Dillon Tumblers

[lordgroom]

Anyone use a Dillon Tumbler, either large or small? How do you like them? I have a Frankford Arsenal and I am entertaining the thought of buying a new tumbler which has a greater capacity and is quieter (I tumble outside but I have close neighbors).

 

[Uncle Chan]

I can't speak for the Dillon, but I have a 10yr Lyman 1200 base model. It has a decent capacity. As for quiet, the noise in my Lyman comes from the shells and not so much from the machine.

 

[JGAreddog]

I have 4 of the large vibratory tumblers and have never had a problem. One of them has had around 500,000 rounds through it and still keeps tickin. I give them 2 thumbs up for sure. I've tumbled on my back porch a lot with neighbors being within 150ft and never had a complaint.

p.s. No matter what cleaner you get, try not to overload them as it can wear out the springs

 

[rg1]

I have the large Dillion CV-2001 and use it for 50bmg brass and large quantities of other brass. I can vibrate 100 of the 50bmg cases at a time while my Lyman 1200 will only handle 25. It's a good product but kind of expensive unless you have large cases or do a lot of cases at a time. I do recommend the Dillion Rapid Polish290 as it cuts vibrating time in half and cleans cases better. Also the Dillion case resizing lube is the best I've used. The CV-2001 is a big machine and unless you need that size I'd go with the smaller model. The CV-2001 model has a thick bowl and lid that quietens the noise from inside quite well. It has more movement in it's vibration than my Lyman. You still have motor and movement noise but it's a different lower pitched sound than my Lyman. I think the sound would be less than you presently get from your smaller unit as far as neighbors hearing it run. I would highly recommend the large CM-2000 media case separator also from Lyman at about 63.00. It'll quickly separate your cases rather than digging thru the large bowl for the last few .38, .223 cases left in the CV-2001. If you're going for the biggest at it's relatively high cost why not go all the way with the media separator?

 

[jmorris]

The midway unit I have is an old model 1292, looks just like the Frankford arsenal just a different color, it’s made in the USA and is still running after 20 years, without the cord mounted switch. However, the difference between it and the Dillon CV-2001 is substantial. I would agree with RG about the media separator.

 

[38 Super Auto]

I've got the large Dillon tumbler. I like it because I can tumble 600-800 cases easily. I hold onto empty cases until I have a full batch. I have no complaints - it does a good job. She does make a low rumble, though. It's basically the sound of the cases and media working inside the bowl. If you run it empty, it makes very little noise.

I have had it about 10 years. I have sent it back for service, when the on/ff rocker switch broke. I got it back within a week.

It has a lifetime warranty, but the motor is guaranteed for only a year.

 

[Sheldon]

The noise is a result of a combination of the amount of cases in the tumbler and how strong the motor the tumbler has. The Dillon can be loud as the motors are big and you won't be able to bog it down. Most of the noise is a result of the cases bouncing off the walls of the bowl. I lighter load of cases will limit this and run quieter than a heavily loaded tumbler. That siad, I like to run the tumblers heavy on brass as the weight of the brass is a big factor in how aggresive the cases are cleaned.