Well today I had a chance to set up my new Dillon 550XL. Not as easy as the video seems, but not too bad either. Here's a picture of the bench.

 

 

 

So now I have a couple of questions as usual. I used just brass and bullets when doing the sizing, seating depth, and crimp. I then loaded 10 live rounds. Since the scale was there I weighed each one. They vary in weight by about .5 grams. I then weighed the dummy rounds and they varied also. All the brass was trimmed on an RCBS motorized case trimmer. All is brand new Winchester cases. Any idea if this is normal? Different density in brass? I checked the powder weight several times and it is consistent. Next question is were you nervous the first trigger pull on your reloads? Thinking of letting the wife try the first one .

Jimmy,

 

Of course you are worried the first time.

Make sure to use powders that will not allow a double charge. Bullseye powder is awful in this regard. You could get a triple charge and not know it unless you are specifically checking the powder level in each case. With a single stage, you would notice. On a progressive, it's easier to miss. I stick with stuff like Alliant Blue Dot, IMR 800X. These are slow burning powders that would overflow the case before you could do a double charge. You might want to try Trail Boss. It is a cowboy action powder that fills the brass nearly to the top.

I never trim pistol brass. It becomes shout out and worn out before I ever have to worry about trimming it.

Are you sure you mean .5 grams? Usually reloading values (powder weight, bullet weight) are measured in grains. If my math is correct (Lord knows somebody better check it) half a gram is 7.8 grains - that is a pretty significant variance. Half a grain, not so much. Please double check your values before you pull the trigger.

 

28 grams to the ounce

7000 grains to the pound

437.5 grains to the ounce

15.63 grains to the gram

Therefore: .5 grams = 7.8 grains

 

HTH

 

Adios,

 

Pizza Bob

Are you sure you mean .5 grams? Usually reloading values (powder weight, bullet weight) are measured in grains. If my math is correct (Lord knows somebody better check it) half a gram is 7.8 grains - that is a pretty significant variance. Half a grain, not so much. Please double check your values before you pull the trigger.

 

28 grams to the ounce

7000 grains to the pound

437.5 grains to the ounce

15.63 grains to the gram

Therefore: .5 grams = 7.8 grains

 

HTH

 

Adios,

 

Pizza Bob

 

 

Sorry, yes I meant grains. My bad. This is for a .223 caliber round. Still thought it was significant, but looking at the math, I guess it's not so much. I am loading IMR 4895 powder (23 gr.), Winchester primers, Sierra 77 gr, BTHP match king. The OAL is 2.26. The crimp seemed to be the hardest part of setting up the press. I measured my Black Hills 77 gr, and they are approx. 2.25X, is it OK to be at the OAL or slightly under?

 

I have been reading everything I can, and watching a lot of youtube.

Thanks for all the help, I would never even thought about reloading if it wasn't for this forum and the impending Zombie invasion :? .

Nice bench if it weren't for the Navy flag :mrgreen:

Nice bench if it weren't for the Navy flag :mrgreen:

 

Thanks, I take it from your uniform you are Hoo-Yah? All brothers in arms. I have one in the Navy (I'm ex-Navy) and one starting Air Force ROTC in Aug. Proud no matter what branch.

I understand the carpet on the bench, however, it's going to be difficult to pick up spilled powder. I prefer laminate (Formica).

I prefer not to have anything on the bench that can generate static!

I prefer not to have anything on the bench that can generate static!

 

Wow didn't even think static. Just put it there so when I worked on the guns they were protected. Guess I'll be removing the carpet soon.

your weight diffrence is the brass and bullets.. you could weigh the brass seperat along with the bullets and put hem in marked cans so you know the weight, their is also a dont know factor they could be on the heavy side of the weight and together make another .5 or even 1 grain..

I also work on guns on the reloading bench. I just put an old towel down that I can easily remove.

Had the same issue. I thought I had screwed something up. but after pulling the bullets to check the powder, I found powder was fine. Checking brass head stamps lead me to the issue different brass manufacturers cases weigh different amounts. I did some checking on .40 brass and had up to 7 grains difference in brass. Checking the weight of a loaded round will just give you headaches.

 

I check the powder on the first 10 rounds I make and then every 10th after that. if I'm with .2 grains of what I looking for I keep going.