Hornady Lock N Load or Dillon 550B

[alamogunr]

I have been giving some thought to a progressive press for handgun ammunition. Some years ago I went partners w/a friend on a Dillon 550B. Didn't use it very much because he had the large shop to put it in and lived way out in the country. It is still available to me but now I have my own shop and all my gear is very conveniently just out my back door.

I've watched several UTube video's of the Hornady Lock-N-Load and find it has several things I like. I know many here are proponents of Dillon progressives and a lesser number like the Hornady machine. I would like to hear as much as possible about pro's and con's of each.

I would only be loading handgun ammo on whatever I decide on. Probably only .45ACP, .38Spec/.357Mag and 9mm. I have other handgun cartridges but prefer to load them single stage. My deliberations may take several months.

[Bonz]

Would be a easy decision for me. Hornady LNL has 5 stations and the Dillon 550b has 4 stations. I will buy the first 6 station press that is manufactured, don't really care who makes it. I also load a lot of calibers. The Hornady LNL press cost less per caliber.

[msmyth01]

I have the LNL. I prefer the priming system over the Dillon. Plus, the 550 is a manual (case rotation) system. A better comparison would be the Hornady LnL and the Dillon 650. More of an apples to apples comparison. Both are great machines, both have wonder customer service. Sort of a Ford vs Chevy affair. Since you're familiar with the 550, try to find a store or friend with a LnL and try it out.

[Lefty Red]

Dillon Square Deal!!!

[cs86]

I have the LNL and like it, but can't compare it to others since I don't have experience with the others. One thing I don't like about the LNL is the priming system. It works, but If you have a little debris around the priming finger that pulls primers under the case it will miss align and you have to get it cleaned out. So most times I try to avoid priming with the LNL and hand prime with the RCBS hand priming tool.

[LUBEDUDE]

......I will buy the first 6 station press that is manufactured, don't really care who makes it. ......

Hey Bonz, You've been sleeping at the wheel! Dillion's 1050 has EIGHT STATIONS and has been out for many, many, many moons!:kidding:

[prsman23]

Ford versus Chevy argument. There are a million of these threads. I've got the 550. But I'm tempted to try to LNL for the extra station. Can't beat dillon's warrenty

And yeah Bonz!!!! Get with it dude!!!!

:-P

[1911KY]

I recently went down this road and ended up with a Hornady LNL AP. It costs less, has 5 stations, auto-indexes, caliber changes are easier and less expensive. Also, 2 local retailers carry Hornady parts and equipment.

Customer service at Hornady is on par with Dillon's from all accounts that I have read. Personal experience, they took care of an issue I had with a PTX Expander no questions asked..."new ones in the mail, just send the old one back and we will get a hat out to you to cover the shipping you incur!!!"

Not that you can go wrong either way, go with what fits your needs the best.

[376Steyr]

"Less Filling!" "Tastes Great!" :popcorn:

[IllinoisCoyoteHunter]

You will be happy with either one. Hornady is cheaper per cartridge conversion and auto indexing. They are both smooth machines and won't be disappointed with either. I prefer both! :-P

126650

[FlatTop45LC]

You will be happy with either one. Hornady is cheaper per cartridge conversion and auto indexing. They are both smooth machines and won't be disappointed with either. I prefer both! :-P

126650
This man is my new hero!

[flylot]

Oh, after that picture I realized: "I am not worthy".......

[.30Calibre]

Ford versus Chevy? Chyeah. MoPar or NoCar.

Just kidding, sorta.

The extra station is nice to have, as is the auto indexing.

[Bonz]

Hey Bonz, You've been sleeping at the wheel! Dillion's 1050 has EIGHT STATIONS and has been out for many, many, many moons!:kidding:

Don't tease me LubeDude, LOL... Every station on the Dillon 1050 is filled with something. I need the extra station to put my bullet feeder back on. There is an aftermarket company that makes a bullet feeder for the 1050, but its very expensive and parts are specific to one bullet. There are several parts that you would need to buy for every other bullet that you load.

[dilly]

As an owner of a Hornady Lock N Load progressive, I say try a Dillon. I've had some trouble with mine and if I were to buy another press it would probably be a Dillon.

[Bonz]

This man is my new hero!

Here is mine. This is his "just have to load a few rounds" section of his shop. The 3 Dillon 1050's are the cheapest reloading presses in the place. The other rooms have his Ammo Load machines, commercial roll sizer and commercial brass cleaner.

126653

[Bonz]

Even though its a ton of money, I would buy a Dillon Super 1050 in a heartbeat, if I could convince my wife ;-)

[dragon813gt]

I suggest you search for issues w/ Hornady's case feeder before you lay any money down. I've read about a lot of issues w/ the press as well. I don't have either so I will simply say to read all you can. As pointed out a more direct comparison would the LNL versus a 650.

