Dr Mitch Posted March 9 Share Posted March 9 On 3/6/2024 at 10:10 PM, ysrracer said: I'm thinking of learning to fly, should I start on a 747? Reloading is simple. Way too many years of people making it out to be complex. Brass+Primer+Powder+Bullet. Make one good cartridge, repeat indefinitely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akarhi Posted March 9 Share Posted March 9 2 hours ago, Dr Mitch said: Reloading is simple. Way too many years of people making it out to be complex. Brass+Primer+Powder+Bullet. Make one good cartridge, repeat indefinitely. It is. I guess people get their friends from precision shooters. They arnt wrong but provided the amount of detail to the wrong type of person Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted March 9 Share Posted March 9 A single stage press will make ammunition. If you want to make ammo in quantity easier and faster, the cost goes up. What is your time worth. I went from a single stage to a Loadmaster to a 650. The amount of ammo I started going through shooting USPSA I needed a 650. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmc45414 Posted March 9 Share Posted March 9 Here is a link to my comments in another thread. I always ask if you are planning to buy a press and never ever buy anything else the rest of your life? I think it is more of a process. In my case I ended up with more than one machine, and now have a 550, 650, 1100, Rockchucker and just got a Co-Ax. Changeover is one reason I ended up with more than one press, once I am setup I do not like screwing with it. I also do not tend to thrash out thousands of rounds like it is a job because I need to switch out. Currently setting up the 550 for 45AARP, and the 1100 is still cranking out the 9mm that is in process. I would not drop rifle charges on a 550 and seat a bullet without a probe powder check, you cannot see down the neck very well. You will probably want to de-prime and size in a first step anyway, so you can trim and clean before charging and seating. But you could drop rifle charges on a separate measure (or automatic scale). These threads always net the spectrum, I say watch a bunch of video, this one might be a good one to start with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IVC Posted March 9 Share Posted March 9 Comparing progressive presses to flying or similar skilled tasks is counterproductive. Progressive presses do not require extra skill or even extra education. In fact, progressive presses allow one with less education to produce systematically consistent and reliable ammunition. Virtually all double charges and most of the squibs happen with other types of presses. Once set up, a progressive press can allow even a person without understanding of the details to crank out good ammo fast. What progressive presses do require is analytical approach to the initial setup, where the press is configured, then a decent protocol for controlling the QC and confirming everything is still in spec. But this is also what single-stage presses require - setting up everything that is set up on the progressive, and pretty much in the same way. There is no way around adjusting sizing, priming, neck expansion, bullet seating and crimping. And powder drop is much safer and easier when done on the progressive, because there is no room for human error while pulling the lever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IVC Posted March 9 Share Posted March 9 If we stop with the dogma of "don't start on the progressive" we can look into the real reason for single-stage presses - the inherent "variability slop" in progressive presses. Something that is irrelevant for combat-style shooting and even for pretty high precision shooting, but becomes an issue for extreme precision disciplines. A single-stage press, where each round is individually "crafted," powder is measured to the few 100ths of a grain, cases are meticulously prepared for uniformity and OAL is set within 1000th of an inch to match the *exact* chamber of a trued action behind a super-duper match barrel, well, that's where a single-stage shines. A progressive will never be within those tolerances. But also don't forget that a progressive can produce ammo that is "more accurate" than the average barrel. Those tight tolerances of a single-stage are completely unnecessary for 99% of the shooting. That's the second "dirty little secret" about reloading on a progressive, the first being that one can easily start and learn to reload on a progressive press. Combined, there is little reason not to start with a progressive press if any significant amount of ammo production is anticipated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IVC Posted March 9 Share Posted March 9 14 hours ago, Dr Mitch said: Reloading is simple. Way too many years of people making it out to be complex. Brass+Primer+Powder+Bullet. Make one good cartridge, repeat indefinitely. Yup, and this is much easier and safer done on a progressive press. With other types, the "repeat" part requires paying attention and not making a human error. With progressive presses, one you get to the "make one good cartridge" the "repeat" process is quite safe and much less prone to human error. