550 Tips and Tricks

[benos]

Recovered after the conversion…

Flexmoney:

By popular request....

Add your tips here.

warpspeed:

keep it cleaned and lubed

George:

When I first got my 550, I used to get a very occasional primer not being in the cup (it had fallen out because it got sideways, and jumped out), or upside down. Very slow, very deliberate operation at the top of the stroke would cure it, but that's ridiculous for a progressive press like this. Besides, I wasn't slamming it in the first place.

So I put a large heavy wing nut on top of the primer tube follower with a little glue. It seems the slight extra weight pushing down on the stack of primers helps seat the little suckers square in the cup. Problem solved. Back to full speed ever since.

BTW, It was someone at Dillon that suggested I slow down. But I wasn't having any of that

Nolan:

The primer tube follower on my 1050 has two weights at the top vs one weight on both of my 550 followers?

I would be careful about dropping your extra heavy follower full length down the primer tube......KAPOW!

George:

Hey Nolan,

I am not understanding you completely here, did you add the weight yourself, like I did? Or, are you saying that Dillon weights them a little now. The primer tube follower I have had no weight to it whatsoever. I got it in 1988, so I guess that makes it a pretty early model.

I dropped the follower on the floor a couple of years ago, and the glue holding the wing nut on let go. So I have been putting the wing nut on top after putting the follower in since then because I was too lazy to bother glueing it back on. Ironically, without choosing to, I am doing it the safer way now out of personal sloth

Steve Anderson:

9 and 40 use the same shell plate, don't bother switching when you change calibers.

The roller handle makes a huge difference.

If you're not using hornady one shot on your cases, you're missing out on a smoother faster easier reloading process.

Lube the star where it rotate around the bolt. It gets gunky and slows down.

When your buddies rib you about yer old manual index machine, tell 'em you prefer acurate, quality ammo instead of "assembly line seconds." It not true, and has no basis in fact, but it'll make you feel superior for a few minutes.

Use the dillon locknuts on the Lee dies, they're thinner and work better.

Zero your digital scale before loading any match (to be chronographed) ammo. Mine can develop a 2-3 tenths variance if moved at all, and sometimes without being moved. When you shoot a sissy 9 load, 3 tenths is a lot of powder.

The pin on the "spent primer chute" is crap, and can be replaced by a bent primer tube clip that works much better.

DogmaDog:

The follower weight sounds like an excellent idea...I've "pulled the trigger on an empty chamber" a couple times with my 550.

What do you do to clear a sideways primer jam? I've had it happen a couple times, and I can't pull the case out, and I can't turn the shell plate. Do I just remove all the other cases and then operate the handle slowly to punch out the sidways primer (dangerous?), or what?

If you find you can't seat a primer without forcing it, try spinning the case around 1/2 turn. Possibly the primer pocket is not exactly centered/lined up with the primer punch, and turning it might get it closer to perfect alignment.

jhgtyre:

A .45acp casing fits snuggly atop the primer follower on my press. It adds just enough weight to keep those primers flowing.

Erik Warren:

Dillon has made at least a couple different follower rods. I've got one with a single weight and another with a double weight. (By weight I mean the larger diameter cylinder at the top of the rod.) I think one came from my SDB and the other (heavier?) from my 650. Whether the different machines are supposed to use different weight follower rods, I don't know.

Steve Anderson:

I got this from another thread, ir works great.

Cut a coil or two off the spring under the ball under the shellplate.

cuts down on powder mess.

Alan550:

That primer catch chute sucks! I replaced the pin with 1/2 of a cotter pin, and bent the ends down out of the way of its travel...........so much better. But it still spits spent primers all over the floor. They miss the chute altogether.

45 ACP & .308/30.06 shell plates interchange too.

The roller handle is a must to prevent blisters.

George:

I was dubious of the Strong Mount at first, so I just added a roller handle (it really is a "must have" thing). After I tried a friends 650 with the strong mount (it mostly just elevates the press), I was sold. It gives a much better feel when seating primers.

Erik, Thanks for the clarification on the primer follower weight thing. The one I have is definitely different from the later ones, in that it has nothing but a thin stamped nubbin at the top, and it weighs absolutely nothing on its own.

BTW, The weight (1/4" wing nut) that I use weighs about 60 grains.

scooter:

9mm, 40S&W, and 38Super all use same shell plate.

But must use correct locater pins.

Spent primer shute works fine as long as it's clean and the pivot pin is not bent.

If the primer slide is sticking, try cleaning it well. If that dosen't work, polish all four sides of the slide with some ultra fine sand paper or steel wool.

TheOtherErik:

Make sure that the primer slide is clean...It can get gunked up spent primer compound and slow its travel. I put a few drops of M-pro7 on the bearing plate and it keeps it clean and moving freely in those long loading sessions.

If your shell plate is too tight it may bind on a case or two going around and give you primer decaping problems, eventhough it moves freely with nothing in it.

Also take the edge off the tip of your decaping pin(don't make a point). This will preven primer drawback

warpspeed:

I'll second the roller handle and strong mount.

