Reloading Die Question--Reloading Press

[HEAD0001]

I am looking at one of the Hornady LNL Progressive presses. I want one for 45 Colt. I like the fact that the press has five stations, and has an opening for a separate station for a separate crimp die. I prefer to crimp in a separate step. I was looking at the Hornady dies. They have a taper crimp die for the 45 ACP, and one for the 454 Cassul. But they do not show a separate crimp die for the 45 Colt. I have looked in several places but can not find one for the 45 Colt. I know I should not expect much from a mfr. that lists a 45 Colt as a 45 Long Colt. But still??

I imagine I could easily use the 454 casull crimping die. But do not know for sure?? Any opinions??

While we are at it. I am looking at either the 550B or the Hornady LNL(roughly same price). Any feelings as to which is the best?? Tom.

[Sixgun]

Tom,
First, there IS a 45 Long Colt! Not technically, but is was used to tell the difference between the 45 Schofield or as others say, the difference between the 45 Auto Colt & 45 Colt. When the acp cartridge came out, it was just known as the 45 Colt and people needed to be able to tell the difference at a time when the BIG 45 Colt was still popular. (supposedly) I really don't know for sure. I'm just a peon.

Anyway, on to your question---- Whats the matter with RCBS dies or a Lee factory crimp die? Does the Hornady press use "special dies" just for it's press?

I started out simple and have stayed that way for close to 40 years. Everything is RCBS---60 sets of dies and a half dozen press's later, they still work and their customer service is great!-----Sixgun

[J Miller]

Tom,

I'm probably gonna start another argument, but there is NO "long" to it. It's just the .45 Colt. The other name is an out of date nick name that just wont die.

OK, having said that, call Hornady and ask them about the separate crimp die for the .45 Colt. I'll bet the .454 Casull crimp die will work for it.
Although for my separate crimping I've been using the Lee FCD. Not that I'm a rabid fan of it, but it does make a nice crimp and it's easy to adjust for what ever length cases I'm using it on. .45 Schofield, .45 Colt, .454 Casull, really easy, no allen wrench required.
I also don't use a taper crimp on revolver cartridges unless I load copper plated or jacketed bullets with no crimp groove. Then I'll use my .45 ACP taper crimp die with a really tight neck tension.

As for the option of the Dillon 550B or the Hornady LNL I don't know. I've never used the Hornady, and the last time I used a Dillon was 25 years ago.
I'm kind of behind the times, I still use a single stage press for all my loading.

Joe

[Chuck 100 yd]

Any seating die with the roll crimp built in will do the trick. I shoot .45 (LOOOONG) Colt for CAS and crimp as a separate step also. I use the Lee FCD to get er done.

[J Miller]

Chuck,

Is there a difference between the .45 LOOOONG Colt and the .45 LONG Colt?

[Griff]

I imagine I could easily use the 454 casull crimping die. But do not know for sure?? Any opinions??

I'm not sure... the 45ACP die will work, just don't screw it down as far. The 454Casull IIRC is a longer case, and a std .45 Colt case may not have enough length to reach the roll crimp.

While we are at it. I am looking at either the 550B or the Hornady LNL(roughly same price). Any feelings as to which is the best?? Tom.

YES. Go BLUE!

FYI, crimping: Roll Crimp Primer

[HEAD0001]

I have the Hornady number and was going to call them on Monday. But I was also interested in some comparisons of the two presses. I also already have RCBS dies for the 45 Colt as well as a Redding Crimp Die. So I also want to know if I can use those instead of buying Hornady dies. I figure I can. But it is nice to be armed with as much information as possible when talking on the phone. So I was doing a little pre-homework. Tom.

[Chuck 100 yd]

What Joe said.....

[J Miller]

I have the Hornady number and was going to call them on Monday. But I was also interested in some comparisons of the two presses. I also already have RCBS dies for the 45 Colt as well as a Redding Crimp Die. So I also want to know if I can use those instead of buying Hornady dies. I figure I can. But it is nice to be armed with as much information as possible when talking on the phone. So I was doing a little pre-homework. Tom.

