Dillema for Dillon RL 550B die choice

[villihun]

G'day everyone

I'm new to the reloading and I have joined this forum because it was one of the most practial and informative forums I have come across.

There are a few questions I would like to ask and any help would be greatly appreciated.

1. I'm thinking to buy either the Dillon RL 550B or the Forster Co-ax single stage press.

a) What would be the reloading rate per hour with these presses. (would like to reload about 800+ rounds per month)

2. I will reload 9mm and 38/357cal. mainly led and hard cast led bullets, so which dies would be the best performers, considering that some dies are not performing as good with these calibers? Reffering to some bulging on the bottom of the cases like belted magnum appearance.

3. Do the dies clog/gunk up quicker with led projectiles? And what would be the easiest and best way to clean them?

4. Is the EGW die (U-die) made by Lee, the universal re-sizing die?

[HSMITH]

Welcome to the best place on the internet!!

With a 550 and some practice you can load 300 per hour pretty comfortably. You will work your tail off to load 100 per hour on a single stage. I have both and for your use would recommend the 550, our host sells them in the webstore at a great price too.

Dies, for the dies a Dillon die set will work well. They come apart for cleaning without losing adjustment, and I believe they are the only ones you can buy that have that feature. With lead bullets you will need to clean the seat and crimp dies pretty often, maybe even as often as every 6 or 7 hundred rounds. If you have a revolver with big chambers and the Dillon die won't go low enough to take it out you can get a Lee carbide sizing die for about $12, it will go low enough. I wouldn't use the U-die with lead bullets, it won't help anything.

[Jim M.]

Welcome to the forum, villihun.

I second the advice of HSMITH on the speed of the presses. 800 rounds per month is not much, but the choice in presses means you will spend about two hours per month with the Dillon 550, compared to 8 hours or more with any single stage press. That applies to any single stage, not just the Forster.

One thing to keep in mind when buying your first reloading set-up is to allow for future growth (in your amount of shooting, not your waist line!) The 550 will keep you ahead of the game if you start shooting more, now that you can afford it with the reloading.

2. I will reload 9mm and 38/357cal. mainly led and hard cast led bullets, so which dies would be the best performers, considering that some dies are not performing as good with these calibers? Reffering to some bulging on the bottom of the cases like belted magnum appearance.

It would help to know what kind of a gun you are shooting. Revolvers generally don't allow the case to bulge at the bottom, so the U-die won't be necessary. Likewise, most semi-autos have fairly good case support, so the standard dies will work well. Glocks have less support in the chamber area (around the feed ramp), so they sometimes get more case bulge, commonly referred to as a "Glock belly." I find that standard dies work quite well for my Glock reloading, with the exception of Dillon dies. Dillon sizing dies are flared more at the bottom to guide the cases into the die better. That sometimes doesn't work as well if the cases have been fired in a Glock. It doesn't size the case low enough to remove the Glock belly.

On the other hand, if your cases have been fired in anything other than a Glock, I find the Dillon dies the easiest to use on a progressive press. They avoid the hang-ups you sometimes get with other dies on a progressive press, and make loading faster and easier.

Unless you have some special need, any name brand of dies will work for what you describe, with one exception. I avoid mixing Dillon sizing dies with brass fired in a Glock.

3. Do the dies clog/gunk up quicker with led projectiles? And what would be the easiest and best way to clean them?

Yes, the seating and crimp dies definitely clog up faster with lead bullets. That isn't as bad as it sounds, though. If my case belling die is not properly adjusted, the seating die will clog up with about 100 to 200 rounds through it. Increasing the case mouth belling slightly will increase the round count between cleanings to about 800 rounds. Since that is the amount you anticipate loading in a month, you should probably follow the routine of cleaning the dies each time you reload, and you won't have to interrupt your reloading to clean them. If you do, check your case mouth belling.

The Dillon dies are definitely the best I have tried for ease of cleaning the bullet seating die and the crimp die. You can clean them without taking the main body of the die out of the press, and without changing any adjustments.

Keep a small cleaning kit near your reloading press. That should include your favorite brand of powder solvent, a short (pistol) cleaning rod, and a bore brush of the same size as your seating die. Your first indication of a clogged up die will be variations in overall cartridge length, caused by seating the bullet deeper. It is pressed deeper by the lead build-up in the nose cavity of the seating die. Just drop the die out of the press (assuming a Dillon seating die), press the cross pin out, and remove the seating insert. Clean the die insert with the cleaning rod and powder solvent, dry with a clean dry patch, and then clean the seating insert. Re-assemble, and go back to work. Takes about a minute. If you have loaded less than about 500 rounds since the last time you cleaned the seating die, lower your powder die about 1/8 of a turn to increase case mouth belling.

