Phlier

Oh, man. That can't be good. Maybe try a washer under that bolt? looks like the hole for that bolt wasn't drilled/tapped far enough. I've had a few intermittent shellplate advance problems with my new 1050, too. Has me wondering if mine is like yours. How old is your machine?

That's to adjust how far the shell plate advances. I believe his problem is that the plate isn't getting grabbed by the pawl before the index starts. So using that screw to adjust how far the shell plate advances during indexing won't help. Edit: Actually, after reading the OP's post above yours, that little screw is exactly what he needs to adjust.

You can also get your Lee dies from Amazon.com.

I bought 4k of RMR's new 115gr FMJ, and loaded 1.4k of them (which I have yet to shoot). Got busy with a bunch of other stuff today, and didn't get a chance to check any for potential setback issues. I'll do it tomorrow (probably).

Thanks for posting the fix. I think that it's a fairly common problem, with a variety of potential fixes, yet it seems that this is the first time this fix has been mentioned (at least that I've seen).

OK, cool. I have quite a bit of FC brass. I'll check that headstamp first.

Well, darn it, Sarge, now I'm gonna have to go do some bullet setback measurements. I just got my 1050 a couple of weeks ago, and rather than bother with putting in my RCBS deprime/resize die, I just used the Dillon die instead. Now I'm paranoid about setback with the Dillon resize die. From memory, it should take at least 35-45 pounds of force before setback occurs with 9mm... Does that sound about right?

It's so fast and easy to order directly from Dillon's website. I had a rather extensive order, and it shipped in one business day.

Lacquer.. great idea. I'll have to try that. The toolhead bolt wasn't the fastener I was complaining about, really. I thought it was adequately torqued down. But there's just no reason to torque dies into the tool head to a level that requires a rubber mallet to get them free. IMO, in general, they really overdo the torque on stuff that really doesn't need to be tightened so much. Edit: forgot to mention... several of the dies that came pre-installed on the toolhead were so tight that they left marks in the toolhead where they had actually scored deep scratches into the toolhead itself. Now *that* is excessively tight.

Hmm.. It won't let me edit my earlier post, but anyway... I've now pre-processed and then loaded 550 rounds of .223 on the 1050. With well lubricated cases, the .223 pre-processing was so very easy. The handle pull felt easier than when loading 9mm. Since the .223 loading process was nothing more than dropping powder and seating bullets, you can imagine that the handle pull was negligible. Now I need to order another case feeder tube so that I can keep one for use with lubricated cases, the other for clean cases. The lanolin built up in the tube so much that it slowed the dropping cases quite a bit; it couldn't keep up with production rate. I'm probably using too much lube, but I'd rather use too much than not enough. Especially since the resizing/trim die I got isn't carbide.

Yeah, I agree with you guys. That's the only flaw in an otherwise very well done video; he didn't lower the handle prior to tightening the head bolt. @moonman16: Yeah, Dillon either has 300 pound gorillas or nerds with impact wrenches tightening all the fasteners on their presses at the factory. Even the dies themselves come so tight that a few of them required convincing with a rubber mallet to loosen. All of the jam nuts on my factory installed dies look like crap now after loosening them. The QA guys at Dillon really should talk to the guys tightening the fasteners. It's quite obvious they aren't using torque wrenches.

So much great information to be had on this forum, thanks again gents. BeerBaron: yeah, I had ordered that wrench before reloader901 posted the pictures of his, so now I'll have both wrenches. I've ordered enough of the Hornady locking rings to put them on all of my dies.... well, almost all. I won't be putting one on the .223 resizing/trim die I use with the RT-1500 case trimmer, as that die screws down so far, there wouldn't be enough room for the Hornady locking die to work. Not a big deal, though, as I have a dedicated tool head for the RT-1500, so that die never gets moved. Going to see if I can cobble together a round counter, too. Would be nice if one of you guys that have put one together using available parts did a "how to" thread for those of us who can't figure it out on our own.

Perfect! Very much appreciated. Now if I can just find a place that sells that Hornady wrench... Fantastic idea for the round counter, dang. I saw that one of the companies that makes Dillon upgrade/aftermarket accessories sells one, but they want like 120 bucks for it. Too much for a round counter. Why Dillon didn't include round counting functionality into the press is a bit of a head scratcher. They build a high volume machine with no convenient way to count the production. Edit: found the wrench in stock at Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Hornady-396495-Deluxe-Die-Wrench/dp/B004EXTJXI

2nd picture, 6th row down, 4th from the left.. a bit of a high primer poking out there.

We've been talking about ease of handle pull in another thread the past couple of days. I've loaded 9mm on my Dad's 550 and on my s1050. With the handle in the middle position on my 1050, it is far, far, *far* easier to pull the handle on my 1050 than my Dad's 550. I haven't used a 650, so I can't speak to that. :/

Thanks, guys, much appreciated. It's nice that they're the less expensive option, too, as I'll be ordering about 30 of them. reloader901, which Hornady wrench are you referring to? I'd really like to duplicate your setup.

Thanks, gents. I'll order a few of each of the recommendations and see what works the best.

It's the ability to lock the rings in place on the die itself that makes them unacceptable. Thanks, Oteroman, I'll order f few of the Lyman ones and give them a try.

I spent a couple months researching the 550, 650, and 1050 prior to finally buying my 1050 which I've had now for just over a week. I've watched more youtube videos about Dillon presses than I'd care to admit. The winner: In ten minutes, this guy teaches you how to disassemble, lubricate, and reassemble your 1050. After watching it, you'll feel confident that you can do whatever you need to on your press.

