The Lee Loadmaster is a MUCH better press than the Lee Pro-1000.
Dillon owners recommend Dillon, which is fine if you are willing to spend a ton of money.
For me, I currently load 4 calibers on my Loadmaster. My total costs, including separate turrets, the die sets, shellplates, and both priming systems for 4 calibers was less than what a new Dillon would have cost me.
Five key points to keep in mind.
First, when I got my Loadmaster, I was new to reloading and didn't even know if I would like this new hobby. Starting at an attractive price point made sense to me.
Second, when you are comparing presses, you must also compare the hidden costs of adding a new caliber to an existing press. Make yourself a spreadsheet that includes all your costs if you want to compare systems.
For example, adding a caliber conversion to the Dillon XL 650 runs about $175 (Dies, Caliber Conversion kit, Toolhead, Powder Die).
Adding a caliber conversion to the Loadmaster costs $61.55 (Deluxe 4 die pistol set $33.75), (Shellplate $13.80), (Extra Turret $14.00).
Since the press kit comes ready to load one caliber, adding three additional calibers would be a cost difference of $525 versus $184.00. That $340 cost difference would be enough to add a second Loadmaster press to the order.
Third, Dillon has a reputation for great customer service and lifetime warranty. However, that warranty/service is not free. Consider that if my Loadmaster was completely ruined, I could still replace it two times over and have less total money in it than the Dillon XL650. Also consider that it would a highly unusual set of circumstances for a press to be completely ruined, when the more likely scenario is needing to replace parts. Here is the
Loadmaster spare parts price list. The press frame costs $55.00 to replace. There are 4 or 5 other parts that are $30.00 or less. Everything else is $1.00-$5.00. I have no philosophical problem with purchasing parts that are so reasonably priced. I don't mind running the risk of having to buy inexpensive parts to save $400 on the press.
Fourth, I don't agree that you need to "constantly tweak" the press. Once I got it setup correctly, thanks to assistance from loadmastervideos.com, it runs quite nicely. For someone who had never reloaded before this press, it has been easy to crank out well over 10,000 rounds since I got it.
Fifth, at the end of the day the rounds produced on my Loadmaster are going to be indistinguishable from the rounds produced on the Dillon. They are both going to be decapped, primed, sized, filled with powder, bullet seated and crimped. They are both going to go bang appropriately.