Dillon or Hornady

[byf43]

Dillon RL-550B user, here.

I'm going to buy another RL-550B and keep it set up for large primers.

I've got a LOT of caliber conversions and toolheads, so, go "up" is not going to happen.


Gonna keep one set for small primers. One set for large primers.

Dillon Blue Kool-Aid. (With Raspberry flavoring added.)


As for customer service.............. they're #1, with NOBODY in close 2nd place, IMNSHO.

 

[Pinecone]

I think the micrometer powder adjustment is essential, unless you want to buy multiple powder measures for different calibers that you reload.

What I did was buy a extra powder measure for my main calibers. Then for the other ones, I just swap out the powder bar. I leave those set to the common load, and paint the end white, and mark with a Sharpie.

 

[frogman68]

Is there a option on either for case feeding that doesn't cost a arm or a leg ???

 

[trickg]

I figured I'd throw my 2¢ in as well - I've got some experience with both.

I don't have recent experience with Dillon, but my Dad had a Dillon 450, and I did some reloading on that back when I was in high school in the late 1980s. From my memory, that press was very smooth with the capability of cranking out a lot of good reloads - it wasn't a true progressive because indexing is done manually, but nonetheless, it was easy to crank out 200-300 rounds per hour while making sure everything was working properly. This was a pretty slick press - once it was set up, it just worked - period. I don't recall it ever even being the least bit quirky. It was very well designed, very well made, and worked very well. Keep in mind that this was the mid to late 1980s - we're 30 years past that at this point. 30 years where Dillon has continued on with their stellar record of success, and no doubt, there have been some refinements to their products along the way in that length of time.

Now for my experience with the Hornady LNL AP.

A year or so ago, I wanted to take a big step up in my reloading away from my Lee Challenger press setup. I had produced a lot of really solid reloads with that Challenger press, but I wanted to up my volume, hence the desire to move up to a quality progressive press. I did A LOT of research. I read tons of stuff online, watched a lot of YouTube videos, and weighed the pros and cons of the Dillon vs Hornady presses. After all of that reading, it seemed that there were a lot of people happy with the Hornady, and overall it's less money to get into, so that's what I bought. I got a lot of stuff with it too - extra shell plates, the heavy duty stand, and the ergo roller handle are the main big things I got.

After all of this, I can make a recommendation with absolute confidence:

Get the Dillon. Don't question it, just do it.

It's possible that some of the issues I've had with mine are due to the Lee dies I'm trying to use. At some point I'll see if a different/better set of dies will help the situation - I haven't done much with it in a while, mainly due to time - I've been busy with a lot of other things. With that said, if the new dies don't bring some relief to what I've experienced - only being able to load a few rounds without having to tinker with something on the press - I'm going to ditch the Hornady, even if I have to take a substantial hit on it, and put the money toward a Dillon setup - probably the 550 rather than a 650. I don't think I'll actually need to go full-progressive.

 

[11wideglide]

Dillon 650 owner here... No issues since I bought it new (last spring). Runs like a champ, Dillon has great CS and warranty

 

[HWB3]

I've had a Dillon 550B for over thirty years and just now had to replace one small part on the powder measure. Dillon shipped me the replacement no charge and no questions asked. I have also purchased the Dillon case trimmer and primer pocket swager which have functioned flawlessly without issue. Very happy with their products!

 

[Magnumite]

The 550 is a true progressive. I just isn't auto indexing.

If one is deciding between Dillon or Hornady, check out some surveys of what professional shooters load on. They can't afford down time. I have 550B Dillon (converted from the 450 with Dillon's frame kit. A close friend had a Hornady in those days. I remember loading a few rounds back in the day. It had its idiosyncrasies but was still a good machine. Never impressed me enough to better the Dillon.

 

[DaemonAssassin]

The 550 is a true progressive. I just isn't auto indexing.

If one is deciding between Dillon or Hornady, check out some surveys of what professional shooters load on. They can't afford down time. I have 550B Dillon (converted from the 450 with Dillon's frame kit. A close friend had a Hornady in those days. I remember loading a few rounds back in the day. It had its idiosyncrasies but was still a good machine. Never impressed me enough to better the Dillon.

The answer is about 80% load on a Dillon of some kind.

 

[DeadeyeJack]

The real question is Dillon 550 or xl650. I have an XL650 with the strong mounts and added the case feeder. Get the roller handle.
I am considering getting a 550 for handgun loads just so I don't have to change the setup for different primer sizes. It's not that complex to change, I just like the idea of a more dedicated setup for a caliber I will make 1000's of in one batch, like 45 or 9.

 

[trickg]

The 550 is a true progressive. I just isn't auto indexing.

If one is deciding between Dillon or Hornady, check out some surveys of what professional shooters load on. They can't afford down time. I have 550B Dillon (converted from the 450 with Dillon's frame kit. A close friend had a Hornady in those days. I remember loading a few rounds back in the day. It had its idiosyncrasies but was still a good machine. Never impressed me enough to better the Dillon.

Yeah - I guess I wasn't thinking it through - for the most part I think that was bandied about in all the reading I did when people were comparing the Dillon 550 to the Hornady LNL AP. It was always said that the better comparison was to the Dillon 650, because of the auto-indexing.

I hope I can get the kinks in the LNL AP worked out with a new set of dies and maybe a touch of tinkering, but if that doesn't solve it, I'm definitely going to ditch it and get a Dillon 550.

 

[PowPow]

The 550 is a true progressive. I just isn't auto indexing.

If one is deciding between Dillon or Hornady, check out some surveys of what professional shooters load on. They can't afford down time. I have 550B Dillon (converted from the 450 with Dillon's frame kit.

