Hornady Lock-N-Load AP versus Dillon 550?
Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2012 11:13 pm
After reading up on lots of sites and watching untold numbers of videos, I started actually checking out progressive presses that my friends owned to see which I wanted to buy. I started out planning to get a Dillon 550B with all the necessary trimmings. A buddy has the latest version of the Hornady Lock-N-Load AP press, as well as an older version. That new version was seriously impressive. He did say that he had to do a bit of adjusting to get everything working perfectly with the primer feed but hasn't had a problem with it since. His Dillon 550 in the corner had evidently not had the cover off of it in well over a year. When I went home to check prices, I was shocked that it would cost less to set The Hornady up well than a Dillon 550 even though it compared functionally to a Dillon 650 more than a 550. I'm seriously considering getting the Hornady Lock-N-Load AP press now. I don't really have that much of a preference between the lock-n-load die setup or the Dillon tool head setup. I like the swappable inserts for the Hornady powder measure and it's supposedly very accurate for a progressive press-mounted measure, but I think I would still have to adjust the powder die for each catridge. I doubt that I would buy a separate powder measure for each of the 10+ cartridges that I'll be loading for, no matter which press I choose. What am I not thinking of that is going to make me regret spending the money on the Hornady press instead of the Dillon 550B? For the record, I would not be getting the bullet or case feeders for either the Hornady or Dillon presses.
