njl

They're big metal rubber bottomed feet. With the weight of the cabinets and table top, I really don't think it's going to be necessary to anchor the bench to the wall. This sucker is heavy. Maybe I'll bring it up to about an inch from the edge. I'm planning to drill either tonight or tomorrow.

I knew someone would chime in with the "leave room for other presses" line. I sort of already have a second press and have possibly been offered a third. I'm not sure if I'll ever mount more than one though. Even if I do, the strong mount isn't that hard to unbolt and set aside with the 550 on it...so I could conceivably use the center spot for multiple presses. Since my plan is to load sitting, I think I'm going to be more comfortable centered so my legs have a place to go and I have access to the drawers without moving. BTW, these drawers came with dividers for the top ones that appear to be perfectly sized to hold a tool head with dies and caliber conversion box. I'm really just wondering if there are advantages or disadvantages to having the machine right on the edge or as far back as handle clearance allows?

My quest for a bench / bench design has ended. I found one of these at a discount I couldn't pass up. It's basically 2 heavy file cabinets with a 6' x 20" x 1.5" maple top. I plan to mount my press in the center. Other than mounting it close enough to the edge that the handle shaft doesn't hit the edge of the table, are there general recommendations and reasons for mounting it closer or further from the edge? I'm thinking about mounting it with the front edge of the strong mount 2" from the table edge. That gives me about 0.40" of clearance between the table edge and handle shaft when the shaft is all the way down. I just don't want to regret the location later and end up having to drill extra holes in the table.

Especially if shooting NATO calibers, wouldn't it make sense to at least separate the brass that might need primer pocket crimps removed?

I just got my RL550B, but I haven't quite figured out where I'm setting it up. The plan is to setup in a spare room, so the bench has to pass "wife approval" (i.e. not look rough like a 2x4 basics kit or crappy like I threw it together out of 2x6's and ply wood). I want to keep it reasonably small, but not cramped, and it's obviously got to be sturdy and heavy enough to stay put while operating the press. I stopped by WoodYou the other day, and saw one of these http://www.woodyou.com/products.php?pid=49...amp;detail=true The shelves look a little flimsy (I could maybe beef them up if necessary), but the legs are 4x4s and the table top is solid wood, around 1" thick. The height looks as if it might work with the strong mount and me sitting on a counter height stool. I'd probably end up hanging some sort of shelves on the wall behind it for additional storage space. Do you think it would work?

I'm about to order a RL550b, and am trying to decide what to use for dies (whether to order Dillon dies with it or get others elsewhere). From what I've read, people seem to really like Lee's factory crimp die. What are the up/down-sides to Dillon vs Lee for the following (to be used in the 550); 9mm (Glocks) .45acp (1911) .30 carbine (for an M1 carbine) .223 (for a 5.56mm chambered AR)

I emailed this question to Dillon support and actually never heard back from them. If I wanted to mount a 550b on a strong mount inside a cabinet (so it can be hidden behind doors when not in use), how tall/deep/wide a space in the cabinet do I need to be able to properly operate and adjust the machine? My main concern is the height.

ok...so it sounds like the cover is not going to keep the kids away. I need to either figure out how to fit this desk in the spare bedroom or go much smaller and maybe do this in a small walk-in closet with a locking door...and at the very least do some kind of floor covering for the carpet in the area. Perhaps the interlocking high density foam squares, assuming they won't cause stability problems for the bench. Chirpy, I think what you're talking about is a chair mat...mostly used to keep rolling desk chairs from eating carpet. I'm not sure one of those would be big enough.

I'm considering getting into reloading with a Dillon 550, most likely with strong mount. One of the things I'm trying to figure out is where to setup. I've got a large old sturdy desk I think would be a suitable platform, but it's too big to fit (with other existing furniture) in any of our lockable rooms. I've got small curious kids in the house, and wonder how well the Dillon 550 cover "seals up" the press, particularly from small curious hands? If it's not up to the task, I probably need to look for a smaller table/reloading bench and put it in a room I can be sure the kids won't get into. Also, how messy does the press area get? If I setup in a carpeted room, am I going to end up getting fine powder dust in the carpet (or need to do something about covering the carpet in the area)? I really don't like the idea of setting up in the garage (no basements around here) as it gets awfully hot out there.