dcmdon

Yeah, but that will only tell me what the effort is without the kit. I'll still have no idea what the effort is with the kit. i.e. I won't know until I spend $80. Which is what I'm trying to avoid.

Great advice. Thats not just an idea. Its the SOLUTION. I had the same exact problem and simply called Dillon. The nice genteman told me exactly what to do and in about 3 minutes I had the problem solved. The solution is very simple. Cut exactly 1 turn off the spring that works the ball against the detent. Simple, successful. Total time invested about 10 minutes with the phone call and the work. Not that you all aren't nice and smart but you paid for that excellent customer service, use it. Don

Hi all, I've had an XL 650 for a few months now. I've had great results using it to load all calibers that used small pistol primers. Now I'm going to change out the primer parts to use large primers. I just saw a Priming System Quick Change kit listed for about $80. Is this kit worth it? Is it that much of a hassle to change out the individual parts? Is it that much simpler to change out the whole assembly with the quick change kit? Any and all input on how difficult or easy it is to change the primer system over is greatly appreciated. Don

Rigger, Actually I couldn't get the spring. The piece that it moves has a long tail that extends far into the spring. I didn't really try very hard because it is supposed to be easy. So I figured I'm missing something. Care to elaborate? What did I do wrong.

Thanks guys. I'll give this a try tonight.

Somebody used a piece of wire bent into a U shape that stopped the primer feed. Or was it the case feed. I really don't want to start removing parts of the press to stop the primer feed. There has to be some quick, tool-less, easy way to disable the primer feed. to stop the primer feed: remove the black angled thingy:D from the top front of the frame. it just takes an allen wrench. its the part that the primer advance arm hits when you raise the press. as for the case feed, the easiest way is to just turn off the case feeder and empty the case holder tube hope that made sense:blink:

Hi all, I finally started making ammo with my 650 last night. I assembled some 9mm per the specs in my reloading manual and then found I needed to crimp it a bit more. I needed to run every round through the crimping die only. Before I could do that, I first had to empty the case tube and primer feed system. Kindof a pain. Is there any way to temporarily stop the automatic feeding of primers or cases?? I seem to remember somebody had a way to stop the primer feed. Thanks, Don

Thanks. This is exactly what I was trying to understand. Summary: Progressive dies because of their larger chamfer leave a larger area unsized. But this is generally not a problem because the area in question doesn't grow much anyway since its supported by the web between the sidewall and the base. Also, since a 9mm shell is tapered, a push through die is not a solution. (By the way, this was news to me. I didn't know 9mm was tapered) By the way, I shoot most of my 9mm out of a Glock 34. I understand they are harder on brass because the chamber is looser. However, I have an aftermarket barrel in it. I'll measure the stock chamber and compare with the aftermarket one tonight.

Hi all, I'm totally new to reloading, but am fairly mechanically inclined. I'm waiting on some bullets so I can begin adjusting my new Dillon. But the other day, just because I couldn't wait any longer, I started running some 9mm casings around on it. I wanted to watch it work and better understand each station. So I'm watching the first station and I see the die come down over the casing and realize that even if you adjust the die so it goes right down to the shell plate, there will still be some of the casing that has not been resized. I see 2 reasons. 1) the part of the shell plate that holds it in place sits above the rim and would never allow that part of the shell to contact the die. 2) the entrance to the resizing die is chamfered. So it would seem to me that the only way to honestly full length resize a piece of brass would be to use some kind of die that you actually pushed the case through. So I have 2 questions. 1) is it correct that you can't really full length resize a casing using normal dies? 2) does anyone make a full length resizing die that you push the shell through? 3) is this even necessary? Thanks, Don

Too heavy.

So I'm setting up my new 650 tonight and think what a waste it is as I remove and set aside a perfectly nice standard handle. Dillon really should allow you to delete that handle. Even if the credit is only $5. There must be THOUSANDS of these things lying around peoples shops, basements, garages. There has to be some use for them. Ideas??

