Design project for Dillon 650XL

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Doc Hoy

New member
A fellow on another forum told me that I had a habit of adjusting the world to meet my needs.

I took it as a compliment.

So I have this brand spanking new Dillon 650XL which I have fallen in love with.

I did NOT buy the bullet feeder because I just thought it was not worth the expense. I also don't like the fact that (at least on the ones I have seen) you have to change out the tool head to use the feeder.

I continue to feel that way but I do acknowledge that the lack of a bullet feeder and the commensurate fiddling with bullets under the seating stage can be a pain.

So I decided to try to build my own.

I wanted it to do three things:

1. put the bullet into the case so that the bullet does not have to be touched as it enters the seating die.

2. be installable without replacing any major components on the press.

3. not slow the operation of the press appreciably. Now please understand that for me, the process is already a bit slower since I have to place the bullets on the case by hand as it moves up into the seating die.

I don't have a powder check system so my stage three is unused. So my design (which is far from complete) will be installed in position 3.

Here is where I am:

I made a die from alumnum stock which fits in position three. The die holds an aluminum tube with has an ID just a bit larger than a 9mm bullet. The tube is about 15 inches long.

The final design will involver dropping the bullet into the flared case as it moves to the top of stage three. The bullet will drop the fifteen inches through the tube and through the die and into the case. Gravity imparts enough acceleration to the bullet that it drops into the case and lightly catches in the flared mouth of the case. The bullet and case remain so engaged as the press advances the pair to stage four where seating to the proper COAL occurs.

I have tried ths numerous times. It works.

The next phase of the design will involve an automatic feeding system which places the bullets into the top of the tube in the proper orientation.

I am working on it.

Next time I get off of my A double scribble I will take some photos.

Tnx,
 
I use a Mr. Bullet Feeder with my XL650. Works pretty well. I tried a couple of the GSI Units and just did not care for them. Going to have to switch the 2 calibers I have set up on the GSI tool heads back to the dillon tool heads and put the GSI units up for sale.
A link to Mr. Bullet Feeder:
http://www.mrbulletfeeder.com/
 
The only company that makes one that requires a different tool head is the GSI (also the only bullet feeder that allow one to retain a powder check die and seat then crimp in #4&5.

If you don't mind loosing the PC die in #3 you can use any of the others. MrBullet feeder, the older KISS, RCBS or the least expensive Hornady.

For that matter I even rigged up a Lee feeder on a 650 years ago. It is a waist of time though.

I prefer the GSI feeders for pistol calibers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yl63cR9Y_Y0
 
Ooops, You are correct.....

Other manufs do install without changing the tool head.

Still fooling with ideas to introduce bullets to the drop tube without reinventing the wheel. There are already collators out there.

As it is, the drop tube is a little easier to deal with than placing the bullets on top of the charged case. But not much.

Sometimes I do things just because they are fun. This may go nowhere.

Tnx,
 
I have built many collators my first was fairly large and had a device that would cull any inverted bullets.

feeder4.jpg


Later ones were much smaller, like the KISS collators.

DSC01472.jpg


I have also built "flippers" so I can use the base down collators on my nose down bullet sizers as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Cc1hUj343w

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eANEMBS_V_0
 
FWIW I even have bullet feeders that are not their own tool head, installed on their own tool head. Just not worth it to swap dies around on them. After all that is why they are quick change in the first place.
 
I have made a little progress.....

I have come up with a ski slope kind of arrangement that drops the bullets into the tube. I have tested the ski slope seperately and it works.


One problem is that with no collator, I have to take the time to place the bullets into the ski slope with the nose facing up. This thing may actually make press operation slower. Thats okay for me since I never make many cartridges in a session.


I believe I can capture the movement of the link arm to actuate a toggle which will limit bullets to drop one at a time synchronized with the press cycle.

Details at eleven.
 
Completely pointless reinvention of the wheel.....

I have to start this post by stating that the project I am working on does nothing for reloading. Not speed, not consistency....nothing. I started the project thinking that I could hasten the cycle if I did not have to place the bullet on the cartridge by hand. (See, I am too cheap to buy a bullet feeder.) So I set about devising an addition to the press that places the bullet with little or no human intervention.

So far, I have not accomplished that. In fact the contraption may actually slow the process. That is okay since I don't ever do large scale bulk reloading all at one time.

I guess I am doing this just for the enjoyment.

Here is what I have so far




The mechanism captures the movement of the parallel arms of the press. through a bellcrank on a pivot.



The bellcrank is cut so as to be able to adjust the radii for timing adjustment.



I needed to do this to keep the ball bearing follower out of the way of moving parts of the press and to permit the device to be timed so as not to drop the bullet untill the press has moved the case into the full up position.
 
Cont.

Movement of the bellcrank is transferred to a connecting rod




which actuates the second and smaller bellcrank at the top of the machine.



The 1/4 - 20 althread connecting rod moves up with the press upward cycle. This pushes the upper bellcrank in a clockwise direction. The 8 x 32 althread rod is connected to the turret of the bullet dropper.
 
So the 8 x 32 rod pushed the turret counter clockwise moving the bullet over the tube leading down to the placing die.



The bullet drops bown the tube with enough force so that the bullet lightly catches in the case.



I had to polish the inside of the tube and die so as to reduce friction allowing the bullet to accelerate quickly. I also drilled some holes at the bottom of the die so that air could escape as the bullet drops.
 
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Cont.

Here is another view of the bullet turret.



I had to add a spring to cause the turret to return to its rest position so that it wold pick up another bullet.

 
Here is a close-up

Of the bearing follower



The device is far from perfect.

It does not consitently drop bullets such that they catch in the case. This is a function of the timing of the turret and the fact that the turret needs to be more precicely made. You would not think it would matter but the manner in which the bullet enters the top of the tube has a lot of impact on the speed it is travelling when it reaches the bottom.

The paint is rustoleum from Home Depot. It is a pretty good match.
 
It appears...

That the main expense in the 300.00 to 600.00 units is the collator. Obvioulsy my design doesn't have a collator. Means I have to put the bullets into the ski slope by hand and in the right orientation.

You might ask, what is the difference between putting the bullets into the ski slope and putting the bullets onto the case under the seating die. Almost none.

Remember...I said I am doing this for fun.
 
Okay, Now I see it.....

JM,

I had reviewed the photos you posted earlier in the thread.

These additional links make it very clear what is going on with the bullet flipper.

I think you are right.....

This might not be all that hard to do.
 
Took your suggestion, JMorris

Got a bullet flipper working 100% of the time.

I have eliminated the ski slope I was originally using and am using the bullet flipper to drop the bullets into the turret at the top of the press.

I stole your design. Thanks a lot.

Still working out minor details.

Bullet flipper is turned by hand right now. I may find that works okay for me.
 
Here ya go

First photo is of the revised method of getting the bullet to the rest position of the turret. I guess it would be called bullet staging. I made the bracket for the positioning of the tube over the turret adjustable it two axes since I wanted to be able to adjust the way the bullet drops into the turret.

Note that there is a little collar sitting on top of the round fitting that holds the tube in place over the turret. This collar should not be there. It was initially intended to hold the top of the tube to the fitting at the bottom of the colator. I eliminated it with a hose clamp which is seen in the third photo



This next photo is of the device which holds the colator at the proper height. I made it adjustable since I was not certain of the design. If I had known in advance that I would be using a colator instead of the ski slope, I would have made the main support much longer and just fixed the colator to that.

 
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