TightLines Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 Believe it or not, I've come to you to be talked out of buying a 650. I mean it. Background: I shoot recreationally and about 500 rounds per month. Started reloading at the beginning of this year. I shoot mostly 9mm and .45 but mix in a little bit of 10mm for kicks. My objective is not to brew an ideal load for every gun. I load to keep the price down and allow me to shoot more. Current setup: Lee classic turret with Lee 4 die sets for all calibers mentioned above. Have a 9mm taper crimp die coming in to replace the FCD as an experiment in accuracy with plated bullets. I would keep the Lee dedicated to 10mm and switch production of 9mm and .45 over to the 650. Need: None at all. I was mostly satisfied until Midway's holiday flyer came in with the ammo plant on sale for $1,000. It was enough to open the door and have me on YouTube by the end of the night watching 650s go round and round. Want: Very very high. Biggest gripe about the Lee is the inconsistency of the autodisk with flake powders which I have quite a bit of. Priming system leaves a bit to be desired but for the price it's a great machine. It does what I want when I want. I don't hurry when I reload but I do have this nagging feeling that I could be making a round for every handle pull instead of one for every four. Why not?: Price, price, price. Having trouble justifying the $1,200 - $1,400 purchase to myself. I've come up with some half witted justifications like the added safety of auto-index and a powder check system. I make the time to reload for my needs so while the time savings would be nice, it's no real benefit. Why?: Lust for a new machine, plain and simple. I love machines, tools, tinkering, creating, etc. and this has caught my eye and I've had a lot of time shaking it. Please, tell me this is ridiculous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MWP Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 Sounds like the same progression many of us took. Don't know if you need to spend 1200-1400 up front. I'd say go for it, but add the bullet and case feeder later. You can easily load 300-400 rounds per hour without the feeders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hi-Power Jack Posted December 1, 2014 Share Posted December 1, 2014 Try the Square Deal for $379. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TightLines Posted December 2, 2014 Author Share Posted December 2, 2014 Unfortunately it looks like 650 or nothing. I don't necessarily see the value in the Square Deal over a turret press. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LilBunniFuFu Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 I make the time to reload for my needs so while the time savings would be nice, it's no real benefit. Would your time be better used doing something else? Do you have kids, friends, significant other, hobbies, DRY FIRING. For some the time on the machine is wasted while for others it is a hobby in itself. Which party do you pertain too? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pjames32 Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 I enjoy loading and I'm not in a big hurry. I use a Square Deal B. Originally set up for 45ACP, 40/10mm. When I started loading 40 S&W I did buy a separate primer feed set up so I'd have one for small primer and 1 for large primer. That simplified the change for calibers. I've since bought a second SDB on e bay so I have 1 set up for large primer and a second for small primer. I've added 38/357 dies and I'm looking for 9mm dies. I'd like to have a 650. I've loaded on one and liked it a lot. If I start shooting more .223 I might make the change. So far, I'm happy with my single stage for my rifle rounds. We usually don't NEED new equipment, but we do buy it when the itch starts. Good luck! PJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EEH Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 This is just ME,if all I had to load on was lee,I wouldn't load !, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clipper Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Last June, the kids (all 4 of them) gifted me with a new 550B. Did I need it? No. Did I want one? Well, kinda. Would I buy one? Not really, I was happy with my Lee Turret for the little that I shoot. Do I use it? Yes, for a few calibers, but I still have my turret, load a couple of calibers on that. Am I an antique? Most definitely. Nowadays, I look for shooters who need to reload, bring the few that are willing, let them load a few hundred rounds, and the rest of the time, my machine sits idle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
copecowboy22 Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 I've used a Lee pro 1000 for the last few years. Been saving for a 650 and a great deal came across sat on another forum. If you wait it out, they come up used for good deals from time to time but you have to be quick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TightLines Posted December 2, 2014 Author Share Posted December 2, 2014 I make the time to reload for my needs so while the time savings would be nice, it's no real benefit. Would your time be better used doing something else? Do you have kids, friends, significant other, hobbies, DRY FIRING. For some the time on the machine is wasted while for others it is a hobby in itself. Which party do you pertain too? Excellent point unfortunately, the way it is now I make time for reloading. If I'm not doing that I may get FURTHER into another hobby and that will likely get expensive quickly. Weekends stay pretty busy but I can generally find a few hours after work during the week to take care of it. I tried letting time spent be a justification but I couldn't quite do it. As far as working my way into the 650; if I'm going to go for one I may as well do it all at once. Save on the shipping, buy a few of the odds and ends in packages through the BE store to help out on the up front. One of the bigger problems I'm having the whole mess is that there's really no such thing as a discount. I'm the kind of person that cringes at the thought of paying MSRP on something. I've started keeping my eyes peeled on sources for a used press but the discounts I see hardly justify the use. I'm sure it will be added and removed from my shopping cart a few more times. Thanks for the place to hash this out. I look forward to sticking around here, with or without a 650. