Reloading at Home

[88_Eddie]

depends on what kind of kit you want and what you want to reload. match grade projectiles are gonna cost more than regular projectiles, same goes for the brass. plus, it can depend on what kind of gun you have and what it likes to shoot.

 

[4.0B2]

well for equipment... its not as much as people think usually. I don't have any fancy automated stuff. all of my equipment is basic hand stuff. I use and prefer the hand press and the analog scale.

but as far as cost goes, my dad has had some of it since the 80's or so. therefore, the price doesn't affect me at all.

i know you can buy entire sets of reloading stuff for like 200-400
http://www.sportsmanswarehouse.com/sportsmans/Reloading-Kits/category/cat100150
so if you have to buy it... yeah, it'll change your price per round... but our equipment has more than paid for itself already.

plus if you watch midwayusa and other online places... you can find the stuff discounted at times.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

If you ask around you can usually find someone wanting to upgrade too.

Dad got his .45LC set pretty cheap from a friend that went to a progressive setup, he even came over and helped him get started. It is one at a time, but still better than shelling out the duckets for boxed ammo for the quanities he shoots.

 

[88_Eddie]

i paid $100 for my lee reloading kit from cheaper than dirt. comes with everything that you need except for dies (another $30-40). so minus supplies, $140 +/-......lee makes another kit that's cheaper IIRC

 

[mentalbreakdown00]

I reload my shot gun rounds with winchester powder/ primers, and whatever wads/ shot are on sale
.I do .357/ .38's with 125 gr bullets with 9.8 grains of Power Pistol and CCI primers.

 

[Mr. Tarkanian]

I mainly shoot an M1 garand, and with most of the surplus ammo dried up, I got into reloading because I HAD to. I can load up near-match quality ammo for around .40 cents per round. That is using 175 gr. military pulled sniper projectiles, or Sierra match kings with around 44 gr. of H4895 and a CCI or Win primer. If I just use pulled standard ball bullets, the cost drops even more. I have enough .30 caliber and handgun casings to last me for YEARS. I shoot CMP vintage rifle class, and after 2 shooting seasons, my equipment will have paid for itself.

Fixing to get set up for loading .40 S&W and .38 special. This fall I'm going to start casting my own bullets. I get free lead from some of the shops I work around (old wheel weights and battery cable ends). So, considering the free bullets, I'll be able to load cheap handgun ammo for around .06 cents a shot. Comparing that to the .30 cents or so I'd be giving for it at wal-mart, thats not bad at all. Not only are these loads much cheaper than store-fodder, but they can be fine-tuned to outshoot ANY store bought ammo. When I get fully set up to cast my own bullets, I REALLY want to buy a 45-70

Reloading is a great skill to learn. Anybody that is SERIOUS about marksmanship needs to get involved in it.

 

[hoosier1104]

last time i went and shot my 45, I ended up shooting 70 rounds by myself in one evening.

That is all? I say that because anytime I go to the range I always shoot a min of 100 rounds. Last time I went to the range I shot 100 rnds of 9mm and .40. So that is 200 rnds total for my guns. I shot my friends .22LR AR, .223 AR (same gun as the .22LR), P22, Glock 17 9mm, HKS and 12 gauge. That is how we get down here.

Then the next day I cleaned both of them.

 

[backwoods]

I'm yet to find a reliable progressive press. IMHO, don't spend the money.

As far as finding equipment, just ask around. You'll find someone with an old press around and cups to get you started.

Only other thing you need is a bullet puller. Cause when your tired, your gonna screw up a few rounds!

Best upgrade I did was a brass trimmer. Correctly sizing brass to your breech really cuts down on misfeeds.

 

[4.0B2]

what I've learned from my most recent reloading...

1. I really love nickel casings for the 45acp
2. Winchester brass cleans up better than all other 45 brass I have..
3. Large and Small primers both being offered in 45, IS STUPID.
4. I can reload Hornady XTP's for about 1/3 the price of Cheap FMJ ammo.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

For those talking of getting wheel weights and casting your own bullets....

