Worth reloading for gas guns?

[del2les]

I am curious, those who use progressive press for rifles, what do you use, what kind of powder measure/drop do you use, what kind of accuracy you get in powder weight and of course rifle accuracy

I've been using Dillion presses for about 35 years now, and usually, I use the Dillion powder measure on the press. Using ball and spherical type powders, I get fairly consistent weights that have given me enough accuracy that I load a lot of my high volume 222 and 223 P-dog varmint loads on them. Also years ago, I used a Dillion 550B to load a lot of my NM comp loads, 5.56 and 308, and I received very good accuracy. Enough that I made High Master using those loads.

 

[FireFlyFishing]

Absolutely! I load for 2 ARs, 300 BO, M1, and 2 M1As. The ammo I make is way more precise than most of the factory ammo I've found.

I hunt with all of them minus my 14.5" AR that is tacticool.

 

[geeck]

I am curious, those who use progressive press for rifles, what do you use, what kind of powder measure/drop do you use, what kind of accuracy you get in powder weight and of course rifle accuracy

I adapt a Hornady or Uniflow powder measure with a Hornady Case Activated Powder Drop. I use TAC powder a very fine ball powder, it leaks, no it rains TAC from the OEM Dillon slides. Without jumping through hoops, buying and lapping aftermarket slides to the Dillon , which I'm not willing to do, BECAUSE I F'N HATE DILLON POWDER MEASURES. The Lincoln Log IMR4064 doesn't do well in the Dillon PM either.

I tried converting the Dillon PM back to the original Spring Return and got rid of Dillon's Jar-o-matic linkage. It helped but I still ended up throwing them in the junk bin.

The Hornady Match Powder Measure and the RCBS Uniflow , drop pretty **** accurate, doesn't rain TAC, and deals better with heavy stick powder.

 

[Svashtar]

I adapt a Hornady or Uniflow powder measure with a Hornady Case Activated Powder Drop. I use TAC powder a very fine ball powder, it leaks, no it rains TAC from the OEM Dillon slides. Without jumping through hoops, buying and lapping aftermarket slides to the Dillon , which I'm not willing to do, BECAUSE I F'N HATE DILLON POWDER MEASURES. The Lincoln Log IMR4064 doesn't do well in the Dillon PM either.

I tried converting the Dillon PM back to the original Spring Return and got rid of Dillon's Jar-o-matic linkage. It helped but I still ended up throwing them in the junk bin.

The Hornady Match Powder Measure and the RCBS Uniflow , drop pretty **** accurate, doesn't rain TAC, and deals better with heavy stick powder.

Guess I've been lucky, not using those powders in the Dillon. I have two of their PM's and polished out the funnels till they're like mirrors, and added a better metering baffle and they feed great. I will say that the powder slides I got with the 550B in 1999 were IMO better than what you get now. More finely machined and fit tighter. But then I'm only using a few powders in mine, and nothing for rifle. I tried the spring return, but it was more jarring, not less I thought. I added a micrometer to the powder bar which makes for easy changes. I have four toolheads and two Dillon PM's so wish I had been your neighbor when you were tossing them, LOL! I have the Entirely Crimson QD setup though, so it takes only a minute to swap them out after dumping all the powder of course. For rifle I use a Redding 3BR which is way better than the Dillon for day to day accuracy and consistency.

 

[geeck]

Guess I've been lucky, not using those powders in the Dillon. I have two of their PM's and polished out the funnels till they're like mirrors, and added a better metering baffle and they feed great. I will say that the powder slides I got with the 550B in 1999 were IMO better than what you get now. More finally machined and fit tighter. But then I'm only using a few powders in mine, and nothing for rifle. I tried the spring return, but it was more jarring, not less I thought. I added a micrometer to the powder bar which makes for easy changes. I have four toolheads and two Dillon PM's so wish I had been your neighbor when you were tossing them, LOL! I have the Entirely Crimson QD setup though, so it takes only a minute to swap them out after dumping all the powder of course. For rifle I use a Redding 3BR which is way better than the Dillon for day to day accuracy and consistency.

I have to hand prime everything going thru the 650, the priming system is pure GARBAGE. Dillon finally figured that out themselves, hence the 750. I've been reloading since 1976 and I enjoy(ed) it until I got the 650, I'm surprised I haven't beaten it to pieces with a baseball bat. The bastards nickel and dime (ACTUALLY $50 & $100) for everything. And that "legendary" warranty I haven't seen it. Support sux too, I just hate F'n with the thing.

 

[Svashtar]

I have to hand prime everything going thru the 650, the priming system is pure GARBAGE. Dillon finally figured that out themselves, hence the 750. I've been reloading since 1976 and I enjoy(ed) it until I got the 650, I'm surprised I haven't beaten it to pieces with a baseball bat. The bastards nickel and dime (ACTUALLY $50 & $100) for everything. And that "legendary" warranty I haven't seen it. Support sux too, I just hate F'n with the thing.

