I've got a Dillon 550 press set up in 9mm, 38-.357, and 45 ACP. I've been using RCBS dies for the most part,my problem is that the sizing die catches on the case mouth causing an unwanted extra step of grabbing the case and giving it a shake till everything lines up. It gets in the way of getting any real production going and on a progressive press the last thing I need is a distraction. The Dillon dies have a belled mouth so the cases will enter the dies easily, does anyone out there have a set of the Dillon Dies? If you do, do you like them? Thanks, Jeff
Posts: 101 | Location: WA | Registered: 25 April 2003
I've been using several Dillon pistol dies in my 550B over a number of years and have nothing but positive comments. They work well and produce very serviceable reloads.
I had precisely the same problem. My RCBS .44 carbide sizer was bought in 1967, and had a very sharp corner on the bottom edge of the carbide insert. I replaced it with a Dillon carbide sizing die, which has a much larger and smooth-radiused entry, and it works perfectly in the 550B. No more fiddling trying to get the cases to enter the die. I then replaced my other carbide sizers in .357 and 9mm with Dillons, and life is much sweeter.
I just passed along the RCBS .44 carbide die to a friend who's just starting out in handloading, so it will keep on soldiering....after 37 years of use!
Posts: 437 | Location: nevada | Registered: 01 March 2003
I have the Dillon dies in 9mm, 45 ACP, and 44 Mag., they work great. I too had the same problem with my older RCBS dies with my Dillon 550, not that in a single stage set up there is any thing wrong with them, 35 years of service, and they still load true, but they are not set up for the Dillon. I do have one set of the Reddings, set up for 357 Mag., they are top flight as well, and radiused for progressive loaders. Either would be a better choice for the 550 than the older style RCBS.
Posts: 742 | Location: West Tennessee | Registered: 27 April 2004
I have used RCBS and other brands in the past for pistol ammo reloading. I have several Dillon Pistol Die sets and only have had problem with one. It resized my brass to small I sent the Die to Dillon with several of the under sized brass and the dimension that the book called for Dillon sent me a new set of Dies that were ground to my specifications they work great. I have not had any problems with shell alignment with the Dillon Dies. It is also easy to remove the inside of the Dies to clean them with out loosing Die adjustment.