Tom,
With the RCBS and Redding dies, you're set. I wouldn't spend the cash on any new dies if I had those.

Joe

[medicdave]

Using the LNL AP press, the added height of the bushings doesn't let some dies (Lee in some calibers 45 colt included) screw in far enough to be usefull. I just replaced my pisol dies with Hornady's. Love the press by the way, enough I have two, one for small primers and one for large. RCBS rifle dies work fine in every caliber I've tried so far.

[HEAD0001]

On another forum somebody pointed out something about the 550B that I had not thought about. And that was the fact that the 550B can also be used as a single stage press since it does not auto-index-and because the shell plate easily spins backwards.

But I really like the ideaof that powder check die.

Too many decisions!! Some times I think I tend to over analyze things(I know I do). Thanks Again, Tom.

[Hawkeye2]

Lee has crimping dies and they worke fine and I highly recomend one. I use a 5 station press crimping as a seperate operation. I have a .454 but haven't loaded for it yet. I doubt you could get the .45 case up into the .454 die to crimp. The opposite is true thought, .45 dies will work for .454.

[shooter]

The only thing about using a Lee FCD, which I am a big fan of where applicable, is that the cartridge comes out at factory specs. This means that if you are shooting cast and your barrel requires a bullet that is .454 diameter, the Lee FCD will swage the bullet down to .452 and it will be undersized for your gun. I can't use my .44 or .45 Lee FCD on a couple of my guns because of this reason. If I do it leaves lead all down the barrel. If you don't load cast bullets this isn't a concern.

[Washita]

Lee has crimping dies and they worke fine and I highly recomend one. I use a 5 station press crimping as a seperate operation. I have a .454 but haven't loaded for it yet. I doubt you could get the .45 case up into the .454 die to crimp. The opposite is true thought, .45 dies will work for .454.

OK, I can't stand it. Gotta know--what's the 5th station for? I count 4, max.: Size/decap, neck expand/bell/charge, seat bullet & crimp. What'm I missing?

[J Miller]

The only thing about using a Lee FCD, which I am a big fan of where applicable, is that the cartridge comes out at factory specs. This means that if you are shooting cast and your barrel requires a bullet that is .454 diameter, the Lee FCD will swage the bullet down to .452 and it will be undersized for your gun. I can't use my .44 or .45 Lee FCD on a couple of my guns because of this reason. If I do it leaves lead all down the barrel. If you don't load cast bullets this isn't a concern.

This is not the case with the two Lee FCDs I have. I can load .455" bullets in Starline cases and mine will not size the cases at all. If yours is sizing them at this point do this.

Take a fired case and size it with the FCD then measure it. Compare it to the SAAMI specs. They should be at or above the max. If below call Lee and have the die replaced.
Even with the bigger bullets my ammo does not exceed SAAMI max dimensions.

Joe

[Griff]

I have 2 550Bs, love 'em. Even with just a 4 station press use #3 for the powdercheck then seat and rotate to #4 for seat/crimp station.

I loaded for 3 cas shooters for 10 years on a single 550B w/o a powder check. I sit high enough above my bench that I can see into the charged cases @ #2 to be my own powder check.

I doubt you can go wrong with either machine. But, I still recommend the Dillon.

[HEAD0001]

Lee has crimping dies and they worke fine and I highly recomend one. I use a 5 station press crimping as a seperate operation. I have a .454 but haven't loaded for it yet. I doubt you could get the .45 case up into the .454 die to crimp. The opposite is true thought, .45 dies will work for .454.

OK, I can't stand it. Gotta know--what's the 5th station for? I count 4, max.: Size/decap, neck expand/bell/charge, seat bullet & crimp. What'm I missing?

