I am seriously considering reloading .45 ACP, (and possibly for my .44 special / .44 mag., .38/.357, or 9mm a little further down the road) and am leaning towards a progressive / turret / automatic press. Dillon, Hornady, and Lee propaganda all looks good, but I would like to hear from folks with actual experience - good and bad. I am also trying to understand some of the nuances to the sizing / crimping issues a little better - what's important for my .45, 9mm, .380 autos vs. .44, .357 revolvers. (As an engineer I can fret quite a bit over these sorts of things.) Obviously, since I would like to add calibers in the future, ease of change-over with minimum adjustment / teardown is important. I like / use books a lot, so any recommendations are appreciated.

Thanks,

My favorite progressive loading tool for handgun cartridges is the Star Progressive.

They are no longer made but can be found used.

I use a Dillion and I am quite pleased. Calliber changes are a snap with the tool Heads.
David Tubbs loads his match ammo on a Dillion. That is quite an endoresment......

Buy a DILLON! I got bitten for $350 on a progressive from a company that makes good single stage stuff but not good progressives.
Dillon's work now and are supported long-term. Some of the other non-specialist companies presses may work OK now but a few years down the road they probably will have 10 different models and parts might be hard to get. Dillon's also seem to hold thier value a lot better than the others.

You probably want a 550 or 650. The 650 is faster because it has a case feeder. The 650 also has an extra die station you can use for powder checking. Downside is the 650 costs more to change calibers and is more expensive at the start.
Good luck but don't make the same mistake I did, buy a Dillon and don't waste your money on a cheap one, the worst money you spend is on something that's not up to the job...........................DJ

I'd recommend the Dillon also but I use a bunch of turrets.

If you have the free money, buy a Dillon Super 1050. it will load everything you want and most anything you may want to in the future.

I have a Redding T-7 turret press and love it.I will probably add to my stable as time goes on, but for 40,45,38 30-06, 25-06 the t-7 works great for me-

quote:

Originally posted by flutedchamber:
If you have the free money, buy a Dillon Super 1050. it will load everything you want and most anything you may want to in the future.

Actually, I would NOT buy the 1050 for loading multiple calibers. It's a great machine for the guy that loads & shoots 90% of the same caliber. If you load 200 of this & 500 of that, the 550B is a better deal & easier to work with when doing caliber changes. Alos, loading small batches of test ammo or single loading, say rifle rounds, is easily done on the 550B, not so the 10650. Nothing wrong w/ a turret press either except it is slower than any progressive, but cheaper to get going w/ & still has a decent rate of production.
BTW, I thinkl the Dillon 550B was engineered to load the 45acp, it does so so easily.

I sure can't complain on the Dillon progressives but I also like the Hornady L&L AP for handgun loads....it's a sleeper and an excellent machine!

I'll have to cast my vote for the RCBS Pro 2000. It's every bit as tough and reliable as the Rock Chucker. One thing you seldom hear about is their excellent customer service mainly because they're rarely needed.

One name stands above all others when talking about progressive presses, and that name is Dillon. Economically priced and easy to convert calibres, for the money spent one can not go wrong with Dillon's RL 550.

Dillon's "No B.S." warranty is exactly that and one phone call fixes all if it ever breaks. In retrospect I must say I have broken parts on my press, but for the most part it was my fault. I still keep that broken shell plate around to remind myself of what happens when the lube pad goes dry.