Dillon AT500 Starter Kit Giveaway!

by Jeff Quinn

photography by Jeff Quinn

August 28th, 2002

Within the past few months, Gunblast has given away to its members firearms, binoculars, and riflescopes. Our latest giveaway on Gunblast.com is a great reloading package from Dillon Precision. It is their AT500 Turret Press Starter Kit. This kit comes complete with everything needed to load top quality ammunition except for dies and components.

The AT500 uses standard 7/8x14 dies, so that it will accept dies from  Hornady, RCBS, Lee, Lyman, etc., in addition to the fine quality Dillon dies.

The AT500 press is set up as a turret system, which is one of the best for a beginning reloader. The AT500 is also perfect for the reloader who wants to move up from a single stage press, but is not yet ready for a fully progressive press, such as Dillon’s excellent model 550B Progressive. The AT500 can be used as a single stage press, or a four station turret press. The best feature of the AT500 is that it can be converted to a 550B press with the addition of optional equipment, either a piece at a time as the reloader wishes, or all at once. When the AT500 is converted, the reloader ends up with a full-blown 550B, not some "piggyback" afterthought system as has been sold by others in the past. The AT500 uses the same basic frame and components as the 550B, so that when converted, it becomes a real 550B progressive press.

As shipped, the AT500 is a versatile, strong, durable reloading machine, capable of turning out perfect ammunition very quickly, at a rate close to progressive speed. The AT500 can also be used to load cartridges one at a time, just like any single stage press.

The heart of the AT500 system is Dillon’s removable tool head. With extra tool heads, the dies can be adjusted once and then left alone, replacing the tool head with another when changing calibers.

Speaking of changing calibers, the AT500 comes ready to load over 40 different cartridges as shipped from Dillon. All that is needed are dies and components. Some of the various cartridges that can be loaded on the AT500 press right out of the box are listed in the chart below.

Inexpensive additional shell plates can be obtained to accommodate nearly any cartridge you'd ever want to reload. The AT 500 accommodates the following calibers "out-of-the-box":

In addition to the AT500 press, the Starter Kit that we are giving away includes Dillon’s excellent Eliminator powder scale. Every reloader should own a good quality scale with which to check powder charges, and the Eliminator is a fine example of what a simple balance beam scale should be. 

Besides the press and the scale, the kit includes a powder drop die with various expanders and tubes, a powder funnel, a spent primer catcher, cartridge locator buttons, safety glasses, Allen wrenches and case lube.

The kit also includes Dillon’s primer flip tray, which is the best that can be had at any price, and far superior to the cheap plastic ones that are sold by others. Also included is Dillon’s steel dial caliper with fitted case, an instructional video, reloading data guides from Accurate Arms, Alliant Powder, and Hodgdon, along with AT500 and RL550B instruction manuals.

This AT500 Starter Kit is a fine, high quality reloading setup, suitable for a beginner or advanced reloader. It is a reloading machine that can grow with the owner, and not be set aside for better equipment later. It is a heavy duty press, much superior to lightweight presses available on the market. We are proud to be offering this as our latest giveaway on Gunblast.com.

At Gunblast, we use Dillon products. They are built to last, and are backed by Dillon’s lifetime "No B.S." warranty.

For more information on the AT500 and Dillon’s other fine products online, check out Dillon’s website at:  

 www.dillonprecision.com

Jeff Quinn

Got something to say about this article? Want to agree (or disagree) with it? Click the following link to go to the GUNBlast Feedback Page.

All content © 2002 GunBlast.com. All rights reserved.

Click pictures for a larger version.

Dillon's AT500 Starter Kit is GunBlast.com's latest member giveaway.

Complete AT500 Starter Kit includes everything a beginning or advanced reloader needs, except dies and components. Included are the excellent AT500 turret press, Dillon's Eliminator powder scale, powder drop die with various expanders and tubes, a powder funnel, a spent primer catcher, cartridge locator buttons, safety glasses, Allen wrenches, case lube, Dillon Primer Flip Tray, Dillon steel dial caliper with fitted case, instructional video, loading guides and manuals. All are factory new and fully warranted.

The heart of the Dillon Starter Kit is of course the AT500 Turret Press. Built on Dillon's 550B frame, the AT500 is fully upgradeable to the excellent 550B Progressive press. Dillon's products are backed by their exclusive Lifetime "No B.S." warranty. The quality of Dillon's reloading machines is unmatched, and Dillon's customer service is nothing short of legendary. When they offer a Lifetime "No B.S." warranty, they mean it!

The manually-indexing turret shell plate of the Dillon AT500 allows the press to be used either as a turret press or a single-stage press. Author prefers this system, as you can crank out a high volume of pistol ammo or hand-weigh each powder charge for full-power hunting or target loads.

Not just a precision machine, the 550B frame used for the AT500 is a very robust unit, and the Ram measures a full 1.5 inches in diameter.

Author loves the removable tool head system used by Dillon. Dies can be fully set and adjusted, and tool heads changed as needed for quick caliber switches.

Jeff keeps extra tool heads with dies installed for all his favorite calibers to use in his Dillon presses. This is a real time-saver. Please note that Jeff's extra tool heads are not included in the giveaway!

The Dillon AT500 Starter Kit includes Dillon's powder drop expander system, allowing cases to be charged with powder during case expansion. This eliminates a step in the reloading process, saving time and effort.

Dillon's excellent Eliminator balance-beam powder scale is included in the AT500 Starter Kit.

No good reloading outfit is complete without a good caliper, and Dillon's high-quality steel dial caliper is included in the AT500 Starter Kit.

The Dillon AT500 Starter Kit also includes case lube, safety glasses, and Dillon's primer flip tray, which the author considers the best available at any price.

Also included with the Dillon AT500 Starter Kit are an instructional video, reloading data guides from Accurate Arms, Alliant Powder, and Hodgdon, and instruction manuals for both the AT500 and the RL550B.

Dillon's AT500 Starter Kit is truly a complete, quality reloading outfit, and at $269.95 it represents an excellent value for the beginning, intermediate or advanced reloader.