My 550B also started its life as a 450. I had been eyeing a 550B for about 6 months. Then, I happened to win a 450 in a raffle at the Tuesday night Bullseye league at AGC in fall 2016 (Thanks, Ed!). It was in great shape and was set up to do .38 Special SWC loads. I wanted to be able to change calibers easily, so I did the frame upgrade. I was able to learn the press in about 4-5 days of tinkering once I got it mounted it to my bench. After that, I produced my first 9mm loads. They shot great. (my hand shaking big-time - pull trigger and duck)

After the initial setup for 9mm, it has maintained the configured COL and powder charge reliably. This sort of precision is new to me. I also like the digital calipers I got from them. Technology is great when it is easy. Precision requires quality. I'm still a reloading newbie, but I would not hesitate to recommend the Dillon. It oozes quality.

 

[tdt91]

I have the 650 with thousands of rounds of 9mm, 40S&W, 45, and 5.56 through it (maybe 15-18K?) with no problems. One caveat with the Dillon: the powder measure can be finicky as to the powders that it can measure successfully. It has a tough time with extruded powders.

If you go with Dillon, order a spare parts kit to go with it; it comes in handy if something breaks. You just replace the broken part, call or email Dillon with what part broke, and they'll send you a replacement for free. If you have the spare parts kit, there's no down time. I'd also recommend the upgrade kit from "snowshooze" on Ebay; if you follow any Dillon forums, his stuff gets good reviews. I installed:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/321399781658?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

and

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dillon-XL-650-SL900-Bearing-rotary-shell-plate-cam-follower-/222384485888?

and it's pretty amazing the difference it made; super smooth with no carrier jump at all. (I would occasionally get a few flecks of powder on the deck from the "jump" with certain calibers.)

I'd also strongly recommend the lighting kit from Inline Fabrication. It's great.

https://inlinefabrication.com/products/skylighttm-led-lighting-kit-for-the-dillon-650

Wonder if he makes one for the LnL

 

[tdt91]

Yeah - I guess I wasn't thinking it through - for the most part I think that was bandied about in all the reading I did when people were comparing the Dillon 550 to the Hornady LNL AP. It was always said that the better comparison was to the Dillon 650, because of the auto-indexing.

I hope I can get the kinks in the LNL AP worked out with a new set of dies and maybe a touch of tinkering, but if that doesn't solve it, I'm definitely going to ditch it and get a Dillon 550.

Hey Trick, what little issues are you having, maybe I can help.

 

[trickg]

Wonder if he makes one for the LnL

Yep.

https://inlinefabrication.com/products/skylight-led-lighting-system-for-the-hornady-lnl-ap

 

[StickShaker]

Hey Trick, what little issues are you having, maybe I can help.

I'm wondering also. Mine has always been set and forget and I have used all of the big name dies.

 

[tdt91]

Yep.

https://inlinefabrication.com/products/skylight-led-lighting-system-for-the-hornady-lnl-ap

Thanks, great link but I was talking about the link above this one. I do like some of the products he has for the LnL

 

[frogman68]

Thanks for all the input my froggy senses are saying get the dillon my wallet is saying get the hornady as I get 500 bullets (300 blackout ) . Hopefully someone at the gun show this weekend has a dillon I can put my hands on

 

[Pinecone]

The real question is Dillon 550 or xl650. I have an XL650 with the strong mounts and added the case feeder. Get the roller handle.
I am considering getting a 550 for handgun loads just so I don't have to change the setup for different primer sizes. It's not that complex to change, I just like the idea of a more dedicated setup for a caliber I will make 1000's of in one batch, like 45 or 9.

What I did was get a second primer feeder assembly for my 650. So to switch, it is two bolts and change the primer ram. VERY quick.

 

[Jmorrismetal]

I'm going to buy another RL-550B and keep it set up for large primers.

Nothing wrong with that but the 550 is the easiest press to change primer sizes out of all of them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rCGV-JPYaE

 

[alucard0822]

I'm close to making the same decision. Have a pair of Lee pro1000s that do OK for a few hundred handgun loads at a time in a dozen calibers. I'm loading rifle calibers on a Rock Chucker single stage. I run clean 9mm brass through the pro1000, then have to run thorugh a factory crimp die on the single stage, so need at least 4 or 5 positions. For .223 I clean, lube, size/deprime, trim/debur, ream primer pockets, then clean again to get the lube off. I prime off press, charge in 40rd blocks with a drum measure, seat, then crimp on the single stage, tried it on the pro1000 but it jams and spills to much to be useable and is slower. I'm shooting enough .223 and 9mm that I want something better and faster, especially for rifle.

I want either a 650XL or LNL AP setup for thousand round runs in 9mm, 223 and possibly 40, planning on a case feeder for either one. Been researching for some time, seems the LNL is cheaper and easier to convert to another caliber, has a better powder measure, works better without a case feeder, the plate doesn't flex as much, and turns slower so powder doesn't spill as easy. The 650XL has a more reliable priming system, works better dirty, can swap a full toolhead, no bushings to come loose, works better with a 1200 trimmer, and seems people find it a better press with more options. I'm leaning twards the Dillon, a local gunshop stocks a lot of Dillon gear, and seems most that have tried both had better luck with that one. Saw one setup where a guy sized/trimmed(1200 trimmer) and swaged primer pockets on one trip around a 650XL, tumbled the lube and burrs off, then decaps(clean media out of pockets), primes, charges, seats, and crimps for the 2nd trip around. Looked like the absolute best way to do a run of .223 while only pulling the handle twice per round, not leaving out any steps, and not having to do anything other than placing bullets by hand. OTOH, I would love to find a deal on one of these LNL AP's people claim they were ditching to buy a Dillon, seems most people that still have one like them, and they can be found well below MSRP (and the price of a 650 with 2 caliber conversions)new.