Absoolute rock bottom...
What exactly would I need to get started reloading ONLY 7.62x39? I can't afford to spend hundreds of dollars, so keep it cheap.
A classic Lee Loader, the hammer-it-in, hammer-it-out kit, which many of us started on (myself included) now runs $22-24. (It was $10 when I bought mine--alas, time flies when you're having fun!)
Edited to add: PHOOEY! I Just checked the Lee Precision website, and they don't make the Classic Lee Loader in 7.62x39!!! Well, there goes that great idea! :-( Guess you'll have to scrounge up used equipment from friends and E-bay to keep it cheap. But now you REALLY need The ABC's book to tell you what you need and don't need. (See below for The ABC's of Reloading.)
You'd also need powder, $18-$20/lb, primers, $18-20/M, bullets (which vary quite a bit in price,) and brass you scrounged free.
That'll get you started for under $100. Check Lee's website,
www.leeprecision.com for ordering the kit, or get it mebbe cheaper at Midway
www.Midwayusa.com
Bullets you get locally or @ Midway (bullets are heavy; runs up the shipping) and powder/primers you get locally if at all possible to avoid the Hazmat shipping charge.
And you're off and running. READ AND FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS IN THE KIT!!!
You also want some knowledge about reloading--the standard textbook on the subject is
The ABC's of Reloading which you get locally, off the I'net, or from the publisher, Krause Publishing,
www.krause.com The ABC's will explain A LOT to you about the process.
Good Luck. Be careful and enjoy.