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Old 07-28-2011, 11:02 PM
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wantmoresmiths wantmoresmiths is offline
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How many rounds do you currently shoot in the course of a month, and do you plan on shooting any type of competition? The progressive press is great if you are shooting large quantities of ammunition, but a single stage press is a good start for the casual shooter. Remember you will need more than just the press. You will need a good scale, primer flip tray, powder funnel, calipers, and a few loading manuals just to name a few items. RCBS offers a starter kit which includes most of these items. for about $350. If you go with the Hornady Lock-N-Load, just the press will run you about $450, and you will still need to buy a scale and calipers. If money is not a huge issue, and you are shooting enough to justify the cost of a progressive, you can always buy the progressive press and use it as a single stage until you get the hang of the reloading process.

If you choose to go the progressive route, you can't go wrong with either the Dillon or Hornady. I currently use the Hornady, but have thought about buying a Dillon to keep set up for .45's. Keep in mind that the Hornady offers auto indexing, meaning that it automatically advances the cartridge to the next station with each pull of the handle. This feature helps to eliminate the possibility of a double charge of powder. I believe you need to step up to the Dillon 650 before you get auto indexing from Dillon. I seem to recall that the lesser Dillon presses need to be indexed by hand. If you forget to index the press, you could throw a double charge of powder. So be sure you are comparing apples to apples when you compare price. The other advantage the Hornady offers is the ease of caliber changes. I load 9mm, .38 special, 40 S&W, .45ACP, .41 Magnum, and .44 Magnum. The Hornady is a better fit for me since I change calibers fairly often. One last point, is the famous Dillon "No BS warranty". For some reason Hornady doesn't make a big deal regarding their warranty, but they are every bit as good as Dillon in this department. Any time I needed a replacement part, it was always sent out that day or the next, and always sent at no charge. The customer service people have always been very courteous and helpful. Oh and by the way, almost every time I needed a replacement part, the broken part was my own fault.
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