Dedicated 45ACP Reloader

[bushytail man]

I want to feed my 1911 and G-21 gen 4. I want to buy a dedicated 45 ACP reloader. Not match shooting but serious practice.

I'm thinking Sqare Deal B or 550. Please share your experiences or thoughts.

I have a 550 in 9mm, but have not put it together yet. Don't want to change dies, prefer dedicated machine for one practice load in 45ACP.

What to get?

[moonman16]

If your HAND SIZE is not too large the SQUARE DEAL will do the deal.

If your hands are large the small area of the shell plate could cause issues.

Many folks have two Square Deals, 45ACP & 9MM.

[TonyK]

A 550 would be cheaper but I bought a 650 and set it up with a manual bullet feeder and some other mods so I can load 150 rounds in about 15 minutes. And no I don't have a case collater or an electronic bullet feeder.

Not the least bit sorry I spent the extra money for the 650. I only load 45 on it at this point but if I ever do decide to load other rounds it will be fairly easy to make the switch.

[Steve RA]

If you are fairly certain you are only going to load .45 on it, a SD will work very well as long as you don't plan on loading huge quantities of ammo rapidly. It will certainly load huge amounts but will take longer.

[phatman]

http://m.dillonprecision.com/mcontent/p/9/pid/23598/catid/2/RL_550B_Caliber_Conversion_KitSent from Samsung mobile

Sent from my SGH-I757M using Tapatalk

[retarmyaviator]

Why not buy separate tool heads for the 550? With dedicated tool heads for each caliber the changes are nothing more than pulling two pins, replacing the tool head and changing the shell plate. No adjustments, no messing with the powder measure.

[Dirty Rod]

Why not buy separate tool heads for the 550? With dedicated tool heads for each caliber the changes are nothing more than pulling two pins, replacing the tool head and changing the shell plate. No adjustments, no messing with the powder measure.

+1. I've got six toolheads today but eventually I'm going to get a second 550 so I can leave one set for small primer and the other for large.

[usmc90]

My vote?? square deal (IF ONLY USING FOR DEDICATED LOADING)

[razorfish]

If you're comfortable with your current 550, the just get another one to load 45 ACP.

This would give a pair of 550's... one setup for small primers and the other setup for large primers.

If this sounds too expensive, then get a Square Deal in 45.

[KSH]

If your HAND SIZE is not too large the SQUARE DEAL will do the deal.

If your hands are large the small area of the shell plate could cause issues.

Many folks have two Square Deals, 45ACP & 9MM.

+1 on hand size, I bought a SD to dedicate to large primers, but my fingers are too large to use it for inserting the bullet compared to my 550.

Now I just use it to decap and size my 45s,

[Bob DuBois]

Already have a 550, then look hard at another one set up with large primers. Ran that set up for a long time. Everything can and will break at some point. Usually right before a match and your out of rounds with little or no time to get replacement parts. Both machines the same it's a quick fix to switch to the other machine and be ready in plenty of time.

Draw back to the square deal. Your stuck with Dillon dies. Works fine in stock pistols, Glock's, Sig's etc. but pick up that new Brown, Wilson, S-I with a tight chamber and there's a good chance SD ammo won't run or you have another step on a single stage press before loading on the SD. Get that new black rifle SD is useless on rifle ammo.

550 wouldn't be with out one use it as a single stage press pulling bullets with a collet puller, prepping rifle brass then loading. 550 is a good solid machine that's a work horse, last's a life time. Even the faster machine produce some set up waste that can easily be repaired on a 550.

[Steve RA]

Or just get the kit for the 550 and accumulate .45 SP cases and then you only ever have one primer size to mess with. Then the changeover is simplified considerably. This would be the least expensive route.

[practical_man]

I have a 550 and a SDB. The SDB is set up for 45 and I use it a lot.

If I were doing it again I would get a second 550 and set it up for large primers, leavin the original for small primers.

The SDB is a fine press for a single caliber loader. It's just a bit small for my medium sized hands to comfortably use.

[retarmyaviator]

I switched to SP 45 cases and found the added benefit of other shooters being happy to turn them over to you after picking up brass.

