Dillon RL550 first try at it.

[lonewolf5347]

Well after getting the few missing part I had nothing to do today let see how she runs, never used a Dillon before.
My press for years was a Lee Classic auto index press.
I could run 100 rounds in about a luttli under the 1 hour time frame.
The press 9 mm first time out Holly molee
50 rounds took me 1/2 hour what the heck any one want to buy this press.
I can do better on the Lee press.
I took a break had to pull 3 rounds was not sure on the powder 3.4 gr. Bulleye charge.??
I then tried a double charge to see how much space is left in the case,not much so you can't double charge bullet will not be able to seat the bullet.
Ok took a coffee break did a few small adjust ments and went back to see how long another 50 rounds will take
12 minutes just had to get the brain to know which hands to out the bullet and then a empty case the same time before using the press handle.
I still run on average 5,000 rounds a year
Will be nice to run 200 rounds an hour o. the Dillon press

 

[Galil5.56]

Once you get her dialed in, properly adjusted, and used to how she grooves, you will be cranking them out like nobody's business. It is a learning curve, but a gentle one, and I love to hear how she sounds when all is in sync making ammo BTW, I know what you mean by "which hand" and this will be A-OK once muscle memory is learned, and I use the two eyeball rule with my 550B... Powder charge gets one visual verification on drop, and one before seating, making sure to have a lot of good light.

Good luck with that great press, and learning of her ways.

 

[kmw1954]

I'm too am NOT a Dillon user and do now have three Lee presses, of which only one is new. I have been using a Pro1000 and am completely happy with it. Then just added a new Breech Lock Pro for the fourth position. Even though it is very similar to the Pro1000 and the Turret it is still different. The first few times I used it, it felt awkward because it was different. Now that I am adjusting to the new press it is becoming more fluid to use.

I believe that once you make the adjustment from one to the other the new Dillon will become smoother and faster. If someone were to dump a 550 into my lap I'd use it for sure. Though if the same were to happen with a 650 I would probably pass it along to someone that would put it to better use. As nice as they are it's just more press than I will ever need.

Enjoy and shoot'm up!

 

[joed]

It's all about getting a rhythm going. In my first week I had it pumping out rounds at about 300 an hour. Haven't owned a 550 for about 10 years but I seem to remember setting cases and advancing the press with my right hand and seating bullets with my left.

 

[kilizyrag]

With the 550 setup properly I can run 500/hour through without blinking an eye. The press is smooth and fast and as long as I have 5 tubes of primers ready I can really go to town. I never reload that way. The press is always set up and ready to crank out a few rounds when I please. I have a tendency to inspect the case before I stuff it in station 1. I also visually check for a powder charge before moving to bullet seating. I have loaded over 1000 rounds of .45 ACP this week in little spurts.

If I wanted to go real fast I would be using a 1050 with all the bells and whistles.

Going slow has advantages. The only time I'm in a race is when the timer goes off in a IDPA match.

 

[lonewolf5347]

My biggest concern is have a light over the powder charged case to see the powder before i seat the bullet.
I also had to figure out the primer tubes but did get it.
The little alarm is useless only because my hearing is bad, I do watch the black plastic rod .
Let see been a reloader for some 50 plus years.
I can remember what brought me to reloading missed a huge buck with a new 35 cal. Marlin rifle and a new box of shell .
The ammo never fired bad box of shells.

 

[docv]

I have a LED lamp bulb in a clamp on work light positioned low enough to light the case in station 3 and, hopefuly, high enough away to avoid any light bulb induced catastrophe. I have a matching light positioned to the right side of the press so I can verify that the newly sized and primed case actually picked up the primer. My old eyes need all the light they can get.

My first loads where slow like yours. I was probably loading under 100 rounds per hour. I load much faster now.

 

[nettlle]

I enjoy reloading and don't like to hurry while reloading. I only have one primer tube to fill my 550. Once the 550 is filled with primers and powder I can easily get 100 rounds of either 45acp or 9mm in 20 minutes. It takes a little practice with a 550.

 

[Big Wes]

Last time I loaded some 9mm it took me 13 minutes to load 100 it's all about rhythm once you got everything up and running

 

[k4swb]

For me it isn't all about speed. I have worked with my hands most of my life and I no longer have the feeling in them that I once did and I shake at times just a little.

Handling one case at least four times to load on a single stage is just a chore for me. Being able to put a case in the shell plate and getting everything done with handling the case just once is pure bliss.

If I could only load 50-100 rounds an hour I'd still be happy. I can do much better than that on my auto progressive but that is just icing to me.

 

[jmorris]

any one want to buy this press.

How much do you want for it?

 

[lonewolf5347]

Went out and did 100 more rounds I am getting the hang of it

 

[kilizyrag]

Here is a picture of mine. The strong mount along with the bullet tray makes loading easy for me. I stand while loading

 

[Catpop]

Here is a picture of mine. The strong mount along with the bullet tray makes loading easy for me. I stand while loading

View attachment 824637

Good work! I love to see an organized loading bench!
But I’m trying to do better

 

[Whiterook808]

Slow is smooth, smooth is fast.

 

[Shak3s1977]

I agree that once you get the pattern down, it's a pretty fast machine. Not the fastest, but quite a bit faster than a single stage. I started reloading on a 550 in November of 2017. In 14 months now, I've loaded over 9k rounds. I'm actually planning on getting another 550 for large primer set up. Enjoy that machine, it's a great one.