The 650 w/o a case feeder combines the worst of the 650 with the worst of the 550. You get to fiddle with cases AND you get the vastly more complicated caliber change over that comes with the 650.

Back when I was single and childless. (sigh)

Combine that with the practical fact that a $1600 baer or even a lightly tuned glock on a practical level is its functional equal (lets not dwell on details, but Glocks and Baers run very very well) for between one third and one ninth the cost. i.e. a person armed with a glock or a baer would not be at any real disadvantage against anyone armed with any hand gun. Don p.s. That doesn't mean i don't WANT of those black beauties inside the front cover of front sight. Just that I'd be far more likely to actually buy a larger match style gun.

And a 911 makes a great toy. An accura, a better commuter car. You carry a G23, so you are in a way agreeing with me. A carry gun, to me, is a tool. Its to be treated well and respected, but not fawned over. A competition gun (again, this is just me) is a toy. Not unlike something like a track day car. I don't make enough money to not worry about a $4000 carry gun. I think your carry gun should be semi-disposable. Maybe thats overstating it. But hopefully you get my point.

Thats really a beautiful piece of work. I think a $4000 gun is definitely justifiable (in my mind) if it was a) used for work used for competition.

SGTIS108, It seems we agree one something more important than whether you carry a custom 2011 or a Glock. Its that you should carry what you compete with. I've shot IDPA with a Glock of some sort since 1998. Because of that I've always carried some kind of gun with a similar action. (Seecamp, Ruger LCP, S&W 340, Kahr PM9). I've owned carry glocks but found that I never carried them. Too big and heavy for the way I carry. I'll admit it I'm lazy. So anyway, I've always carried a DAO gun because that is how I instinctively run a gun. I've only recently started to shoot 1911s. I'm still not intuitive enough with a 1911 to carry it as effectively as something like the Kahr. But I'm making progress. I'm getting better at instinctively sweeping the safety off when I get on target. I'm having a harder time sweeping the safety ON when I come off target. Either way, we both agree that being able to shoot instinctively with whatever gun you carry is more important than whether its a $4500 custom job or a $450 off the rack Glock. Don

Well, my logic is that money doesn't buy you reliability beyond a point. And defensive combat accuracy is certainly less than match accuracy. The truth of the matter is that a $460 glock in .45 ACP or .45 GAP would be an excellent carry piece. Glocks are the industry standard for reliability. Is it really accurate? No, but its accurate enough. Is it pretty? No, but thats not the point. Is there tremendous pride of ownership? Not for me. So I "get" the Strayer. But I think I'd get more out of it shooting a $4500 gun competitively. As such, as much as I lust after that compact hi-cap 2011 in all black, I have no real use for it. Don p.s. this is my DIY carry project gun. So I'm certainly not anti-1911

Wow. Thats 3x what a Les Baer cost. I'm sure its nice and all, but I'd never buy a $4500 carry piece. Maybe a match gun, but not a carry gun. Don

I saw it also and immediately wanted one. BAD. Fastarget - do you have any idea how much they are going for?

Consider buying some of these: I've used home made dummy rounds for just the reasons you mentioned and I always have a little tingle in the back of my neck, what if I screwed up. These eliminate that problem. Link to brownells page: http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/cid=355/Products/Inert_Training_Ammunition these also function as a snap cap. Finally, you can load them into the mag with real rounds to simulate failures during live fire.

Hi all. First post , I'm on as a new reloader, but I've been shooting for 20 years. I started in IDPA in 1998. So maybe I can help. I agree with the above completely. However, if even those options are too large, I would suggest she look into the Kahr T9 or P9 like someone else said. Its a full length grip and because its single stack it is very slim. The relatively long trigger reset will put her at a definite disadvantage. But its a thought. If it were my wife, I'd try an M&P9, and then the Kahr. The P9 Kahr has an even smaller grip than the T9. But because the P9's lower is plastic, its much lighter and recoils a bit more. Don