Or just get the kit for the 550 and accumulate .45 SP cases and then you only ever have one primer size to mess with. Then the changeover is simplified considerably. This would be the least expensive route.

[benos]

Lots of info on machine selection here:

Dillon FAQ:

http://www.brianenos.com/pages/dillonfaqs.html

[Oldgoat03]

_{Good experience with SDB's:}

_{I load pistol (380, 38/357, 9, 40, 44, 45, 45ACP) on my SDB and it does a fine job for me. Simple to run, change calibers and maintain. The only negative for me is I find it difficult to see in the taller cases (38/357, 44, 45C) for visual inspection due to small size. Since I don't shoot large numbers of these I have gone back to loading those on my Lee turret. I originally bought a 2nd SBD to run one large and one small primer setups. I found caliber and primer changes to so easy and quick I ended up just buying a 2nd complete primer assy (lg & Small) and just swap them out in about 2 min's. Now my 2nd SDB just collects dust until I sell it.}

_{Recommendation:}

_{In spite of my good experience with an SDB if I already had a 550B I would just get a quick change toolhead and swap them. I have used my buddies 550 and caliber/primer swaps take minutes. It'll save you a lot of money that can be spent on components or new guns.}

_{Just my two cents ... hope it helps.}

_OG03

Edited October 31, 2013 by Oldgoat03

[Reinz]

If you're comfortable with your current 550, the just get another one to load 45 ACP.

This would give a pair of 550's... one setup for small primers and the other setup for large primers.

If this sounds too expensive, then get a Square Deal in 45.

+1

This is what I'd do if I had your dilemma.

Simple, easy, and very expandable.

[midnightson]

I would get another 550 and just set up for primer size. I'm preparing to do the same. I shoot mostly .45 and my boy shoots 9mm.....so he's always asking me....you almost done? Then I have to change the primer system myself! I started with a square deal and loaded many thousands of rounds and was happy.....but I most appreciate the manual indexing of the 550 vs the auto of the square deal.

[njl]

Why not buy separate tool heads for the 550? With dedicated tool heads for each caliber the changes are nothing more than pulling two pins, replacing the tool head and changing the shell plate. No adjustments, no messing with the powder measure.

+1. I've got six toolheads today but eventually I'm going to get a second 550 so I can leave one set for small primer and the other for large.

I've heard of people doing the multiple press thing so they can have dedicated small and large primer presses...but I'm not sure that makes sense. Swapping out the primer slide and magazine isn't that hard...and the slide needs to be removed from time to time for cleaning anyway.

If you want to be able to switch without having to use up the primer magazine (or repackage the primers in it), you could just buy a spare primer housing. The entire housing can be removed / swapped out while full of primers.

I load 5 calibers on a 550 and just have dedicated tool heads.

[Dirty Rod]

Why not buy separate tool heads for the 550? With dedicated tool heads for each caliber the changes are nothing more than pulling two pins, replacing the tool head and changing the shell plate. No adjustments, no messing with the powder measure.

+1. I've got six toolheads today but eventually I'm going to get a second 550 so I can leave one set for small primer and the other for large.

I've heard of people doing the multiple press thing so they can have dedicated small and large primer presses...but I'm not sure that makes sense. Swapping out the primer slide and magazine isn't that hard...and the slide needs to be removed from time to time for cleaning anyway.

If you want to be able to switch without having to use up the primer magazine (or repackage the primers in it), you could just buy a spare primer housing. The entire housing can be removed / swapped out while full of primers.

I load 5 calibers on a 550 and just have dedicated tool heads.

You're right. Not hard just a convenience thing. About half of the 1500 rounds per month I shoot is .45 so it would be nice to have a 2nd press that is almost always ready to roll. I've also been caught most than once working up some .223 or 9mm loads only to need to swap the press over for more .45 and then go right back to .223 for another batch.

[Hi-Power Jack]

I want a dedicated 45 ACP reloader.

I'm thinking Square Deal B or 550. Please share your thoughts.

Depends on how much money, time you have and how many rounds you plan to reload.

If money's not an object - get another 550 or better yet a 650:)

If you have the time to reload 200 rounds/hour - get the SqD.

Don't have the time - get the 550.