How many tool heads and conversion kits do you have for your progressive press?

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Zaydok Allen

Zaydok Allen

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I reload on a Dillon 550B. I started reloading last December. Yesterday I bought my second quick change conversion kit and one came with my loader. It comes with a tool head, powder dispenser, and everything you need to change to a different cartridge family.

So I load on seperate tool heads:
45 acp
10mm auto
The new head will be 38/357
I still need one for 460/454/45 Colt
Need 9mm
May get into 41 or 44 mag
May get into 6.5 Creed

So I have three toolheads, will likely pick up 2-4 in the next few years. I'm guessing more will show up in the next few decades.

Just wondering if most progressive loaders with caliber conversion tool head capabilities mostly buy dedicated tool heads for cartridge families or if they save money and just change out the dies?
 
I use a tool head per caliber minimum.
Some brands of dies work better with Lead Bullets than others.

A Lee Turret Press is a great way to make low volume calibers for low cost.
If you can load (200) 44 Magnums in an hour how many do you need when you shoot ?
 
Turns out quite a few for my Dillon 550:

.223
.223 Forming
.300 Blackout
.308
7.65 Luger
.380
9mm
.38/.357
.357SIG
.40
.45ACP
.45Colt

For the 650 I'm still on my 1st. 5 Dillon Powder measures (2 Harrell's)
 
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Set up I have .45 ACP, 10mm, 9mm, .38 Spl, .357 Mag, .44 Mag. Yes, I have separate heads for .38 Spl and .357 Mag. I still need to set up head for my rifle calibers. My goal is to someday have another 650 XL so I don't have to switch priming systems around.

I've got a Colt Police Positive in .32 Colt New Police. Not sure if I'm going to set up a head for that or not. I may have to purchase another .32 revolver to make it worthwhile.

I have three powder measures. Two Dillon and one Hornady. I use this little gadget to move the Dillon powder measures around. https://entirelycrimson.com/collect...ts/quick-disconnect-for-dillon-powder-alarm-1
 
650:
9MM, .45 acp. .40/10MM, .38/357, 5.56X45, 7.62X51, 6MM Remington

RL450 .44 spec/mag, .30-30, .45 Colt, .30-06

All others loaded on Redding ultramag.
 
Lee 3 hole turret heads for the Pro1000 and turret press;
9mm, 380, 45acp and 38/357. This includes Turret, dies, shell plates and shell holders

Lee Breech Lock Pro; just the dies and shell plate for 45acp. Will be adding 9mm shell plate as I have a second set of dies.
 
I have three tool heads for my Dillon BL550 and two for my RCBS Pro2000. But only one for each has been removed from the original packaging. The others are collecting dust and the ones for the Dillon are pretty gold and blue anodized tool heads.

I prefer to store my dies in die boxes and just spin them in and out when I want to use them. Locking die rings keep the die settings where I want them. I find populated tool heads a pain to store.

But that is just me. I operate progressive presses in strange ways.

Nothing wrong with populating die plates.
 
One of the absolute and sweetest things about a Dillon 550 is the quick and easy caliber change using dedicated tool heads. Right now I have two tool heads. One for 9mm and one for 45acp.

The quick tool head change set up on the Dillon 550 was my main reason for purchasing the Dillon 550. I do prime on my 550.
 
I have 5 - .380, 9mm, 40/10, 45, and 223.

Right now I am adjusting the dies when I go between 40 and 10mm, but I may pick up another set of dies so that I don't have to. I don't have powder measures for all of my tool heads, it is quick and easy to swap out. I use a Lee Autodrum for my 223 loads, along with their universal powder-thru die.

For 223, I do all my brass prep (sizing, trimming, etc) before it gets to the Dillon. Instead of a sizing die in station 1, I have a universal expander, to put a slight flare on the mouth for when I use flat-based bullets.
 
Not sure how many tool heads but at one point I had more than a dozen progressive presses. The LNL’s were the only ones I didn’t need extra tool heads for, just bushings.
 
Hmmm,
Sounds like tool heads (and bushings) are somewhat similar to ink jet cartridges,,,.
Bushings here. Dies go back in their boxes. (With bushings attached) About $12 a caliber..
 
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I have made my boxes accept the dies with the LNL bushing still on them. I wouldn't want the system if I couldn't.
 
Set up: 4 dedicated by caliber for the RCBS Pro 2000 ...... 3 for the Pro Chucker 7.....so far. Plus a new one of each for future needs.

I have more Uniflow P.M.'s than I need. 5 including one oversized reservoir that came with the 7 station conversion.
 
Walkalong said:
A lot of LNL bushings on a lot of dies.
Click to expand...

I have lots of dies seated on L-N-L bushings for my Hornady L-N-L progressive press. I use the Hornady more than any other progressive press that I have.

But, I do alot of resizing only on the Hornady. Reloading of the cartridges may happen on the Dillon BL550, Dillon SDB, RCBS Pro2000 or even the Hornady L-N-L.
 
9 total: 3 dillon presses
1-380
1-9mm
1-38/357
1-357sig
2-45acp 550/650
1-45acp SDB
1-223
1-308
 
By quick count it's ten tool heads plus. I had found second hand 38 Special and 44/44 Magnum dies. Extra sets were made up to keep from readjusting dies. Going from the 38 Special to 357 went changing tool heads. Making up these tool heads was not expensive and save bunches of time. Ditto 10mm and 40 S&W.

Addendum: Three powder measures.
 
On separate tool heads, ready to go:

Rifles: 358 Win, 7.62x39, 30-06, 308, 300 AAC, 270 Win, 6.8 SPC, 25-06, 257 Roberts, 22-250, 223 (75gr), 223 (55gr)
Pistols: 45 Colt, 45 ACP, 10mm, 40S&W, 38 Special, 357 Mag, 9x19, 380​

The 7x57, 303 British, 243, 44 Mag, and other die sets for seldom-shot chamberings sit in their boxes and not on tool heads. I also have a tool head set up with a universal decapper. I'm even so lazy that each die set has its own powder drop pre-mounted (Lee AutoDisk for the pistol and intermediate rifle chamberings, Dillon for the rest).
 
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