Should I buy a Dillion Square Deal Press ?

First let's say that I don't have an interest in loading rifle cartridges.
I will be loading 45ACP, 9mm, and 44 mag, and possibly 38 spl pistol cartridges. I would like to heard from SD users as to the pro's and con's of these machines.
I have loaded on a CH auto Champ for about 30 yrs now, but it is a real pain to change over to a different caliber, so I was thinking of retiring it to 38spl/357 mag only, and using the SD for the other three calibers.
What is your opinion, assuming you have actually used a Dillion SD ?

Hey retired,

I have both, the square deal B and the 550. They are both good. The Square Deal is auto indexing and the 550 is not. I have found that I like to manual indexing better. When a case is crushed, a primer doesn't seat, et al., it is easier for me to pull the pin and removed the problem where it happened rather than the next stage. Ford vs. Chevy? They both get you down the road. If you are absolutely positive you will never need to load rifle go with the Square Deal and don't look back. They are both great presses and both share the Dillion no BS warranty.

Regards

Bill

I have a SD bought when not sure gave 129.00 new in the box about 1980
I think not real sure loaded 1000,s 38spl and 45acp and 45colt then the boss broke on one side of the frame I called dillon they said send it in they would fix it I ask should I just send broken frame the said on hole machine back so they could make sure every thing was working right, got it back 2 week later I think the only think I got back on the orginal was the used primer bucket the rest all new ready for another 30 years or so.

I have 2 Dillon SDB, and die sets (mounted on change kits) for .38, .380, 9mm, .40, .45. To be practical, you have to buy the change kits so you can change dies en bloc with adjustments intact. Say 10 minutes to change calibers, plus I take the opportunity to clean for another 10 minutes. Also as a practical matter, I have an additional primer assembly set up for large primers, so I can change the entire primer assembly and not fiddle with the set screws to switch an assembly between small and large primer carriers. Basically I don't have to adjust anything except the powder measure, unless I switch to a different bullet, then I adjust seating die.
I shoot a lot of ammo in practice and competition, and have essentially worn out one of the SDB presses, but because DIllon gives me the necessary parts to maintain the press, it works like new. I even wore out the main wave bearings and the brass wheel that operates the primer carrier, but they sent me new parts free. It really is a "no BS" guarantee.

The SDB loads pistol ammunition that is the equal of any loader, single stage or progressive. It does not load rifle ammo. The dies are proprietary to the SDB (won't take standard dies) and they are very good dies, especially suited to progressive loading. If using standard dies is important to you, move up to the 650. Had I known I would be loading tens of thousands of rounds a year, I would have just bought a 650 to start with: the 650 is faster, the change kits are a little cheaper and easier, and it uses component feeders. The difference is not worth switching to me since I already have the SDBs. More like good and better, not anything really wrong with either.

I can run 100 cartridges in 12 minutes, but by the time you add in reloading the primer feeder, checking the powder hopper and generally getting bullets and brass in position, I can run about 300 cartridges an hour, and how many hours you can run depends on you. I can run 1000 in one day, but I don't usually load that long.

I'm familiar with tools and can follow directiions OK, and I find it simple to take an SDB apart, even stripping it all the way down for infrequent major maintenance and parts replacement. They stay mounted to the bench, and require only a box wrench and 4 allen wrenches to maintain. Cleaning out the primer dust from the used primers is the most frequent task, and is convneient to do when changing calibers.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask.

OKFC05 gave good info. I use the my SDB to reload in batches. I use my Lee Classic Turret to work up loads. The SDB is perfect for cartridges like .45acp, but has borderline leverage for a large case like the 44mag (I load both on mine). A caliber conversion including toolhead is about $130 with shipping and is pretty simple to swap out.

Pro's and Con's:

• Pro - it has a very high production rate. Only machines with a case feeder can beat it.
• Pro - it is much less likely to create the conditions for a double-charge or squib than a non-indexing press.
• Pro - Dillon customer service is top-notch and the press has been in use a long time and is very trouble free.
• Pro - Doesn't take up much space on a bench.
• Con - You'll want to use a spray on lube with 44 mag as there isn't quite enough ram leverage to resize without grunting.
• Con - The primer feed system requires that the press temperature be at least 60*F for the plastic lips to be flexible and feed primers consistently.
• Con - The large powder bar tops out at about 24 grains of H110 or LilGun.