The roller handle makes it much more comfortable.

I like the SM because it puts the press at the right height for me. I think that if I were to build a bench designed to hold the reloading stuff, I might not use one.

davecutts:

I think the strong mount adds more than just height. It spreads out the footprint, and adds an amazing amount of stability to the whole outfit.

Nolan:

I added a piece of duct tape at the top of the spent primer cup to help guide the spent primers into the cup. They were hitting the arm and the spent primer cup mounting lug and boucing over the cup.

jrguar:

Take a few coils off the primer slide return spring.....this will help keep it moving even after the plate gets a little gunky......But remember to go back and clean the press when done....

jmaass:

Quote: from warpspeed on 8:36 pm on Feb. 8, 2003[br]I'll second the roller handle and strong mount.

The roller handle makes it †much more comfortable.

I had my RL550B before the roller handle was available. I found that if I put an old (thick) sock over the ball and handle, it allowed operation without wear-and-tear on my palm.

George:

"I had my RL550B before the roller handle was available. I found that if I put an old (thick) sock over the ball and handle, it allowed operation without wear-and-tear on my palm"

---------

Good one Jeff. I also had my 550 from way back. I went and bought a pair of batting gloves, used the left for shotgun flipping/loading heat insulation, and the right one for working the 550 handle. Now that I have a roller handle, I have a useless glove once again, damn :~)

Nolan:

Send your extra glove to Michael Jackson!

Hawker:

Refilling primer tube....

I've found that if I reload my primer tube on the machine before it runs empty, I have eliminated the intermittent problem I was having picking up the first primer. Seems Federal 150's sometimes like to tilt when refilling the tube and can cause a no pickup by the primer bar cup because it is hitting a crooked primer.

I will refill the tube when the buzzer goes on...leaving about 4 or 5 primers left in the tube. No more problems.

Btw, I never had a problem with WIN's, just FED's.

Hawker

benos:

I noticed the moderators pinned the 650 Tricks thread, but should this one be pinned, or should it remain open?

be

Note from moderator: Pinned threads aren't neccessarily closed; they are pinned to keep them at the top and catch the users' eyes. Some are closed, but the Tips and Tricks topics are definately open to additional input. Please share.

Edited April 2, 2003 by Erik Warren

[benos]

Da. I can revive lost threads, but I can't use the board.

[CSEMARTIN]

I don't like the Dillon bench wrench very much. One day while loading 9mm ammo, a 380 shell snuck its way into my brass stock. Needless to say, it jammed itself inside the sizing die. This had never happened to me before so I wasn't sure what to do. I decided to remove the sizing die from my toolhead. I grabbed my Dillon bench wrench to remove the nut holding the die in place. However, the bench wrench doesn't work too well when all four dies are in place- it's hard to get a good grip on the nut. I went to Sears and bought a Craftsman deep socket. Beautiful!!!!! Worked like a charm. It slides right over the die and grabs on to the nut with no problem- no clearance issues. Hope some of you out there find this useful.

[SkyRock]

I grabbed my Dillon bench wrench to remove the nut holding the die in place. Guess what? The bench wrench doesn't work too well when all four dies are in place- it's hard to get a good grib on the nut. I went to Sears and bought a Craftsman deep socket. Beautiful!!!!! Worked like a charm. It slides right over the die and grabs on to the nut with no problem- no clearance issues. Hope some of you out there find this useful.

Dittos on the Dillon bench wretched wrench. I also made an "emergency" trip to Sears a couple of years ago. Works like a charm!

Good investment for anyone with a 550, and I assume a 650, too.

[Flexmoney]

Dillon's wrench has proved useless to me on the 650.

[Run n Gun]

It’s of absolutely NO USE on a SDB either.

Ed

[Bronson7]

Dillon's new 1" wrench works great providing you are using their 1" locknuts on your dies.

Bronson7

[racine]

I've read this thread through and through to find some way to figure out why my 45 ACP primers are being loaded at a slight angle. Dillon has sent me a new primer punch (2nd) which I installed but it still prevents me from getting the deep seating I see with my 40sw. I've tightened my shell plate till it just gets real slow. and clean in, around and under the primer punch area. I usually push the primer in with a jab on the forward motion (550) but since I just bought 5000 Federal primers I will be a little more careful about pushing too hard. I've gone so far as to clean each and every one of 1000 primer pockets which I've never done for a pistol but I'm still getting primers that are seated flush on one side and up a tad on the opposite side. IF ANYONE CAN OFFER A BIT OF ADVICE IT WOULD VERY SURELY BE APPRECIATED AS THIS PROBLEM HAS PLAGUED ME FOR THE LAST 7 MON. AND I'VE BASICALLY STOPPED USING MY 2 45 ACP PISTOLS IN COMPETITION. Thanks in advance...

