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Bullet Feeder for 550?


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I recently added a case feeder to my 550 and I'm very happy with it! Now I'm considering adding a Bullet feeder but I don't want to spend a fortune to do this. I did a search on line and found a video from somebody who made an adapter plate to use an inexpensive Lee bullet feeder. I have not been able to contact this person to see if he is still selling these adapter plates but I figured I would ask here if anyone has tried anything like this and if so how it worked out. At this time I only reload 9mm so I'm not worried setup time when changing caliber. I would post a link but I'm affraid it may violate the site policy even though it is just a video and not selling anything I don't want to upset anyone.

My current setup

casefeeder_zps42e503da.jpg

Edited by DS26
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The lee bullet feeder is junk. Take your $25 and burn it, you will be better off.

Most of the others would require you to feed in one step and seat/crimp in one step.

I think GSI is making one for a 550 that allows you to feed/seat in #3 then crimp in #4.

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The GSI unit is a lot of money! I was hoping for a reasonable price unit I'm not making a ton of ammo I would just continue to manually feed before sending that much money.

Thank you for the input I was afraid this was going to be the reasponse I would get..

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I've got a case feeder on my 550 as well. Bullet feeders at low cost are non-existent.

You say you recently installed the case feeder. Are you having issues with the cases turning horizontal in the clear funnel as they exit the hopper, and not dropping down into the tube? If you are, Dillon has a black insert for the funnel that reduces the diameter and fixes this problem. I can't tell from your pic if they have reduced the size of the funnel or not. My case feeder is an early model - 2005ish.

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This Mini Mr Bulletfeeder looks promising is anyone using combo seat/crimoer dies? if so is there any disadvantage, if not why aren't all of them combos? I only reload 9mm can someone recomend the best combo die to use on my 550?

Thank you all for the advice!

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When I first installed a bullet feed die in my 650 I bought an RCBS combo taper crimp/seat die. I did this so I could keep using my Hornady powder cop. And I am only loading 45acp.... No experience with other calibers

Bullet shape will affect your results, the geometry of getting the bullet to seat and crimp all at the same time can be finicky.

I found that the combo die worked really well with round nose bullets but I couldn't get it to work with the Xtreme flat points that I am starting to prefer. For some reason the combo die would cause the bullet to bulge just above the shoulder and due to the shape of the Xtreme flat point bullets they end up sticking in the chamber. Couldn't get them to chamber check either, Tried repeatedly to readjust the die but it just wouldn't work with the flat points. And a friend who uses a Lee combo die also had the exact same problem. But the problem with a combo die only occurred with flat point bullets.

So, just to see what would happen I put my Dillon dies back in my press and the flat points worked perfectly, fit in my chamber checker and absolutely no feeding problems in my 1911's

Moral of the story... The combo dies work OK with RN bullets but not with Xtreme flat points. If all I was loading was RN's the taper die might still be in my press but I do think separate dies make a better finished product. During inspection of finished rounds I find less problems with the separate dies... Problems are mostly bullets seated a bit off center in the case which doesn't happen with my Dillon dies

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At this time I only load RN bullets but not sure it's worth the money to replace the die add the feeder only to make less quality bullets. This is going to require some thought!

I'm not sure you would be making less quality bullets but the potential to do so is certainly there. When I started I used a 550 and within a year I wanted to ramp up production and started looking at case feeders, bullet feeders etc. When I brought my ideas to those who really know the Dillon presses I was steered towards upgrading to the 650. The 650 is designed from the ground up to be used with a case feeder and it has the allotted space for a bullet feeder without altering the way rounds are produced. The 550 is designed to be a simple, dead nuts reliable, reloading press that is not overly complex. It has limited space in the tool head for just that reason. The Case feeder is nowhere near as reliable and trouble free as the 650 unit and many people have tried them and ultimately sold them. Yes, some have success but literally everybody who has one on the 650 has success. As for the bullet feeder, the biggest drawback I see is that on the 550 it takes away a hole in the tool head and mandates the Bullet Feeder be able to seat the bullet to a desired depth. This is where you will have the most trouble producing top quality ammo in my opinion.

Maybe I am wrong but before I would keep dumping money into the 550 I would seriously consider selling it and using the money for a 650.

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Sarge has some good sound advice but replacing your press might not be an option and there are alternatives

Even though I run a 650 I did save a bunch of money by making much of the set up I have on my press.

Combo dies have been used by the single stage press guys for years and they are pretty cheap, mine was less than 30 dollars. Cheaper than Dirt seems to have the best price...

To save money on the bullet and case feeder, I made the "magazines" that hold my cases and bullets. To feed the bullets I bought the bullet feed die from RCBS which was also less than 30 dollars when purchased separate from the bullet feeder. The reason you have to switch to a combo seat/crimp die is that the bullet feeder die does nothing except place a bullet on the case. I wanted one so I didn't have to place each one by hand. (On my 650 I don't have to use a combo die but on the 550 you would because you only have the 4 stations)

The case "magazine" was adapted to the stock feed tube that came with my Dillon and the bullet "magazine" was fitted to the press with wood and steel and feeds through an RCBS feed die. Works very similar to the Mini Mrbulletfeeder but has some significant differences.

I made the magazines from copper tubes and some bronze I had. Total cost of the parts needed was less than a hundred dollars and this included the dies.

While I can't keep up with the electric feeder guys I can load more than 500 rounds an hour which is way more than I can shoot....

But if you want to go with a full bore electric feeder I would stick to Sarge's advice and upgrade to a 650....

post-49551-0-11602500-1387995784_thumb.j

Edited by TonyK
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I'm pretty happy with my 550 I'm very happy with the addition of the case feeder I would like to add the bullet feeder but this is not an end all if I can't. I just like the idea of speeding things up a bit. At some point I may pick up a 650 but no time some unless I come across an amazing deal.

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Even though I run a 650 I did save a bunch of money by making much of the set up I have on my press.

I also make the collators I use for my bullet feeders. On the GSI's for the 1050 you save almost $380 making your own collator, well closer to $300 once you buy the motor, switches and PVC.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I use the Hornady bullet drop die which works well on my 650xl. You have to use the combo seat/crimp die as discussed earlier to free up a station. Before I built my collator I used bullet tubes that I made from 1/2" CPVC tubing, much like how you do the primers. I could get about 75 9mm's to a tube. Just drop a tube on and pull the pin. When empty, drop on another. The mini Mr. Bulletfeeder would be nice if you have the room for it. Email Rick@mrbulletfeeder.com and ask him how it works with a 550. He designed it and is most helpful.

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  • 2 years later...

Hello, I currently use a Lee Classic Cast Turret to reload. I clean, deprime and size then clean the pistol brass. To clean I keep it simple and just soak them then dry them. So I begin my reloading by seating the primer with a fwd stroke. Then I load powder with a Lee auto drum in station 1, Hornady bullet feeder in 2, seat in 3 and Lee FCD in 4. This is on a turret press that has the auto index rod enabled.

I have been pondering the same procedure and set up on a Dillon 550. I like this model as it is essentially a turret press with a shell plate vs a single shell holder. I do not have one to set this FrankinDillon operation up on. I am also unclear as to what might happen if you mix Red & Blue to make bullets. Will it end up purple ? So, if you have a desire to try out a purple press shoot a video of it and give us a full report. I am guessing this would increase production by 2-3x over my LCT, 1.5x over a 550 and still be a simple machine.

Thanks

Edited by Livin_cincy
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