What are the advantages of one over the other and vice versa ??

Since buying a 650 my 550B mainly gathers dust. I like the primer indexing system on the 650; it is more positive, and requires less futzing around. I also use the powder warning buzzer as a safety backup. I load .223, .308, 9mm, & .45ACP in bulk. I believe that is where the 650 shines.
JCN

550B good, 650 major PITA IMHO.

Hey Swede,
If you have a 650 gathering dust and I have a 550 gathering dust, perhaps we could work out a trade. I've got enough 550 accessories (shell plates, parts kits, tool heads, etc.) to make it equitable. I would love to have one unit set up for small primers and another set up for large primers.
JCN
PC You are probably going to have to play with both units to see which appeals to you the most.

I was going to buy a 650 but didn't because my friend has one and it is too finicky. The 550 is so simple to use I haven�t found a real need for the 650. I do like the Dillon no BS warrantee.



BTW I have two 550s setup one for Large primers and one for Small primers, but you can never have to many presses.

I'm with you, Swede. I have a 550B set up for .44 mag and above powder loads, an upgraded 450B (to 550B) set up for .45 ACP and below. I've never used the 650, so can't comment. I DO like the 550, a lot.

MKane160 aka BigDogMK

Certainly not trying to change the direction of this, but does anyone have any experience with the Hornady Lock N Load press as compared to the Dillon.

Tim

Find someone with both and try...after you use a 650 you wont want anyother press. Bit more involved to set up but has far better primer system, more leverage, larger work area and the auto case feeder.They will pump out twice as many rounds.Try this link Reloading FAQ

Previous link may not work. If not try this one Brian's Forums then go to reloading questions in the technical questions then look at the FAQ.

Above link will now work.

I bought my xl650 and could not be happier. I love this machine. I am so glad I didn't not buy the 550 as that would of been a big mistake. All I can say is the 650 rocks. I can do everything. I load my 445 supermag and for my wifes 380 and 270 weatherby 7mm's and 338's. Love it.

Brian

Will the 650 cope with say the .375 H&H and .416 Rigby ??

Funny you are asking this, as I just responded a while back to almost exactly the same question, relative to the Dillon, Hornady LnL, and the Redding Turret presses. Here is a rewrite of that response:

I owned a Dillon 550B press and I loaded 19 calibers on it. I had all the attachment goodies, along with 6 power measures. I basically can't say enough good things about the Dillon 550B or the company as well.

My only complaint on the 550B is that for rifle ammo, I had trouble seeing the amount of powder in the case. Being a progressive, there isn't a whole lot of room to take a peek. Some cartridges and loads are better than others.

The Hornady LNL is a five-stage machine, just like the Dillon 650. You can put in a powder check die in that fifth station and it will tell you if you have a load that is a bit low or a bit high on power. Nice.

I got spoiled using a single stage and checking all my charges at one time by scanning the loading tray and I lost that in the 4 stage Dillon 550B. Maybe I am funny that way, but when they are all the same, they are all the same. I like that.

I looked into getting a Dillon 650, but the cost of conversions is so high, it is a pointless press unless you only load for very few calibers or have deep pockets filled with money.

Eventually, I opted to sell the 550B and get a Hornady LNL progressive press. This is very much like a Dillon 650, except the cost of conversion is drastically less and the loading rate is about the same as the Dillon 650.

The Dillon 550B would be perfect for about 300 to 400 rounds of ammo at a time. The Hornady LnL and Dillon 650 load about twice that rate when set up with the case feeder. This rate also allows for filling primer tubes, which does take a substantial amount of time, given the number of tubes you are filling.

Keep in mind that the only real difference in these presses is 1. quantity of ammo loaded in one hour, 2. time to convert between one caliber and the next, and 3. cost of converting from one caliber to another, not forgetting the cost to buy it initially.

The Redding Turret press is also a good choice, although the loading rate is less. The way to find the right press for you is to consider the following: 1. The total amount of ammo you load at one time for one month. 2. The number of calibers you load. 3. The amount of cash you have to pour into a press and accessories.

The Redding Turret, the Dillon, or the Hornady LNL will all do it for you. The difference is loaded rounds per hour, not the quality of handloads, as they all will do an excellent job. The Hornady LNL or the Dillon 650 will do about 600 to 800 rounds per hour. I haven't used a Turret press, but I am guessing about 2 to 4 times what you can do on a single stage press.

The other catch is calibers loaded. It gets expensive loading many calibers or many loads on the Dillon equipment. It is simply the way they are designed; you have to buy a lot of expensive pieces. For the Dillon, you are looking around 40 to 120 dollars per caliber. For the Hornady LNL you are looking at 10 to 50 dollars. For the Redding, if you load 2 or 3 calibers, you are there.

Price the Hornady LNL progressive press at Midway, then add a shellplate (about $28.00), a lower assembly for the powder die (about $16.00), and powder measure adapter (about 8.00) for each caliber. If the new caliber fits the shellplate and you are willing to reset the powder measure each time you change calibers, you are all ready to go if you have dies. Do the same for the Turret press, which for 2 or 3 calibers you won't need to buy anything additional. For 4 or more, you need to add 40.00 for a new top plate for each group of 2 to 3 calibers. Go to the Dillon precision website and do the same for the 550B.

You have to make a trade off between cost of equipment and the # of rounds loaded per hour. None of these presses will give you bad ammo, if you do your part. The real difference is time to convert from one caliber to another, cost, and volume of ammo in an hours time.

I looked at all of these and I opted for the Hornady LNL, even though I had to sell the Dillon stuff at 75 cents on the dollar.

Do keep in mind: loading at a higher rate is not a bad thing. Consider this, you come home from dinner on Friday night thinking you are going shooting in the early am. It is 8 pm and you find you are out of ammo. You sit down in front of the Hornady LNL or the Dillon 650 and two hours later, you have 400 to 600 rounds of ammo waiting to be shot and you are in bed by 10:15. You can't do that with a single stage, period. The 550B and the Turret press will be somewhere in-between those two extremes.

Hope this helps,

RobertD