Match loads: Dillon 550 vs Hornady LnL progressive

[DiRTY DOG]

Match grade loads can be made on a Dillon 550, assuming brass prep is done in stages, and powder is weighed seperately. Maybe some small modifications/upgrades. Lots of shooters are doing it, there's lots of info.

What about on the Hornady LnL AP progressive press? Assuming the same dies and seperate powder weighing as the 550, can the Hornady LnL produce equal quality ammo? What would keep it from doing so?

For pure bulk pistol and 556, the Hornady LnL seems superior. How about for pure precision loads?

 

[Richard Jones]

For pure bulk pistol and 556, the Hornady LnL seems superior.

What is your reasoning behind that?

 

[DiRTY DOG]

What is your reasoning behind that?

The LnL auto indexes, and has 5 stations. It's faster.

But the question is, can the LnL equal the precision of the 550?

 

[big5ifty]

Mechanically, the LnL has features that help with precision reloads. The shellplate bottoms out on the carrier, which helps keep seating depth constant. There is no flex in the shellplate. There is no flex from a moving toolhead. The die bushings have no flex on the upstroke.

I've reloaded 260 Remington on a LnL AP.

The brass was shoulder bumped and trimmed separately.

The powder StaBall 6.5. Hornady powder dispenser on the LnL. To dispense powder accurately this way it has to be a ball powder.

Powder drop was straight from the dispenser. In the beginning, I weighed each drop of powder, one of them was 0.1 grains out, after about the 20th I stopped checking.

Priming, mandrel neck expansion, powder drop and bullet seating were on-press.

This was for my son's rifle, on his press, with his load spec.

The ammo went to the PRS Worlds in France, the shooter finished 2nd in his division.

For PRS, this reloading method produces good quality ammo.

addendum : I forgot to mention the primer seating on the LnL is precise. You do need to fix a steel button to the frame under the primer punch. The punch pin tends to dent the frame at that point.

 

[karrarararararar]

I've loaded Palma ammo with 8208 xbr on my LnL. Still shoots great. This target was shot with it at 1000 yards (sling with iron sights).

 

[DiffEQ]

I have loaded tens of thousands of rounds on the LnL AP. Found a used, fully equipped Dillon 650 at a gunshop and bought it to try. Sold the LnL two weeks later.
I'll add to some of @414gates comments above.

• If you are loading bottle necked cartridges and want precision, you cannot do the sizing or bumping on the press. It *does* impart a flex into the ram platten on which the cases sit, and *will* affect seating depth.
• I used it for 308 sized cartridges until I stuck a case. Forcing the ram up, intending to break the case rim, I snapped off the platten, weakened by a casting defect. Hornady had a replacement to me within the week.
• After snapping the head, I never used it for cases any bigger than 7.62x39.
• Elsewhere, other loaders have suggested a bushing and O-ring adaptation to "improve" the platten. It will not improve on the performance of a well-made, properly adjusted LnL.
• Like any press, and Dillon is no exception, you *must* keep it properly tuned and maintained.
• The powder drop is accurate enough with ball powder, good with pistol flake powder and mediocre with stick. If you're like me and a few other LnL reloaders I have known, you'll learn to modify the spring setup on the drop.
• You may wind up incorporating a "tap the powder drop hopper" into your routine to improve powder settle and drop repeatability.
• The powder dispenser is one that vexed me with a kernel or three spilling out with each case load. I was never able to prevent this. I will note, no press mounted powder drop is immune to this.
• The primer seater pin and adjustment are located at the bottom of the platten. if you have big hands like me, it's a PITA to swap or adjust.
• The primer seater pins are seated in plastic assemblies. In my experience, these wear out.
• Despite many attempts to ameliorate it, I could not remove the "jerk" in the platten rotation cycle. For nearly full cases like Red Dot in pistol cartridges, this shake makes for a lot of powder spill over a hundred rounds.
• I kept a can of compressed air handy to blow off the spilled powder every few strokes. Spilled powder kernels in the primer seater system is bad.

Any of the quirks I mention above, except variations in the seating depth, do not significantly impact the accuracy of rounds produced. When I'm producing match rounds, I prefer to do them carefully on a single stage press where I have all my variances accounted for.

 

[divingin]

I use an LNL AP for pistol; bulk rifle gets loaded on a single stage ram, precision rifle on an arbor press.

 

[jelenko]

I've loaded Palma ammo with 8208 xbr on my LnL with great. Still shoots great. This target was shot with it at 1000 yards (sling with iron sights).

Nice adjustment off of the first sighter!

 

[Ray123]

I own 2 ea Dillion 550 and Hornady AP.... I've had the first Dillon when they first came out with the 550 progressive. I loaded 17,000 rds of 308 match ammo in 308, Varget powder & Lapua brass and bullets. ..used the old pacific powder measure case activated system ...more accurate than the new Loc-n- load, measure I just purchased. Along with a new Hornady AP press...which I find somewhat flimsy, with indexing shell plate will flex and jerky motion ...set it up for 9 mm luger with case feed...it's okay for that.
But I'm loading 380 ACP in the Dillion, right now just finished a thousand ...indexing the shell plate by hand is no big deal and is smoother if ya have a case full of powder, Dillion works better here for me. The trick in accurate loading in a progressive is a smooth rhythm, with each lever pull, and a good powder measure. The new Hornady AP press has been setting there on the shelf for several months after the initial 9mm set up removed by quick mount system ...and have been running the 2 Dillion 550s, reloading 8.6 Blkout, 358 win, 308, 450 bushmaster, AR stuff, and 380, 45 colt & 454, & 45-90 & 45-70.
I like the Forester Co-Ax press, these days for single stage, accuracy loads.
Both the 550 and Hornady AP work, ...but are different and both should be kept clean & lubed for best results. Which one is right for you?
I don't know...haven't decided myself...I use both, the Dillions get the variety and the Hornady mostly stuck on 9mm... even though there are a bunch of shell plates for other calibers, I've never loaded rifle calibers on either Hornady.