[freebullet]

I haven't had any real issues with the Lnl ap & case feeder. It works. If you suck with machines then any progressive press may be out of your comfort zone. I recommend a lock out die for either press. Hornady gives you 500 bullets, that makes the Lnl hard to beat on cost. Hornady has great customer service. Either would likely serve you well.

[bbqncigars]

I switched from a 550B to the red AP solely because the former mangled too many precious 25-20 cases despite doing everything Dillon tech support suggested. Big red has yet to mangle ONE while loading a few thousand.

[Petrol & Powder]

I've never understood why another station is needed. The four stations on my 550B seem to be enough to load cartridges !

The 550 is well proven and Dillon's service is outstanding. The very few times that I broke something, they've stood behind their product 100% without so much as a question. I've offered to pay for the items I damaged and they refused to charge me. I will not disparage the LNL but it's blue progressives for me.

After 10's of thousands of rounds the 550 owes me nothing and continues to work. The lack of indexing is just not a factor and my left thumb works the shell plate just fine.

[Fishman]

How easy is it to change from large to small primers on the lnl? It's predecessor, which I own, is a fine machine but changing primer size can require a lot of fiddling

[1911KY]

How easy is it to change from large to small primers on the lnl? It's predecessor, which I own, is a fine machine but changing primer size can require a lot of fiddling

You change out 3 pieces, seater, primer arm/carrier and tube. Seater requires a small open end wrench, allen wrench to remove primer tube mount depending on how tight you have it. 5 minutes or less. Unless you need to readjust the alignment of the carrier opening, that can take a minute or so. Not terribly complicated.

[1911KY]

If money wasn't an issue I would have bought a 650, however I am very happy with my LNL so far. It is easy to setup and operate.

The 5th station isn't a deal breaker for me, but it gives you options. Powder cop, bullet feeder or special expander die. The manual indexing on a 550 was a deal breaker though, I wanted the full monty without breaking the bank.

[Kilroy08]

I thought that a lack of auto index on the 550 would bother me. Well, my hand's already over there placing a bullet in the case mouth. It isn't too much extra effort to advance the shell plate.

[Three44s]

I bought a new LNL just 2 years ago. I am happy with it.

As has been brought up: All machines have some issues or quirks.

I have had some clean outs of residue from the the priming section. Mostly it's spilled powder that's the culprit but in the absence of that ......... old burnt priming residue serves the "purpose" to give you some trouble. If the priming is stopped, then you'll have new powder to go along with the old residue.

The cleanout on this is not the end of the world once you get the hang of it. For one thing, removing and replacing unfinnished rounds back into the shell plate is easy.

The second issue you can have is if some of your LNL bushings care to back out. You may have too much lube on the O-rings on the bushing or worst case, change to a slightly larger diameter rubber ring. I have not had to replace any rings but some want to loosen and I took pliers and snugged them and reinstalled the die into it.

When you first start a new LNL, you'll likely have some issues with the E-Z eject button that's cast into the base plate. I took a small piece of finer sand paper and smoothed the top of it and then suffered through a few cases of the first reloads and then it was good to go.

Another slight rub is that you look for the sweet spot for the center bolt that fastens the shell plate down. It's not a "thousanths" thing just a bit of feel.

Some of my shell plates took just a bit of coaxing for loaded ammo to eject but after a couple or three revolutions ammo fell out fine.

Folks have trouble with the retaining spring and the best I can tell you is I am still on the original spring with all my spares that came with the machine still in reserve yet. What I did is to keep a bit of Hornady One Shot on it. That's all.

For me, the fifth station and being able to handle so many calibers so economically was the tipping point that made my decision to go "Red".

The lure Dillon uses to market their product ...... while seductive ........ was disregared in my decision making ...... I am a cold hard calculus person on this sort of purchase.

Three 44s

[Bonz]

I haven't had any real issues with the Lnl ap & case feeder. It works. If you suck with machines then any progressive press may be out of your comfort zone.

+1 on the case feeder. My Hornady LNL is my first progressive press and then I bought a little Lee cheapie progressive with only 3 stations for brass prep. Both need tweaking/minor adjustments from time to time, especially the Lee (every 5 minutes).

If you really want to be impressed with some great machine work, spend the big bucks and buy the Dillon Super 1050. It only comes with a one year warranty =but= that guy that I showed the photo of his 3 setup says that his have serviced him well over the years and he really hasn't spent a bunch of money on repairs.

[TheCelt]

I have the LNL AP and A Dillon 650. There are standout features with both presses and both produce quality ammo. I have a decided preference for the Hornady powder system though and find myself using it quite a bit more for any load using a "stick" powder.

[dilly]

I have the LNL AP and A Dillon 650. There are standout features with both presses and both produce quality ammo. I have a decided preference for the Hornady powder system though and find myself using it quite a bit more for any load using a "stick" powder.