Wheel weights are NOT pure lead. Casting bullets is a whole nother can of worms. To do it right you really need more than a melting pot, bullet mold and a bucket of wheel weights. You need a melting pot, some pure lead, some wheel weights, bullet molds and ingot molds, fluxing compound, mold lube, a hardness tester, and a bit of time to learn to do it right. Plus you'll need gas checks for the base of the bullet or else if you fire it out of say a high powered rifle, it'll melt the lead bullet as it goes down the barrel. It can happen in pistols too. The bullets also need to be treated with a lube prior to loading and being shot. And it is usually recommended to size the bullets as well since they can become slightly deformed in the manufacturing process.

For those looking to get into handloading, I'd say get a GOOD single stage press. IMHO, I like the looks of the RCBS Rock Chucker. But Hornady and Lee make decent single stage presses. Get a Lee priming tool. A good scale. A case trimmer (Lyman makes an affordable setup). Lee makes decent die sets (go with the deluxe rifle), RCBS makes quality rifle dies as well. Hornady makes great pistol dies with the titanium nitride sizing die. And get a reloading book!

 

[4.0B2]

Yes. Don't forget the reloading book. I have a general data book and I have data books on all the calibers I reload.

 

[clifford97]

Who does it? I did some quick figuring on some hand loads and realized how much money you can save! I've always reloaded 30-30, 30-06, 300 win and weatherby... it's father/son time for my dad and I.

here's the figures I came up with, all prices from SportsmanWarehouse.com and will be for 30-06 loads;

Hornady A-Max 168 grains: $30 per 100 bullets (which is $.30 each)
IMR 4064 Powder: $24 per pound (7000 grains in a pound, max load is 58 grains a load, gives you 118 rounds, which is $.20 of powder per round)
Large Rifle Primers: $28 per 1000 (which is $.028 each)
30-06 Brass: $25 per 50 (which is $.02 each, not that you have to buy these each time...)

total: $.30+$.20+$.028+$.02 = $.548 cents each plus a little time (which is great time for me since I spend it with my father)

Compare that to preloaded rounds:
Hornady A-Max 168 grain 30-06: $33 per 20 rounds (which divides out to $1.65 a round)

so handloads $.548 a round compared to preloaded $1.65 a round....
think about it... that's 3:1

next comes pricing out the 45 acp's

unless there is a typo, $25.00 for 50 casings = out to $.50 a piece. bringing your total to around $1.02 a round, still cheaper but not 3:1. didn't mean to be an ass, i just saw it and it didnt make "cents"

 

[4.0B2]

unless there is a typo, $25.00 for 50 casings = out to $.50 a piece. bringing your total to around $1.02 a round, still cheaper but not 3:1. didn't mean to be an ass, i just saw it and it didnt make "cents"

yeah, wrong math.... ah well. I have not bought 30-06 brass by itself in a long time. Usually I have friends that just donate me brass.

 

[4.0B2]

CHECK MY MATH... but here's the 45acp one. lol


alright, same thing but with the 45acp.
I load Hornady XTP 200 grain's for this one.

Bullets: $25/100; $.25 a piece
Powder: Unique Powder, $18/pound. 7000 grains in a pound, using 5 grains per load, that's 1400 rounds per pound of powder, so that's $.0129 per round.
Primers: $36/1000; $.036 a piece

so a realistic figure for me is .25+.0129+.036= $.2989/round for XTP ammo. I'm not adding in hulls b/c I was gave a bunch plus every now and then I get FMJ ammo and just shoot them.

Once fired brass in bulk is usually around $75 per 1000... so that's only adding $.075 per round to make it $.3739/round.

A box of 25 Hornady preloaded XTP's is $22 for 25 rounds which is $.88/round.

 

[clifford97]

yep your math is good on that one. roughly 30cents per round. BUT if you really want to get technical on the total cost of self loading, start factoring in the equipment needed to do so, scale, press etc and see how much of each load or an average of what you usually produce (mixed calibers) take how much you save per case of store bought. add the savings up untill you break even on the equipment and then you can start seeing the TOTAL savings made by self reloading.. if its too much you can send me the info and i'll be happy to find out how much you need to do before you actually start saving money. don't get me wrong i think its a great idea, and a good skill to have esp in a SHTF situation.