Progressive Press Choices ?

[imakmst]

I went from a Lee single stage to a Hornady single stage and then to a Hornady LnL. Still have both Hornadys. The LnL is great, works for everything I do. Can load pistol rounds in no time, the ease of use and accuracy is always there. (.45 acp. .38/.357)

 

[sureshotbob]

I have a Hornady Pro-jector, the "grandfather" of the Lock-n-load AP. It is about 40 years old, and just keeps on running. Yes, it needs periodic adjustment, but all mechanical items will. It is built like a tank, but with the finesse of a Swiss watch. Hornady has always been very helpful with support on the few occasions I have needed it. The new Hornady presses feature a lot of improvements, and I have been tempted to get one, but my old one is still working like gangbusters. I'll probably get one sometime, but keep my old faithful as a dedicated press for a single caliber, probably 45 ACP. The Hornady progressive is probably the best bang for the buck available.

I'm like 310pilot I have the older Projector press by Hornady that I have done a few upgrades such as if no case no powder will drop and a powder checker . I've never had issues with changing out dies but Hornady does sell Lock and Load bushings.

I load .45 Colt,.45 ACP, .44 MAG. , .41 MAG., .357 MAG. .38 Spec. and .9mm Luger and had very few problems over the years. Two friends have Lock and Load presses and one did have a minor problem with the primer feed but Hornady sent him a new part for free and resolved his issue.

 

[Baltimoreed11754]

I have 2 Dillon 550b’s and 2 Lyman T-2 turret presses. Like them both. With my mods to the Lymans I actually like them better. One Dillon is strictly .45acp/ar. One Lyman is .45 colt. You can choose to either move the work to the tool or move the tool to the work. Either way works.

 

[H Richard]

I load on a Dillon 550 that I have had since 183. I was into competition for many years and no way to tell how many thousands of rounds have been loaded. It us usually a 10 minute change over for a different caliber. Over the nearly 40 years I have been using this Dillon there have only been 3 or 4 breakdowns, where a part just wore out or cracked. One phone call and I had the replacement part in just a day or two and always no charge.

I do usually all my load development on an old (? 1950's) Texan turret loader, and all my long range match ammo one round at a time on the Texan.

 

[johngalt]

The first progressive press I bought and the only one I have (lol) is a RCBS 4X4 from like 1985. You can't find shell plates for it and it has several little issues. It's served me well but suffice is to say it's time to move on.

Does anybody have any experience with the Hornady loc and load ? I'm not a super high volume reloader so I don't need blazing speed. And I don't want to pump major money in all the gadgets and gizmos either.

Anybody have any suggestions?

Thnaks

I've been using the Hornady LNL-AP since around 2008, I like it a lot. I still think I made a good choice.

 

[SMSgt]

Still loading everything on my Herter's Model 3 SS press. It's kind of worn, and an upgrade may be in the future. I'll never have a need for a progressive as my quantities needed do not warrant one.

 

[Paul in Nevada]

Another vote for Dillon. Sounds like the RL550C would fit your needs. I have no strong opinion on the LnL one way or the other. I was able to tinker with one in the store, then picked the XL750 instead, which is more press than I need.
Then again, the Lee Classic Cast has a lot going for it. I will just say the automatic primer and powder systems are junk and keep it from being the "almost a progressive" press it could be.

 

[dave1918a2]

I bought a Hornaday LNL when they first came out. Had a spring that retained the cases in the shellplate. PITA . Had several adjustment problems that kept changing. Sold it and bought a Dillon and haven't looked back. I use a RCBS Rock Chucker for all My rifle rounds.

 

[rockquarry]

I'm not familiar with Lee presses nowadays. Is the Classic Cast the same as the Lee turret? If not, what about the Lee turret? I'd guess these are decent presses for the price, but I've had no experience with one.

 

[tominboise]

I'm not familiar with Lee presses nowadays. Is the Classic Cast the same as the Lee turret? If not, what about the Lee turret? I'd guess these are decent presses for the price, but I've had no experience with one.

I have the Lee Classic Cast Turret press as my main "single stage press". I do not use it in semi progressive mode, but rather batch operations (resize all and bell all, prime, charge, seat and crimp. The press is well built and seems like it will last a long time, as it's made from steel and cast iron as opposed to aluminum. The turrets are aluminum and are 4 hole.

The joyous thing about the Lee turret press is the ability to set all your dies up once and then change in a second to another cartridge. That is the main reason I bought it, as I got tired of screwing dies in and out of my RCBS Jr press after 30 years of doing it.

High volume handgun cartridges I load on my RL550. Everything else goes through the Lee.

 

[rockquarry]

I have the Lee Classic Cast Turret press as my main "single stage press". I do not use it in semi progressive mode, but rather batch operations (resize all and bell all, prime, charge, seat and crimp. The press is well built and seems like it will last a long time, as it's made from steel and cast iron as opposed to aluminum. The turrets are aluminum and are 4 hole.

The joyous thing about the Lee turret press is the ability to set all your dies up once and then change in a second to another cartridge. That is the main reason I bought it, as I got tired of screwing dies in and out of my RCBS Jr press after 30 years of doing it.

High volume handgun cartridges I load on my RL550. Everything else goes through the Lee.

The explanation is appreciated. I don't need another press, but others may have interest in the Lee turret press. If it works well, it would likely be a good tool unless you're loading a very large number of cartridges.

 

[SweetMK]

I have a Remington 700 Sendero in 300Win Mag,,.
It is very accurate!!

