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Old 09-22-2018, 07:19 PM
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Default Couple of questions for Dillon 550 users

Just getting a 550C set up for a good friend. A couple o'questions I can think of right now, even before we get it working......
How do you empty the powder measure?
When loading 223( or any bottle neck cartridge) how do you go about cleaning the case lube off the finished product?
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Old 09-22-2018, 07:40 PM
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1. Remove the tool head and dump it back in the container. Work the measure a couple times to clear it all out.
2. I use a rag with alcohol on it.
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Old 09-22-2018, 09:45 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Just another 22 shooter View Post
When loading 223( or any bottle neck cartridge) how do you go about cleaning the case lube off the finished product?
I lay a an old bath towel out on carpet and dump the rounds
onto it. Fold part of the towel on top of the rounds, and smoosh
em (that's the technical term for it) around for a minute or two.
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Old 09-22-2018, 09:59 PM
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Some folks go to the extreme of sizing on a single-stage press, trimming if necessary, and cleaning primer pockets. Sizing lube is removed then, and then the cases are processed on the Dillon. Some folks feel that sizing rifle brass on the Dillon can cause a myriad of problems that I won't go into here. There's plenty on the interweb about it. I would personally be more concerned about larger rifle cases than .223, but that's just MHO.

Last edited by Enigma; 09-23-2018 at 09:37 PM.
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Old 09-23-2018, 03:43 AM
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I've been using Dillons for over 30 years. I've never worried about lube on the cases when reloading. You must not be belling the case enough. Just remember you don't want to bell too much, just enough to make the bullet seat.

I just empty the powder hopper by taking it off and dumping my powder back into the bottle it came in. Uniqueteck.com has a powder bar that helps drain the hopper. I have not tested this yet.
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Old 09-23-2018, 06:45 AM
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1. Remove powder measure and dump powder into container / bottle.

2. I've tumbled loaded ammo in Midway, Harbor Freight, or now a Thumler's Tumbler for 30 years to remove case lube from bottle neck cartridges. I have not had a problem yet. Add a table spoon or two of mineral spirits to corn cob or walnut media and tumble for an hour. Dry, clean, shiny ammo. Do not tumble cast lead bullet ammo -- it becomes a real mess!
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Old 09-23-2018, 08:31 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Engineer1911 View Post
1. Remove powder measure and dump powder into container / bottle.

2. I've tumbled loaded ammo in Midway, Harbor Freight, or now a Thumler's Tumbler for 30 years to remove case lube from bottle neck cartridges. I have not had a problem yet. Add a table spoon or two of mineral spirits to corn cob or walnut media and tumble for an hour. Dry, clean, shiny ammo. Do not tumble cast lead bullet ammo -- it becomes a real mess!

OR watch 5 hours of BUBBAS, YOU TUBE Videos


I am sure Mr Blue will be along to explain the nuances of it all


Or accessorize!


Powder Measure Drain-N-Change Tool
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Last edited by Rule3; 09-23-2018 at 08:33 AM.
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Old 09-23-2018, 08:48 AM
David.Hylton David.Hylton is offline
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The powder measure question has been answered.

Tumble the loaded ammo. I used Harbor Freight crushed walnut and tumble for about 10 minutes. I use Hornady spray lube, other lubes may take longer.

Make sure you can size .223 enough on your 550. I had trouble getting my press to size the cases enough so I resize rifle on a single stage press.

HTH,
Dave
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Old 09-23-2018, 09:15 AM
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All powder slides are not the same thickness for the 550. Small ball powders like H10 and 296 --.002 thicker on the powder slide bar will make a difference in how smooth the powder slide moves and flows. I find it better to clean the primer slide every 300-400 rounds for smoother action and lightly oil the ram and a few other moving parts every 500 rounds or so. The 550 is very adjustable. Some dies are not long enough to seat the bullet properly. Most dies will work but the ones with a crimp in the last station are smoother. These are things I picked up on since 1982. I have found it better for me to resize and prime rifle cases on a single stage press and finish up on the Dillon. On the case lube I use rubbing alcohol on a shop towel and roll around a few seconds if needed.

