Which dies
- Thread starter spc
- Start date
I am just getting setup to reload and I went with Lee dies because of the price. The only thing that kind of bugs me about them is there is no lock for the bullet seater or crimp die. What I mean is the lock nut locks the die into the press, but the adjustment knob is still adjustable. Not a huge issue at this point, or maybe ever, but I was a little disappointed when I noticed that. Otherwise quality seems fine, no machine marks, clean & smooth threads.
Only the Square Deal press uses proprietary dies...all other Dillons use standard dies.
RangerPark
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Near Edmonton, AB
Similar story here. I produced .250-.400 MOA reloads with .308 Lee Ultimate dies. Case runout was consistently in the .0005-.001" range. However bullet runout at the ogive was very consistently at .005". I mean every single round I measured was at .005". Consistency being the key the reloads actually shot very well.
I took advantage of Prophet River's father's day sale and got a Redding Deluxe die set with VLD seat stem. I was able to produce reloads with bullet runout in the .0005-.002" range. Will they shoot noticeably better? Probably not. I'll know for sure the next time I hit the range.
The Dillon 550 uses standard 7/8"x14 reloading dies so any of the ones from the major manufacturer's will work. I myself prefer the Hornady dies on a progressive press, but any of them should work fine. Just a note, I only load for pistol and AR's on progressive presses. All my precision rifle stuff is done on a single stage press using either Redding or Forster precision dies.
Dillon dies would be my choice for the following reasons:
1. I prefer the Dillon spring-loaded decapping pin to the Lee pin, which is retained by a collet. While the Lee pin is a better fail-safe against breakage, that collet has to be tightened very tight to prevent slippage in normal use. I find the Dillon gives me ample warning of something wrong, like SS tumbling media in the flash hole.
2. On the Lee .44 Magnum die set I tried, the seating die did not have a large enough opening to accommodate a flared case mouth. I ended up grinding a bevel on the opening to allow flared cases (enough to allow a bullet to sit in the case mouth on it own) to fit.
3. Dillon seating and crimp dies have removable inserts to allow cleaning and changing seating plug without removing the die body from the tool-head, thus retaining the die adjustment.
4. Dillon dies come with compact lock rings that are a better fit for the compact tool-head of the 550. The Lee o-ring lock rings are kind of hokey: they take up as much space as a regular lock ring, yet they lack a set screw to retain adjustment when unscrewed from the press. The latter is not critical for dies in an interchangeable tool-head, but you would want it on a single stage press.
5. The cost difference is trivial for something you only have to buy once, ever.
1. I prefer the Dillon spring-loaded decapping pin to the Lee pin, which is retained by a collet. While the Lee pin is a better fail-safe against breakage, that collet has to be tightened very tight to prevent slippage in normal use. I find the Dillon gives me ample warning of something wrong, like SS tumbling media in the flash hole.
2. On the Lee .44 Magnum die set I tried, the seating die did not have a large enough opening to accommodate a flared case mouth. I ended up grinding a bevel on the opening to allow flared cases (enough to allow a bullet to sit in the case mouth on it own) to fit.
3. Dillon seating and crimp dies have removable inserts to allow cleaning and changing seating plug without removing the die body from the tool-head, thus retaining the die adjustment.
4. Dillon dies come with compact lock rings that are a better fit for the compact tool-head of the 550. The Lee o-ring lock rings are kind of hokey: they take up as much space as a regular lock ring, yet they lack a set screw to retain adjustment when unscrewed from the press. The latter is not critical for dies in an interchangeable tool-head, but you would want it on a single stage press.
5. The cost difference is trivial for something you only have to buy once, ever.
what you said is incorrect. I have 550b loading for 9mm/40s&w/45acp/357mag/44mag/44spl. all my dies are LEE Deluxe 4-Die set, except the powder die as I like Dillon Power Measure. I also swap out the locking ring with Dillon's thin profile ones, purely for more real station on the toolhead, not because of any function. All my ammos are very accurate. No issues whatsoever with LEE dies on 550B
I have been using LEE dies on 550b for 9/40/45acp/357mag/44mag/44spl.
for 1. I agree LEE collet is so tight that it's painful if you have to adjust it, but out of the 6 die-sets, I only adjusted 2 of them when the pin popped up over some tight primer brass. all others are ok. so, it's not a big issue.
for 2. I don't have this issue and think you need to take a look LEE's video on how to adjust their dies. among all the dies I own, 44mag/spl and 357mag are more sensitive to the adjustment which would lead to the issue you described which I experienced too, but with proper adjustment, I got great ammo.
for 3. I can clean my lee dies without taking them off the toolhead. the seating plug on lee can be twist off as well.
for 4. LEE's locking ring is big and ugly. I did buy Dillon Rings to use with LEE die. still cheaper than buying Dillon Die even with the extra rings which is your point 5.
overall, LEE is cheaper than Dillon and works beautifully. don't see any reason why Dillon would be better given the price tag.
for 1. I agree LEE collet is so tight that it's painful if you have to adjust it, but out of the 6 die-sets, I only adjusted 2 of them when the pin popped up over some tight primer brass. all others are ok. so, it's not a big issue.
for 2. I don't have this issue and think you need to take a look LEE's video on how to adjust their dies. among all the dies I own, 44mag/spl and 357mag are more sensitive to the adjustment which would lead to the issue you described which I experienced too, but with proper adjustment, I got great ammo.
for 3. I can clean my lee dies without taking them off the toolhead. the seating plug on lee can be twist off as well.
for 4. LEE's locking ring is big and ugly. I did buy Dillon Rings to use with LEE die. still cheaper than buying Dillon Die even with the extra rings which is your point 5.
overall, LEE is cheaper than Dillon and works beautifully. don't see any reason why Dillon would be better given the price tag.
I have 550b loading for 9mm/40s&w/45acp/357mag/44mag/44spl. all run great. much cheaper than Dillon dies, but still great quality. buy the deluxe carbine 4-die set
two suggestions
1. still use Dillon powder measure with Dillon Powder Die(cheap). this is way better than LEE's powder measure.
2. buy extra Dillon locking ring as the locking ring with lee die set is just too big. Dillon ring is thin profile, you get more space on the toolhead.
two suggestions
1. still use Dillon powder measure with Dillon Powder Die(cheap). this is way better than LEE's powder measure.
2. buy extra Dillon locking ring as the locking ring with lee die set is just too big. Dillon ring is thin profile, you get more space on the toolhead.
There is no way of adjusting the seating die I tried that would allow any significant amount of case flare. If the bullet cannot sit in the case mouth on its own, it is a huge drain on productivity at a minimum. Worst case would be with lead bullets, where you would get shaving.
As far as cleaning goes, you certainly can pull the whole toolhead off to access the dies for cleaning, but the removable inserts on the Dillon dies are handier to work with. Removing the seating plug from a Lee die would require re-adjustment.
Yes, Lee dies can make perfectly acceptable ammunition for the most part. I just find that I get enough use out of my various dies to justify the more refined Dillon die sets. The amount of components I have burned through over the years I have been reloading dwarfs the cost difference between dies.
I use Lee Dies. I load in small batches. Less than 100 at a session. You do have to fiddle with the bullet seating die a bit but I'm constantly adjusting my CBTO anyways. Depends on the bullet. I use a single press too so even more fiddling but all in all Im happy.
