Starting Reloading

Status
Not open for further replies.
Jim, I don't put a cost or a price on my hobbies, be it shooting, reloading, boating, fishing, golfing. I just can't seem to quantify the enjoyment I receive from doing it.

Two things that are forever etched in my memory, The day my wife hooked her 1st LM Bass on a rubber worm and the very 1st time she ever boated a Northern Pike. The smile on her face those two times are worth a lifetime! The cost of the boat, tackle and time are meaningless.
 
kmw1954 said:
Jim, I don't put a cost or a price on my hobbies, be it shooting, reloading, boating, fishing, golfing. I just can't seem to quantify the enjoyment I receive from doing it.

Two things that are forever etched in my memory, The day my wife hooked her 1st LM Bass on a rubber worm and the very 1st time she ever boated a Northern Pike. The smile on her face those two times are worth a lifetime! The cost of the boat, tackle and time are meaningless.
Click to expand...
I understand
 
mjsdwash said:
$190 or so for the press, dies, and everything to go with it for that caliber. But 60,000 or so rounds in, its pretty well payed off
Click to expand...
$190 to load 60,000 rounds? Pretty good- does that include brass, primers, powder, projectile, trimmer, misc case prep tools, scale maybe a powder charge master, tumbler, maybe an annealing machine , the hole is deep.
Gents
I’m not saying anything that hasn’t already been said before.
J
 
What I have invested in equipment is really minimal as Most of it had been purchased used for a fraction of the original costs. I have 4 presses which all but one were bought used. The 4 powder measures I have all but one was used. The beam scale an old used Lyman D5 that al so cam from ebay. 2 books, Speer #10 and the Lyman Pistol and Revolver Handbook, again both from ebay. Then I have my 6' dial calipers that have been with me for the past 40 years. Dies; 38/357, 9mmX2, 380 and 45acp. After checking my notes in my Log where I recorded every purchase and rounds up I have just under $600.00 invested in all this. Two of these press could have been eliminated and I never would have missed them but the price was such a bargain I couldn't pass them up and I have a tool fetish anyways.

I mention this also that for what I have spent on reloading equipment I've seen people blow that much in a month sitting at the bar with nothing more than memories and a hangover and yes I use to do that too!
 
Equipment and manuals have been discussed. The best advice I can give to a new loader is:
Pick a time to reload when you will not be distracted. Any mistakes I have made at the bench have been directly related to being distracted. Phone calls, someone knocking at the door, wife wanting to talk about something etc....
Make it clear to the world you can not be disturbed while at the bench.
 
South Prairie Jim said:
$190 to load 60,000 rounds? Pretty good- does that include brass, primers, powder, projectile, trimmer, misc case prep tools, scale maybe a powder charge master, tumbler, maybe an annealing machine , the hole is deep.
Gents
I’m not saying anything that hasn’t already been said before.
J
Click to expand...
Covers press. trimmers and prep tools are not necessary, nor are tumblers or annealers for 9mm. It does include brass, and scale, powder measure, manual for that cost. The approxamately $18 per hour translates to a savings of $6 per box (locally its about $13.50/50 for ammunition vs $6.50 for reloads) at a rate of 150 per hour. Savings is far greater for other calibers, but 9mm is still a money saver. I started with a $134 lee 4 hole kit, and added 9mm dies and a safety prime. Inflation has not caught up. https://ads.midwayusa.com/product/6...MIhJ7N-fy64gIVdB6tBh34ZwbnEAQYASABEgJK0fD_BwE 150 rounds in an hour is easily realistic for this press.
 
I was in your boat not too long ago. A lot of people have a lot more experience then me, but that being said, being a newer reloaded myself here is my advice/what I did.
Definitely get a reloading manual or two. Then read through them a few times each. If you are like me where watching videos online helps. I’d suggest looking at Johnny’s reloading bench and Gavin from Ultimare Reloader. Botch channels have a playlist of entry level reloading kit focusing on the Lee equipment. And have a lot of reviews and information on other products.

I myself like to start our slow, so I decided to go with a angle stage kit. For me it was between a Lee kit and the RCBS Rockchucker supreme kit. After much research I settled on the RCBS kit because I thought the powered measure and beam scale were better and higher quality over the Lee. I could afford the extra cost of the RCBS and knew If i got the Lee it wouldnt be long before I’d upgrade both the powder measure and a scale. So I spent more up front but saved money in the long run. Plus it helped when I bought rcbs had a promo going on where I got $100 back.

I loaded my first rounds of 9mm not to long ago on my single stage and although I might only produce 50 or so rounds and hour, I know the level of safety because I’m focused on one thing at a time. I’ll grt a progressive when I have more time under my belt. Never hurts to go slow and learn the basics first.

Best of luck and hope this helps a little!
 
I've been loading my own ammo sense 1972 and now wish I'd kept better records. hdbiker
 
I got into reloading in the mid eighties . Wanted to custom tune for rifle benchrest shooting 308 caliber and also handgun shooting. I enjoy reloading as much as shooting . I'm sure you could find good deals on ammo if you just like shooting but if you want to shoot accurately everytime , reloading your own is the way to go . If your only doing it to save ,it may get old pretty fast , will take some time to get to a break even point .
 
