Why do some progressive presses have 5 die stations?

[Gryffydd]

I started out with a Loadmaster and moved to a Hornady Lnl AP after a few years. I wish I'd done it sooner.
When the Loadmaster was running perfectly its cyclic rate was probably higher than the LnL (Mostly due to having a case feeder vs. none with my LnL (yet)).
However, it was only running perfectly maybe 25% of the time. I watched all the videos and did all the tricks you can find on the web. I never did get the priming system to work well enough to be worth the trouble. Once you count in all the time I spent hand priming cases, the LnL takes me way less time to load with.

Also, the powder measure on the LnL is leaps and bounds better than the AutoDisk. The AutoDisk is consistently accurate, but it can be hard to get the exact charge you want. Some have good luck with the adjustable charge bar--I did not.

The indexing system on the LnL is way better as well. Oh, and there's pretty much NO plastic on it, unlike the Lees.

All in all, it's much easier and quicker to make good ammo on the LnL. It's well worth the slightly higher price tag.

Changovers take very little time as long as you have enough of the die bushings to keep all your dies set up.

I would recommend going straight to something that you won't want to trade in after a year or two. It'll be cheaper than buying the cheap option and then selling it at a loss in order to buy something better.

For another 200 dollars you could get the quick changing RCBS pro 2000.

With the LnL, if not changing the primer size you can changeover in less than 5 minutes easily.
The primer size change takes less than 5 minutes as well. I haven't looked too much at the Pro 2000, is it much faster than that?

 

[RB98SS]

Five stations work great for 357sig:

1. Resize with .40 carbide/deprime
1.5 Prime
2. Resize with 357sig
3. flare/charge
4. inspect/seat
5. crimp

 

[GW Staar]

All in all, it's much easier and quicker to make good ammo on the LnL. It's well worth the slightly higher price tag.

Changovers take very little time as long as you have enough of the die bushings to keep all your dies set up.

I would recommend going straight to something that you won't want to trade in after a year or two. It'll be cheaper than buying the cheap option and then selling it at a loss in order to buy something better.

With the LnL, if not changing the primer size you can changeover in less than 5 minutes easily.
The primer size change takes less than 5 minutes as well. I haven't looked too much at the Pro 2000, is it much faster than that?

Nothing wrong with the Hornady, unless you want a removable head...nothing. Change overs are faster than the Dillon 650.

On my Pro 2000 if I'm not interrupted by wife, kids, or grandkids, it takes me 3 minutes to change over from .45ACP to .223 rifle, including setting up the powder measure and changing primer size. By itself, changing primer size amounts only to unscrewing the big and screwing in the small (30 seconds unhurried)...that said, I chose to doctor the threaded hole under my shell plate base, that the primer rod screws into, with a slight chamfer at the opening, and retapped the starting thread to make the screw start faster, being as it is, underneath, where that helps me to start it straight.

Keep in mind I'm not including time to change the case feeder, or in the case of the Pro 2000, the bullet feeder.

 

[mongoose33]

I have the LnLAP, and mine goes like this:

1. Resize/deprime
1a (on downstroke) primer
2. Casemouth expansion/powder drop
3. Lockout die (RCBS), not a powder cop; stops press w/ out of parameter powder drop
4. Bullet seat
5. Crimp die

 

[RealGun]

Why do some Hornady LnL setups show flare and powder drop combined and others as using separate stations, then forcing seating and crimping into one station? I get that it allows fitting in the powder cop or a lockout, but what about the compromises to do that?

 

[GW Staar]

I'm not sure the cone expands the case as uniformly as a regular expander...at least I've heard complaints to that effect. There is an after market company who makes a cone drop tube at another angle that is supposed to work better.
http://www.powderfunnels.com/products.html Both Hornady and Dillon provide such products...don't know how many people use them. RCBS for some unknown reason does not!???? Peter Eick converted his Uniflow on his Pro 2000 using Hornady parts....it isn't hard...I think he likes it ok. He's working out of town for two weeks so, I'm not sure he'll see this and reply. Picture essay on that is on the net. Found it!

 

[mongoose33]

Why do some Hornady LnL setups show flare and powder drop combined and others as using separate stations, then forcing seating and crimping into one station?

Mine doesn't force seating and crimping in the same station--that's one more advantage of being able to combine flare and powder drop in the same station.

I get that it allows fitting in the powder cop or a lockout, but what about the compromises to do that?

There are no compromises I'm aware of. I use the powderfunnels casemouth expansion, which allows me to do both casemouth expansion and powder drop in the same motion.

That frees up an extra station for me; having the lockout die is a terrific thing and there's no other way to accommodate it.

So, compromises? No. Improvement? Yes!