sold the kit for whatever reason, most of the invested money would be recovered. I can't say the same of the LnL I sold, and can't speak to the Lee stuff.
 
I've seen Dillons sell used and depreciated just like everything else. They're blue, not gold.
 
fdc said:
I've seen Dillons sell used and depreciated just like everything else. They're blue, not gold.
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Certainly they depreciate, but not like other brands such as Hornady or Lee - at least this is my experience of buying and selling most other brands. Ymmv.
 
Hoag said:
While budget is ALWAYS a factor. Right now, my single biggest limiting factor is space. I live in a condo and my reloading room is literally a closet. As much as the 650 would be nice. I simply don't have room for it.
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If space is the factor as you've stated, and you only had one machine to work with doing everything from menial sizing and depriming, to full on loading say a 1000 rounds of pistol in a week or two, I'd recommend a regular Dillon 550
 
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