Five stations for revolver:
1. Size-new primer
2. Bell-drop powder
3. Powder check
4. Seat bullet
5. Crimp

Hornady has a die that allows you to bell and drop powder in same station. Or so I have been told. I have not seen it yet. I did see it on a U-Tube video. But waiting for verification. I looked for that die on the Hornady web site but could not find it. I am going to call them tomorrow, and that is my first question.

I like the idea of the extra station. And I like the idea of the "powder verification die".

I am just not sure if I like the auto-indexing. there are pros and cons. It is probably better for guys who are concerned about pure speed. ButI am not interested in pure speed. I just want a little better press. Tom.

[HEAD0001]

I spoke to a rep at Hornady today. And they definitely do have an adapter that allows you to bell the case mouth and drop powder at the same station. That is a great feature. And seals the deal for me. I am ordering the Hornady LNL. Tom.

[COSteve]

While we are at it. I am looking at either the 550B or the Hornady LNL(roughly same price). Any feelings as to which is the best?? Tom.

As the previous owner of a Dillon 550B and current owner of a Dillon 650 with casefeeder, I'll take a swing at the differences.

First, the LnL is actually more like Dillon's 650 rather than their 550. The Dillon 550 is a four station, manually advanced press while both the LnL and 650 are five station, auto advancing presses. The 550's casefeeder will only work with pistol cases while the LnL and 650's casefeeders will work with all the calibers they support; both pistol and rifle.

Further, when one includes a casefeeder (they are absolutely great and you will eventually get one), the LnL and 650 end up costing the same. Many arguments have erupted concerning which press is better. While I have over 135,000rds worth of experience on my Dillons, everything I've heard sounds like the Hornady with casefeeder compares well with the Dillon 650 with casefeeder.

I should note that the vast majority of profession shooters use Dillons (98% of the champions do) so that must tell you something about their quality and reliability.

As to dies, I've found that Lee Deluxe Carbide Pistol die sets are superior to Dillon's and others because they allow one to adjust for bullet height and crimp by hand instead of having to use a wrench. I use them for my 30carb, 38/357mag, 40s&w, 45acp, and 10mm loads and they are superb. I use Dillon rifle dies for my .223/5.56 and find them to be excellent but more expensive than the Lees.

[HEAD0001]

Steve I can honestly say I will never buy the case feeder. Heck I am on the edge just buying a progressive. I really can do all I need on a single stage. I just have a little extra money right now. And am limiting myself on cartridges, so a progressive becomes more appealing.

The reason I did not compare it to the 650 is price. The 650 is almost $200 more, and that does not include the $100+ of free Hornady bullets. So that is why I didn't compare it to the 650-purely a financial decision.

I agree with you about the auto indexing. It is not that big of a deal to me. What I really like about the LNL is the fifth station. And the ability to have a powder check die, and a separate crimp station. I like to crimp in a separate step.

I am sure you are right about the competitive shooters. You probably know them-I do not. But I doubt very many of them use the 550B. I bet they use the faster ones?? And for the top competitors I also do not doubt that Dillon cuts them a break on the price. I have been in that business and know how it is done. I sold Hornady for years and my shotgun press was free from Hornady. Tom.

[Hawkeye2]

OK, I can't stand it. Gotta know--what's the 5th station for? I count 4, max.: Size/decap, neck expand/bell/charge, seat bullet & crimp. What'm I missing?[/quote]


With a Lee Load Master these are the steps:
1. Feed case, Deprime (ram up)
2. Prime (ram down), size (ram up)
3. Expand, Flare, Charge (ram up)
4. Feed bullet, Seat bullet, Crimp if desired (ram up)
5. Crimp (ram up)

I use a Lee Carbide Factory Crimp Die in station 5. I shoot 250 gr. cast bullets sized .452" in .45 Colt (revolvers & carbine) over 4.2 gr. of Clays with no leading problems.

[COSteve]

Powder check die or auto bullet feeder.