Last edited by 4barrel; 09-23-2018 at 09:34 AM.
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Old 09-24-2018, 09:53 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MRH View Post
1. Remove the tool head and dump it back in the container. Work the measure a couple times to clear it all out.
^^^^^^This
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Old 09-24-2018, 11:16 AM
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I remove the powder measure from the tool head, place a funnel in the mouth of the powder canister, and pour. Once the powder stops flowing, i turn the powder measure right-side-up and work the charge bar four of five times to be sure I've removed all the powder from the reservoir. An alternative is to buy a powder measure for each tool heard, but I'm too cheap to do that.

Hope this helps.
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Old 09-24-2018, 12:00 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 4barrel View Post
... I have found it better for me to resize and prime rifle cases on a single stage press and finish up on the Dillon.
Mind if I inquire why? Just curious.

I have loaded long & short action rifle cartridges on my 550 over the years (Forster, Redding, & RCBS dies), & never noticed a problem that I could attribute to the Dillon. That said, I'm always open to considering an improved process.

Thanks in advance!
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Old 09-24-2018, 03:01 PM
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There are conv to do it without but it's just too simple to unscrew two bolts & dump it.
I use Hornady Oneshot to lube my 223 & it just wipes off by handling but doesn't need to be removed. if one is a bit anal they can roll the rounds in an old towel.
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Old 09-24-2018, 04:05 PM
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Case Lube is a very personal thing. Some lubes won't ever need cleaned off others need to be removed very soon or primer contamination will/may occur. I did a batch in 1984 of 20,000 rounds of 223, I used an RCBS Small Base FL die for sizing with Break Free CLP as a lube. I still have a few thousand left and they fire and have the same accuracy as when freshly loaded. To apply lube, I took about 400 cases that had the primer and crimp already removed, put them in a small bucket added a big squirt (probably less than a 1/2 teaspoon of CLP and sloshed it around for about 45-60 seconds, never cleaned it off and still without contamination. I know other Teflon lubes will contaminate powder and primers!

For mass production, trimming to length consumes too much time. I use a Redding Taper Crimp die in station 4, to avoid length discrepancy, or shoulder bulge. This was done on a RL450 press the upgrade to RL550b needed shimming the tool head to get the same quality of ammo!

Ivan
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Old 09-24-2018, 05:00 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GCF View Post
Mind if I inquire why? Just curious.

I have loaded long & short action rifle cartridges on my 550 over the years (Forster, Redding, & RCBS dies), & never noticed a problem that I could attribute to the Dillon. That said, I'm always open to considering an improved process.

Thanks in advance!
It is not a problem with the Dillon. When target shooting I like to prep my cases one at a time as I have an auto case trim for 308. The rest is a cake walk. The single stage press is rigid and I can prime and resize several 100 at a time and watch NASCAR or listen to the radio. When you start with the powder drop first on the Dillon you have less worries. It is really a me thing.
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Old 09-24-2018, 05:04 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Engineer1911 View Post
1. Remove powder measure and dump powder into container / bottle.

2. I've tumbled loaded ammo in Midway, Harbor Freight, or now a Thumler's Tumbler for 30 years to remove case lube from bottle neck cartridges. I have not had a problem yet. Add a table spoon or two of mineral spirits to corn cob or walnut media and tumble for an hour. Dry, clean, shiny ammo. Do not tumble cast lead bullet ammo -- it becomes a real mess!
Add a squirt of Nu finish polish to leave the brass shiney and to keep it from tarnishing.
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Old 10-16-2018, 03:10 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Enigma View Post
Some folks go to the extreme of sizing on a single-stage press, trimming if necessary, and cleaning primer pockets. Sizing lube is removed then, and then the cases are processed on the Dillon. Some folks feel that sizing rifle brass on the Dillon can cause a myriad of problems that I won't go into here. There's plenty on the interweb about it. I would personally be more concerned about larger rifle cases than .223, but that's just MHO.
Some have their once fired .223/5.56 professionally sized, tumbled and primed and then to their 550.
I know they just added a 650 and talk of 6.5 Creedmore with which I think they’ll do the same way and use the 650 for pistols 9mm/45ACP.
Extreme .... would be me using a .223 Rem Lee Target Handloading kit and then those rounds, made for the recently sold Steyr SL, would not chamber in the 1:12 new to us No.1V. Ran some factory at 50yds and she works. For when the Grandkids are of age for ranch/farm chores unless they need a 22-250.

Last edited by Imissedagain; 10-16-2018 at 04:59 AM.
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