I have been loading on my Dillon RL-450 for almost 35 years now. And it still turns out as quality of a cartridge today, as it did back then. I've loaded countless thousands of rounds over the decades on it. Mine doesn't have the star handle on the turret for advancing the shell plate. The entire shell plate and ram is identical to the current production Dillon RL-550B models, so I thought I would take a ride to Dillon over in Scottsdale and pick one up.
Then I started looking and found this nice roller bearing setup from Hit Factor Shooting Supply. It comes with the star wheel, plus a nice roller bearing that rides in between 2 flat washers. It also includes another ground stripper bolt of the proper length, that takes into account the extra thickness of the washer assembly, and the spotface that is machined into the star wheel to accept it. This is important because if you use the stock Dillon supplied stripper bolt, it will be too short, and the locking set screw on the side of the ram will bear on the threads, and not the body of the bolt itself.
They also include some nice knobs that attach to the hex nut on the Dillon powder measure, to make adjustments to the powder charge much easier, and without the need for a wrench. They've already shipped it, and it is scheduled to arrive Monday. It will be nice to have the star wheel to make advancing the shell plate easier. And with the roller bearing setup, it should really make it nice and smooth. This kit has excellent reviews, and I'm anxious to get it installed. I'll report back as soon as it is.
This is my present Dillon factory setup.
This is the roller bearing kit from Hit Factor Shooting Supply. They also make them for the Dillon 650 and 1050 as well. If anyone is interested.
Then I started looking and found this nice roller bearing setup from Hit Factor Shooting Supply. It comes with the star wheel, plus a nice roller bearing that rides in between 2 flat washers. It also includes another ground stripper bolt of the proper length, that takes into account the extra thickness of the washer assembly, and the spotface that is machined into the star wheel to accept it. This is important because if you use the stock Dillon supplied stripper bolt, it will be too short, and the locking set screw on the side of the ram will bear on the threads, and not the body of the bolt itself.
They also include some nice knobs that attach to the hex nut on the Dillon powder measure, to make adjustments to the powder charge much easier, and without the need for a wrench. They've already shipped it, and it is scheduled to arrive Monday. It will be nice to have the star wheel to make advancing the shell plate easier. And with the roller bearing setup, it should really make it nice and smooth. This kit has excellent reviews, and I'm anxious to get it installed. I'll report back as soon as it is.
This is my present Dillon factory setup.
This is the roller bearing kit from Hit Factor Shooting Supply. They also make them for the Dillon 650 and 1050 as well. If anyone is interested.