There are aftermarket handles available for the 550, but I'm not sure if any of them are any longer than the stock handle, and the stock handle has only one position; it can't be adjusted any longer or shorter. It isn't just the handle length that determines the amount of mechanical advantage a press has; it's primarily the design of the press.

So I've had my 1050 for just over a week, and I love it. One thing I don't like is Dillon's die jam nuts. Wow, just garbage. I'd like to buy some die locking rings. Right now I'm looking at the Hornady or Lyman locking rings, as they don't work by forcing a brass bolt into the threads like the RCBS die locking rings. I'm concerned about whether or not these rings will actually fit. Yeah, I know that they'll thread onto the dies no problem, but will there be adequate room between adjacent dies to fit all the dies with die lock rings, and if they will fit, will there be enough room between them to actually adjust them? The tool heads for the 1050 are just too darn expensive to buy in quantity, so I'd like to be able to, for example, load a tool head up with 9mm, get all the dies adjusted, lock in position with the die lock rings, unscrew them, then screw in another set of dies in a different caliber.

I'm rather new to the 1050, as I just received mine a week ago. i have, however, used a few different reloading presses over the years. I use the middle handle position on the 1050. There are three different detents, allowing you to change the handle length. The longest one gives you the easiest handle operation, but with the longest handle travel, the middle position is a balance between the two, and the shortest one is for the young guys; short travel length with hardest operation. I'm 49, and am not in good physical condition at all. Yet even so, the middle handle position is *cake* for loading 9mm. Yeah, it's only 9mm, but it is still unbelievably easy to pull the handle. I'll be doing .223 later today, and I fully expect to use the longest handle detent for loading those. I'll update this post later with how easy/hard it is to pull the 1050's handle for .223. As a direct comparison, I have loaded a bunch of 9mm on my Father's Dillon 550. It is *far* easier to pull the handle on my 1050 than it is on the 550 while loading 9mm. It appears to me that the mechanical advantage of the 1050 is much greater than the 550. It is just astoundingly easy to pull the handle with 9mm. You literally won't believe that all the stations are populated when you pull the handle. And if you find the handle too hard to move in the middle position (unlikely), you can move the handle out to it's easiest position. All of my 9mm brass is a mix of various range brass collected over time. Name a 9mm headstamp, and I most likely have a few in my collection. In 9mm, the 1050 is not at all fussy about processing a wide range of head stamps. Maybe this is different in other calibers, but IME, not for the 9mm. Every head stamp passes the case gauge no problem. So at least as far as 9mm is concerned, the 1050 isn't fussy about what it eats; throw it that mixed range brass, and it'll kick it out the other side with no problem. And it is soooo nice to not have to worry about military cases being thrown into the mix. Set up your swaging station, and faggetaboudit. My .223 brass is all various headstamps, too. I'll be pre-processing all of it today, then loading some up tomorrow. Again, I'll update about whether or not it was necessary to sort by head stamp through the loading process. .

Well, darn it, I have to disagree with Sarge. I just received my Frankford Arsenal Rotary Tumbler on Monday, and I *love* it. Especially when you use the Frankford Arsenal Media separator that is meant to go along with it... FA makes a few different media separators, so you need to make sure you get the one that is meant to go along with the FA Rotary Tumbler. The FA media separator is what makes the difference between wet tumbling being a complete pain in the hind quarters to being... pleasant. Yup, you heard that right. It's actually a pleasant experience now. The media separator makes it soooo easy to rinse your brass off, separate the SS pins, and get the brass in to the dryer, it's just ridiculous how easy it is! And when you see that brass come out looking like it was just freshly formed from the factory... There is literally *nothing* on the brass, inside or out! It is completely clean, and without any of that annoying dry media dust sticking to the cases. Wet tumbling really can be as easy as dry with the right tools. I'll never vibrate another case. Also, if your wet tumbled cases are tarnishing over time, then you need to change what you're using in the wet media solution. Citric acid not only brings back the original color to the brass, it will also "passivate" it. Passivizing a metal means that you are making it more resistant to tarnish and corrosion than it would be in it's original state. Don't believe me? Google it. Citric Acid will passivate brass, making it much more resistant to tarnishing, discoloration, and even corrosion than it would be if not treated with it. LemiShine is a commercial brand of citric acid that is popular with the wet tumbling group. Give it a try. Your 650 order looks very good. One thing to consider, though. The caliber conversion kits aren't cheap. You need to be loading enough of a given caliber to justify the expense of the caliber conversion kits. I just received my 1050 two days ago. I'll be loading .223 and 9mm on it exclusively, and I'll be getting a Lee Classic Turret Press (to replace my trusty old Rock Chucker) for pretty much all of my other calibers. The nice thing about the Classic Turret Press is that it's *cheap*, and it's cheap to switch over to other calibers, too. In spite of the fact that it's cheap, you'll still be able to kick out 150 rounds per hour, which IMO, is perfect for low volume production. So if money is an issue (and when isn't it, really?) load the calibers that you'll be loading in bulk on the 650, then have an alternative for the calibers you don't shoot enough to justify the caliber conversion expense.

CFE-Pistol measures so well through Dillon powder measures (actually, it meters well regardless of what measure you use), that if the powder charges are varying, it's not enough to be perceptible on my Ohaus 10*10 scale. So less than .1gr variance. It is by far the most consistent throwing powder I've ever used.

Windows 7, both latest versions of FireFox and Chrome.