XL650

#1 · December 9, 2014, 10:18 pm

Hi, I am thinking about purchasing an XL650 to reload .223, can anyone give me some insight on this model as in good or bad reviews?
Thanks.

#2 · December 10, 2014, 2:01 am

Don't hesitate, order the 650. I have it and load the .223/5.56 on a pretty regular basis. The only thing I do a little differently is I have a separate tool head set up to process brass. I size it and trim it before I run it through the loading process. It takes more time, but the rounds come out more uniform. Depending on the rifle you shoot, you may have some failure to load/eject or other feeding issues with reloads, and by preprocessing, I find it cuts those almost completely out. I also load just about every pistol caliber, and have separate tool heads set up for each. Between shooting, collecting brass and reloading, I find it hard to find time to work.

enjoy,

#3 · December 10, 2014, 12:18 pm

Thanks jj, I was hoping to speed up the process making bullets. Do you have to resize and trim before using the 650 or will it do that for you by squeezing the brass back to form within tolerance? I am using a Benelli MR1 and love the gun but uses LOTS of ammo in fun.
reichh

#4 · December 10, 2014, 2:23 pm

Quote from Reloader on December 10, 2014, 2:23 pm
The 650 will resize as you load the ammo. (station 1) Rifle brass has a tendency to "grow" after multiple firings, hence the need to trim brass every so often. I prefer to examine my brass by hand before loading but after trimming. During this step I swage the primer pocket if necessary, but always clean it out with a pocket uniformer. I also chamfer and bevel the case mouth as well. If the edge is sharp, it can score the bullet in the seating step. I do not have the Dillon power trimmer with the vacuum attachment, I use a different system (RCBS) mainly because I had it before I went over to the progressive press. I've thought of getting the motorized trimmer and die, but I already had bought the carbide sizing die from Dillon, as at the time, the trimmer wasn't on my "have to have" list. The 650 does not have the ability to swage the primer pocket in the loading process (the 1050 does however) with the factory set up. There is a company that makes stuff for this step but it voids the Dillon warranty, and still requires a separate operation in the brass processing. The warranty was the reason I went with the 650 and not the 1050. The 650 has a lifetime warranty while the more expensive 1050 is a one year warranty. (its a "commercial" machine). The 650 is quite a bit less expensive in the caliber conversions too. I spent the money and got quick change kits for most all of my pistols. (9, 40, 45) I still share one for the 38,357 and 44, but since I only load these calibers once a year at the most, so its not imperative I get a quick change yet. (my wife gets them for my birthday usually). Call the guys at Dillon, they can answer all your questions, and you can order at the same time when you are done. I normally go through my local gun store as he gives me the same price and he makes a tiny profit, but more importantly, it gives me a reason to stop by and chat with him and see what else I need to have. The people at Dillon are top notch, good people, great product, and a willingness to make right any problem, is the recipe for success.

The 650 will resize as you load the ammo. (station 1) Rifle brass has a tendency to "grow" after multiple firings, hence the need to trim brass every so often. I prefer to examine my brass by hand before loading but after trimming. During this step I swage the primer pocket if necessary, but always clean it out with a pocket uniformer. I also chamfer and bevel the case mouth as well. If the edge is sharp, it can score the bullet in the seating step. I do not have the Dillon power trimmer with the vacuum attachment, I use a different system (RCBS) mainly because I had it before I went over to the progressive press. I've thought of getting the motorized trimmer and die, but I already had bought the carbide sizing die from Dillon, as at the time, the trimmer wasn't on my "have to have" list. The 650 does not have the ability to swage the primer pocket in the loading process (the 1050 does however) with the factory set up. There is a company that makes stuff for this step but it voids the Dillon warranty, and still requires a separate operation in the brass processing. The warranty was the reason I went with the 650 and not the 1050. The 650 has a lifetime warranty while the more expensive 1050 is a one year warranty. (its a "commercial" machine). The 650 is quite a bit less expensive in the caliber conversions too. I spent the money and got quick change kits for most all of my pistols. (9, 40, 45) I still share one for the 38,357 and 44, but since I only load these calibers once a year at the most, so its not imperative I get a quick change yet. (my wife gets them for my birthday usually). Call the guys at Dillon, they can answer all your questions, and you can order at the same time when you are done. I normally go through my local gun store as he gives me the same price and he makes a tiny profit, but more importantly, it gives me a reason to stop by and chat with him and see what else I need to have. The people at Dillon are top notch, good people, great product, and a willingness to make right any problem, is the recipe for success.

#5 · December 11, 2014, 5:21 pm

One thing I over looked on the trimmer, I think you still have to add a step in order to decap. If you size and trim in the first station, I believe the trimmer prevents a decapping process. Since I don't have the trimmer, I'm not 100% positive, but that would be my suspicion.

Any one else want to chime in on this?