[hhsmiley]

I'm just kind of getting into reloading and was going to get a Dillon SDB or 550. I just stumbled across the Hornady LNL Auto and was intrigued.

I'll be loading .45 and 38 super and probably .40 later as well. It looks like their die bushings would make it really quick and easy to change calibers.

Does anybody have one and care to share you experiences with it?

 

[jrchilds]

I have a mp Pro 7 (I think) with the automatic powder drop.
It works. what can I say

 

[JoeMc]

I used to have a Dillon 550b until I got a Hornady LNL. Sold the Dillon. Since then I've picked up a couple used Hornady Projectors. I like the LNL best but the Projectors are even better than the Dillon. Of course thats just my opinion and I've never looked back. From and engineering point of view, I think the Hornadys are made better.

 

[Eddie]

Owned a Dillon and had no complaints. I'm on my second Hornady Projector (very similar to the LNL) and I'm considering a LNL. One thing I like about the Hornady is the bullet and case are both inserted from the same side: pick both up with one hand and never take the other off the handle. Also, it's a five station, auto indexing press that cost less than a 550 (four station, manual indexing). You won't go wrong with either machine. Just depends on what your personal preferences are.

Good luck,

Eddie

 

[10ring]

I've had a LNL for about 8 months now. First progressive press for me after using an RCBS RC for many years. The LNL has worked well. Very well made. I like the idea of the auto-indexing so I don't give myself a double charge of powder if I forget to rotate the shellplate.

 

[dennisk]

I recently purchased the LNL and love it. It is such a smooth machine, I really enjoy using it. Access from one side is a big plus as are the LNL bushings which lock down much tighter than typical removable heads (and a lot tighter than my old turret press). I don't use the primer feeder since I prefer to hand-prime so I cannot comment on the performance of it. I struggled between Dillon and Hornady for some time - I really like the Dillon catalogs - but in the end operating a display model in a local store sold me. Good luck in your decision.

 

[John Forsyth]

A first rate machine and a first rate company making it. To sum it up, it works, it works smoothly and simply. It is solid.

The one comment I always hear about is how good Dillon's warranty is. This happened to me this weekend. I was loading .45's, and heard a big crunch. There was a .40 S$W case in the .45 case that was getting deprimed and resized. Broke the decapping pin. Called Hornady, told them what happened. They are sending new pin, no charge for shipping or for the pin. All they said was it happenes.

Hornady supports the shooting sports, makes good equipment, and backs it up with a no nonsence warranty. Get their LNL AP, you will not be disappointed.

------------------
John

"And by the way, Mr. Speaker, The Second Amendment is not for killing ducks and leaving Huey and Dewey and Louie without an aunt and uncle. It is for hunting politicians like (in) Grozney and in 1776, when they take your independence away".
Robert K. Dornen, U.S. Congressman. 1995

 

[Matt VDW]

I guess I might as well join the Hornady love-fest.

The more I use my LNL, the more I like it. I've grown to appreciate features like having the seating station at the front of the press so it's easy to visually confirm the powder charge and having the primer tube as far away from my face as possible. Having the spent primers slide away down a tube helps keep things clean.

Areas for improvement:

1) A Dillon-style roller handle would be nice.

2) Ditto for a Dillon-style "strong mount".

3) Being able to fill the priming system without disassembling it would speed things up.

BTW, has anyone found a less expensive replacement for the Hornady powder measure and case-activated drop? I'd like to get a spare to make switching powders faster but I don't want to drop $100 if I can help it.

 

[shooter22]

I would do not and would not own anything else. They work great! I like their flexibility.

shooter22

 

[lesthemess]

Just got a new L-N-L AP today! Spent a couple of hours mounting, assembling, and adjusting and now I'm looking forward to a real work out. I'll let you know what I think.


lesthemess

 

[pinetree]

I have been looking for a new press. Can I use my existing RCBS dies in the LNL?

tjg

 

[John Forsyth]

I do not see why not. Call Hornady at:

Hornady Reloaders
P.O. Box 1848
Grand Island, Nebraska 68802
Customer Service 800-338-3220
e-mail at [email protected]



------------------
John

"And by the way, Mr. Speaker, The Second Amendment is not for killing ducks and leaving Huey and Dewey and Louie without an aunt and uncle. It is for hunting politicians like (in) Grozney and in 1776, when they take your independence away".
Robert K. Dornen, U.S. Congressman. 1995

 

[hhsmiley]

Thanks everybody for your comments and for all the information. Looks like I'll be getting a LNL. I'll let you know how it works.

