2nd press selection

[sportbikeco]

I'm looking to get another press with the goal of speeding up production.

I would plan on using this for 45acp exclusively to start.

The Lee products stand out based on price. Anyone have experience they could share with regards to the pro 1000 or load master setups? (Pro 1000 is $165 at cabelas right now)

I have a 30+ year old nice heavy single stage I will leave on the bench.

Would I be better served by a cheapo progressive or a turret style press (Lee classic turret)

[cstone]

I have a Lee Pro 1000. As long as I hand primed all of my brass, I never worried about it. Once the case feeder was properly adjusted, it ran like a top. For the money, it turned out decent ammunition at a decent pace.

I now use a Dillon 550 and would not go back to the Pro 1000. The cost difference is worth getting the Dillon IMO.

[Jamnanc]

Dillon sdb if you wanna go fast and pistol only.

[Zombie Steve]

I'm one of those guys that is just trying to get Lee-ness out of my life. Dillon 550B is a great progressive. You won't regret spending the extra money.

[Great-Kazoo]

BLUE 550

[trlcavscout]

The new pro 1000 is a great press. I bought one in 45 acp and have had no problems, except trying to figure out how to spend all the money I saved over buying the blue press.

[vossman]

BLUE 550

+1

[laportecharlie]

I started my reloading career in the mid eighties with a Lee 1000. It is a miracle that I continued to reload after that nightmare. Bought a used Dillon 550 and never looked back. I am proud to say that I now maintain a "Lee Free" reloading bench. As Jamnanc stated above, a Dillon Square Deal B is a great choice if you are only going to load one pistol caliber

[Trigger Time 23]

I use a Hornady LNL AP and like it a lot. I use it mainly for my straight wall pistol (.45 ACP and .40 S&W). I needed to fiddle with it to get it running smoothly, but it works great now. Setting one up now would be a snap. I don't have experience with Dillon, but guys love them and it sounds like they have little trouble (maybe the fine tuning I did would not be necessary with a Dillon machine).

[sellersm]

If it's for pistol only, the Dillon SDB is a great deal. Be aware that it's very 'small' and if you have any kind of issues with your hands/fingers, it may not work for you. Dillon 550 gets my vote. I used to have a Lee Pro 1000, and don't regret selling it for the Dillon 550!

Another option is the Lee Classic Cast Turret (LCT). Not as fast, but much faster than single stage!!

[stodg73]

Dillon XL650....

[Danimal]

Honestly I would go to Cabela's, and then into some place like Elk Bomb that has Dillon presses on display and run the presses with your own hands. The first thing that you will notice is that the Lee presses on display are all beat to hell and broke. Of course the people in Cabela's treat them like crap, but it just goes to show that the quality is indicative to a point related to the purchase price. Then look at the RCBS and Hornady presses. For a solid progressive setup you will pay more for either brand than you will for a Dillon with the same capabilities. They are not bad presses by any means, but they are more money for the same result. For the money Dillon is by far the best bang for the buck.

I have had a lee 1000, and I promise it is not worth the savings. The plastic parts will wear out and it does not take that long. Specifically the plastic indexing disk for the indexing on the Lee 100 wore out after about 2000 rounds. That sounds like a lot, but I ran through that in about 2 months. Also the plastic feeder for the case feeder broke twice in that time. The little cheap chain broke right away and I replaced it with a piece of bike brake cable and crimped some steel bands on the end so that the powder dispenser would work somewhat reliably. Also I had to hand prime all of my cases because the primer system cuts primers and/or miss aligns them with the case pressing them in crooked. Really I never trusted the press to work properly. It did not save me any real time over a single stage press because It took forever to set up correctly and then I felt that I had to check and re-check everything constantly because I did not trust it.

To contrast, I can sit down at my Dillon 550 and within about two hours have 500 rounds of any of five calibers that I shoot often. It is easy to set up, and is all around more accurate. The whole process is easy and reliable. Everything on it works, and the powder measure is very accurate for rifle and pistol ammo.

[hghclsswhitetrsh]

Loving my 550 right now.