The Original Floating Die CNC Toolheads for Dillon 550 & 650 / 750 Presses
£90.00
£85.00
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This toolhead has lock rings that allow the sizer and seater dies to float. This floating action allows the dies to center themselves exactly over each cartridge for the best possible alignment and more concentric ammunition.
What is concentricity and what does it matter?
Concentricity refers to how straight the bullet is on top of the loaded round. A bullet that is straight will enter the rifling in the barrel that way. Bullets that enter the rifling slightly crooked do not shoot with their highest accuracy.
What's wrong with using the OEM toolheads?
The Dillon presses are great machines made to high quality standards. However, the cast toolheads have limitations. How do we know if the toolhead flange is flat? How do we know that each threaded station in the toolhead is in perfect alignment with the shellplate? How do we know that the stations are equally spaced? All of these areas compound for possible misalignments and lead to ammunition that isn't quite as concentric as it could be. The toolhead is the final link between your dies and your press so it only makes sense that quality is extremely important. With over $100.00 of dies, powder measure, and other accessories mounted in your toolhead, don't you want to know it's the best available!
Tighter Tolerances
These toolheads are made to the highest standards by Whidden Gunworks. All critical machining is done on one operation, yielding tolerances of 0.0002" on all critical dimensions. This means that all die mounting holes are positioned precisely relative to each other and are exactly perpendicular to the flange. The flange is also flatter than possible with a cast toolhead. The 7/8"-14 die mounting threads are machined to Class 2B tolerance to better mate with the threads on your dies. This results in the dies being more accurately centered in each hole and reduces offset when tightening the die locknut.
6061-T6 Aluminium Alloy
The toolheads are machined from 6061-T6 aluminum alloy. The T6 tempering process yields an ultimate tensile strength of at least 42,000 psi. These toolheads are thinner (0.95″)† but have no voids or cavities on the bottom. The result is a toolhead that is about 50% lighter than a cast toolhead, but also much stronger.
† Being thinner, these toolheads require a spacer when placing the die lock nut on the bottom of the toolhead. Instructions for making you own die lock nut spacers is available in Tips File #22 "Die Lock Nut Spacer".
What is the UniqueTek Toolhead Clamp Kit™ and how will it help?
These toolheads come with the UniqueTek Toolhead Clamp kit parts pre-installed. The "clamped" toolheads mount with Grade 8 alloy screws (provided with the toolhead) instead of the original locator pins. With the toolhead clamped, you will achieve reduced cartridge OAL variation. The floating dies will also work more effectively without the added, and unpredictable, movement of the toolhead during each press cycle. You can read more details about the benefits of clamped toolheads on the product page for the UniqueTek Toolhead Clamp Kit
Will this system really load ammo good enough for 1000 yard shooting?
"Absolutely. I have been loading all of my competitive ammo, for practice and matches, on a 650 with a floating die toolhead since 2003. The ammo that I will be taking to the World Palma Team Championships and World Long Range Individual Championships will be loaded on this machine. You have my personal guarantee that this will load the best ammo your dies can produce. If you're not 100% satisfied, send it back for a full refund."
— John Whidden
Prices:*
— 550 Floating Die Toolhead = £79.95
— 650/750 Floating Die Toolhead = £84.95
* Each Floating Die Toolhead comes with 2 special die lock rings and with the UniqueTek Toolhead Clamp Kit™ parts preinstalled.
► If you prefer a Floating Die Toolhead without the Toolhead Clamp Kit™ installed, they are available directly from our good friends at Whidden.
Q: I'm loading only pistol ammunition. Will the floating dies help me?
A: No. Since typical pistol bullets are not pointed and are fired at relatively short range, runout is not a significant factor in accuracy. The full benefit of floating dies will be realized only when loading spire point bullets, where runout can significantly effect accuracy ... especially at long rages. For loading pistol cartridges, and rifle cartridges for short range and "plinking" we recommend using our CNC Machined toolheads without the floating die feature.