 

[JoeMc]

Get the extra bushings and powder drop adapter (lower part) that way no need to adjust for different length cases,just change it with the dies.

 

[JohnN]

I too am looking for a new progressive press, I have used a buddy of mines Dillon 550 for several years but it time to buy my own. How difficult is it to change primer size and also load primers for loading?

Thanks,John

 

[John Forsyth]

Originally posted by JohnN:
I too am looking for a new progressive press, I have used a buddy of mines Dillon 550 for several years but it time to buy my own. How difficult is it to change primer size and also load primers for loading?

Thanks,John

If it got much simpler, it would do it for you. It takes about two minutes to go from large to small primers or the other way. Only two moving parts.

The primers are fed into the machine from a tube which sets in a safety housing. Take the housing off, one screw, set aside. Fill the tube from a primer flip tray. Slip tube back into housing and back to machine. Filling the tube is my break time.

I have three tubes for each size. The other night, I loaded all the tubes up (100 primers in each) and loaded 300 rnds of .40 S&W in approx 40 min.

Another nice feature about the machine is you can load one cartridge at a time like a turrent press. In this way you can do load development quite easily. Just leave the powder measure off the machine.

Bottom line, they are good machines.

------------------
John

"And by the way, Mr. Speaker, The Second Amendment is not for killing ducks and leaving Huey and Dewey and Louie without an aunt and uncle. It is for hunting politicians like (in) Grozney and in 1776, when they take your independence away".
Robert K. Dornen, U.S. Congressman. 1995

 

[bobj]

JohnMc had a good point on buying extra bushings, it is cheaper if you buy them in the five packs. I have a lock and load and my shooting partner has a projector the earlier version without the lock and load bushings and they both work great and use standard dies.
Good Luck

 

[chap]

How well does the "removeable measure" powder measure work? Is it all that much more convenient, or would the micrometer adjustment work better?

Can you throw a charge easily to zero in the weight without messing with the primers and so on?

Thanks for the help. The local store still has a Projector on display (for a price that will keep in on display for decades), so I have not seen the recent improvements.

 

[jrchilds]

Mine works fine, het it and the loads are +-.1 grain using 231, most are right on the money. Never had a need to buy another chamber or whatever they call it, adjusting it is only a 5 min job.
Jack

 

[lesthemess]

As I previously posted, I recently purchased a L-N-L AP. I loaded my first 250 rounds today and here is what I think.

Press operates very smoothly and positively. Powder drop is nearly spot on,(titegroup powder) I weighed 25 of the 250 rounds loaded today and they all came out within +/- .1 grain. Hornadys' titanium dies are very nice, I believe they contribute much to the slickness of the operation.

A few problems I encountered were:
When using the Lee FCD in the 5th station, the cartridge ejector hits the die on the up stroke, preventing the shellplate from engaging dies in other stations. Still working on a fix for this, removed completed rounds by hand today.

As earlier posted, the Lee FCD is about an eighth inch too short without a thinner lock ring. I'm working on this fix also.

Left pawl needed slight adjustment to index shell plate far enough for detents to engage. Easily done by following the instruction manual.

These were the only real problems, other than through my stupidity, crushing the case retaining spring. I called Hornady, and they are sending a new one at no charge. They are very helpful on the phone and very nice people to deal with.

All in all, this press is quite a step up from the Lee Turret press I've used for years, and I'm very happy with it so far. Am I sorry I did'nt get a Dillon? Not at all. I have used a friends' 650, and it is a nice press, but I think the L-N-L AP is at least equal to it.(except the auto case feeder is nice!)

Sorry for the long post.


lesthemess