Hornady 366 shot shell loader?

[awp_101]

Walked into my preferred pushers place this morning and damn near tripped over a mound of reloading stuff. One of his regulars had passed away unexpectedly and the widow brought it up there to sell on consignment. There are 3 Hornady 366 presses but I think only 1 is set up for 12ga.

It appears they retail in the ~$1300 range but not knowing what, if anything, they might be missing besides the primer auto feed setup I'm tempted to offer ~$300 for the 12ga set up.

Has anyone here used, or known someone who used, the 366 and what did you think? Is it worth pursuing or should I look for something else?

[358156hp]

Walked into my preferred pushers place this morning and damn near tripped over a mound of reloading stuff. One of his regulars had passed away unexpectedly and the widow brought it up there to sell on consignment. There are 3 Hornady 366 presses but I think only 1 is set up for 12ga.

It appears they retail in the ~$1300 range but not knowing what, if anything, they might be missing besides the primer auto feed setup I'm tempted to offer ~$300 for the 12ga set up.

Has anyone here used, or known someone who used, the 366 and what did you think? Is it worth pursuing or should I look for something else?

Ask your guy what they're thinking for price on the 12 ga. and take it from there. Some people hold out for top dollar, and some people just want to be rid of the item because they have no use for it.

[mmc45414]

I do a lotta shotshell reloading, but have never used one. I thought this video was pretty good, and probably shows you what all might be there:


Interesting how sizing/deprime is a separate preliminary station.

As far as value, everything costs a ton now, so it is hard to say. If you were just in the market for a loader I would point you at the MEC 9000, and it looks like market price on those is about $770, so that might be a value data point. The MEC would size with a collet (squeeze) instead of a die (shove in and out), and I think that is better to use, but that might be preference.

Dunno if you have reloaded shotshells, what is the projected use and volume? Shotshell loading can be fun and cool, but just replicating bargain 12ga can require some financial gymnastics to cost justify. But being able to build 12ga shells that vary between 3/4oz and 1-1/2oz just by fiddling with some bushings and wads is a hoot.

[mmc45414]

Some people hold out for top dollar, and some people just want to be rid of the item because they have no use for it.

Boy Howdy is that the case. I inherited thousands of dollars' worth of reloading components and equipment from a friend's widow who wanted it gone and didn't want anything for it because she considered it to be dirty money. I took it all and gave away what I couldn't use to people my dead friend would have wanted to have it.

ETA: Shotshell loading stuff is especially tough to value, because a lotta old dudes have it around when they die, but not so many younger people want it, and it maybe hasn't been used for decades, so who knows what you are getting.

[awp_101]

I agree with the valuation thoughts and when I asked he said she really hadn't given him much in the way of what she was wanting to get out of this stuff but I don't think anyone is holding out for top dollar. There was a half full 4# jug of Unique and 6-7 full or partial full 1# jugs of Herco. He scanned the barcode on the Unique to get his cost and offered it to me for $20 OTD (which I took!). Another guy took all the Herco to the counter and they came up with $60 for what I figured to be 5# of powder, a Birchwood-Casey bluing kit and something else.

Thanks for the reminder on that video. I found it while I was trying to look up info at the shop but didn't watch it right then and forgot about it after I left.

I loaded a bunch of 12ga on a Lee LoadAll when I was a married E3 with kids and trying to support a skeet habit but that's been 20 years ago. Honestly, another LoadAll would probably suit my volume of shooting just fine but it seems so...pedestrian. My mentor back then had a bench with 4 MEC progressives in his loading shed and I was in awe of them. Funnily enough now that I'm getting more serious about defensive shotgunning, I was looking at MEC Sizemasters yesterday morning before I even knew about all that reloading stuff coming into his shop.

[mmc45414]

I have a PW 800 with a hull feeder and I kick out a bunch of 3/4oz #9 or #8 rounds for a buddy and I that shoot skeet (great club at WPAFB).
I also have a Dillon SL900 in 20ga, but my 20ga 686 is currently broken so the press has not been getting any love.

I like the idea of being able to load up some bird shot loads that mimic the recoil of a buckshot load. I also have some shells I use sometimes for three gun (MGM Spinner...) with 1-1/2oz of #6 at about 1150fps in a regular STS hull. That Hornady looks like it would be fast enough to do some volume while still being simple enough to change up with just a couple of bushing swaps.

One thing I have done, in order to try and avoid making people mad over lowball offers, is to just be upfront that you are making a low ball offer, sorta like "I know it is worth a lot more, but would they accept $200?" and go from there. If you are not planning on much volume you can do it with almost anything, and there is always some used MEC stuff around, a friend just snagged a 9000G that was on the counter at the WPAFB R&G on a night I didn't go, he asked me about it and I told him if he didn't want it I woulda bought it for $200 and I do not need it...

And if there is a trap or skeet club nearby, swinging by and peeking at the bulletin board might be another approach.

But the Hornady looks like a good opportunity.

[358156hp]

I agree with the valuation thoughts and when I asked he said she really hadn't given him much in the way of what she was wanting to get out of this stuff but I don't think anyone is holding out for top dollar. There was a half full 4# jug of Unique and 6-7 full or partial full 1# jugs of Herco. He scanned the barcode on the Unique to get his cost and offered it to me for $20 OTD (which I took!). Another guy took all the Herco to the counter and they came up with $60 for what I figured to be 5# of powder, a Birchwood-Casey bluing kit and something else.

Thanks for the reminder on that video. I found it while I was trying to look up info at the shop but didn't watch it right then and forgot about it after I left.

I loaded a bunch of 12ga on a Lee LoadAll when I was a married E3 with kids and trying to support a skeet habit but that's been 20 years ago. Honestly, another LoadAll would probably suit my volume of shooting just fine but it seems so...pedestrian. My mentor back then had a bench with 4 MEC progressives in his loading shed and I was in awe of them. Funnily enough now that I'm getting more serious about defensive shotgunning, I was looking at MEC Sizemasters yesterday morning before I even knew about all that reloading stuff coming into his shop.

I did a fast internet price check, and values for the 366s vary wildly, much due to the age of the machine and the gauge. With what you've described so far, I'd make the offer and see it it's accepted. As an aside, if I'm negotiating with someone who won't give me a number I tend to lowball them a bit to help them clear their minds a bit. If you're way lower than the number they won't tell you, the next thing they say is likely to be their number, or a bit higher number if they figure you'll want to dicker some more.

The Sizemaster is probably a more versatile machine, but they're $400.00 around here. I don't believe the 366 will load 3 inch or longer hulls, but I'd prefer it if you check that out yourself since it's been a long time since I've researched such things and even Hornady updates a few things from time to time.

[awp_101]

They finally started pricing stuff and they’re asking $450/each for the Hornady presses which is more than I’m willing to pay and I’m not interested in one enough to haggle.

They’re asking $100 for the 600 Jr so I’ll probably grab that if it’s complete and still available this weekend.

[Hambo]

They finally started pricing stuff and they’re asking $450/each for the Hornady presses which is more than I’m willing to pay and I’m not interested in one enough to haggle.

They’re asking $100 for the 600 Jr so I’ll probably grab that if it’s complete and still available this weekend.

I bought 3 of 4 MECs used, and parts are pretty cheap if you need them.

[mmc45414]

I bought 3 of 4 MECs used, and parts are pretty cheap if you need them.

And very readily available.