I think you're right about that. Hornady's strongest point is that they have a very good powder measure and case activated mechanism.

[Sig]

I've had the LNL for about 4 years now. I'm only using it for .357/38, 40 & 45. I had a slight issue at first with priming using Winchester primers. I believe they were a tad shorter & caused a hangup from time to time. A tiny bit of grinding & polishing to the primer shuttle solved that. Overall I've been very satisfied with my LNL.

[youngmman]

You will be happy with either one. Hornady is cheaper per cartridge conversion and auto indexing. They are both smooth machines and won't be disappointed with either. I prefer both! :-P

126650

I never found that I saved a penny by casting and rolling my own...........But, it's a heck of a lot of fun and I get better ammo, in my view, best of all I am in a hobby with a great bunch of kindred souls.

[HATCH]

I never found that I saved a penny by casting and rolling my own...........But, it's a heck of a lot of fun and I get better ammo, in my view, best of all I am in a hobby with a great bunch of kindred souls.

I am not to the break even point yet when i compare to money spent on equiptment and money saved on loading.
As far as cost goes, the price per round is a huge savings.
If you shoot 9mm or 40 then you will take a long time to break even (unless you shoot a lot).
I shoot 41 mag, 32/20 , 44/40, and a bunch more.
Its these "odd balls" that your savings come in. Try and get a loaded round for under 20 cents a round for 41 mag.
Thats including the brass case
I can load once fired for around ten cents a round including lead, primer and powder.

I have only used Dillon presses for progressive and a Lyman single stage.
The single stage was just used for sizing blackout boolits using a Lee sizing die.

[youngmman]

I am not to the break even point yet when i compare to money spent on equiptment and money saved on loading.
As far as cost goes, the price per round is a huge savings.
If you shoot 9mm or 40 then you will take a long time to break even (unless you shoot a lot).
I shoot 41 mag, 32/20 , 44/40, and a bunch more.
Its these "odd balls" that your savings come in. Try and get a loaded round for under 20 cents a round for 41 mag.
Thats including the brass case
I can load once fired for around ten cents a round including lead, primer and powder.

I have only used Dillon presses for progressive and a Lyman single stage.
The single stage was just used for sizing blackout boolits using a Lee sizing die.
I'll confess to being pretty conventional as to caliber: 38/357, 44sp/44mag, 45acp and 9mm.

I use a redding T-7 turret press now with several heads so I can leave the dies setup. I try to use the latest new equipment that makes sense but I guess I don't shoot as much as many but seem to go through a lot of bullets. Amortizing the cost of my Master Pot and Cast Master Pot along with a dozen or so molds is where it gets sticky as far as cost justification is concerned.

The quantities of powder needed high volume shooting is more and more of an issue.

Honestly, I consider it all a labor of love and don't worry about the money since I don't buy expensive things for other hobbies.

[HATCH]

I understand.
I own a master caster which I automated, star sizer (also automated) , two 550bs and a 650.
What you aren't considering is that the equipment retains value. So you don't need to recoup the entire cost of the machine only the amount between what you paid for it and what you can sell it for.

[Deep Six]

I have the LnL. Overall it is a nice smooth machine with a lot of nice features. The priming system can get hung up if a little dirt or powder gets in the way of the slide. It also doesn't have a ton of strength for seating primers. Military rifle brass with tight primer pockets are often problematic so I prime them using a Hornady hand primer which ironically seems to have a lot more leverage to seat primers. I've never had an issue priming pistol brass on the LnL though. Having heard far worse about other manufacture's priming systems, it makes me think the LnL is probably one of the best in it's class. The priming system is the only thing I can complain about. I really like the rest of the machine.

As for customer service, I did break a primer slider once when when it jammed and my friend just powered through it until it snapped. I called Hornady and told them it was my fault and I'd like to buy another. They insisted on mailing me a new one for free with the advice to make sure my friend knows what he's doing before letting him operate it again.

Overall, I definitely recommend the LnL as it is really in the 650's class while competing with the 550's price range. Considering the 500 free bullet rebate, it's an even better deal.

[youngmman]

I understand.
I own a master caster which I automated, star sizer (also automated) , two 550bs and a 650.
What you aren't considering is that the equipment retains value. So you don't need to recoup the entire cost of the machine only the amount between what you paid for it and what you can sell it for.

That's very true. Quality equipment retains value and junk usually ends in the junk pile after much frustration trying to make it work. The only flaw, not really a flaw but an observation, in your logic is that the net benefit will accrue to my widow because I'll never get rid of any of it barring total incapacitation. Even then I might keep it to look at and for the memories.