My 550B primes perfectly, really. I got the aftermarket moly coated primer support plate from UniqueTek which helps, but honestly it did a good job for years before that upgrade. They've also been good to me on their "No BS" warranty, sending me a bunch of spare parts, including a couple of items they were supposed to charge me for. The last thing they sent me was a new bullet tray, because the original I bought had a finish issue.

That being said, their pricing for new items is crazy now as you say, and their shipping charges are nuts. Maybe that's to pay for the "no BS" warranty support costs!? My low powder sensor got damaged by another junk Chinese leaking Duracell battery, and by the time I got a new one shipped to me it was $75. I recently took the whole press apart to grease the pivot arms and internals, and was impressed with it frankly. I'm glad I got the 550; I don't need or want a case feeder, i want to handle each case to inspect it, and have a mirror mounted over station 3 instead of a powder cop die. Plus caliber conversions are a lot less $ than they are on the 750. I might feel different if I was reloading for rifle on it, but for 6 handgun calibers it's been very solid for 25 years now. I'm sorry yours has been such a pain!

 

[Buffalobwana]

If you load for saving money, good luck once you factor your time and progressive press.

Current prices

Brass 12¢ (maybe more)
Primer 11¢
Bullet 21¢
Powder 28¢
Total 72¢
box of 20 - $14



Old price of components I bought long ago

Brass 12¢
Primer 3¢
Bullet 20¢
Powder 22¢
Total 57¢
Box of 20 - $11.40

I load for accuracy and like quality bullets. So, I'll still load. Plus I have .22 components coming out my ears.

 

[Hydra6]

I have to hand prime everything going thru the 650, the priming system is pure GARBAGE. Dillon finally figured that out themselves, hence the 750. I've been reloading since 1976 and I enjoy(ed) it until I got the 650, I'm surprised I haven't beaten it to pieces with a baseball bat. The bastards nickel and dime (ACTUALLY $50 & $100) for everything. And that "legendary" warranty I haven't seen it. Support sux too, I just hate F'n with the thing.

I am a big fan of the Dillon 550 - got three. All used, picked up on estate sales or people that were upgrading. Simple. I leave one set on 9mm, one on 223, and one is 308/45 base with large primer - it does 45 and 308/CM family. I got the Dillon 650 with feeders and lots of extras super cheap from estate sale. The 650 is a PIA. Too many thinks to go wrong and - yes - primer system bites. I set it up for one caliber (223 AR mag length) and do not make any changes once it is running.

Get a Dillon 550.

 

[kpacker]

Depends. For now, I'm not. But during quarantine, worked good

 

[Buffalobwana]

Depends. For now, I'm not. But during quarantine, worked good

I miss quarantine!

 

[PREDATORMAN]

As mentioned previously, accuracy vs run n gun, wear and tear on brass, etc, etc… I painstakingly reload for my accurate guns and buy factory loads for the rest. I try not to take up permanent residency behind my press.

 

[dustbag]

I've looked, but not interested at this time. Maybe doing a 6br or 6dash.

I'd be curious to hear about this when/if you put one together. I now have 3 bolt dashers. Really like the accuracy of the cartridge. Cost of reloading isnt terrible either.

 

[Svashtar]

As mentioned previously, accuracy vs run n gun, wear and tear on brass, etc, etc… I painstakingly reload for my accurate guns and buy factory loads for the rest. I try not to take up permanent residency behind my press.

I'd probably do more of the same if I lived in a free state, and didn't have to notify the Feds everytime I bought ammo, which I refuse to do. Especially for shotshell. Since January 2019 I've bought exactly 1 box of ammo, a 50 rd box of .357 Sig in 2020 for a CCW qualification, before I was setup to reload that caliber, and that was a PITA with the purchase first being denied, then finally approved. As it is, I kind of enjoy at least semi-permanent residency in my reloading area. . I have quiet, a radio, my dog, a well organized 4 press setup that I enjoy (all Inline Fab mounting and storage options), and no nagging. (You married guys maybe can relate? )

Right now my goal is to save up to get a Howa 1500 as a basis for a Precision Rifle project, my first, but I have to do it before July because the statist bast@&#$ here passed a law adding an 11% surcharge onto all firearms purchases effective that month. They never stop trying…!

 

[William W.]

I have to hand prime everything going thru the 650, the priming system is pure GARBAGE. Dillon finally figured that out themselves, hence the 750. I've been reloading since 1976 and I enjoy(ed) it until I got the 650, I'm surprised I haven't beaten it to pieces with a baseball bat. The bastards nickel and dime (ACTUALLY $50 & $100) for everything. And that "legendary" warranty I haven't seen it. Support sux too, I just hate F'n with the thing.

The circular primer handling system in the 650 works just fine. I prefer it to the cheap 750 system with the movable spring-loaded rod that likes to jump off the runners"