4. Is the EGW die (U-die) made by Lee, the universal re-sizing die?

Nope, not at all. They are good dies, and they do correct some brass problems. I have a couple of them that I use, especially if the brass has been fired in a Glock. Normally, I use some other sizing dies, including Dillon, RCBS, Redding, Lee, Hornady, and probably a couple of others that I can't recall at the moment. All work well unless you are trying to correct a particular problem. Then, you may need the U-Die. Just remember that a U-Die is somewhat slower to use on a progressive press, because the case must be more accurately aligned with the die when sizing, and that may require that you go a bit slower. No big deal. Maybe 350 rounds per hour, instead of 400 rounds per hour.

Jim M.

[villihun]

Hi Jim M. HSMITH and everybody

Thank you for the quick reply to my questions. The guns I'm intending to shoot are.

S&W 38/357 V-COMP. HK USP Expert, and SIG 226 X-5 allrounder, bearing in mind that I will have to make a choice between the two semi autos.

Any thought on those two (pros/cons). I'm avere of the price difference, and would be using it in IPSC events.

P.S.Thank's guys I will order the 550B press. and as you said Jim M. "to allow for future growth" (not in the waist line though ).

I would like to use Brian (our host) for ordering, but unfortunately he is not accomodating international orders eg. Australia, so, I will have to order direct from Dillonprecision.

Regards to everyone villihun

[benos]

I would like to use Brian (our host) for ordering, but unfortunately he is not accomodating international orders eg. Australia, so, I will have to order direct from Dillonprecision.

Regards to everyone villihun

Thank you for that. With the hugely variable and unpredictable shipping charges to various countries around the world, it isn't possible for me to set up any sort of shipping charges to cover overseas orders. Heck, the shipping is so bad just to Alaska, I can only sell Dillon equipment to the continental 48 states.

be

[Hank Ellis]

G'day everyone

I'm new to the reloading and I have joined this forum because it was one of the most practial and informative forums I have come across.

There are a few questions I would like to ask and any help would be greatly appreciated.

1. I'm thinking to buy either the Dillon RL 550B or the Forster Co-ax single stage press.

a) What would be the reloading rate per hour with these presses. (would like to reload about 800+ rounds per month)

Welcome. You've come to the right place.

Go with the Dillon. My first press was a 550. Starting out you can use it as a single stage like I did for about 200 rounds till I got comfortable with the process. Then it was progressive all the way. At 800 rounds per month you need a progressive. 300 to 400 rounds an hour is a reasonable speed with the 550.

2. I will reload 9mm and 38/357cal. mainly led and hard cast led bullets, so which dies would be the best performers, considering that some dies are not performing as good with these calibers? Reffering to some bulging on the bottom of the cases like belted magnum appearance.

I use Dillon dies for my .38spl loads and have had zero problems in either of my revolvers. Get them. They work.

3. Do the dies clog/gunk up quicker with led projectiles? And what would be the easiest and best way to clean them?

Lead bullets will gunk up the dies in any caliber with any die. I clean them out every 500 rounds just as a matter of routine maintenance. My die cleaning method will probably give somebody a stroke but ... I apply 3 or 4 drops of Hoppes 9 or similiar solvent in the die. Give it a couple of minutes to soak then run a BoreSnake through it one time. Follow by a dry patch or rag to remove the leftover solvent and stray gunk. Done. And no I haven't seen scratch one on the dies.

4. Is the EGW die (U-die) made by Lee, the universal re-sizing die?

Not familiar enough with the equipment to answer this one.

[Bill H]

Go with Dillon all the way. When I first started a good friend and shooter told me to buy Dillon and I didn't listen. Well a couple months later I had a Dillon 550 coming and traded off the Brand X reloader. I have never looked back. Listen to the people that shoot lots of rounds.

Edited January 3, 2008 by Bill H

[jrguar]

+ 1 on the Dillion 550B, I've had a 550B for over 10 years , I load 45 acp , .38/.357 & .40. Before that I used a RCBS Rockchucker jr. I spend alot more time shooting then loading now. The EGE U die is nice for tightly chambered firearms and range brass Good luck but you can not go wrong using dillion equipment.

Joe