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ALL_comped_EVERYTHING Posted March 10 Author Share Posted March 10 On 3/5/2024 at 12:16 PM, Farmer said: If you know or have an idea of what powders and primers you’ll need I suggest you buy them now and stock up even if you don’t have the press yet. That goes for loaded ammo too. It is an election year Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ALL_comped_EVERYTHING Posted March 10 Author Share Posted March 10 On 3/5/2024 at 12:03 PM, Braxton1 said: I will second on the "at least a 650, preferably a 1050" camp. You can add the bulletfeeder to either press and really crank out some rounds quickly. As far as instructional materials, the "Competition Reloading" video, starring our own host Brian Enos, is great, but also very basic. It's available via Amazon. YouTube is your friend also, with channels like "UltimateReloader", et. al. Just ordered the DVD, appreciate the recommendation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ALL_comped_EVERYTHING Posted March 10 Author Share Posted March 10 Narrowed it down. Dillon Super 1050 vs RL 1100. What are the major differences and which is better? Mainly will be loading 9mm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xrayfk05 Posted March 10 Share Posted March 10 I do wonder how you decided on the RL1100? You are only loading 1 to 2 K rounds a month, that's 1 to 2 hours on a 750 and the RL1100 will not add much. (Unless you need the swaging) If you can afford it, go for it but there is a lot you can do with the extra money spend. (Get a 750 for 9mm and a 550 for 223 for example ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmc45414 Posted March 10 Share Posted March 10 7 hours ago, ALL_comped_EVERYTHING said: Narrowed it down. Dillon Super 1050 vs RL 1100. What are the major differences and which is better? Mainly will be loading 9mm The RL1100 is a shorter stroke, .308 max, so if you never plan to do 30-06 I would get the RL1100. 4 hours ago, xrayfk05 said: I do wonder how you decided on the RL1100? You are only loading 1 to 2 K rounds a month, that's 1 to 2 hours on a 750 and the RL1100 will not add much. (Unless you need the swaging) In my case I ended up with a supply of 9mm that was polluted with some crimped cases. The cheap thing would have been to discard every piece of 9mm brass on hand (since that would have been, like FREE...) but that is not how I am wired!! But seriously, I knew I eventually wanted one, and when I retire (just a few more years...) I expect my volume to go up (only typically shooting one day a week now), and I decided every additional year I waited would just be one more year of my remaining life I would not have it, so I sold a bunch of safe queens and went ahead. Now that I have it there are more advantages than swaging, but it is nice to know there is no issue with a crimped case sneaking into the woodpile. And while 99% of the time it is setup for 9mm (with a bullet feeder) occasionally I change toolheads and size and swage all of the 223 I have on hand, and then take any sketchy ones and convert them to 300BO. Then I trim and wash them, and when I need to I load them on the 650. So jumping straight in to an RL1100 sure is an expensive route, but the sooner you buy one the lower the cost per year of ownership will be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IVC Posted March 10 Share Posted March 10 11 hours ago, ALL_comped_EVERYTHING said: Narrowed it down. Dillon Super 1050 vs RL 1100. What are the major differences and which is better? Mainly will be loading 9mm 1100 is a newer model with a few nice improvements, so it should be your default choice between the two. The only potential negative is that 1100 cannot load some very long rifle cartridges that 1050 can, but in exchange you're not moving the toolhead as much and you get a more efficient stroke (in a way). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanna_Go_Fast Posted March 10 Share Posted March 10 If you don’t intend on ever going fully automated, the 750 is a very good option. With the case and Mr bullet feeder I can load 100 in under 5 minutes. If you MAY go automated in the future, 1050 would be a better option. the 550 is great but with manual indexing and bullet feeding, it’s quite a bit slower. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
392heminut Posted March 12 Share Posted March 12 An old drag racer quote that applies here, "Speed costs money son, how fast do you want to go?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farmer Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 8 hours ago, 392heminut said: An old drag racer quote that applies here, "Speed costs money son, how fast do you want to go?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m700 Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 If you are set on the 1100 look at the evo as well. It will give you the chance to powdercheck/bulletfeed/size/crimp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m700 Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 Just now, m700 said: If you are set on the 1100 look at the evo as well. It will give you the chance to powdercheck/bulletfeed/size/crimp Im sorry make that the apex10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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