The Little Things That Matter... 550b Vs 650 Tiny Differences - Help

[Shoot-4-Ever]

I am on the edge of my chair ready to place the order. I was almost sure I wanted to spend the extra cash and go for the 650. Well, I keep reading forums etc. and now I am not sure, but maybe the 550 is for me. I think I can live without the case feeder, I just won’t shoot enough.

Questions

Here is an old section of a post on a BE forum from 6/04.

9. I haven't had much use for the low powder sensor, but I think the Powder Check System is a MUST. The PCS makes sure you don't grossly over or under charge a case. The LPS just makes sure you don't run out of powder in the powder measure. The PCS along with a regular visual check give you 2 chances to catch an improperly charged case.

10. Get 4 of the old version powder measure springs and disable the damn new powder cam thingy. It sucks! (do a search or post back and I'll find you the thread).

1-Will the powder check system work on the 550b? Seems it is the 5th station on the 650 so maybe dedicated to one position completely and will not work on the 550?

2-What is this bit about the powder measure springs? This is the first time I have come upon this subject. Is this a 650 problem and not related to the 550?

Other questions….

3-Strong mount, the 650 mount is a little different in height from the 550. Can someone give me the whole 9 yards on this difference? I fully understand the fact that it makes the unit much stronger on a lighter duty bench etc. (I have always welded a plate on my MEC reloaders making a huge difference). What about the other reasons for the strong mount?

4-Using a caliper to adjust the dies? I have a good caliper, but do I need to adjust my dies with it on either the 550 or 650? I hope to use my 4 pc. Lee dies or my Lyman dies if I can get them to work with the Dillon.

5-Opinion question...If I had a 550b, why would I wish I had the 650? Note - I shoot 99% pistol/revolver. 9mm .40 .38 spc. would dominate my needs. A few .44 and some .380 and .357 from time to time. I will be shooting an estimated 1000 -1200 rds per month part of the year and maybe only 500-1,000 for the off season. This would be plenty of shooting compared to what I do now. I want to allow for an increase in my shooting volume due to the Dillon concept.

6-What about primer selection? Is there a difference in preference between the 550b and the 650? I am working with some magTech primers (sm. pistol) right now on my turret and sofar are working good with most brass and I like the price! Will there be a problem w/Dillon machines?

7-Are there any other little bits I should know about that would help with my decision?

All comments would be appreciated.

Thanks

[toowide]

My vote is for the 650. Love mine. the case feeder is not necessarily a must, but i do love mine. the self indexing helps avoid double charges. never had a 550 to compare just going by what my freinds have told me about them. both good machines. just my 2 cents.

Edited March 14, 2007 by toowide

[Jimini]

Do yourself a favor. Buy the 650. You will never be disapointed or wind up blaming yourself for not getting the case feeder. I've had one for over 10 years and love it.

[zhunter]

650 and Casefeeder, NUF SAID

[Dave Marques]

Ditto - 650. You WILL NOT BE SORRY!!!!!!

[Joe4d]

Well I have had a 550 for years and loaded many thousands of rounds with no complaints, but wish I had a 650 just cant justify the expense of starting over with a new machine. A case feeder is now available for the 550. Magtech primers work fine I have loaded several thousand of them in my 550.

[Aircooled6racer]

Hello: I vote for the Square deal B. They load great and are easy to use. The price is right on them as well if you buy used. If you find used ones you can own 3 SDB's to what the 650 will cost with the parts you need. Don't rule out the SDB. Hope this helps. Thanks Eric

[sidnal]

I started with a 550 and upgraded to a 650...now I'm getting ready to buy a 1050. The 650 will stay around for other calibers...I load mostly .40.

There is no doubt that the 650 is a more complicated than the 550, but you can load much more each hour once you get used to loading. If I were starting over I'd choose the 650.

1. Powder sensor isn't worth the $$ and you can use the rest every 6-800 rounds.

2. Powder measure is the same as the 550, don't know what they're talking about.

3. Strong mount raises the unit...beside that I don't know the diff...had strong mounts on both units. No matter which you use make sure the bench is attached to a wall and very solid.