I haven't automated either the Master Pot or my Star Sizer but I have to say when I bought the Star I talked with the old guy (in his 80's at the time) at Star Machine in San Diego who actually made the machines because I had some questions about it. I called and he actually picked up the phone without going through operators and the like. This was about 1987 or so but can't swear to that. He answered the questions then proceeded to go through the process of producing the machine. Suffice to say that if you have one out of their shop it was treated with the precision of a watch when being made and should be treasured as such. There's a lot of heart in the machine.

[Fishman]

You change out 3 pieces, seater, primer arm/carrier and tube. Seater requires a small open end wrench, allen wrench to remove primer tube mount depending on how tight you have it. 5 minutes or less. Unless you need to readjust the alignment of the carrier opening, that can take a minute or so. Not terribly complicated.

Thank you! Sounds a lot easier than mine.

[W.R.Buchanan]

To the OP,,, If I was you I would look at Dillon Square Deals. They are made specifically to do Pistol Rounds, and are much smaller than a 550B and less expensive. Also several available on Ebay or from Alvarez Kelly here at the site.

You could also look at Single Stage Turret Style Presses like the Redding T7, or a C&H 444 Pistol Champ, or a Ponsness Warren Metal Matic II, These other machines are the next step up from a Rockchucker or other single stage press but have the capability of having several tools quickly accessible so you don't have to handle the cartridge multiple times per loading. They are more versatile in many ways than any of the Progressive Presses, and depending on your volume of needed ammo could be a much easier way for you to solve this problem.

If you are shooting 200 rounds or less of each caliber per month then these tools are a simple and inexpensive way to fulfill those needs. You should be able to do close to 200 rounds per hour on any of them. Rifle or Pistol.

Or a Dillon 550B is the next step up from there and you can choose to run it single round at a time or Progressive, which would help you go from newbie to pro quickly.

After using mine a lot I got over the need to auto index for rifle cartridges, and see no advantage of auto indexing unless your volume is very high. AS your volume goes up the need to reduce individual movements to bare minimum becomes very obvious. When you eliminate one movement over 5000 rounds you actually eliminated 5000 movements and this stuff adds up big time and exponentially as the volume increases. Your workload will become an issue.

However for shorter runs of 200 to 400 rounds per month this is of little consequence. when I load .223's on My 550 I load in 100 round sessions which last about 12-15 minutes each. The I do something else and come back and do another 100 rounds. I can easily do 400 per hour to hour and 15, which is more than enough for me.

If you are just going to do Banzai runs and make enough ammo for a whole year then I say go for the Progressive. and that way you'd only have to run it once or twice a year.

I have one last point to make and this applies to everyone who loads ammo!

Cover your machines up when not in use!!!.

I use plastic trash bags unless I have a dedicated machine cover. keeping your machinery clean will make it last longer.

I just purchased a machine off Ebay and in the pics it looked pretty good. When it actually got here it was obvious that it had spent a long time in someone's garage on a bench uncovered. I am having to completely disassemble this machine to clean all the dirt and grit out of it or it will destroy itself in short order. It has dirt and grit in every nook and cranny.

NO excuse for this!

At the very least you can cover them up with a simple plastic Trash Bag!

I have machines I might only use once a year, if left open they would be filthy, however I am smart enough to cover them up. You should be too!

Randy

[1911KY]

You don't see that mentioned too often, but you are absolutely correct!!!

I go a little over board with this, as I wrap my press in anti-rust paper and then cover it with a towel and wrap a bungy cord around it to keep it tight against the press....then I put a plastic trash can over the top to keep things from bumping into it, as it is mounted in my garage and their are lots of kids in my neighborhood.

[gwpercle]

This man is my new hero!

Is six enough....is twelve too many?

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

I had a 550 as my first progressive press. Mine had problems that were never corrected with the priming system. Sold it to a friend who ended up getting a new machine from Dillon. (I think the original may have had a machining defect that caused the problem.) I absolutely hated the manual advance on that press.

I was considering a 650 when Hornady came out with the LnL AP and I bought one from MidwayUSA on sale at an excellent price. Had it for ten years and sold it for about what I paid for it. It had minor character flaws, but Hornady upgraded it with the EZject and replaced the original priming system. It worked pretty well and I had it very well adjusted. I loaded a lot of rounds on that machine. But after ten years or so, I was bored with it and wanted to try another machine.

So I bought an RCBS Pro 2000 auto advance. Again, I had problems out of the box with a defective, improperly machined subplate. RCBS figured it out quickly what the problem was and promptly sent me an upgraded subplate. Problem solved. Adjusted the machined, tuned it and it's run absolutely boringly flawless ever since. My first project on it was loading up a huge batch (5000 if I remember right.) of .223. Zero hitches in all those rounds, no problems with any primers with the primer feed strip. I fell in love with the machine.

The point of the post is that all the machines and brands can have problems and need adjustments/tuning. If you address those, you'll find good customer support and good running machines from any vendor.

