Hornady Powder Measure

I was looking at the Hornady powder measure on their AP press and was wondering if it could be adapted to a Dillon 550.
The drum type powder measure could be an improvement over the Dillon slide bar powder measure.

I would agree with the standard Dillon bar. If you go for the micrometer powder bar (from uniquetek) polish the innards of the funnel and earth the whole thing you can get +/- 0.04g with WST and N310 and generally it's +/- 0.02g - which is as accurate as my scale goes.  I'm not saying it's quite plug'n'play to get there - but when I looked at it it looked easier than adapting the drum mount to fit.
YMMV.

Yes

Hornady Case Activated Powder Measure (Click Here) fits in standard 7/8-14 die threads and works in my XL650. Their micrometer adjuster seems to be very repeatable, though I haven't exhaustively tested it.

I did need to polish and clean the drum and housing. After a couple of thousand rounds it started sticking in the up position and not dropping a charge... Grrr. Cleaning definitely solved the problem, but I've only loaded a few hundred rounds since then so I don't yet know if polishing helped. It does move smoother.

I use them pretty exclusively now.  Much more consistent operation.  I also use RCBS with the “case activation” system.  They just work better.

Oh no, I might need to change my opinion. There's no way that Ashley and I can agree on something 

I wouldn't bother with the Hornady micrometer stem. Instead just buy several of the regular stems since they have a quick disconnect. Also I spray the drum with a Teflon spray, Hornady one shot would also work well. I love my LNL presses.

Contrary to Steve and Ashley, I wasn't able to adapt Hornady PM with case activation to any of my Dillons (650, 750, RL1050, Super1050).  It conflicts with Mr. Bulletfeeder droppers.  It is attractive though as it can be used in other positions then Dillon's PM (i.e. station 3 on 650/750). In general I'm finding that drum type PMs are not as accurate as volumetric type powder bars (i.e. Dillon or Star).  I tested two Mark 7 powder measures in addition to Hornady.  I would not trust either dropping charges while reloading calibers with very low charges - i.e. 32 S&W Long.  Even introduction of vibration didn't help.  I absolutely in agreement with straybrit that Dillon's PMs should be prepared and powder bars modified.  I sand powder bars and bar housings to eliminate "leakage" of fine grain powders.  I replace Dillon's adjuster bolts with my own or UniqueTek's micrometers.  I drill and tap powder bars, so I can install set screw and lock insert once powder charge is set.  (side note - I check charges periodically as I load, especially if I load many rounds - powder charges depend among other things on the amount of powder in the hopper!).  I do polish metal parts of the PM.  Finally, I do not use Dillon's powder funnels because inner surface of the funnels is rugged as corrugated pipe. 

All of the above is IMO.

AP

zanemoseley wrote:I wouldn't bother with the Hornady micrometer stem. Instead just buy several of the regular stems since they have a quick disconnect.

I would second this. I do have the micrometer stem and several of the regular stems. The only useful thing I find the micrometer stem for is when I am dialing powder charge in load development. Once the load is a known entity the normal stems are perfect.

I second AP re problems utilizing them on a Dillon 650. Maybe I did not spend enough time tuning the Hornady PM, but I tried one with the specific objective of consistently dropping the very small powder charges needed for 32ACP. I found that the effort needed to actuate the drum simply crushed the fragile 32ACP brass cases.

I gave up and sold the PM on to someone eminently more patient and better schooled in engineering than I. She lives in San Diego.

Aside on the use for a 32acp(or s&wl), that particular cartridge is a very fine niche. Some can/have shot it well, but many have struggled with it. I personally have avoided it, and my opinion of the Hornady powder measure reflects this. For 9mm, 38spl, and 45acp charges, I have found the Hornady measure to be up to the task. I am certain other options may work perfectly well in some cases or potentially even better, but at the end of the day, if you have the best possible ammunition that can be made, the shooter still needs to be up to the task of exploiting the capabilities of the ammo in the available conditions.

JMHO, but accuracy of a powder measure likely involves a relationship of the cavity diameter to its depth...'aspect ratio'. A drum style has a fixed diameter, so light charges result in a shallow cavity. A slide type has a fixed depth, and a varying 'diameter', which seems to be a better option until you get it closed to the point it starts choking the flow.

Between a rock and a hard place ...

Enter, a century or more ago, the Lyman with 3 separate slide inserts, stacked on one another. Gives you the ability to make a tiny cavity of a decent depth. No micrometer adjust, just slide and lock with a thumb screw. I can only imagine how tedious it would be to set ... probably start having nightmares if I think about it too much.

I've used an RCBS Little Dandy for pistol cartridges for decades. Bought some of the smaller drums and drilled them to depth for specific charges ...well, mostly what seemed useful increments between standards.

Not my choice for a progressive, but it's really fast on a block full of primed cases. Loaded a few thousand 45's that way before I got the LNL. Buckets of 9mm, 32HR, 357, and 44's before my first real Bullseye pustol showed up.

I've been tempted to make a micro adjust rotor for it. Maybe someday just for fun.

What powder are you using that you're having issues with the Dillon? Mine with N310 and WST are suprebly precise (typically +/- 0.02gr). Like others, I polish the inside of mine and use PhotoEscape powder funnel expanders, plus dramworx Pyrex hoppers with baffle (no vibration, no ground strap, no aftermarket bars or adjusters just small Dillon powder bar and a knob on the adjustment screw for convenience). I also keep the hopper over 70% filled.

Andrew, thanks for mentioning Dramworx, I had forgotten about them. Just ordered a couple.

I have two they work great. Super easy to set up once you get the hang of it. I do not use the case expander