The SDB pays for itself quickly if you start shooting a lot and the seemingly high cost for caliber conversions becomes moot.

I have 3 Square Deal B presses. 2 are out at children's houses. If you are just going to load pistol cartridges, and you need a lot of ammo, there is no better press for the money. There are better presses BUT, not for the same amount of money.

Two things:

#1: You can save money by using the same tool head. Here is how to do it:


Simply write down the measurements and you can go right back there in a matter of seconds. The powder die is the biggest pain to try to adjust while running. This eliminates that problem and makes setup a breeze.

#2: Get an extra primer feed system so you can switch back and forth quickly. Leave one set up for large and the other set up for small. All you have to do then is remove 3 Allen screws and put the other size in. Very quick and simple.


As for loading the 44Mag on the Square Deal B, I haven't had any problems with how the press works BUT, the ammo didn't work too well in my Marlin 1894 because of the dies. I needed a large lead bullet to make the lever gun work to its full potential and the Dillon dies "squished" them down to the point they didn't obturate like they should. Now I load them on an RL450B (Converted to an RL550 kind of) and seat and crimp in two steps with regular dies. Now all the world is right with that gun and my cast boolits! AAAHHHHHHH!

I have the RL450B, the one Square Deal B, 2 XL650s and a Lee Classic Cast Turret press. Of them all, for handgun ammo, I think that I like the Square Deal B as good as the rest.

Just me though.

p.s. The primer dust can be eliminated too with the use of an 1/8" NPT tap, a hose barb and a small section of clear plastic tube.

Like this:





Then the primers fall into a 3lb coffee can and I never have to touch them.



Then, if you can get your significant other to be your case feeder, you can really crank out the ammo!

My wife volunteered for awhile. One finger pinch could be forgiven and forgotten. The problem was, there were more than that in too rapid of succession!

Ditto to all above......I have 2 that I have used for nearly 20 years. One setup for small primers/one setup for large. I use the complete toolhead setups for 9mm/40/.38spl/357/44spl/44mag/45acp/45LC. I like auto index and wouldn't own a progressive without it.
Only problem I ever had was a helicoil came out of the press body on the die plate hold down bolt. Sent to Dillon and they QUICKLY sent it back with all new parts. Their NO BS warranty is a fact.

It's a good progressive press, but what kept me from buying one & getting the 550B instead was the Dillon only dies & no rifle & any caliber not on the Dillon list. One never knows where their shooting & reloading will take them. You can get one, & then always buy something, keep it for those calibers, & then get something that is more versitile like the 550B or LNL. IF I was buying today, I would still look hard @ a 550B, auto indexing is way over rated, or the LNL. The LNL will work better w/ a case feeder, but if I was even thinking of that kind of volume, I would pony up for the 650. Very few shooters need the volume or complexity of a 5650 w/ case feeder, but some just like to have the best toys made.

I really like the SDb's....I have four of them mounted to a turret vise so that I can use any one at anytime. They are set up in 9mm, 38, 40 and 45 currently.

One of my buddies showed me his SDB and I thought that it was the best press ever.

They are extremely easy to work on/fix, work like a champ, put out very good accurate ammunition, I think that the auto-indexing is a huge help in squib or double loads, it's really tough to do either. Consistent powder measure too.

Con is that the area/window to work in is on the small side and if you have very large hands, you may have a few small issues with that. I solved those issues by using a pair of tweezers for the really tight spot, such as the primer area for instance. The only other issue I have run across is that if the case being loaded is tall,it's hard to see inside the case as the top of the loader is in the way....remember it's a small area.

As stated, perhaps the 650 might be a better option, but not for me, I am absolutely sold on the SDB machines.

Like others have stated, I have two Dillon SDB's. One set up for large pistol and the other for small.
I've been loading 44 mag on the first one I bought for 20 years or so and it has never given me any problem, also load 45 Colt on it, again with no problem.
If I were you I would not hesitate in buying a SDB. I would also recommend the extra tool heads which will keep your adjustments and save time when changing calibers.

Well, hate to sound like a broken record, but I love my Square Deal. Bought it back in 1987 and load 9mm, ,38 Special, .44 Special, .45 ACP and .45 Colt. It's run without major issues, but primer feeding gets to be an issue if the little plastic thingy (technical term... ) on the primer feed tube gets messed up. I keep a bunch on hand for quick replacement. I have extra tool heads so it's pretty quick to change calibers.