10 Advices for the Novice Handloader
I have thought of a few things I think are useful for handloaders to know or to consider which seem to be almost universal, so I put together an arbitrary list that I think is illuminating. I call them my Ten Advices for the Novice Handloader.
So much is a matter of personal taste and circumstance, though. So, all advice carries this caveat, "your mileage may vary".
For comparison purposes, here is the focus of my experience. I load for handguns (44 Mag, 45 ACP, 45 Colt, 454 Casull, 9mm, 357 Mag, 480 Ruger) a couple hundred per sitting and go through 100 to 400 centerfire rounds per month. I don't cast....yet.
When I bought my first gun (.357 Magnum Dan Wesson revolver), I bought, at the same time, a reloading setup because I knew I could not afford to shoot if I did not reload my own ammo. It cost me about 1/4 of factory ammo per round and paid for itself pretty quickly. I did not use a loading bench at all. I just mounted my press on a 2 x 6 plank long enough to wedge into the drawer of an end table.
Now, here are my Ten Advices.
Advice #1 Use Reliable Reference Sources Wisely - Books, Videos, Web Sites, etc.
Study up in loading manuals until you understand the process well, before spending a lot of money on equipment.
I found "The ABC's of Reloading" to be a very good reference (though earlier editions, from before 2000 seem to be getting better reviews than later ones). Short on data, yes, but full of knowledge and understanding of the process. Check out copies in your local library. "ABS's" has the advantage of being compilations of many different authors with different writing styles.
Richard Lee's book "Modern Reloading" has a lot of food for thought, and does discuss the reasoning behind his opinions (unlike many manuals, and internet postings). Whether right or wrong, the issues merit thought, which that book initiates. It is not a simple book, though and you will find it provocative reading for many years.
Lyman's manual seems to be the one most recommended in the forums I haunt.
Other than those, every powder manufacturer, bullet manufacturer and equipment maker has a web site (many of which have load data) and many of those companies publish load manuals, the early chapters of which all have "how-to" chapters.
Read as many manuals as you can, for the discussion of the how-to steps. What one manual covers thinly, another will cover well. As far as load data in older manuals, the powder manufacturers and bullet manufacturers may have better information and their web sites are probably more up to date. But pay attention to what the ammunition was test-fired from. (regular firearm vs a sealed-breech pressure test barrel, for example)
The reason you want more than one or two is that you want to read differing authors/editors writing styles and find ones that "speak" to you. You also get better coverage of the subject; one author or editor may cover parts of the subject more thoroughly than the others.
Only after you know the steps can you look at the contents of a reloading kit and know what parts you will use and what parts the kits lack.
The public library should have manuals you can read, then decide which ones you want to buy.
There are instructional videos now that did not exist in the '70s when I started.
Advice #2 To kit or not to kit?
Almost every manufacturer of loading equipment makes good stuff; if they didn't, they would lose reputation fast and disappear from the marketplace. Better equipment costs more generally. Cast aluminum is lighter and less expensive. Cast iron is more abrasion resistant and lasts practically forever. Lee makes good equipment, but is generally considered the "economy" equipment maker, though some of their stuff is considered preferable to more expensive makes. Lee is innovative far beyond its "economy" image. Just think about what you buy.
Almost every manufacturer (and most major retailer) assembles a kit that contains everything you need to do reloading (except dies and the consumables). A decent way to get started without too much prior experience. Eventually most reloaders wind up replacing most of the components of the kit as their personal taste develops (negating the savings you though the kit gave you), but you will have gotten started, at least.
The though processes you give to assembling your own kit increases your knowledge about reloading. You may get started a couple weeks later than if you started with a kit, but you will be far ahead in knowledge.
Advice #3 While learning, don't get fancy.
While you can learn on a progressive press it is easier to learn on a single stage press or a turret press than on a progressive. Too many things happening at the same time are hard to keep track of. Mistakes DO happen and you want to watch for them ONE AT A TIME until handloading becomes second nature to you.
Learning on a progressive can be done successfully, but it is easier to teach an infant to walk in shoes than on roller skates.
On the Turret vs Single stage the decision is simpler. You can do everything on a Turret EXACTLY the same way as you do on a single stage (just leave the turret stationary). That is, a Turret IS a single stage if you don't rotate the head.
