Hornady LNL AP or Dillons 650\550

Status
Not open for further replies.
Paddy could you post pictures and what is needed for your bullet feeder setup and how you have LNL setup? I've seen many but not sure how to go. Getting tired of handling both bullets and cases onto my LNL press.
 
I'm out of town but I'd be glad to when I get back. I made my own bullet collator out of aluminum, a bbq rotisserie motor and a piece of plastic cutting board, and I purchased a "dropper die" from double alpha which I highly recommend over the Hornady die which is a POS. Basically it drops a bullet into the case after powder charging and before seperate seat and crimp stations. I wish I had a 6th station for a powder cop, but I'm working on a solution to that which won't take a station hopefully.
If you're willing to seat and crimp in on the last station (5) then you can also have a cop but I like seperate because I'm a wimp.

I like this system because my right hand stays planted on the lever and my left hand is only tasked with picking up a case, looking it over and placing it in the plate.

I also have a 550 and to me the work flow is all messed up, but I like it for rifle case loading only. It's my belief that any case capable of holding a double charge should be loaded on either a auto index progressive, or a single stage. That's just my opinion. So if I double charge a rifle case on the 550, I'm informed of it by the powder spill.

These machines all have a lot of flexibility on how you can use them, so everyone has a different setup it seems and also a different purpose. Some guys only use a progressive as a dedicated case prep machine. The Hornady is the most bang for the buck in this regard, a quality piece of gear that will not wear out and is very nicely made, and adaptable to many purposes.
 
This implies that Hornady doesn't. Hornady has the same warranty as Dillon and nobody can say they don't stand behind their products! They do!
Click to expand...

My 30 year old SD's have been upgraded for free by Dillon and even rebuilt by them a few times over 3 decades and have been updated so they are the same as SDB's they still sell today.

Call Hornady up tomorrow and tell them you need some priming system parts for your Hornady Projector made in 1997 and see what they say.

I actually don't have a crystal ball, just going off of history. I guess they will offer you to send it in along with a few hundred dollars and they will send you an LNL instead but your still going to be on the hook for all of the conversion parts because the Projector parts won't work on the LNL. For that matter the LNL AP are also different depending on if it is an early press or an EZ Ject version.
 
Lack of auto indexing turned me off of the 550 for years. Price turned me off of the 650. I bought a LnL 8 years ago for 390 bucks and got 1k free premium bullets, so it's like I got the press for about 200 bucks....I have loaded 60k+ rounds with no big problems. I have broken a few parts due to my misuse. At least twice, Hornady sent replacements for free...I wore out the ejector nub on one subplate. Hornady sent me a new one in about 3 days.
 
Oh, so YOURE the reason they cost so much!
Click to expand...

We all are.

That same warranty is also the reason why I could sell a press that I have used for 30 years for twice what I paid for it brand new.
 
dont you need it though?

It is amazing on the resale. I've sold used Dillon stuff for a profit only weeks after purchasing!

I used the profits to buy an LnL but that's beside the point.

Maybe I consider the Hornady to have a good warranty and support. Great even. Dillon has gone to a level of product support that doesn't really exist anywhere in the universe.
 
jmorris said:
We all are.

That same warranty is also the reason why I could sell a press that I have used for 30 years for twice what I paid for it brand new.
Click to expand...

That's why Dillon costs as much as they do. You pay for the warranty/customer service up front up front. The price of a Dillon press in the catalog is not the price of the actual machine shown. It is actually a lot more. Plus the pretty models are high maintenance.:)

Dillon is not in the reloading business they make their money on Military contracts. Imagine what this stuff costs!:eek:

https://www.dillonaero.com/
 
rdtompki said:
Even small 9mm cases are easier to handle than 115gr bullets and setting the cases down requires no precision. Now loading is a bit faster with the case feeder than without
Click to expand...
I have to agree, I prefer a bullet feeder over a case feeder.

I'm on a pretty tight budget and went with a Bully Adapter connecting Lee bullet feeding tube assembly to a Hornady Bullet Feeder die

[resize=300]
2015%20and%20bully%20adapter%20041.jpg
[/URL][/IMG][/resize]

Hornady should have incorporated the well-known DIY mods to their case feeder; would have cost them almost nothing.
Click to expand...
I'm interested in this statement.

Granted, I haven't looked very hard at the Hornady Case Feeder, but I'm interested in what these DIY modifications are
 
jmorris said:
My 30 year old SD's have been upgraded for free by Dillon and even rebuilt by them a few times over 3 decades and have been updated so they are the same as SDB's they still sell today.

Call Hornady up tomorrow and tell them you need some priming system parts for your Hornady Projector made in 1997 and see what they say.

I actually don't have a crystal ball, just going off of history. I guess they will offer you to send it in along with a few hundred dollars and they will send you an LNL instead but your still going to be on the hook for all of the conversion parts because the Projector parts won't work on the LNL. For that matter the LNL AP are also different depending on if it is an early press or an EZ Ject version.
Click to expand...
Tell Dillon that your bullet feeder stop working. Oh that's right they don't make a bullet feeder. I have two Hornady ammo plants. One is set up for pistol and the other one is set up for rifle. I wouldn't reload with out a case feeder and a bullet feeder.
If your mechanical ability is you can put your shoes on the right feet get a single stag. If you can tie your shoes get a Dillon. If you know that you don't use the heavy end of the screw driver,to drive in a nail get a Hornady.
Click to expand...
 
I went through the same decision process last fall and I went with Hornady. Actually I didn't have to get very far into the process to rule out the Dillon 550.

