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Old December 2, 2012, 07:51 AM   #1
rajbcpa
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Drank red then blue Kool-aid; blue is better

About 5 months ago, I bought a Lock-N-Load but I could not get it to run reliably so I recently bought a Dillon 550B.

Yesterday, I completed my first 500 rounds of 40sw - largely without issue. This press just WORKS!

The only glitch was that two completed cases did not get primers. I'm not sure why this happened, but I can live with this, I suppose. I'm using the optional stand and the press is mounted on a secure base. I also have the optional bullet tray and optional spent case holder.

I am sitting to the left of the press and it is difficult to see Station #1 where the cases are sized and primed. I think I can get used to this, but it is kinda weird.

I don't miss the auto-indexing function that the other press had. It never worked properly for me anyway.

Last edited by rajbcpa; December 2, 2012 at 09:34 AM.
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Old December 2, 2012, 08:11 AM   #2
1stmar
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I stand when I reload it makes it easier to see all stations as well as ensuring I do not short stroke, which may be the cause of the 2 cases wo primers. Make sure you go all the way down and that the plastic primer rod thats sets off the low primer alarm is in the tube.
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Old December 2, 2012, 09:26 AM   #3
rodfac
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As to the primer mis-feed; my 550B does not like CCI primers of any size. Call Dillon, they may have an answer. Winchesters of all sized feed perfectly. Rod
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Old December 2, 2012, 09:27 AM   #4
Misssissippi Dave
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Having the screws too tight to hold the primer tube will cause problems feeding primers. Any junk from de-priming near the shuttle bar can do the same. I keep either air and/or a brush handy to keep that area clear.

After a while you will feel the difference when seating primers. I don't seat them all that fast and can tell just by feel if I missed a primer. There is a learning curve to everything new. Make sure the door for the spent primers is closed when the ram goes up. This will reduce but not eliminate junk falling down to the shuttle area.

I'm quite happy with mine as well.
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Old December 2, 2012, 09:52 AM   #5
rajbcpa
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Hmmmm.... the primers I used yesterday were CCI. I also have Federal primers, so I will give those a try..

the other small issue is the threaded ram arm keeps loosening. I think I will try some Lock tight thread locker...
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Old December 2, 2012, 10:21 AM   #6
1stmar
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I don't have a 40 so not sure of primer size, if its small, make sure you are using the small primer tube.
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Old December 2, 2012, 10:35 AM   #7
Kevin Rohrer
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Quote:
The only glitch was that two completed cases did not get primers.
Once you get used to the press, you will be able to tell by feel when a primer doesn't get picked up by the primer slide.

Make sure you cycle the handle fully to pickup primers.
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Old December 2, 2012, 10:45 AM   #8
jmorris
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Glad to hear you finally have a machine that is working correctly.
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Old December 2, 2012, 11:16 AM   #9
rodfac
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Excellerator, CCI's feed well?
Quote:
all I use is CCI,never an issue...guy might have something out
of adjustment

My #1 son also uses a Dillon 550B and has the same problems with CCI primers. I'll give Dillon a call and see what's up. I've used Winchester's for all my load work up for probably 25 years now, but do like CCI's for those loads requiring magnum caps...hence the problem...I don't load all that many magnum level rounds so the CCI problem has never really needed a fix. When necessary, I use a Lee Auto-prime and interrupt the load cycle.

Thanks for the tip...I'll call Dillon. Rod
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Old December 2, 2012, 11:37 AM   #10
Misssissippi Dave
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Quote:
the other small issue is the threaded ram arm keeps loosening. I think I will try some Lock tight thread locker...
If you are referring to the handle, it is easy to tighten down. There is a hole in the handle shaft. I place a philips tip screw driver in mine then tighten the nut. It works well for me. I use the original ball handle and that hole provides me a way to be able to really crank it down if needed.
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Old December 2, 2012, 12:21 PM   #11
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if you still have the Hornady I would be happy to buy it off you at a reasonable price. My son in law needs one
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Old December 2, 2012, 01:31 PM   #12
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Note to those who have had trouble with a Dillon 550b and CCI (or other primers). There is a small Allen-head screw with a lock-nut that controls how the primer tube and the primer cup line-up, fore and aft. When a primer does not drop into the primer cup,or if the primer drops into the cup sideways, a very subtle adjustment of that screw almost always eliminates the problem. Sometimes one brand of primer feeds perfectly, where as another will have an occasional miss-feed and will require a slight screw adjustment. It is just the nature of the priming system.

Last edited by dahermit; December 2, 2012 at 09:23 PM.
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Old December 2, 2012, 03:34 PM   #13
FrankenMauser
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550B's #1 cause of failure-to-prime.....
....the operator forgetting to push forward on the handle.


Missing a primer can create quite a mess. I make it a habit to pay attention to primer seating. You can feel, during seating, if a primer was missed by the primer slide. But... I haven't had either of my primer slides fail to pick up a primer in a very long time (even with sharp-edged CCI primers).
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Old December 2, 2012, 04:31 PM   #14
wncchester
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"About 5 months ago, I bought a Lock-N-Load but I could not get it to run reliably so I recently bought a Dillon 550B."

