Reloading Class/Thread

[DukeConnor]

rifle brass grows, pistol brass shrinks. you will need a trimmer for the 7.62. lots of them out there. i tried quite a few them including a giraud power trimmer.
https://www.giraudtool.com/giraud-power-trimmer.html

expensive but an amazing machine.

for some reason i am sitying here trimming 30-06 brass for the bew with a wilson case trimmer.
https://lewilson.com/case-prep-tools/

sometimes i just like to slow things down.

[JustinR]

Just some other tips....

Pay attention to what you are doing. Don't watch TV, listen to the radio, have a phone conversation, etc. while reloading

I agree with this when you're in the actual loading phase. But when depriming, case prep, and priming that's the perfect time to sit on the couch and watch TV or a movie.

Priming 500 pcs of brass isn't exactly Friday night excitement, but it's a perfect thing to do when watching whatever you watch an hour a night.

People say finding time to reload is hard, but think of everything you do where you could easily do a mindless task like priming. Prime a couple hundred pieces of brass watching TV, then when you have an hour you can dedicate load 20-90 rounds.

I can do about 100/hr with pistol rounds on a single stage press by having everything preprimed, when loading rifle I may only load 20-30/hr depending on what it's for. Things slow down when you're weighing every powder charge instead of just throwing powder and checking every 20 rounds or so

[Walleye Hunter]

Funny thing is the thought of a squib has already come to mind and having never experienced one I hope I can recognize it before pulling the trigger again.

Justin, this is a progressive machine, I think it deprimes and resizes the throat of the shell in one move, then goes on to prime, powder and seat and crimp the projectile.

[JustinR]

Funny thing is the thought of a squib has already come to mind and having never experienced one I hope I can recognize it before pulling the trigger again.

Justin, this is a progressive machine, I think it deprimes and resizes the throat of the shell in one move, then goes on to prime, powder and seat and crimp the projectile.

Well look at mister fancy pants over here

I still say until you're dropping powder, a TV is fine. Once you're dropping powder, that's you time.

And most importantly, have fun!

[Walleye Hunter]

Well look at mister fancy pants over here

I still say until you're dropping powder, a TV is fine. Once you're dropping powder, that's you time.

And most importantly, have fun!

When ya gotta go ya gotta go big.

[GardenGnome414]

Justin and Duke both make great points.

Reloading for rifle is a bit different.. case trimming, etc.

For 9mm you will probably lose the brass before it's worn out. However, still a good idea to check it for cracks and dents.

What powder are you planning to use for 9mm? I use a few different kinds. VihtaVouri , Win 231 and Power Pistol.
- VihtaVouri N350 (I think) expensive but pretty accurate. Meters pretty well.
- Win 231 - works for both 9mm and 38. (one of the most accurate 38 spl powders there is) It's pretty cheap and works great. Pretty available all over, but check your local suppliers. You don't use much b/c it's fast burning so the risk is if you double charge the case, the case doesn't overflow, giving you a clue you just double charged.
- Power Pistol: if you ever shoot at low light, you have to try it. Huge fireball out of the muzzle. I wouldn't use it for self defense but at sundown... it's cool to see.

There are many more powders out there you just need to find one that works for your reloader, your gun and you can get your hands on.

This is where I think a book comes in handy.. just because there is a recipe for something doesn't mean it's good. The Lee reloading manual and I have a Lyman pamphlet (30 page soft cover booklet for 38 and 357 ) that give recommendations on good performing powders and recipes. That doesn't mean they are always right but it might give you a place to start before having to buy 10 different powders before finding the "perfect" one.

[DukeConnor]

the 550 isn't really a progressive. you have to manually index the shell plate in order to rotste the cases to the next stage. guess it is a manual progressive.

my 650 and sdb are true progressives. a pull on the handle rotates the shell plate.

this gives the 550 the advantage of using it like a single stage or a manually indexed progressive.

anyway. good luck with your indevor.

[fritz1919]

Walleye,

I'm big on the watching and listening method of learning. Anyone at your club that reloads and would let you come over for an evening or more? Don't pick a know it all loud mouth to ask. 45 years ago I spent an evening with an gentleman 40 years my senior. He reloaded in a small corner of his basement with a minimum of equipment. At the end of the night I loaded up a box of 30/30. Two weeks ago I did a 3 day marathon and loaded up 600 rounds of .357, .45, and 5.56. Single stage. Now I just need a warmer day.

There are a lot of fancy gadgets out there that look useful that will end up sitting up on your shelf. I recommend you don't buy anything else till you know it is right for the way YOU will proceed.

For instance, I wet tumble in a $18 harbor freight rock tumbler. I lay them on a towel till they dry, not my kitchen oven - there must be some awful anxious shooters out there!!??

Plan to make good ammo, not pretty colored ammo with highly shined cases. Unless I missed it, I thank everyone for not uttering the words LEMI SHINE!!

I could go on but you get the point.

Endeavor to understand the the process, not just know the process.

I hope I helped a little bit.

Good luck.

fritz

[wanneroo]

I love Lemishine!

I find shiny cases have been very useful finding potential flaws in cases, especially with 7.62 NATO that has been fired in machine guns. I've spotted a fair number of cases with a potential case separation issue thanks to shiny clean cases. I've also been able to spot splits in case necks and mouths as well in some 300 Blackout and pistol brass of various calibers.

[Delkal]

I don't think a brass tumbler is required when starting out. In fact that is the last accessory I would get. I didn't have one for years when I started and at the end most of my brass was looking ugly, brown and stained but it all shot just fine. You just don't want any grit or sand on the exterior. For rifle cases or indoor pistol cases this is not usually a problem. The interior is clean. Just throw them on an old towel and give them a quick wipe down (and don't care about any stains.......Just grit.) Picking old brass out of dried mud is another story........

I never trim straight walled pistol cases. Just shoot them till the neck splits and toss the broken ones out. But this is rare and only occasionally happens on cases like .38s and 357. Maybe once in a few thousand for .45 and never (for me) on 9mm. YMMV.

You WILL need to trim rifle cases. Usually after the first shot then every 3-4 reloads after that. You will need a good set of dial calipers (get them way before any case cleaner!). I prefer the Lee system where you get a cutter and a shellholder Then use a separate pilot sized for each case. It is very consistent and if you chuck the pilot in a drill press (1/2 inch) you can trim a case almost as fast as you can load them on the shellholder. The pilots are cheap and if you load common cases this is the way to go. I also have a Lyman manual trimmer for uncommon cases. But it is 10X the work and not as consistent.