BUT,, I found a slightly different use for the Dillon 550B.

If I load the ammo for the 300 Remington on the Dillon, the gun shoots slightly more accurate.

My guess is that the loader will load 50 rounds so fast, that all of the loading characteristics are virtually identical.

If I load the same ammo on a single stage press, it takes much longer.
Some of the steps in reloading may even occur on different days.
So, I feel there is some truth to my belief that loading all the ammo for the 300 in an hour or two results in more accurate ammo, compared to loading the same ammo over a 3 day period.

I tried this on a Remington 7mm-08 Varmint Special.
That gun did not respond similarly to the progressive press, BUT, I am convinced that I have never found the right load for the 7mm-08.

 

[33jayman]

I like Dillon presses. I have tried a Square Deal and I believe that to be best for one caliber. I have a 550 and a 650XL. When I was shooting SASS matches along with my wife we averaged 5000-8000 rounds a year of .38 Special. We started with the 550B and that was kind of like a second career loading up that many rounds per year. Then we upgraded to the 650XL with everything but a bullet feeder. If your primer tubes were pre loaded, your powder dispenser full and your case feeder topped off you could easily do 600 rounds an hour. We only loaded .38 Special on the 650XL.

I did load .32H&R, .38 Special, .357 Magnum, .45 ACP, .44 Russian, .44 Special, .44 Magnum & .45 LC on my 550. If you have tool heads for each caliber that are all set up it is really easy to jump from one caliber to the next on the 550. The only thing that takes a few minutes is switching from small to large primer.

If I had to pick just one press to keep, it would definately be the 550 but if I only reloaded one caliber then the 650XL would be my choice.

Good luck with your search.

Jayman

 

[9mmPatriot]

I really like my Lee Loadmaster, sadly Lee quit making them. I was going to buy another.

 

[smoothshooter]

The first progressive press I bought and the only one I have (lol) is a RCBS 4X4 from like 1985. You can't find shell plates for it and it has several little issues. It's served me well but suffice is to say it's time to move on.

Does anybody have any experience with the Hornady loc and load ? I'm not a super high volume reloader so I don't need blazing speed. And I don't want to pump major money in all the gadgets and gizmos either.

Anybody have any suggestions?

Thnaks

Go with Dillon and don’t look back.
Lots of progressive presses coming up for sale since high cost and low availability of components have greatly reduced the need for high-volume ammo production.

 

[Green Frog]

I own two progressive presses, an original Star Progressive (38 Spl only) and the Dillon 550 my late father built by “upgrading” his very early 450. I load on everything from 310 tools up through single stage presses like Dad’s old RCBS Jr to a venerable Lyman All American turret.
Unfortunately I no longer get to shoot ammo by the thousands (or even hundreds) so I tend to stay away from the progressives, but if I get to shoot a bunch of 38s the Star will get the nod, and the other most likely round, the 32 H&R, I’ll use Dad’s Dillon. In the unlikely event I decide to load a bunch of 44s or 45s, I’ll reconvert the Dillon as needed.
Froggie

 

[smoothshooter]

I've had four progressives in the last twenty-five years and finally discovered I never really needed any of them, but I wanted them. I never used them for rifle ammo, even .223, and probably shoot only around 10,000 rounds of handgun ammo a year. Simple without gadgetry and slow, my 1960s Texan Turret press that I've used for over forty years works fine for my needs.

ONLY 10,000 rounds per year???
WOW!

 

[rockquarry]

I own two progressive presses, an original Star Progressive (38 Spl only) and the Dillon 550 my late father built by “upgrading” his very early 450. I load on everything from 310 tools up through single stage presses like Dad’s old RCBS Jr to a venerable Lyman All American turret.
Unfortunately I no longer get to shoot ammo by the thousands (or even hundreds) so I tend to stay away from the progressives, but if I get to shoot a bunch of 38s the Star will get the nod, and the other most likely round, the 32 H&R, I’ll use Dad’s Dillon. In the unlikely event I decide to load a bunch of 44s or 45s, I’ll reconvert the Dillon as needed.
Froggie

I've never had a Dillon, but if I loaded many rounds of handgun ammo, that's probably what I would buy. I've had two Stars and, as most of us know, the original Dillon design was based on the Star. To be competitive in the market, the Dillon was not made of machined steel and aluminum parts like the Star, but I'd guess the Dillon works about as well as the Star. I've not had that much experience with progressive machines, but the Star had the best priming system I've seen. It was not a weak point like it is on some tools. Maybe Dillon's priming is just as good.

 

[rockquarry]

ONLY 10,000 rounds per year???
WOW!

According to the claims of many, 10,000 rounds of handgun ammo isn't very much. I really don't know about the number of rifle rounds I load annually. If I'm doing a lot of load development, maybe 3,000 - 4,000 rounds. With only moderate load development, probably half that. I've been handloading since 1965 and load development has always been the most intriguing and enjoyable aspect of the hobby. However, along the way, I've found out about barrel life; quite a few of mine have been rebarreled.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

Go with Dillon and don’t look back.
Lots of progressive presses coming up for sale since high cost and low availability of components have greatly reduced the need for high-volume ammo production.

My best friend bought a used Dillon 450 several years back, he mentioned it here in the reloading forum. In 24 hours, he got an e-mail from Dillon Letting him know he was under warranty no matter that he bought it used. He upgraded to the self-primer and case mouth activated powder drop and has been making several thousand rounds a year. He manually changes dies every time.

Ivan