I'm not sure I understand; are you comparing the output of a single stage press to a progressive? Or is/was your Hornady a LnL-AP?
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Old December 2, 2012, 05:04 PM   #15
rajbcpa
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my first progressive was a LNL AP which I did not good luck with. I still have an older RCBS single stage and I plan to keep this for certain rifle rounds.... the SS will also be used to de-bulge 40 brass....
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Old December 2, 2012, 05:37 PM   #16
lll Otto lll
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Back on Nov. 13, you couldn't get the Dillon running either...so how long did it take you to figure out the 550b?
Quote:
Originally Posted by rajbcpa
In the past 5 months, I have owned two new progressive presses (Hornady L-N-L, and Dillon 550B) and I cannot get either press to run at all.
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Old December 2, 2012, 06:34 PM   #17
hounddawg
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got to admit at times a Hornady, or for that matter any progressive, can be a pain when it gets an attitude or a couple of flakes of powder in the wrong place. I had a primer slide issue this morning that was being caused by a single flake of Win 231 in the wrong place. Took me about 10 min to figure out I had something stopping the primer seating button from fully lowering which was keeping the primer slide from coming forward. After that I loaded 300 rounds of 9's in about a hour and a half without a hiccup.

Bottom line is unless you have some mechanical aptitude stick with a turret or manual indexing machine. No slam intended here, a couple of years ago I watched a truck air filter whup serious butt on 3 guys with 20 years of college between them.
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Last edited by hounddawg; December 2, 2012 at 06:48 PM.
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Old December 2, 2012, 06:46 PM   #18
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Old December 2, 2012, 09:56 PM   #19
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Dillon Is The Best!!!

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Old December 4, 2012, 03:48 PM   #20
schmellba99
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Wouldn't trade my LnL-AP for anything blue. Dillon makes quality products, but you pay a lot of extra for that blue paint in my opinion.

Like a few posters have already stated - every make and model is going to have their quirks. Figure them out and generally you can rock and roll. I doubt seriously any one of us could discern if ammo was produced on red, blue or green presses if it is manufactured correctly.

I had a couple of quirks to figure out with my LnL-AP, and since then I have produced 10k plus rounds without any major issues that weren't user induced. Pretty sure most of the blue machine guys could say the same thing as well.
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Old December 4, 2012, 07:15 PM   #21
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Any company can turn out a lemon every once in a while. I have a Dillon Square Deal B and a Dillon XL650. I have never had an issue with the XL650. When I got the Square Deal B, I reloaded 100 rounds on it without problems. Then set up for the next 100 (refill the primer feed with primers), the primers would not feed automatically. Got on the phone with Dillon, they walk me through several trouble shooting steps and could not get it to work. They sent me a new primer feed system to put on it, the primers would still not feed automatically. So Dillon sent me a whole new press with a prepaid return label for the defective press. The replacement press has worked flawlessly for 1000's of rounds.

When it comes to dealing with Dillon,Hornady, or RCBS, I would not hesitate to buy their equipment as I have had great experiences with those companies customer support. That's what I'm after and what you pay the premium prices for.
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Old December 4, 2012, 07:30 PM   #22
hounddawg
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I have worked with precision equipment most of my life and have never seen a piece of machinery yet that could not be brought to a screaming halt by a piece of dirt in the wrong spot or a improper adjustment.
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Old December 4, 2012, 10:12 PM   #23
tul9033
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I've loaded over 25K rounds on a Lock and Load. I must say I have tweaked all the issues out of it and it runs great for me. It cost a heck of a lot less than the Dillon too.
The Dillon (650) is no doubt an excellent machine, but it has a few warts too.
The primer cup is a PITA, I like the mod to have a primer receptacle. Changeovers are expensive too. I wish they would include a better powder adjustment. I will admit to constantly pricing and admiring the 650 though
I built some LED lights for me and my buddies, a necessary add on IMO.

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Old December 4, 2012, 10:32 PM   #24
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Quote:
Wouldn't trade my LnL-AP for anything blue. Dillon makes quality products, but you pay a lot of extra for that blue paint in my opinion.
I would trade an LNL AP for a Dillon even if someone painted it brown. What they paid for it wouldn't matter to me a bit, as long as they were willing to trade. I can get a NIB LNL for $325 used Dillion's sell for that everyday.
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Old December 5, 2012, 01:43 PM   #25
BigJimP
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LNL vs Dillon 650 is often debated on here....and I'm a big fan of the Dillon 650 .../ and for what its worth - when we purchase our 2nd home in a few months - about 3 hours away --- ( I'll have a 2nd Dillon 650 with a case feeder over there as well ) for all my metallic needs because we may stay over there for 3 or more weeks at a time.

but there really isn't anything wrong with the LNL ...they're both good presses.
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