I also installed the new handle on my Dillon 550B, it includes a roller grip and is curved away from the reloader, in order to get up closer to the machine. I was sitting on my stool loading, and while it takes a slightly increased force at one point in the stroke, it is much more comfortable, I don't have to bend in order to complete the stroke at it's lowest point. Pic:
Here's the completed setup, with just a couple of rounds left on the machine to finish the 100:
Powder & load:
I'd dropped about 5 or 6 test drops to ensure that I kept at that 6.5 grains of RedDot, then checked every 20-25 rounds, and checked the last few off the press. So I was confident that my charges would be quite consistent. Whether that was borne out in the shooting, you can be your own judge!
For me, the shooting was probably just about what I'd expect... not terribly good, but some of that was due to irons, the sunlight was good, but on a couple of rifles, I had to 'shade' the back sight to be able to pick out the front. I probably should have put up the awning, but... I was fine with it as it was. I simple set up the target stand against my 'berm' around my stock tank and paced off 50 paces... it might have actually been a tad beyond 50 yards...
View from behind the firing line:
1st up, the 1873 Uberti, 24-¼" octagon barrel. Rifle is a 1986 production and probably has over 200K rounds downrange... The first string is on the lower left target... but surprising me were the readings on the chronograph:
Shot #1-1828, #2-1835, #3-1801, #4-1775, #5-1794. What the....? I was flabbergasted! These were nice plinking loads, not a single one pushed harder than any of my cowboy loads! In fact I've used this loading as my competition load in CAS for many years... never have they chrono'd in that range. But really, for loads made up on a progressive, and ES of 60 and average of 1801fps and SD of . If they were going that fast... which I doubt. I redid that rifle on another target where the bullet path would have been farther away from the sensors and found the fps were much more in line with the other 4 rifles.
#1-1076, #2-1090, #3-1084, #4-1051, #5-1055. ES of 39, SD of 17.4 and average of 1071. This group is on the upper right target.
Next up, the Uberti 1860 Steel Henry, 24-¼" octagon barrel. Rifle is a 2008 production an probably less than 1K rounds downrange. Shots measured 1073,1109, 1023, 1103, 1116 for an ES of 93 and SD of 38.2 and average of 1084.4.
3rd rifle up is the Rossi 1892 "Short Rifle". 20" octagon barrel from EMF Co. It was purchased new in 2004 and has less than 5K rounds thru it... I have used it cowboy action and Wild Bunch shooting... mostly WB... This one surprised me. It's target is the middle right one. Shots were 1072, 1097, 1098, 1101, 1083. ES of 29, SD of 12.3 and an average of 1090fps!
#4 rifle is the Browning 1885 with 24" ½-Oct/Rnd barrel. I had the hardest time with its sights as the sun really reflected off the back of the rear sight... It also shot quite high, with one shot cutting the edge of the backer up high, & walked the remaining 4 down... with the final shot between that upper and middle left targets... just above and to the right of the 1st two shots from the 1860. I was using a spotting scope so I knew that I needed to keep adjusting downward, but the rear sight was already on the lowest step of the elevator... and I was trying to hold under... Maybe if the sights were so 'shiney', it might have been better. I was actually expecting the BEST performance from this rifle... so I need to figure out something... I have a tang sight on this rifle, but... the rear sight is in the way... and I had too small a aperature for the lighting conditions. Anyway, the 5 shots from it were: 1098, 1086, 1071, 1079, 1054 for an ES of 44, SD of 16.5 and average fps of 1077.
The last rifle was my 1894 Marlin, 17" octagon barrel. I only fired one round from this rifle as it doesn't feed 45Colt thru the action... the carrier's been modified to feed the Cowboy45Special... but that one round clocked in at 1078fps.
So for a total of 21 shots I ended up with an ES of 93, SD of 21.1 and an average of 1080.8. To me, for production type ammo from 5 different rifles these are real world numbers...
Oh... the groups you say?
I now don't know if it was me... or every rifle... but each time, the 1st shot was higher than the remaining 4. Each rifle's 1st shot was from a clean bore. The only one I then tried to 'walk' shots into the black was the 1885... as it was initially nearly off the cardboard. There's one shot @ ~7 o'clock, just off the edge of the right middle target, that was the 1 shot out of the 1894 Marlin. There ARE 5 shots in that line from center on that target from the Rossi 1892... Again, I LIKE that rifle!
Frankly, these weren't the best lookin' bullets I've ever cast... and they were actually sitting in the house on top of my safe for at least 2 years since they were sized and lubed... almost directly under a a/c-heater vent... some of the lube was dried out and flaked off while loading... My shooting didn't help! But, I'd say that with good bullets, well lubed and loaded with consistent charges, there ain't any reason that any good couldn't shoot well with the twist rates these 5 rifles have. Whether they'll ever been MOA rifles... who knows?
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I had to come home that way a couple of weeks ago to avoid the bad roads in SD. I think I would have preferred the snow pack to the wind. I remembered why I seldom go that way.