All that said, if I could have the perfect progressive for me it would have the following:

1. Hornady and Dillon powder measures.
2. Hornady LnL bushings
3. Six stations (I don't need eight stations.)
4. RCBS mechanical advance
5. RCBS primer feed system.
6. RCBS/Hornady primer disposal system.
7. Dillon low powder alarm (RCBS system doesn't need primer alarm, as it's strip feed and low is visual.)
8. Dillon case feeder
9. Mr. Bullet feeder bullet feeder.

There, that's my wish list for exactly the press I think would be ideal for most progressive users who want very fast loading but do not quite need the capacity of a Dillon 1050.

[osteodoc08]

Having owned and run both. I prefer the Dillon.

[Mohillbilly]

Starting with a Lee "nut cracker" hand press on 30-06 and moved on to a borrowed single stage . I was on a quest to find an easier way , A friend bought a Lee 1000 9mm and my first try at full progressive , The press did ok but the priming system sucked . When the primer wasn't seated , powder was strewn about the machine , and a complete clean out was in order . auto index on this machine lacked any versatility , shell plate change over and adjustment was a pain to me . NEXT! 550b was my purchase . This machine was a new model back then . I am pleased with it and is very versatile . I do the mundane as well as the uncommon in loading chores . There are some cartridges that will recoup your money in savings quickly . Some of them are 300 Weatherby , 44 AMP , 45 Winchester magnum , 475 Wildey , 50 Action Express 445 supermag/ max. .357 GrizzlyWinmag , and many more . I thought that auto indexing was mandatory , but after the Lee , I do see an advantage in manual indexing . I see no need in case/bullet feeders , in my opinion they only add to misery .Case feeders do not do a lot of different cartridges , and not suitable to rifle at all with a 550 . With minimal setup time , and minimal cost I cam do 200 - 300 of whatever per hour . I put my savings back into shell plates / tool heads , dies , and supplies . Primer size change is not hard on a 550 . you loosen two Allen head bolts , unhook a spring , change out the bar and reassemble . lower the shell plate and slide the bar around till it sticks up in the shell plate , then tighten the Allen head bolts . I was lazy and bought a second 550 to be able to skip primer change over , and to have a complete parts change over . LNL have little appeal to me , but would be a second best . Dillon powder measures are ok but too expensive , and I never run max loads any way ( I get out a bigger gun ). Instead I run Lee powder measures, dispensing dies, and loading dies when available . 550 machines have a 4 hole tool head , I've never needed more , I instead remove primer crimps , trim to length , forming chores ect to other tools .

[Lloyd Smale]

Ive got both and would sell two lock and loads before I sold one of my two 550s. If I was to do it again and wanted a case feeder id step up to a 650. Much more reliable setup then a lnl. This is from a guy who has both. Not someone who bought one and needs to convince himself and others that he is just to smart to make a mistake.

[youngmman]

To the OP,,, If I was you I would look at Dillon Square Deals. They are made specifically to do Pistol Rounds, and are much smaller than a 550B and less expensive. Also several available on Ebay or from Alvarez Kelly here at the site.

You could also look at Single Stage Turret Style Presses like the Redding T7, or a C&H 444 Pistol Champ, or a Ponsness Warren Metal Matic II, These other machines are the next step up from a Rockchucker or other single stage press but have the capability of having several tools quickly accessible so you don't have to handle the cartridge multiple times per loading. They are more versatile in many ways than any of the Progressive Presses, and depending on your volume of needed ammo could be a much easier way for you to solve this problem.

If you are shooting 200 rounds or less of each caliber per month then these tools are a simple and inexpensive way to fulfill those needs. You should be able to do close to 200 rounds per hour on any of them. Rifle or Pistol.

Or a Dillon 550B is the next step up from there and you can choose to run it single round at a time or Progressive, which would help you go from newbie to pro quickly.

After using mine a lot I got over the need to auto index for rifle cartridges, and see no advantage of auto indexing unless your volume is very high. AS your volume goes up the need to reduce individual movements to bare minimum becomes very obvious. When you eliminate one movement over 5000 rounds you actually eliminated 5000 movements and this stuff adds up big time and exponentially as the volume increases. Your workload will become an issue.

However for shorter runs of 200 to 400 rounds per month this is of little consequence. when I load .223's on My 550 I load in 100 round sessions which last about 12-15 minutes each. The I do something else and come back and do another 100 rounds. I can easily do 400 per hour to hour and 15, which is more than enough for me.

If you are just going to do Banzai runs and make enough ammo for a whole year then I say go for the Progressive. and that way you'd only have to run it once or twice a year.

I have one last point to make and this applies to everyone who loads ammo!

Cover your machines up when not in use!!!.

I use plastic trash bags unless I have a dedicated machine cover. keeping your machinery clean will make it last longer.