4. Read the forum more...all dies require adjustment. Any of the dies will work, but some dies are prefered by most loaders for specific rounds.

5. 650 loads more per hour.

6. I do like the 550 primer system better than the 650 because it is more reliable and more simple. I've found that it needs to be cleaned every couple of thousand rounds. I still like the 650 better...much faster.

7. Sorry to be repetive, but faster is better. I'm upgrading to get more rounds/hour...not enough time to wait on a press.

My biggest issue with the 550 is the lack of auto-indexing and case feeder. Now the 550 has a case feed it's about the auto indexing. With the 650...pull handle, push, bullet...pull push bullet. With 550 (+casefeeder) you add the indexing, 1/4 more work to do.

650.

Good luck with your decision.

Landis

I am on the edge of my chair ready to place the order. I was almost sure I wanted to spend the extra cash and go for the 650. Well, I keep reading forums etc. and now I am not sure, but maybe the 550 is for me. I think I can live without the case feeder, I just won’t shoot enough.

Questions

Here is an old section of a post on a BE forum from 6/04.

9. I haven't had much use for the low powder sensor, but I think the Powder Check System is a MUST. The PCS makes sure you don't grossly over or under charge a case. The LPS just makes sure you don't run out of powder in the powder measure. The PCS along with a regular visual check give you 2 chances to catch an improperly charged case.

10. Get 4 of the old version powder measure springs and disable the damn new powder cam thingy. It sucks! (do a search or post back and I'll find you the thread).

1-Will the powder check system work on the 550b? Seems it is the 5th station on the 650 so maybe dedicated to one position completely and will not work on the 550?

2-What is this bit about the powder measure springs? This is the first time I have come upon this subject. Is this a 650 problem and not related to the 550?

Other questions….

3-Strong mount, the 650 mount is a little different in height from the 550. Can someone give me the whole 9 yards on this difference? I fully understand the fact that it makes the unit much stronger on a lighter duty bench etc. (I have always welded a plate on my MEC reloaders making a huge difference). What about the other reasons for the strong mount?

4-Using a caliper to adjust the dies? I have a good caliper, but do I need to adjust my dies with it on either the 550 or 650? I hope to use my 4 pc. Lee dies or my Lyman dies if I can get them to work with the Dillon.

5-Opinion question...If I had a 550b, why would I wish I had the 650? Note - I shoot 99% pistol/revolver. 9mm .40 .38 spc. would dominate my needs. A few .44 and some .380 and .357 from time to time. I will be shooting an estimated 1000 -1200 rds per month part of the year and maybe only 500-1,000 for the off season. This would be plenty of shooting compared to what I do now. I want to allow for an increase in my shooting volume due to the Dillon concept.

6-What about primer selection? Is there a difference in preference between the 550b and the 650? I am working with some magTech primers (sm. pistol) right now on my turret and sofar are working good with most brass and I like the price! Will there be a problem w/Dillon machines?

7-Are there any other little bits I should know about that would help with my decision?

All comments would be appreciated.

Thanks

[bubback]

I just passed 70K on my 550 and other than a tired arm,I have no complaints.

[Shoot-4-Ever]

WOW, Just when I thought I had everything figured out....

Keep posting your vote and giving your reasons. You can even answer some of my other questions if you have something to say.

Whatever I decide on, I will always think of a reason why I should have bought the other unit. I can't possibly go too far wrong with any of them (for my intended use) can I?

As for the SDB's, that is a good angle I had not looked at. For one thing it would get me started, having some cash left over to set up another unit for my 2nd most used cal. Maybe two units in SDB would do what I need for now. I hear of guys with two, three or more units (all blue) and some are SDB's.

But...I like the idea of getting together every piece of brass I can find and load em all up at one time and then go shoot for a month or two, wash and repeat!

