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Gordon Hanson · May 1, 2000, 11:08 AM

I went with the 650, after several months of research. The $300 cost difference was something to think about, but not a deciding factor. Functionality and ease of use were my most important considerations.

I decided my priority lay in greater production volume for pistol calibers. The 650 beats the 550 hands down here.

You really can hit a cyclic rate of 1000/hr, but you probably won't sustain it very long, because something, somewhere, will require your attention: refilling primer pick-up tubes, casefeed, hold-ups on the shell-plate (cartridge hangs up on the ejector wire, or going into station one), checking the powder charge every now and then (watching the position of the powder check rod can alert you to relatively small changes in the charge thrown, as well as the no- or double-charge alarm it's designed for), the phone, your wife and kids, etc.

That said, I've found I can produce 10 rounds/minute at what feels like an easy, no-sweat pace. 12 rounds/min is doable, but after a while I feel that I'm not monitoring things the way I should. My personal comfort factor is feeling that I've got an eye on everything's that happening. When I out-pace that ability, I get this itch between the shoulder blades.

What about rifle, you say? I wanted to load for 7mm-08. No conversion kit listed for that caliber, hmmm. But Dillon will sell you a shellplate and casefeed parts for .308, and a powder funnel for 7mm-08. So you can load 7mm-08 to your heart's content, and they'll never know a thing.

You have to wonder what calibers the 650 WON'T load, and what the odds are you'll want to shoot them.

The 650's a great machine. So's the 550. I've used both, and found the complexity issue to be a matter of subtleties. The learning curve is different, but not overwhelming by any stretch of the imagination. I spent the first three or four hours loading a few rounds, measuring, weighing, watching the machine work, taking things apart to see how they worked, and generally getting to know the beast. As with shooting, speed came with practice (reminds me, I need to shoot more!).

I could have been very happy with a 550, but I'm glad I got the 650.

May 1, 2000, 11:08 AM	#4
Gordon Hanson Member Join Date: September 5, 1999 Posts: 32	I went with the 650, after several months of research. The $300 cost difference was something to think about, but not a deciding factor. Functionality and ease of use were my most important considerations. I decided my priority lay in greater production volume for pistol calibers. The 650 beats the 550 hands down here. You really can hit a cyclic rate of 1000/hr, but you probably won't sustain it very long, because something, somewhere, will require your attention: refilling primer pick-up tubes, casefeed, hold-ups on the shell-plate (cartridge hangs up on the ejector wire, or going into station one), checking the powder charge every now and then (watching the position of the powder check rod can alert you to relatively small changes in the charge thrown, as well as the no- or double-charge alarm it's designed for), the phone, your wife and kids, etc. That said, I've found I can produce 10 rounds/minute at what feels like an easy, no-sweat pace. 12 rounds/min is doable, but after a while I feel that I'm not monitoring things the way I should. My personal comfort factor is feeling that I've got an eye on everything's that happening. When I out-pace that ability, I get this itch between the shoulder blades. What about rifle, you say? I wanted to load for 7mm-08. No conversion kit listed for that caliber, hmmm. But Dillon will sell you a shellplate and casefeed parts for .308, and a powder funnel for 7mm-08. So you can load 7mm-08 to your heart's content, and they'll never know a thing. You have to wonder what calibers the 650 WON'T load, and what the odds are you'll want to shoot them. The 650's a great machine. So's the 550. I've used both, and found the complexity issue to be a matter of subtleties. The learning curve is different, but not overwhelming by any stretch of the imagination. I spent the first three or four hours loading a few rounds, measuring, weighing, watching the machine work, taking things apart to see how they worked, and generally getting to know the beast. As with shooting, speed came with practice (reminds me, I need to shoot more!). I could have been very happy with a 550, but I'm glad I got the 650.