Auto index vs manual, advantage Hornady
Five die stations vs four, advantage Hornady
Drum powder measure vs slider. Hornady wins on all three counts.

Throw in 500 free bullets and put it on sale for $389 (Midsouth, free shipping) and that makes a decision I had already made even easier.

I have loaded about 4K rounds spread across 357 Sig, 40 S&W, 9mm and 300 blackout on mine with not a single flaw that could be attributed to the machine. The only thing I don't like about it are the LNL bushings. I know people love them but I find them to be an unneeded annoyance. I would rather just screw in a new set of dies instead of having to buy a bunch of bushings. It's not like I do caliber swap ever hour.
 
If you rather not use bushings then just cranks them down extra hard with channel locks and consider them to be threaded connections instead.
 
I have had my Hornady LNL for 3 years. Its a great press, I considered the Dillon 650 and did a lot of research. I read and the attached helped me. I also watched Bill Morgan's videos, Mine runs great. I would say 90% of issues on any progressive are user issues.:)
My 02

thewelshm
 

Attachments

  • DILON VERSUS hORNADY.pdf
    339.3 KB · Views: 32
I too went through the decision making process. I read pretty much every site and every article I could find. I was having a really hard time deciding between the Dillon 650 and the Hornady LnL. I thought I had finally settled on the 650, but the Brian Enos FAQ kept needling the back of my brain with regards to monthly quantities. In any case, I went to a local store that stocks a lot of Dillon stuff, talked to them about it and walked out with the 550.

Of course, now I'm second guessing the purchase and thinking I should have just gone with the Hornady. Ironically, if I had purchased the LnL I would have been thinking that I should have purchased a Dillon.

I ended up with the 550 for a couple of reasons; 1. I'm not going to be loading more than 1K rounds a month, and I think that's even a stretch; 2. Since it's my first press, I wanted as much hands on as possible without going full single stage; 3. I'll ultimately end up getting a single stage press for decapping and sizing, especially for rifle loads so that 5th station becomes moot; 4. I'm impulsive and Dillon was at hand at less than MSRP by about 10% including accessories.
 
I have the LNL AP, and it's been great for me, the key seems to be taking a little time to watch the excellent instructional videos a few folks have posted up on YouTube and set it up right. Btw, I only use Lee dies on my Hornady and haven't had a problem.
 
I only use Lee dies on my Hornady and haven't had a problem.
Click to expand...

What cartridges? If you load 357 with 38 Special dies, you don't have to screw the dies in the whole way, testing if there is enough threading. Same with 44Spl/44 Mag.
 
Tell Dillon that your bullet feeder stop working. Oh that's right they don't make a bullet feeder. I have two Hornady ammo plants. One is set up for pistol and the other one is set up for rifle. I wouldn't reload with out a case feeder and a bullet feeder.
If your mechanical ability is you can put your shoes on the right feet get a single stag. If you can tie your shoes get a Dillon. If you know that you don't use the heavy end of the screw driver,to drive in a nail get a Hornady.
Click to expand...

Dillon does not make bullet feeders but I use GSI feeders on them for the most part. They are the only system that allows you to feed bullets, retain a powder check die and seat then crimp in two steps.

Like this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yl63cR9Y_Y0

If you really want a "tuner" press that will test your mechanical abilities I would suggest a Lee loadmaster. The video above was just a Dillon with a bullet feeder, took a little while to get the Lee to run 100 rounds in under 4 min.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9pjmuHAkBU

Still have never seen a video of an LNL running the same as the ones above.
 
In the links I did post you will notice that I made my own collators (the most expensive part) so I have never spent $500 on one. Will also note a tool head alone for the 1050 is $200, makes the GSI toolhead/bullet feeder for it a real bargain.

That said in that second link I posted I have less than $100 in that entire setup. I just don't have great expectations that it will remain as consistent over time as any of my Dillon's and to some that factor is more important than the (much) cheaper price.
 
I just bought the lnl. The cost and rebate had some to do with it, as well as cheaper caliber change.

I can't tell you how it works because I haven't opened the box yet. I'm still planning my bench and reading the abc's of reloading.
 
Last edited:
Jmorris---- What you have done in your videos is VERY impressive. I doubt very many people can re-create what you've been able to accomplish. You've got some serious inventive talent and the resources to make it happen.

I've had to invent a few things for my LnL to make it super reliable. Ultimately very minor things.
 
My poor mans bullet feeder. Each tube holds about 40 bullets. Drops right into the top of the feeder die.



20160222_104840.jpg

20160222_104857.jpg
 
Last edited:
It looks like my options aren't too bad, right now I am just reloading on a single stage so anything beats that. I might just go with the Dillon 650 once I get the funds. It seems to be the way to go for now. I might change my mind if the lock n load goes down to 375 again but for now I think I have my answer. Thanks guys!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

J
  • Locked
Will Dillon 550 Case Feeder RUN on a HORNADY LNL AP???
Replies
1
Views
480
1911user
1
redneck2
  • Locked
Making the 550 auto-index
Replies
7
Views
4K
neolithic hunter
N
U
  • Locked
Dillon shmit disturber--> 550's and 650's
2 3
Replies
57
Views
2K
Jeeper
J
I
  • Locked
Question for owners of Hornady AP and Dillon press with Roller Handle
Replies
15
Views
2K
Idano
I
S
  • Locked
Dillon 650 question
Replies
14
Views
1K
Doublehelix
Doublehelix
Back
Top