I just purchased a machine off Ebay and in the pics it looked pretty good. When it actually got here it was obvious that it had spent a long time in someone's garage on a bench uncovered. I am having to completely disassemble this machine to clean all the dirt and grit out of it or it will destroy itself in short order. It has dirt and grit in every nook and cranny.

NO excuse for this!

At the very least you can cover them up with a simple plastic Trash Bag!

I have machines I might only use once a year, if left open they would be filthy, however I am smart enough to cover them up. You should be too!

Randy

I use the car cover bags to cover my machines. They keep the dirt out yet breathe so no condensation builds up inside.

[youngmman]

Even though its a ton of money, I would buy a Dillon Super 1050 in a heartbeat, if I could convince my wife ;-)

I know I have a very bad attitude but I figure what my wife doesn't know ain't going to cause a fight and won't hurt her anyway.

[GRid.1569]

You will be happy with either one. Hornady is cheaper per cartridge conversion and auto indexing. They are both smooth machines and won't be disappointed with either. I prefer both! :-P

126650

This is a man with too much..... work bench.... :-)

[DR Owl Creek]

As some of the others have said, it isn't a valid comparison between the Hornady AP L-N-L and the Dillon 550. The Hornady AP L-N-L and the Dillon 650 are both 5 station auto-indexing presses, The Dillon 550 is not.

Somebody asked, "why do you need a 5 station press"? It's pretty simple. With my AP L-N-L, I put the sizing/depriming die in station 1, the expander in station 2, the powder measure in station 3, the seating die in station 4, and the crimping die in station 5. If you wanted to use the "powder cop/lock-out die", I would switch the set-up to the sizing/depriming die in station 1, the powder-through expander with powder measure in station 2, the powder cop/lock-out die in station 3, the seating die in station 4, and the crimping die in station 5. You can't do any of that in a 4 station press.

As far as the quality of the Hornady AP L-N-L, I've had mine for at least 11 years, and it's done everything it's designed to do without any problems. It's still as smooth and precise as when it was new. The only thing I've had to replace has been the cartridge retainer springs, which I will discuss a little later. So far, Hornady has always sent those to me for free when I've contacted them.

Also as far as quality and customer service goes, Hornady has as good as a "no BS" customer service as I could ask for. The only thing I've ever broken with my Hornady dies over many years of hard use have been the decapping pins once in awhile, which have usually been my fault. Hornady has always set out replacements for free.

As a side note, Hornady also has a "limited lifetime warranty" on their dies. The fine print says something about "under normal use", which I take to mean not for commercial reloading operations, or where something has been abused or "bubba'd" in some way. I did wear out one of the Hornady New Dimension .45 ACP TiN sizing dies once after loading many, many 1000's and 1000's of rounds of ammo. I use walnut shell tumber media in my tumbers that has been treated with polishing rouge. I think some of this rouge built up where the TiN sizing bushing was fitted into the die, and eventually caused wear that left scratches on the cases. I couldn't get it cleaned out, so I called Hornady. They said to send it in to them, and they would see what they could do. About two weeks later, I got a brand spanking new .45 ACP sizing die in the mail. I didn't get a new hat, but I couldn't ask for better treatment.

Back to the discussion of the presses, I went through the same decision making process as you are, years ago when I was thinking about the Dillon 650 and the Hornady AP L-N-L. What sold me on the Hornady set-up was the following: the simplicity of the Hornady vs. the more complex Dillon, the Hornady interchangeable die bushing system vs. the more costly Dillon tool heads, the Hornady cartridge retainer springs vs. the Dillon pin system, and the Hornady priming system.

With the Hornady interchangeable bushings, I can store all my dies in their original boxes, which doesn't eat up much shelf space, and then only use the ones I want for the particular operation I want to do. This is important to me because sometimes I use standard sizing dies, sometimes small base dies, sometimes bushing type dies, sometimes separate taper crimp dies, etc. I am also loading for about 17 separate cartridges at this point too. This would be very hard to do with the Dillon tool heads. Not even counting the cost of the Dillon tool heads, storage for all of these tool heads would require building a separate bench just to store them all. I don't have that kind of space available.

Back on the subject of the cartridge retainer springs, the problems I've had I think can be traced back to using military brass that has had the primer pocket crimps swaged out. These can some times hang up, jamming the press if the primers aren't seated all the way. If you have to run the shell plate backwards to clear the jam, this can put a kink in the spring, eventually causing it to break at that point. The problem also seemed to be worse with Winchester primer, than others such as CCI or Federal. My solution to the problem was to use a primer pocket reamer on military brass with crimped primers, and also CCI and Federal primers.

Dave

[troyboy]

Fortunately Dillon isn't the only choice. Step away and make a choice based on features, quality and value.

[r1kk1]

Fortunately Dillon isn't the only choice. Step away and make a choice based on features, quality and value.

I've operated all three major progressives.