 

[jelenko]

Depends on what size groups/distance 'pure precision' means.

If benchrest accuracy or ELR shooting, I don't think the powder measure on Dillon's are up to the task. Or the bullet seating or the primer seating. And, certainly not the sizing.

On the other hand, for 3/4 MOA at 600 yards, they can work [but not with lincoln log powders].

 

[DiRTY DOG]

Depends on what size groups/distance 'pure precision' means.

If benchrest accuracy or ELR shooting, I don't think the powder measure on Dillon's are up to the task. Or the bullet seating or the primer seating. And, certainly not the sizing.

On the other hand, for 3/4 MOA at 600 yards, they can work [but not with lincoln log powders].

I'm specifically NOT asking about powder measures. A lot of the answers so far regard powder measures.

I'm asking about the press itself. All else being exactly equal (dies, components, process, identical off press powder on Promethius etc) can the LnL equal the 550? O

 

[DiRTY DOG]

• If you are loading bottle necked cartridges and want precision, you cannot do the sizing or bumping on the press. It *does* impart a flex into the ram platten on which the cases sit, and *will* affect seating depth.

Are you saying that sizing at the same time as seating causes seating depth issues? Because many/most 550 users loading for precision do not perform both sizing and seating functions at the same time. The typical process is to size first, then remove the cases from the press for trimming/chamfer. Then after that replace the cases on the press for seating.

So if you personally on your LnL, first sized cases, removed the sizing die, and then after that put the cases back on the press for seating, (just like 550 users do it) would you still have seating depth issues on your LnL?

 

[DiRTY DOG]

Depends on what size groups/distance 'pure precision' means.

All sizes of groups. If the top shooter in the world was required to use either a 550 or a LnL for sizing and seating, either simultaneous progressive or independent operations, ALL else being equal), would one press produce more precise ammo than the other press?

 

[DiRTY DOG]

My intent of these questions is to find out if the 550 press is being more commonly used due to color/brand preference, or is it because it has an inherent mechanical advantage over the LnL press in producing precisely sized cases and precisely seated bullets?

 

[DiffEQ]

Are you saying that sizing at the same time as seating causes seating depth issues? Because many/most 550 users loading for precision do not perform both sizing and seating functions at the same time. The typical process is to size first, then remove the cases for off press for trimming/chamfer. Then after that replace the cases on the press for seating.

So if you personally on your LnL, first sized cases, removed the sizing die, and then after that put the cases back on the press for seating, (just like 550 users do it) would you still have seating depth issues on your LnL?

Sorry, I was talking about a LnL AP.
For Anything smaller than a magnum case, I use a Forster Co-Ax.
For anything bigger, (RUM, 338 LM, 300 H&H, etc) I use a Lee Classic Cast.
There are a few cartridges that I load on a Lyman T-Mag: 300 Savage, 35 Rem, 30-30.

 

[big5ifty]

I'm asking about the press itself. All else being exactly equal (dies, components, process, identical off press powder on Promethius etc) can the LnL equal the 550? O

I don't have a 550, but I do believe there is no difference in the quality produced. Ammo quality is about what you do with the brass, the right amount of powder, how the primer is seated and how the bullet is seated. Neither one does any of those more precisely or with greater repeatability than the other.

The biggest contributing factor to runout, for example, has nothing to do with the make of die or the make of press, it's the decapping rod with expander ball that does it.

My intent of these questions is to find out if the 550 press is being more commonly used due to color/brand preference, or is it because it has an inherent mechanical advantage over the LnL press in producing precisely sized cases and precisely seated bullets?

Marketing is a big factor. Dilllon is much better marketed.

For me, the only reason I chose the LnL over a Dillon at the time was that with the LnL, I didn't have to take my right hand off the lever, and I could place a bullet for seating with my left. I was loading a lot of handgun back then, and I could not afford case and bullet feeders.

Nobody can tell the difference between ammo loaded on a 419 press and ammo loaded on a Lee Classic Cast. People pay for feeling confident that they are doing things the "best" way.

You will not see a difference in downrange performance between ammo loaded on either the LnL or Dillon, because of the press.

 

[MGMIAM]

Proofs In The Pudding
the value, quality, or truth of something must be judged based on direct experience with it—or on its results.

 

[mgdietrich]

Both presses make great ammo, it is the die that makes straight ammo the press is just a vehicle. Buy whichever one you like best. I have a LnL and don’t plan on changing. 223, 308, 6 dasher all with runout less than 0.002. Some better. The dies are the difference to good ammo.

 

[drop_point]

It depends on techniques more than anything. I've run the LnL for sub-half minute ammo. I separate FL sizing and expanding into two steps and that seems to help on the LnL. I typically get less than 0.003" runout on my bulk .223 Rem loads.

 

[jelenko]

I also size in a separate operation [on a CO-AX] and prime by hand then add powder and bullets on the Dillon. Measured runout has never exceed 0.001 over 30,000 223 rounds.
That said, I've only measured ~ 100 rounds and the vast majority of those were just after I started resizing on the CO-AX. The most recent sample was sometime last summer.