Racine

[Pair a Para]

I suddenly started having a problem with my primer bar not fully returning. I knew the primer slide was clean as I had just switched from Sm. primers to the Lg. and had done a thorough cleaning. The problem turned out to be very slight corrosion at the pivot point of the operating rod where it is seated in the operating rod bracket. I pulled the rod out and sanded it a bit with some Scotchbrite, put a drop of oil on the rod and re-inserted it. Problem solved

[lynn jones]

racine,

i had the same problem, i moved the 550 from on location to another (not the point). when i moved the loader, i broke it way down cleaning every thing, shell plate, primer assembly, etc. this some how solved my problem.

lynn jones

[Sleuth]

Since about 30% of my primer hit the floor, I added a small shield of folded aluminum foil to the top of the primer catcher, covering the arm & mount. Works, I'm down to 1% on the floor.

[John Heiter]

I was having problems with the spent primer chute sticking open when it was supposed to be closed allowing primers to fall straight through. I changed the pivot pin to a thinner straight pin and added a small refrigerator magnet (the size of a peppermint) to the back side of the chute for added weight. Seems to work well.

[Bronson7]

Racine, let me guess. Would this be Winchester brass? I've had the same problem with Winchester brass in 45 ACP. Primers seat fine in RP, Hornady and CZ. I spoke to Dillon about this and they suggested I re-form the pockets. Considering the cost of the tool, I'll just scrap the Win brass. Some folks have no problem with it. I did notice something strange though. These Win cases were from Winchester white box factory ammo that I previously fired. The factory installed primers definitely looked "flattened" to me. Maybe even Winchester had a hard time seating primers in this brass. As an aside remark, Im also using Win Primers but prefer Federals; I just can't find them in my neck of the woods. Of course this post is moot if you're using some other brass.

Bronson7

[B.J. Norris]

Found out today that if you spray some of your One Shot case lube on the shellplate ram and primer slide, it'll make things go ALOT smoother.

[stingerjg]

This is for everyone that has a strongmount on your 550. This would be a poor mans bullet tray. Use the original 'finished bullet ramp' and cut off the ramp and use the bullet tray hang off the left hand side of the strong mount. sorry this is kind of hard to explain. just look at the pics

[bonnerg]

This applies to all Dillon primer slides, not just 550: The slide should be kept clean (alcohol wipes from the drug store work great) and should never be oiled or greased. But the slide will tend to get sticky through use. Whenever I change over from the small to the large primer system, I take everything apart and clean it well with the alcohol wipes, then lightly coat all the sliding surfaces with lock lubricant. This stuff comes in either aerosol or liquid form and contains nothing but alcohol and graphite. The alcohol quickly evaporates and leave a fine layer of graphite on all the surfaces. It will run through hundreds of primers before it needs cleaning again.

[OGN]

I went over both my 550B primer slides with #0000 steel wool to remove what looked like oxidation and then using a dab of Super Moly bore Cream on a cloth,worked it into/onto the bearing surfaces. Let it dry and then buffed. Close to 800 rds later haven't had a single primer glitch!

OGN

[AGYoung]

Spoke to Dillon about the used primer chute-sticking problem. They suggested after a thorough cleaning of the mating surfaces, replacing the cotter pin with an expensive high tech formed stainless steel paper holding devise, bent to a 90 degree angle and inserted in the hinge hole. If you can’t find one, use a large bent paperclip instead.

[revchuck]

If, while changing shell plates, you drop the ball bearing down the ratzelfrazzin' hole, a 1911 recoil spring is the exact right size to fit in the hole, capture the ball bearing, and pull it back out. How do I know this? Trust me, I know this.

[bberkley]

I followed Steve Anderson's advice and lubed the star bolt with some slide glide. Wished I had done that a couple of years ago. I also used a metallic ink sharpie to make index marks on the bolt head to see if it was unscrewing itself from the torque (which it used to do before slide-gliding the bolt).

[Sterling White]

Here's a bit of advise that saves time. Connect a cut-to-length peice of 2" PVC (white plumbers pipe) to the bench in place of the shell drop box. Use any needed elbows or 45 degree angles so the loaded shell can make the needed turns before landing in an ammo can strategically place out of the way and on the floor. The loaded round when kik'd out of the last position will run its way down the pipe to the can and you will not have to futz with the little blue box. $2.50 fix

[CSEMARTIN]

revchuck,

Thanks for the trick on retrieving the ball bearing. I dropped one down the 'hole' a couple of years ago. It's still there peeking up at me when I take everything down for cleaning. I'll give your idea a try. It sounds a lot easier than unbolting the whole machine and tipping it upside down. The spare parts kit sure did come in handy.

Also, I had another tip to add. My neighbor suggested using a little graphite lubricant between the shell plate and machine. It works great.

Chris

[BigSlick]

.

Edited December 27, 2005 by BigSlick

[Vlad]

When your primers dont drop or drop sideways like they did for me, try cleaning the primer magazine. I ran a patch through it and GREEN crud came out. What the hell? I never put anything green in there!! I assume that copper residue danced with oxygen in there.

[diehli]

When your primers dont drop or drop sideways like they did for me, try cleaning the primer magazine. I ran a patch through it and GREEN crud came out. What the hell? I never put anything green in there!! I assume that copper residue danced with oxygen in there.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Look at the primer compound... in WSR primers it's green.