reloading advice needed

[smoke-wagon]

yesterday at the philadelphia NGA gunshow i picked up a reloading manual and will be reading it thoroughly a few times as well as purchasing a few other manuals to read through. i will probably purchase a lee anniversary kit to get started but what other components will be needed besides dies for each caliber and a good digital scale?

how do you guys save so much money on reloading? i was on midway's site today pricing brass and bullets and it's gonna be about $40.00 per 100 .45acp/.45LC plus powder, primer and time spent on loading which isn't a very big saving on commercial ammo i get from my range. where do you guys but your bullet components?

[JoeWilliams]

You get a big savings shooting cast bullets, and remember, you don't have to buy brass all the time. Brass should last you 5-10 uses, especially if you avoid loading to max, don't expand the case mouth excessively, and don't crimp excessively.

I buy my components locally, mostly from King's Shooter Supply in King of Prussia, and Cabella's.

500 cast bullets for 9mm or .38/357 run about $30
1000 Winchester primers $22
1 lb of powder (enough for roughly 1500 rounds) $18

That leads to a cost of $4.70 for a box of 50 rds. If you want to add in the cost of replacing brass, it comes to $5.55.

Jacketed bullets will run about $55 per 500, which leads to the following costs:

$7.20 per 50, $7.95 if you want to include the cost of brass.

[shooter357]

Go to ranges and talk to people who do a lot of shooting and see if you can pick up some brass. Sometimes you can pick up some brass from police ranges, if they let you in. You can also buy once fired brass from Midway. Buy your powder and primers locally to avoid the excessive taxes and shipping charges. For target shooting I recommend making your own lead bullets. I have found a great mix for lead that makes a fantastic bullet for my .38spc. Always start light with your powder and work it up til you find the magic number. That way you will use less powder and put less stress on the cases. Good luck.

[Farbmeister]

Simple math and economy of scale.

If one lb of powder costs (typically) $25, if you buy 8lbs jugs instead for $130 then you saved $70 right there. (8x25=$200-$130=70)

That $70 just bought you bullets or primers. Brass you shoot till it splits. Generally 5-10 reloads. Although I have some brass that is over 10 reloads. There is no need to shoot max loads (other than bragging about it) and if you take care of your brass, you save what, $.60 to over a dollar each time you reuse it (for rifle brass).

Sometimes you luck out... once my .30-06 splits a neck, I save it and reform it into 8x57 for my mouser. 8mm mouser brass is over a dollar each. If you are throwing away straight wall pistol brass you are throwing money away. That stuff lasts for ever unless YOU abuse it (mainly to much flair if using cast bullets).

Buy bulk, reuse. I don't consider myself a tree hugger.. but I will recycle the hell out of reloads components.

[Brick]

Reloading isn't really about saving money. What you save in ammo costs you'll burn up by shooting more. Likewise if you only shoot 100 rounds per year reloading isn't worth it. But if you shoot 200 rounds a week it's well worthwhile.

Anyhow beside your press, dies and scale, you'll need a primer flipper, deburring tool, inertia bullet puller, powder funnel, case trimmer with pilots and depending on how ocd you are, primer pocket cleaners. If you're doing bottle neck rifle cases, spray lube or lube pad and neck brushes. Eventually you'll want to add a vibrator case tumbler and cleaning media. Don't buy the kind with the "sifter top" they spread dust all over the area they're operated in, stick with a solid top.

Also there are times when a beam type scale is more useful than a digital scale (plus they're no less accurate) but you'll need a powder trickler also.

Have fun! BTW you've solved the "What should we get Dad for B'day/Father's Day/etc." question virtually forever!

[WVBob]

Don't count the time spent reloading as lost time. Think of it as a hobby.

[rwilson452]

Reloading 45acp and 45LC the brass will last for many reloadings. I don't reload 45LC I do reload 45acp. Generally you will loose more brass than you will wear out. Good 45ACP brass is like the energizer bunny. Your brass cost dwindles to a virtual 0 after a few loadings.

yesterday at the philadelphia NGA gunshow i picked up a reloading manual and will be reading it thoroughly a few times as well as purchasing a few other manuals to read through. i will probably purchase a lee anniversary kit to get started but what other components will be needed besides dies for each caliber and a good digital scale?

how do you guys save so much money on reloading? i was on midway's site today pricing brass and bullets and it's gonna be about $40.00 per 100 .45acp/.45LC plus powder, primer and time spent on loading which isn't a very big saving on commercial ammo i get from my range. where do you guys but your bullet components?

[sjl127]

Gives me a chance to listen to savage while reloading.