[Vulture]

It basicly is going to come down to money. If you have the cash to spend then buy the better unit. If your going to worry about "should I have gotten the better unit" then get the better unit. I have a 550 and am perfectly happy with it. I thought about getting a 650 but after reading stuff on this forum I decided to get the 550. It loads all I need as fast as I need them. As long as the huns are not boiling over the horizen to invade my abode or if you had both thumbs amputated the amount per hour that you can load is inconcequential. Get the strong mount and the aluminum roller handle. Order it from Brian and get the "as it should be" package which ever one you choose. I think it is easier to change between calibers on a 550. What ever dies you choose make sure you get the set for a progressive loader, because you don't need the one that bells the mouth of the case and you load the powder. That is part of the unit itself. You want the set that has sizer, seater and crimper as seperate dies not the set that has the seater and crimper as the same die. In this forum there is an artical on which Dillon to buy. You should read that because all you are going to get from us are opinions and you know what they say about those.

[R/T Performance]

Number one reason you should not buy a SDB expensive conversions and non standard dies.

Big plus with the 550 tool heads and conversion are the cheapest and readly avilble even used for the 550.

I had a hard time decideing 550 650 when I out grew my SDB (Got an ar to feed)

But I caught a great deal on a 550.

+'s I have a tool head with just one die in it for resizeing rifle brass.

I have three powder measure and tool heads.

45 acp

40 cal

.223 Rem

Easy conversions

Simple priming system.

My loading bench is built in the wall and at perfect stool heigth so no strong mount for me.

Use lee lyman or hornday dies can be had cheap

[1911user]

If you must have a powder checking die of some kind, then the decision comes down to seating and crimping in the same die (550) or seperate seating and crimping (650).

A sizing die takes station #1. The powder drop/expander die takes station #2. In your setup, station #3 has to be the powder check die. On a 550, that leaves only station #4 for seat and crimp. On a 650, there are 2 die stations left for seperate seat and crimp. Based on the powder checking, you should probably go 650 if possible.

The 550 strong mount will work with both 550 and 650 machines. The 650 strong mount is shorter (an inch or 2) and is 650-only.

Edited March 14, 2007 by 1911user

[ima45dv8]

Just pick one and get started. There's a lot of ammo to shoot and you're getting way behind schedule.

[LPatterson]

I have done over 20K on a 550 without any problems but lately it has been gee I wish I had a 650 & a bullet feeder. So if you have the space I would opt for the 650.

[Bear23]

I have a 550 and a 650. 45 on the 550 and 38 super and 40 on the 650.

The pile of ammo you can make with a 650 is well worth it.

[JFD]

#1 I look in each case to verify there's powder in it as I place the bullet. I see no need for a powder check.

#2 The springs used to come with older presses. Doesn't matter which press you buy now, there won't be any springs.

#3 While I wouldn't weld on my 650, mounting it to a steel plate and then to the bench is 100% stronger than the strong mount. I have a strong mount (650 only) for sale with a couple of extra holes drilled if you must have one

#4 You can use any dies you want on either press. Locking rings may have to go on the bottom of the tool head with some dies. I'd buy some Dillon locking rings if I were you (I did).

#5 When you have your first squib you'll wish you had bought the 650. The 650 is fast whether you try to go fast or not. My very first session was taken very easy to get to know the press. I ended up loading 600 rounds in the first hour. Now I load 1K+ an hour if I have all 15 primer tubes filled. I've never really tried to load fast, as I run out of stuff to load pretty fast as it is.

#6 I've used Winchester and Federal primers with my 650. I have a few problems loading Federal in my primer tubes, but no problems with the 650 itself.

#7 I've never used a 550 so I don't know any other differences besides knowing that most folks in our sport choose the 650. That's based on the surveys from the Nats that I've seen lately.

[Vulture]

If you must have a powder checking die of some kind, then the decision comes down to seating and crimping in the same die (550) or seperate seating and crimping (650).

A sizing die takes station #1. The powder drop/expander die takes station #2. In your setup, station #3 has to be the powder check die. On a 550, that leaves only station #4 for seat and crimp. On a 650, there are 2 die stations left for seperate seat and crimp. Based on the powder checking, you should probably go 650 if possible.

The above is incorrect, the 550 has sizer in station 1, powder drop/expander in station 2, seater in station 3, and crimper in station 4. There is no powder check on the 550. It is called the Mark 1 eye ball. I stand while reloading and can see in each case before i put a bullet on the case. It is easy to become too removed from the process using a 650 and a novice reloader can become over confident on relying on the equipment to do the job. It's never a bad thing to keep your fingers in the process or to go slow while learning a new piece of equipment.

