Anybody out there have one of these? My brother and I went in on a 550 a couple (few?) years ago, and it's been great. We're entertaining the idea of moving up to the 650, but I'd like to know if the extra commodities are worth it.
i have one and i love it. it is also the only press i have ever used so i don't have anything to compare it to. i can bust out a lot of rounds in a hurry though. i'm only set up for .44 mag right now but will be getting a few conversion kits hopefully soon.
Can't say if the extra goodies are worth it because I've never loaded on a 550, but the 550 is a fine machine from what I hear from those who have one.
I have the 650 and can tell you that you can do 400 rounds per hour in your sleep. Really get cranking and you can do 800 or a little better. Brian Enos has a very good comparison of all the Dillon presses on his site. He puts it out there straight with no real bias even though he sells them. IOW, he won't be trying to sell you a 1050 when what you need is a 550. I'd look at that and judge it by how much you plan on shooting.
I have the 650 and can tell you that you can do 400 rounds per hour in your sleep. Really get cranking and you can do 800 or a little better. Brian Enos has a very good comparison of all the Dillon presses on his site. He puts it out there straight with no real bias even though he sells them. IOW, he won't be trying to sell you a 1050 when what you need is a 550. I'd look at that and judge it by how much you plan on shooting.
I have a 550 and was going to pick up 650 but the 'loading expert' at Heartland---Joe---convinced me that I should stick with another 550 instead. If he talks me out of buying a more expensive press, there has to be reason or two.
While I would like to have a 650 at some point, I just don't think it is worth the more expensive caliber changes and the time compared to the 550
While I would like to have a 650 at some point, I just don't think it is worth the more expensive caliber changes and the time compared to the 550
I went from a LoadMaster to a 650, so I can't comment on the differences between the 550 and 650.
I will, however, agree with Shadow and say the 650 is an amazing machine. I am one of many who wish they had *started* with a Dillon progressive rather than worked up to one. . .
I will, however, agree with Shadow and say the 650 is an amazing machine. I am one of many who wish they had *started* with a Dillon progressive rather than worked up to one. . .
The 650 has several advantages over the 550.
First, the auto indexing. Your right hand never needs to come off the press handle. It easily doubles the amount of rounds per hour that can be loaded.
Second, the extra stage in the tool head. It can be used for several things, including a bullet feeder, case trimmer and powder check die. I use mine for a powder check die. I consider it to be an extra bit of insurance against squibs and double charges.
Yes, the conversions are a little bit more expensive with the 650. The case feeder is a little bit more expensive with the 550. It's all a trade off.
In the end, I think you need to pick the tool that fits the job. I do long runs of match ammo. My time is limited, so the 650 was the right choice for me.
First, the auto indexing. Your right hand never needs to come off the press handle. It easily doubles the amount of rounds per hour that can be loaded.
Second, the extra stage in the tool head. It can be used for several things, including a bullet feeder, case trimmer and powder check die. I use mine for a powder check die. I consider it to be an extra bit of insurance against squibs and double charges.
Yes, the conversions are a little bit more expensive with the 650. The case feeder is a little bit more expensive with the 550. It's all a trade off.
In the end, I think you need to pick the tool that fits the job. I do long runs of match ammo. My time is limited, so the 650 was the right choice for me.
The other features I like, but I wish they would offer the ability to NOT auto index. IE, when setting up the press.
I index my 550 with my left hand, load a case with my right, place bullet with left. Not as fast as a 650 with case feeder for sure, where the only action necessary would be placing a bullet, but still way faster than my Lee Turret!
I read the Brian Enos comparisons and one the big differences he mentioned was that if you want to do lots of a single caliber the 650 was great, but if you do multiple calibers then stick with the 550 as changing between them was easier/faster.
anyone else have experience with that thought?
anyone else have experience with that thought?
Once you have your toolheads setup, the 650 is plenty fast enough. If you are not changing primer size, a changeover can be done in about 10 minutes, sometimes less. A few more if you are changing primer size, and you might or might not have to adjust the case insertion a bit, but it's really not that big a deal, and a caliber change is the perfect time to clean and grease the parts that need it. But yes, he's right technically...
Fair enough. The thought of being able to reload at the capacity that a 650 would provide seems really compelling, but I just don't know if I _really_ need it myself. 99% of what I would reload would be .45 acp and 5.56
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