I was shocked that Hornady didn't have a shellplate for the 500 Linebaugh or even the 348 Winchester. They didn't have one for the 405 Winchester and it showed on their chart nothing for the 444 Marlin. That doesn't make a bit of sense. I have to email Hornady about that. That alone would kill it for me as I load quite a few wildcats based on the above cases for the Encore and Contender pistol barrels.

I did use a friend's LNL and no one has mentioned a feature that appealed to me. I use a JDS Quick Measure on my 550 so I can place the powder measure at any station I want. The LNL can do this too. Dave pointed out some good points of the LNL bushing system using various dies. He forgot to add another advantage. The LNL can handle any lock ring. This is important to me as I can only use two Forster/Sinclair lock rings on my 550 currently. I do have to send an email to Hornady to see if there are custom shellplates available.

RCBS Pro 2000 has a metal frame. So does the 1050. The rest are aluminums. Only the Pro 2000 can go from manual index to auto and your choice of strip priming system or tube. Pretty versatile with a couple of nice features.

Unfortunately Hornady and RCBS have had presses that were either discontinued or no longer available since the 80s.

I use a converted old 450 that went to 550 route. Dillon keeps their shellplate selection up to cover the newer cartridges. I wish I had more die spacing to use my favorite lock rings. It covers all of my cartridges I load for from .17 caliber to .50 caliber stuff. Nothing has changed other than the newer presses have zerk fittings. So I guess I will keep ole Blue around for quite a bit longer. Over the decades it's been a machine that's dependable, does what I need, loads gobs of different cartridges, and the simplest progressive currently made. The press evolved over the decades with me. Now I have my eye on more barrels for the 110 action and of course the Encore. The 550 will be used as well as two single stages because as Dave said, it would be nice to have six stations but with two LNL bushings installed, my specialty dies are used in the task. I believe my press is the best money I ever spent on a progressive. Not being auto indexed, I can back a shellplate up to fix a problem if need be. Very nice feature.

To the OP, choose whatever press you want. When you load into the future, make sure it will handle what you want to do. I think in the last two years there has been more new cartridges introduced than in the last 50 years. Incredible.

Take care

r1kk1

[alamogunr]

I appreciate all of the replies to my question. I've learned much more than I anticipated. To the last poster, new cartridges don't really interest me. I prefer older well established cartridges, or rather older firearms that shoot older cartridges.

As I mentioned in my OP, my primary or almost sole use for a progressive will be for handgun cartridges and for well established ones at that. I will still load .475 Linebaugh, 45 Colt/.454 Casull, etc on single stage or possibly a turret press. I don't require the volume on these.

I haven't read anything yet that would dissuade me from buying the LNL. I'm sure all systems have their drawbacks and advantages. I'm not trying to end the comments. I am sure I still have a lot to learn, much of which I even know I need to learn.

[Preacher Jim]

Sold my blue and have to red ones. No regrets.
The fellow who bought the blue loves them I am old fashioned and Hornady let's me use what I have and are to me easy to set up and use.
Keep the trash blown out.

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

One last thing to consider. RCBS has just come out with two new presses. One is a five station and the other is a 7 station. The auto advance mechanism, near as I can tell through pictures, is superior to anything offered by any other company at the present.

If I were buying a new press now, I'd hold off and wait until a few reports surface with this new seven station press. RCBS is designing a case feeder for it and bullet feeders are already available.

[warf73]

One last thing to consider. RCBS has just come out with two new presses. One is a five station and the other is a 7 station. The auto advance mechanism, near as I can tell through pictures, is superior to anything offered by any other company at the present.

If I were buying a new press now, I'd hold off and wait until a few reports surface with this new seven station press. RCBS is designing a case feeder for it and bullet feeders are already available.

Were did you see the new presses that RCBS came out with? Was just on there site and seen nothing new in the progressive line. They offer the Pro 2000® Auto Index Press (http://castboolits.gunloads.com/Products/Presses-and-Kits/Progressive/Pro-2000-174;-Auto-Index-Press.aspx) its a 5 station press but nothing about case feeder. If you would please post a link to the new press I would like to look at it.

Thanks Robert

[alamogunr]

It is shown in the 2015 RCBS catalog. I also saw a Youtube video but don't remember how to get back to it. The catalog price indicated they were very proud of the new press. I have no idea what a street price might be.

I just checked the RCBS website and there is no mention of it there.

[Garyshome]

I use a 550B, bought it a couple of presidents ago [maybe3]. Love it

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

Were did you see the new presses that RCBS came out with? Was just on there site and seen nothing new in the progressive line. They offer the Pro 2000® Auto Index Press (http://castboolits.gunloads.com/Products/Presses-and-Kits/Progressive/Pro-2000-174;-Auto-Index-Press.aspx) its a 5 station press but nothing about case feeder. If you would please post a link to the new press I would like to look at it.