Ultimately either one will do the job for you. But the 650 is a step up from a 550 thats why it costs more and has more features.

[XD Niner]

I vote for a 650 with both the case feeder and the powder check. I too eyeball every case to make sure the powder charge looks right. However, I still like the idea of a secondary backup. It is easy to become mesmerized with the reloading action and overlook a problem case. The powder check gives a second opinion (actually first since it senses the problem before the case moves to the fourth station where you can see it.

If both machines are equipped with a case feeder, the difference in cost is around $70. For this minimal difference choosing the 650 is a no brainer IMHO.

[Smokecloud]

I recently had to make the same decision, the 550 or the 650, I have been using a 450 for about 20 years, but since it still technically belonged to my dad, I never upgraded it. I looked at upgrading it on top of trying to purchase it from my ol man, but he wouldnt sell, not even for $200, which was more that it was bought for back in the mid 80's. So even if he had sold, the upgrades would have put me over the cost of a new 550b. So I decided to give him his loader back and get a faster one.

At my most intense shooting years, I would shoot about 30k a year of centerfire (not counting .22 for ground squirrals and rabbits), and now that I have two kids in diapers, my time has been radically modified. My shooting is no more than about 5k a year on average, but hopefully will come back up in a year or two. after reading over everything i could to choose which press I wanted, I decided to go with the 650 for several reasons. Sometimes my reloading time is limited to 30 minutes or possibly one hour, so I need the maximum production available without pusing myself or the machines limits. It might be a month before I get my next reloading time ok'd by the wife.

My next biggest decision was safety, I like the powder check die and extra station for that die, especially since I load mostly lead and coated bullets, I need seperate crimp and seat stations and dont have to sacrifice either for the check die. I always visually check for powder prior to bullet placement, but there is always some exception for one mistake, kid snuck up on ya, phone rang or whatever, so I like the 2nd safety measure. Afterall, loading is only cost effective if you dont blow up your expensive gun.

I was undecided if I really needed the auto indexing because I have done it manually so long, that I thought it might handicap me. I perform several safety checks very frequently while loading and if I stopped and checked something, I didnt want to have to fight the machine to get back to where I was. I decided to go with the times and try the auto index, who knows, I might like it. turns out that I liked it very much and Dillon has already figured out several features to include for people like me who like to pull cases out at various stages and measure or inspect without messing up the rest of the process.

I dont have a case feeder and am not sure If I need one, because I still believe in inspecting every piece of brass prior to putting in the reloader. I think that having a case feeder would be too tempting to just dump it from the tumbler to the feeder and crank away and hope you checked them well enough when you picked them up off the ground. Even after inspecting cases twice, I find small things I missed in prior handlings, so I have always been anal about case inspection.

My last decision to buy a 650 was because I have 5 guns in .40sw and that is pretty much all I shoot anymore in high volume. Yeah, I have 38's and .45's and various other rifle and pistol calibers, but I only shoot about 1000 45's a year and maybe 200-300 .38's and so forth. All of my rifle rounds get the tedious match quality loading procedure, so I dont think I like loading them any other way than on my single stage press, so RCBS for all the low quantity and high quality stuff. If I was shooting more volume in other calibers, I would be tempted to save for a 550 for that stuff because of the cheaper change over cost and ease of changeover. But there is always my pops 450 if I need a moderate volume of any of those cases too.

[benos]

I am on the edge of my chair ready to place the order. I was almost sure I wanted to spend the extra cash and go for the 650. Well, I keep reading forums etc. and now I am not sure, but maybe the 550 is for me. I think I can live without the case feeder, I just won’t shoot enough.

Most competition shooters will be happier with a 650 or eventually end up with one. While recreational shooters are usually better served by a 550. Especially if they'll be loading 3 or more calibers and will be switching back and forth frequently.

Dillon FAQ:

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

“Which Dillon”:

http://www.brianenos.com/pages/dillon.html#which

Give me a call and I'll help you sort it out.

Brian

toll-free: (877) 219-5598