Anyone run a Hornady LNL AP with the Bullet Feeder?

[Yoder]

Does anyone have the bullet feeder on their Hornady LNL progressive? I have some gift cards and I was thinking about picking one up for pistol bullets. I was wondering how reliable they are and also if coated lead bullets will work in it.

[Twoboxer]

Sorry, Yoder, on my LnL AP I use the Mr. Bullet Feeder by Double Alpha for 9mm and 45ACP. That feeder is extremely reliable, which is probably one reason why Dillon actually sells it on their web site along with Dillon presses.

[MT1]

I do not have the automated EZ Feed Bullet Feeder but I did get the feed tubes that can be used with the feed dies. I do not need the speed that the automated system offers, not to mention the $275 cost of the upgrade. The EZ Feed requires purchase of the bullet feed dies which are about $30 each. For an additional $25 you can get a three pack of feed tubes. These are based on diameter of the bullet and look very much like a larger version of your primer feed tubes. Each feed tube hold 30 to 40 bullets. The feed dies do take some patience in setting up as you have to have the right combination of height and tension to release the bullets reliably (same goes if using the EZ Feed). In the case of 125 gr 9mm I can 37 bullets per tube so at 3 tubes that's 111 loads before I have to stop and refill tubes. At this point I'm already stopping to refill primers, blow off minor amounts of loose powder, tighten shell plate, etc... so a tube refill really isn't inconvenient. If all is going well you can feed loose bullets into the tube by hand every 10 or so rounds.

There are other feeder options out there such as the Mr Bulletfeeder and the SoCal Bully Adaptor. Both of these are based on multiple tubes that rotate into place. I like the Bully Adaptor because it also comes in rifle versions.

[Yoder]

I bought the RCBS bullet feeder die along with their feed tubes a couple months ago. The one die does 9mm-45 ACP and all you have to do is buy different feed tubes. The dies is $28 and the feed tubes are about $5 a piece. It works pretty well. You just have to be careful putting in a new full tube or it can dump a bunch of bullets through it. The only problem with the feed tubes is it takes longer to load than without them. I timed myself and if you include the time to load up all the tubes it took several minutes longer to load 100 rounds. I'm trying to save time and wear and tear on my hands.

[DucatiRon]

I have a L-N-L as a back up to my 1050 Dillon. The case feeder is way more important. Being that I won't run a press without a powder cop or a final crimp die I have no room for a bullet feeder. I can average 500 rounds per hr on my lnl. I get about 600 per hr on the 1050 with a bullet feeder. Its not really worth the upgrade to me.

[ArthurRay]

I have one and I think its great.

[JohnnyRedVet]

I have the LNL bullet feeder and hopper which I really like. Setting the hopper feed was pretty straight forward but setting the die feed took more effort. I had to modify the feed die with a little fine grinding so it would work with plated bullets. When I called Hornady I was told that it was not designed to work with plated bullets and that if I screwed it up with my grinding on it, I would void the warrenty. I was also told that I could only buy a new die since Hornady would not sell me the part that I was planning to grind on. Luckily it works really well. I'm very content with all the LNL eguipment. I have to admit that my dad's Dillon stuff seemed to be a smidge better regarding tuning everything - he still dealt with rare breakage and adjustments too. Being able to slap dies in and out in literally seconds makes my 2 LNL Progressive presses keepers for me.