Thanks RobertHere you go, a link to a forum post about it:

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?267557-New-RCBS-press-is-coming-out&highlight=RCBS+Chucker+7

[warf73]

Thank you, very nice looking press I like the set up would be interesting how much it will cost with bullet feeder and case feeder(once they get it out). If I were to give it a guess it will be right at the same price as the Dillon 1050. I've not found anything for conversions on the RCBS 7 aka bullet feeder, tool heads and shell plate.

[fng]

here is a fairly detailed objective comparison between the 650 and LnL ap
http://www.comrace.ca/cmfiles/dillonLeeHornadyComparison.pdf

[jsheyn]

I have operated extensivly all 3

Here is the order I would buy 650, LNL, 550

[257]

I have 2 friends with lnl ap one is serial number under 1000 is a pcs of trash the other guy's is about 2 year's old works quite wellthe early one the priming system never did work finally took it off and prime with a rcbs bench primer the powder measure is always hanging up they changed it totally changed the primer setup on the newer one it actually work's myself I have a 550b and a 650 xl I like both of them as for my bench rest ammo I do it on a rock chucker or a ponsness warren metalmatic 2 and weigh each charge just my 2 cents worth

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

I have 2 friends with lnl ap one is serial number under 1000 is a pcs of trash the other guy's is about 2 year's old works quite wellthe early one the priming system never did work finally took it off and prime with a rcbs bench primer the powder measure is always hanging up they changed it totally changed the primer setup on the newer one it actually work's myself I have a 550b and a 650 xl I like both of them as for my bench rest ammo I do it on a rock chucker or a ponsness warren metalmatic 2 and weigh each charge just my 2 cents worth

Hornady offered free upgrades for the primer system and the eject system on the presses with serial numbers less than 1000. Your friend should have taken advantage of them. If he's having problems with the powder measure and doesn't have the Hornady LnL powder measure with the CAPD, he doesn't have a Lock N Load press. I know, because my LnL was under serial number 1000 and it came with the LnL powder measure with CAPD in the box. IF that doesn't work right, then nobody who's used it knows how to adjust the CAPD properly. Adjusted properly, they work like a dream.

I don't have the press any more, but I have two of the Hornady LnL powder measures and CAPD's.

[257]

my friends press came with a powder measure that the linkage pulled down at about a 45 degree angle the other guys linkage pulls straight down with no hang ups the guy with the early press ordered a case feeder it came then he found out he had to buy a new plate to use it. then he had to send in all his shell plates to have them recut/ground so they would work 15.00 a pcs I believe he had 18 of them he had the upgrades for the primer system none of them worked for **** I feel that the early ones were not ready for the public but they brought them out early then made all kinds of engineering changes after they sold a bunch of them to the public on my dillons they both had problems when I first set them up which I now feel were do to my not following the instructions fully and like I said the buddy with the newer one works fine just my 2 cent's worth

[DaveInFloweryBranchGA]

my friends press came with a powder measure that the linkage pulled down at about a 45 degree angle the other guys linkage pulls straight down with no hang ups the guy with the early press ordered a case feeder it came then he found out he had to buy a new plate to use it. then he had to send in all his shell plates to have them recut/ground so they would work 15.00 a pcs I believe he had 18 of them he had the upgrades for the primer system none of them worked for **** I feel that the early ones were not ready for the public but they brought them out early then made all kinds of engineering changes after they sold a bunch of them to the public on my dillons they both had problems when I first set them up which I now feel were do to my not following the instructions fully and like I said the buddy with the newer one works fine just my 2 cent's worth

Dillon had the same issues birthing their presses, that's why the earlier presses are no longer in production. It's just been further back in the past and Dillon offered upgrades as well. Dillon's earlier presses were not numbered 650 and 550. Some of the stuff on them was great and some not so great. They did do a better job than Hornady in how they handled the engineering upgrades (public relations) with the public, though.

I had the 45 degree angle CAPD. I adjustd it properly and it worked great for me for ten years. The first primer upgrade, from a plastic base to a metal one, which was free, did as well. Just had to polish it a bit, adjust it properly (especially the cam wire) and blue loctite the nuts except for the one holding the primer tube base to the press and keep it clean and free of spilled powder and dirt. The Ezject upgrade, which required swapping out the subplate, was a bit more of a pain in the rear, but again, it's in the past with Hornady now.

I no longer own the press, but Hornady supported that press reasonably well and worked to improve it. It's current version is a much better press than those early ones. But all of the Hornadys, if adjusted properly, have loaded good ammo and done well. Key to their adjustment is the feed cam wire for the primer system, the cam wire for the case feeder and the auto advance pawls. If those are set up properly and blue loctited, the press will run trouble free for years as long as it's kept clean.

Knowing how to adjust them, though, is another thing. Hornady's technical documentation isn't very good. You have to call and get the tech support guy on the phone to talk you through it the first time.