ezra650

I can't disagree with anything you said. 100% agree! I'm very excited for their automation and I hope the rumors of more stations are true in the future. I think Dillon has no choice but to add stations with newcomers like the FX10 and the Apex 10. If they don't innovate I believe they will be missing out on that market big time. I really like my 1100. I would really love it if there were more stations, among a few other small things.

The rep I was talking to said that people were complaining because you could see the scuff marks in the finish from where the high spots had been sanded down. I'm guessing like what you see on the toolhead. Anyway, yea I though it was an interesting bit of history and there are no pictures of them on the web that I could find. These pictures came from Dillon of a press they currently have in their shop for a repair/rebuild.

I know I'm not the only one curious. I'm excited to see how this effects the other autodrive options on the market. Sensors and the price is what I'm anxious to see details on. Now if we can just get an extra station on the gray presses so bullet feeder and powder check can be used simultaneously while keeping seat and crimp separate. One can dream... https://dillon-automation.com/

Sorry for the weird cropping. Had to get image size down so they would upload.

Early 1050s were nickel plated. Approximately 2000 units according to a Dillon employee. I have some pictures I thought would be neat to share. Enjoy.

Yep I'm 100% in the camp that brass needs to be processed on its own pass. I plan to run 2 decap and 2 size dies and mandrel die depending on caliber.

Oof, not what I was hoping to hear. So you are using the MK7 powder measure on your Dillon, neat. I wasn't planning to run a powder check because I dont want to give up my lee FCD. I figure as long as I'm not absent minded during a stoppage I should have no issue with no charge or double charges. 100% agree on cleaning intervals. I had some issues when I first set the press up with the priming system. I've learned how to set it up and polishing the primer slide helped a lot. My best helper is canned air. The only jams I encounter now are brass falling off the shellplate upon insertion and bullets falling off case mouths. I'd really like to see a bullet feed and seat station. Similar to what lee has and Frankford Arsenal has on their new FX-10.

Great feedback. Thanks for sharing! Seeing how simple it is to order the MK7 and get it setup I'm slightly leaning toward it. When I load manual I crank the press at or near 2000rph. If I went faster I think the remote stop button would come in handy for autodrive. Funny you mention the case insertion issue. I have had that issue randomly since I got the 1100. I put half a 1911 recoil spring in the case slide and it helped but just recently its started happening again. I'm wondering if an aftermarket shellplate will make it better or worse.

Maybe it was the size/type of zip tie I had. I never could get them to cinch down enough and evenly.

Yeah thats why I want the faster speeds. I'll be doing more brass prep/conversion on this machine than loading. If I can load 9mm at a max of 2000-2500rph I'll be ecstatic. Throwing powder fast enough and accurate enough and not slinging bullets seems to be main hurdles to clear loading on a rotary press in those upper speeds. Have you seen the video of the 1050 priming 9mm brass at 5000rph? It's really neat to see.

I was poking around the MK7 site and I see the 1050 Pro Drive being advertised to run at 3500rph. This must be new?