Advice #4 Find a mentor. There is nothing like a tutor, or better yet, a mentor.
There is no substitute for someone watching you load a few cartridges and critiquing your technigue BEFORE you develop bad habits or make a dangerous mistake. (A mistake that might not have consequences right away, but maybe only after you have escaped trouble a hundred times until one day you get bit, for instance having case lube on your fingers when you handle primers 99 times, no problem because primers are coated with a sealant, but the hundredth primer may not be perfectly sealed and now winds up "dead")
The guy who sold me my press took me into the back of his shop gave me 6 .357 rounds. He showed me how to load three rounds, explaining each step as I watched, then watched over my shoulder as I loaded my first 3 as I explained each step back to him and to make sure I did not double charge, load a powderless cartridge or set off a primer in the press.
A longer mentoring period might have changed my reloading style, but I learned a lot in those first 6 rounds. Then I educated myself after that. By reading ABC's of Reloading and a few other loading manuals, going slow and being careful. There was no internet or videos then and I developed some bad habits (cured, since).
After you have been mentored, mentor someone else. Not necessarily in loading or the shooting sports, but in SOMETHING in which you are enthusiastic and qualified. Just give back to the community.
Advice #5 Design your loading space for safety, efficiency, cleanliness
When I started reloading, I did not use a loading bench at all. I just mounted the press on a 2" x 6" plank long enough to wedge into the drawer of an end table My loading gear all fit in a footlocker and spread out on the coffeetable and the lid of the footlocker. Good leverage meant the table did not lift or rock. I still use the same plank, but now it is mounted in a Black & Decker folding workbench. A loading bench "bolted to the center of the earth" (as some describe thier setups) would be more stable, but I do not feel deprived without it.
You will probably spill powder or drop a primer eventually, so consider what you have for a floor covering when you pick your reloading room/workspace. I would not try to vacuum up spilt gunpowder unless using a Rainbow vacuum which uses water as the filter medium.
A dropcloth will be much appreciated. Use cloth, not plastic. Less static, quieter and dropped primers don't roll around as much.
Advice #6 Keep Current on loading tecnology
Always use a CURRENT loading manual. Powder chemistry has changed over the years. They make some powders differently than they used to and even some powder names may have changed. However, if you are using 10 year old powder, you may want to check a 10 year old manual for the recipe. Then double check with a modern manual and then triple check with the powder maker.
Read previous threads on reloading, here are a some I recommend.
http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=230171
http://thehighroad.org//showthread.php?t=238214
http://forums.accuratereloading.com/eve
http://www.rugerforum.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=13543
http://www.rugerforum.com/phpBB/viewforum.php?f=11&sid=1efda7af229b625361fbd5ae1f754eec
Advice #7 You never regret buying the best (but once)
When you buy the very best, it hurts only once, in the wallet. When you buy cheap (too cheap) it hurts every time you use the gear. The trick is to buy good enough (on the scale between high quality and low price) to keep you happy without overpaying. "The delicious flavor of low price fades fast. The wretched aftertaste of poor quality lingers long.
Advice #8 Safety Always Safety All Ways.
Wear eye protection, especially when seating primers. Gloves are good, too, especially if using the Lee "Hammer" Tools. Children (unless they are good helpers, not just playing around) are at risk and are a risk. Pets, too unless they have been vetted (no, not that kind of vetting). Any distractions that might induce you to forget charging a case (no charge or a double charge are equally dangerous).
Imagine everything that CAN go wrong. Then imagine everything that you CAN'T imagine. I could go on, but it's your eyes, your fingers, your house, your children (current ones or future ones - lead is a hazard, too). About lead: Wash after loading and don't eat at your bench. Enough said?
Advice #10 Double check everything.
Verify for yourself everything you learn. Believe only half of what you see and one quarter of what you hear. That goes double for everything you find on the internet (with the possible exception of the actual web sites of the bullet and powder manufacturers). This advice applies to my message as much as anything else and especially to personal load recipes. Hare-brained reloaders might have dangerous habits and even an honest typographical error could be deadly.
(10 Advices, 2012 revision)