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bkreutz Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Used Dillon equipment sell for close to new Dillon equipment because of the warranty. If they ever get "used up", they get rebuilt for free. The reason you don't see discounts, is why would a manufacturer discount a product that they don't have trouble selling? I always look in amazement at the car dealers who advertize that they're having a banner year and to say thank you they are lowering the prices . And they say it with a straight face . Unfortunately this type of advertizing works with a large percentage of the buyers (says a lot about the intelligence level, doesn't it?) Think of it another way, have you ever heard of a Ferrari or Porsche dealer giving rebates? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterthefish Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 If price is the objection, skip the brass and bullet feeders. I do 400-500 / hour on a Hornady LNL AP - I can only imagine the 650 is as good or better. Beats the heck out of the 50-100/ hour I got out of the T7. I went from shooting 500 rounds per month to more than twice that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brassaholic13 Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Stop removing it from the cart... You're not going to regret it. Had a Loadmaster, then a Lock-N-Load. Should have just bought the 650 to begin with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
427Cobra Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Less time reloading means more time shooting, get the 650 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmorris Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 I love machines, tools, tinkering, creating I understand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
safeactionjackson Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 I'd probably get the xl650 in the caliber you shoot the most of. Personally the "as it should be" be.com option and case feeder would get you up and running, while creating a solid foundation for caliber expansion down the road. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tastic Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 650? Friend, I am here to talk you into the 1050. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LilBunniFuFu Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Excellent point unfortunately, the way it is now I make time for reloading. If I'm not doing that I may get FURTHER into another hobby and that will likely get expensive quickly. Weekends stay pretty busy but I can generally find a few hours after work during the week to take care of it. I tried letting time spent be a justification but I couldn't quite do it. If you consider the few hours that time you spend reloading as relaxing and a nice break from everything then be my guest and keep the Lee. Personally I would just get the 650 and enjoy my time spent else where. Trust me, I started on a single stage with USPSA ammo consumption. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TightLines Posted December 2, 2014 Author Share Posted December 2, 2014 650? Friend, I am here to talk you into the 1050. You Sir, are no friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TightLines Posted December 2, 2014 Author Share Posted December 2, 2014 I'd probably get the xl650 in the caliber you shoot the most of. Personally the "as it should be" be.com option and case feeder would get you up and running, while creating a solid foundation for caliber expansion down the road. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk This is essentially what I had in mind just with another case feed plate, powder check with one conversion, and a tool head and powder die for the other caliber, and a powder bar to more easily share the measure between .45 and 9mm Bah! You see the problem here.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brassaholic13 Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 650? Friend, I am here to talk you into the 1050. One step at a time... Let him get hooked first. Then it's 1050, then auto-drive... Before long he'll only be reloading one day out of the year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TightLines Posted December 2, 2014 Author Share Posted December 2, 2014 Unfortunately it looks like 650 or nothing. I don't necessarily see the value in the Square Deal over a turret press. And I'll now retract this statement. I didn't realize the square deal was auto indexing. That's quite the little press. Unfortunately I'm still caught up in case feeders, and the ability to use a powder check, etc etc. Quick question: In trying to keep the pricing on this thing as lean as possible, is it a mistake to think about using multiple powder bars with a single powder measure? Perhaps more to the point, what exactly is required to move a powder measure over to another tool head and change the powder bar? Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aceinyerface Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Go spend that money on the wife and/ or kids. Save it back up and if you still want to buy it, you are justified. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
razorfish Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 You've come to the wrong place to be talked out of a Dillon 650. I was fine with my "plain jane" 650 until I joined this forum... Now I've pimped out my 650 per forum specifications My latest addition was a bullet feeder and I can't imagine why I waited so long... I'm not sure how this could possibly "help", but here's a video I made loading some 9mm on my 650 a couple weeks ago: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TightLines Posted December 3, 2014 Author Share Posted December 3, 2014 Perhaps I was misguided in turning to a bunch of addicts trying to scratch an itch. Ace - no kids but very valid point about the wife. Razor - that is very impressive and falls into the category of things I shouldn't know about. Thoughts on swapping powder bars to get by with a single measure? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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