I started loading on my new RL1100 in March with plans to eventually automate for commercial usage. I'm primarily looking for feedback from members who have an RL1100 that is automated but I realize that may be a small number. Loaders with other automated dillons are welcome to chime in. I was hoping to send my press to Forcht for his drive, but he hasn't yet adapted or designed a drive for the new RL1100. Currently the only 2 options available are the MK7 Pro Autodrive and the FFB autodrive. I'd like to hear experiences on both and any other autodrives on the market that I may be overlooking for the RL1100. My fingers are crossed that Dillon will unveil a drive next month at NRA show that will be full featured/upgradeable and price competitive. I spoke with a rep and their original plans were to release early this year but with COVID/high demand that timeline got pushed and he didn't know more than that. If I go with the MK7 the only sensor I will get is the bullet sensor. I plan to process all brass before the loading pass so I should have several contingencies in place for brass that doesn't get deprimed or swaged. My only concern is setting off a stack of primers. A few small things that concern me on the MK7 drive. Max speed of 2400rph and the buggy tablet. I doubt the max speed will be an issue for loading, but for processing brass I'd like to go faster as I wish. The FFB seems like a unit that is more commercial minded. I also believe there is a large benefit of modifying the press to allow the linkage to make a continuous rotation as it cycles. That is one reason why Forcht was going to be my first choice. Based on my limited experience loading manual on the 1100 it seems the sudden stop of the shellplate is what causes most jams and I suspect why the MK7 limits you to 2400rph. My main concern with the FFB drive is customer support after purchase, they seem to be very busy. Also tinkering with the settings is probably more difficult on the FFB VFD vs the MK7 tablet, but I have no doubt I can figure all that out with a user manual. Otherwise, based on what I can tell the FFB is a higher quality product than the MK7 drive. I think cost would be about the same on either drive +/- $100, MK7 with bullet sense will be $2300 and the FFB is $2300+ cost of their bullet sensor. Also their site says the bullet sensor is under development and that is a must have in my opinion. So I may have to load without it for some time if I get the FFB drive. Either way, the MK7 is out of stock right now and FFB is being effected by the chip shortage and is waiting on VFDs for 3+ months now. I'm not in a huge rush to automate and I have some small bugs to iron out before I feel confident to automate the press.

The zip tie trick did not work well for my RL1100. I suspect its because the shelf on the 1100 is not as meaty. I have been using the arredondo stabilizer and it works well, just looking for something a bit better to run the press faster. I ordered a DAA PSP brush. I'll give it a try and when I get ready to automate I believe I will order the lvl10 stabilizer to try.

I'm using the bearing kit and enjoying it. I agree with you on the detent ball. I don't know if its the material of the ball or the spring but occasionally the ball will get stuck in the cavity and the shellplate will free spin. I was thinking I will switch back to the metal one whenever I take off the shellplate next time.

I was leaning toward TNT. I was gonna throw one on my BSPS order this week and then the last 9mm one sold. Shouldn't have hesitated. I'm also considering an FFB autodrive for my RL1100, not sure yet. I'm going to make a new thread about that soon.

thanks for the feedback guys. I think I eventually will buy one but a TNT or FFB shellplate is first on the list so I'm holding off for now. I'll make a post about the stabilizers when I get one.

I had the same issue on mine. Also loading on an 1100. Using Hornady 62gr FMJBT. Take the drop tube out. You can do this with the die on the press or off. You should have only the drop tube in one hand with the ball bearings removed of course. Drop a bullet thru by hand. Now do it with an upside down bullet. Now flip the drop tube and do the same thing as if the bullets were feeding from opposite end/bottom of drop tube. If a bullet hangs up during any of this force it the rest of the way thru with a screwdriver/punch/cleaning rod/T handle allen key. That seemed to help mine a lot. But I loaded only 1krd and then decided to liquidate my 62gr in favor of loading 69s and 77s which I still havent found time to do. I also used some high grit sandpaper wrapped around a dowel in a drill and sanded the inside of the tube. I suspect on the 223 dropper there is not nearly as much clearance between the bullet and wall of the tube like on a 9mm/40/45 drop tube. When the holes are drilled for the bearings it leaves a protrusion inside of the tube. OR as my buddy explained to me his issue was that the inner drop tube is actually a separate piece that is pressed together and if it's not fully seated bullets will hang on the "shelf" inside of the drop tube. I never could see anything like that in my drop tube. But DAA has made rolling changes to the drop tube I know for a fact and that could have been one of them. The upside down bullet drop trick was actually his fix that he shared with me.

Ah so you are really trying to solve the issue for her. It drives her crazy and then she drives you crazy. Now we get the full story I guess if I cared enough on mine I would take the shuttle apart and lightly/sand file the shuttle where it rides on the platform and station 1 locator. Could be a high spot on it. Hope you get it more quiet!

Put some music on while you reload. Easy... but not so loud you can't hear the primer/powder alarm My 650 squeaks as well. I've tried to find it a few times making sure everything was oiled/greased, but I guess it was the case shuttle. I quit worrying about it and kept loading.

