jbailey

I must put in 2cnts worth in favor of the Hornady LnL AP. I've had one for a few years and really like the bushing system they use for mounting the dies. Comparing the costs, at least when I bought mine, the Hornady was a good bit less expensive than Dillon once I had all the "goodies" to get under way. The LnL is actually better compared to the Dillon RL650 since the LnL is a true progressive. This fact makes it an even better value.

Some say that a progressive press such as the LnL introduces unnecessary complexity if you need to rotate the shell plate backward for some reason (usually talking about the 550 Dillon which has manual advance). I can't think of how to explain it, but you can move the shell plate backward if necessary, especially if you realize the need before the plate has moved much. Once I got used to it, the auto indexing was great, in fact I would almost say it was a safety feature, making a double charge very unlikely. I set muy Hornady up using a Lee Pro Auto-Disk measure and Lee dies mounting the Auto Disk on the powder through expander. I can't imagine a much better setup for loading pistol and small/medium volume rifle rounds. I've also had occasion to deal with Hornady customer svc. and they were very accomodating and helpful.

I do realize that Big Blue also has utterly reliable equipment and great customer svc. If I had bought a Dillon to start with, I'd probably be just as happy.

[IMG][/IMG]

Good luck and good shooting,

Jim

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ozshadow

The Kempf Lee Classic Turret kit is a very, very good deal.

I have a 550b, but for that many calibers it would hurt. The 550 will cost you about $100 per caliber and that is using the Lee 4pcs Carbide dies. $130 per caliber if using Dillons.

Ghuqu2

I'm glad you gave me the cost per caliber conversion on the Dillon. Anyone have the numbers on the LNL ap?

jbailey did you have do do anything special to use the Lee Pro Auto-Disk measure on the LNL? I've heard you can't use the Lee Factory Crimp dies on the LNL, is that true? What other items (other than the case feeder) does the LNL need to run at its best?

Dillon owners, can you use the full Lee Deluxe Die set in a 550b? Are other accessories necessary make loading easy (other than the auto case feeder)?

One last question for any progressive owners:
Why is the warranty comments so important? I know it's important when something breaks or you need service help, but do progressives wear parts, or breakdown that much? I don't hear this from the single stage or turret press owners, I just don't want to spend $$$ and regret it.

Thanks for all the great feedback.

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jbailey

jbailey did you have do do anything special to use the Lee Pro Auto-Disk measure on the LNL?

Sorry, I should have commented on that. If you use the Lee Deluxe
4-die pistol set, it comes with the powder through expander die. The Pro Auto Disk measure mounts directly to it, and is activated when a shell casing is raised into the die, simultaneously belling the case and delivering the powder charge, a remarkably simple and economical solution. If you like/use other brands of dies, you may need the Lee extension for mounting the measure higher, so it will clear taller dies. Regardless whose dies you use, you will need the powder through expander die from Lee. Just FYI, Dillon pays/paid a royalty to Lee because Dillon's powder measure uses the same basic design.


I've heard you can't use the Lee Factory Crimp dies on the LNL, is that true? What other items (other than the case feeder) does the LNL need to run at its best?

Oh yes, I have a Lee FCD for every pistol cal. and .223 as well. It will repair an otherwise 'out of spec' round so that it will cycle and chamber. The problem comes when you want to use it in the 5th station. Used there, the bottom of the die hits the ejection wire. You can bend/file the wire to fix this, but I don't even use the 5th station, so I don't have this issue. I may be a bit anal, but I gauge every round after it is loaded; and even tho' I am careful, there are a small percentage of rounds that won't gauge. At the end of the reloading session, I replace the taper crimp die with the FCD (crimping is done in the 4th sta.). This is just a simple turn of the LnL bushing to remove the taper crimp die and replace it with the FCD, run the offending rounds through it and done. I don't have a case feeder, so I can't comment - but I can keep up with my ammo consumption without it, including USPSA match once in a while.

As far a cost per caliber change, all you really need is the bushings to mount the dies in, and the proper shell plate. I load mostly 9mm, .38/.357, and .45Auto with my LnL. For those 3 cal., I need:

15 bushings @ 3 for $12.50 = $62.50
3 die sets @ $33.00 ea = $99.00
3 shell plates @ $26.00 ea = $78.00
2 taper crimp dies @ 22.00 ea =$44.00
Total =$271.00/3= $90.33 per cal.

Of course the plates are good for many more than one cal. I can also load .308, .30/06, .223 and others with the 3 plates I have.

One last question for any progressive owners:
Why is the warranty comments so important? I know it's important when something breaks or you need service help, but do progressives wear parts, or breakdown that much? I don't hear this from the single stage or turret press owners, I just don't want to spend $$$ and regret it.

Customer service becomes very important way down the road and you try to get a small part only to find that the item you bought has been redesigned and parts are no longer available. My Hornady is an old one, and I can still get anything I need - for instance, Hornady had upgraded and redesigned the primer feed mechanism. Would it fit my old press?? "Why, yes sir", replied the voice on the other end of the line. Thinking about a customer's future needs is REAL customer service. Both Dillon and Hornady are known for this.

Hope this helps,

Jim

Thanks for all the great feedback.[/quote]

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Reborn

There is a used Dillon 550B on this forum.

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ozshadow

On the Lee 4pcs die sets with a 550, if you are using the Dillon powder measure, you just leave the Lee expansion die out and use the Dillon powder die plus caliber funnel. The rest of the dies work fine, just a tad slower on insertions.

cracker

I 2nd the LnL. I think it is less expensive and just as good. Hornady has great customer service. I have 2 ProJectors that are not LnL and I love them. They are easy to setup and I have never had a problem with them in 25+ years of use. You can't go wrong with Dillon or Hornady, just depends on which one you like more and your overall cost. Below is a link for load costs.



http://handloads.com/calc/loadingCosts.aspth

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DirtDawg

Buy Dillon, and be done!

Had some other presses-none were junk-but some were close.

My .02

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houdini

buy a dillon it is worth the money, I have a 550 for about 15 years.

nuparadigm

Get the Dillon ! If for no other reason than their no BS guarantee.

I'm totally satisfied with my Dillon machines and with the factory support on the rare time that one of them needs a part.

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