I'm looking for feedback from users of this case stabilizer sold by lvl10i. It looks well designed but I wanted to get input from users on it before I spend $80 on it or even $160 as I think I would like to have one on the bullet drop and bullet seat station. I am using an 1100. The issue with powder spillage seems to be from the sudden stop of the case under the bullet drop die. I may try and fit or modify to fit a DAA PSP brush from the powder drop to the lvl10i stabilizer, but I think what makes the big difference is a controlled stop at the bullet drop station. I will figure that out later. My other goal with these stabilizers is to keep 223 cases from wobbling at the case mouth. I suspect an aftermarket shellplate will aid with that as well. This would make loading smoother and viable at higher speeds. As well as simply processing 223 brass. https://lvl10i.com/collections/dillon-1050/products/case-stabilizers-for-dillon-1050 What calibers are you using these on? How fast are you running the machine and does it increase the speed that you can operate smoothly? Have you used this stabilizer while processing or loading rifle brass? (223/300blk etc) Do you find it to help with powder slosh? Especially with short cases like 9mm with a half or more case of powder. Or a 223 case with a dense powder loaded near the neck. Curious to hear feedback. Thanks all!

I figured out mine was primarily the shellplate being too loose. It was only about 1/8 turn looser than before. I had just stripped the machine down after a 10Krd run and didnt tighten it enough. I have noticed if you like to seat primers deep below flush it will still put that gouge on the rim occasionally. I am getting a primer hold down die now to allow me deeper primer seating with no issues. I also plan to get an aftermarket shellplate later down the road and set the dillon one aside as a backup

I'm having this same issue on my 1100 currently with 9mm. It can be multiple things it seems. Swage rod is jamming brass in the shellplate. Primer punch is pushing too far upward causing the case to jam in shellplate (back out primer op rod) . Or shellplate is not tight enough on the press. I was troubleshooting mine last night a little. One way you can tell the case jams is tap it with your finger while in the shellplate. If it has no play and is at a slight angle you know that case is jammed on the plate. If you remove the locator pin and try to remove the case it will be tight/difficult to do so. The next die unjams it so you have to catch it as it happens. Currently I'm noticing mine are jammed before going into the powder drop station. The powder funnel unjams them, but I am left with the damaged case. Until I read the above reply I didn't even think to double check my swage hold down. It's possible the case is getting jammed there and stays jammed until it reaches powder drop or whatever next die puts downward pressure on it from above. I've been playing with my primer punch thinking that was the culprit with no success. I'll be resetting my swag hold down die tonight. Note that brass jammed in the shellplate like this can also cause the powder funnel to hit the case mouth off center and peel the mouth down. Depends on how hard its jammed. Harder its jammed the more tilt the brass has and will not align with the funnel. Let us know what your solution is.

I've been playing with my new JPL open 1911 steel gun a little. I decided to just stick with 115gr bullets because they are easy to find in JHP or plated and I don't have to get crazy with my seating die adjustments as compared to the .380 bullets. Right now I'm using Berrys 115gr plated. Powder puff rounds are awesome but as Steve said above even with fast powders at lower velocities the comp is bleeding off gas and you will get problems with ejection. Especially if you don't have good tension on your extractor. Powder puffs with slow powders are excessively dirty. My gun will run 115s pushing 950-1000fps with fast powder, but not quite 100% reliable. I think the comp is just so darn efficient on my JPL gun. Around 1050fps is where I want to be with a fast powder for 100% reliability using the 115gr. The fast powder I've been using is Ramshot Comp which is very similar to N320 in burn speed. I loaded up ~1500 rounds with the RS comp. I'm now going to do the same load but using Longshot and Shooters World Ultimate Pistol aiming for 1100 FPS and a 2nd load at 1200FPS. I will shoot both side by side for a bit and decide if shooter preference is more gas in the comp or a softer recoil impulse. Something to keep me busy at home when I'm not deer hunting this fall/winter. Above all else I care about 100% reliability. COVID ruined the 2020 shooting schedule for me, but I'm going to be ready for 2021.

Oof hahaha you have me beat on that one. When I hit the one above with the 115gr 9mm round it actually knocked the whole tripod and chrono over slowly. I was just standing there with my mouth agape.