Walkalong said:
Styx said:
So the kit you linked to, a Lymen's manual, and I should be good to go? with all that in hand, I should be able to simply read the nanual, and know what bullets, poweres, etc I should buy?
Click to expand...
Yep
Click to expand...
You will also need a set of calipers to measure OAL, taper crimp, etc. I use Frankford Arsenal dial calipers and it's been verified consistent with .355"/.400"/.451" pin gages. $27.89 at Optics Planet with free shipping (5% THR discount with THRFORUM code) - https://www.opticsplanet.com/frankford-arsenal-stainless-steel-dial-caliper-516503.html

Since you are reloading 40S&W, I recommend .400" pin gage for you to practice using the dial caliper getting a proper "feel" for measuring round cylinders like bullets/cases. $4.61 - https://www.zoro.com/vermont-gage-pin-gage-4000-minus-class-zz-blox-911240000/i/G0688600/


Another equipment I highly recommend is vibratory tumbler to clean/polish your brass. I use Berry's 400 with capacity of 1000 9mm cases $49 - https://www.eabco.net/Berrys-Model-400-Tumbler-_p_14144.html
 
Last edited:
I would get a better scale than the Lee. It works but can be annoying to use.
For a beam balance get a Lyman or an RCBS.
Not that expensive and well worth the money to protect yourself.
 
YouTube can be very helpful for showing how the process works. Videos are also helpful for how to set up the particular press that you are using.
Of course, it’s ideal to have an experienced reloader drop in to help you get set up and running. Maybe ask around at your local range.
 
It seems like it has been a while since we have had one of these good old fashioned debates on what Lee press kit the newb should buy.

Anyway.....

Styx said:
I want to get into reloading. I carry a 40S&W handgun, but can not afford to feed it
Click to expand...

Styx said:
I invested a lot in 40s&w pistols and accessories for them without really paying attention to ammo prices. At Wal-Mart, 40s&w is 2x or more as much as 9mm. Can't afford to pay almost $30-$40 per 100. My hope is I will be able to shoot more for less money.
Click to expand...

There are those of us that like to, actually love to put a fine point on the cost of things. The main thing to understand is if you are thinking that handloading ammo will save you boatloads of cash then you are in dire need of a intervention. In theory, you can truck on over to a discount website store and for about $200 get yourself a kit that has most of the hardware that you think you will need to start this endeavor. OK.

The truth of the matter is if you are going to do this properly not half assed you will need three things. First thing is a sense that it is going to cost more than the cost of a beginners reloading kit. Second, you will need a place to perform the task at hand (a proper bench and storage) and third, it will take time and patience to acquire the knowledge and skills. Once you acquire all this, know and understand that handloading ammo takes time and energy and a bit of advanced planning. You will make mistakes and you will experience frustrations. Mistakes come in the form of less than perfect component purchases and frustrations in tool performance and a lack of focus on the intended need.

Unless you either consume 4 or 5 hundred rounds per month or are looking for performance not available in factory ammo you are not going to save any money handloading. The very nice people on THR who are truly interested in helping out humanity by steering the newb in the direction of a $200 kit are doing humanity no real favors. Sorry if that offends. It is true that a <$200 investment in hardware will make something that goes bang but in all honestly unless you are willing to open up that wallet and pull out 5 or 6 bills, better yet 10 of them, then reconsider jumping into this semi-bottomless pit.

There is a thread here somewhere where posters put up pictures of their benches. 99% of the pictures are showing 10s of 1000s of dollars worth of tackle housed in neat and orderly reloading areas, gear mounted on purpose built benches, components stored in proper cabinets. If you are handloading for handguns in any significant volume, a single stage or turret press is so slow that you will want to rip your face off as you become a slave to your bench.

There are so many little 20-30 dollar odds and ends that we seem to collect to make this job easier/faster more precise that if most of us had only a $1000 in our set up we would be doing backflips. Remember, you get what you pay for. A good chronograph, used to measure the speed and variations of your handloads, will cost several hundred dollars. Like everything, you can find one for inexpensive but this is one of those ancillary things no one ever mentions to the aspiring handloader. And there are numerous ancillary items on the bill of material.

If none of this discourages you then welcome aboard mate.
 
Last edited:
thomas15 said:
It seems like it has been a while since we have had one of these good old fashioned debates on what Lee press kit the newb should buy.

Anyway.....





There are those of us that like to, actually love to put a fine point on the cost of things. The main thing to understand is if you are thinking that handloading ammo will save you boatloads of cash then you are in dire need of a intervention. In theory, you can truck on over to a discount website store and for about $200 get yourself a kit that has most of the hardware that you think you will need to start this endeavor. OK.

The truth of the matter is if you are going to do this properly not half assed you will need three things. First thing is a sense that it is going to cost more than the cost of a beginners reloading kit. Second, you will need a place to perform the task at hand (a proper bench and storage) and third, it will take time and patience to acquire the knowledge and skills. Once you acquire all this, know and understand that handloading ammo takes time and energy and a bit of advanced planning. You will make mistakes and you will experience frustrations. Mistakes come in the form of less than perfect component purchases and frustrations in tool performance and a lack of focus on the intended need.

Unless you either consume 4 or 5 hundred rounds per month or are looking for performance not available in factory ammo you are not going to save any money handloading. The very nice people on THR who are truly interested in helping out humanity by steering the newb in the direction of a $200 kit are doing humanity no real favors. Sorry if that offends. It is true that a <$200 investment in hardware will make something that goes bang but in all honestly unless you are willing to open up that wallet and pull out 5 or 6 bills, better yet 10 of them, then reconsider jumping into this semi-bottomless pit.

There is a thread here somewhere where posters put up pictures of their benches. 99% of the pictures are showing 10s of 1000s of dollars worth of tackle housed in neat and orderly reloading areas, gear mounted on purpose built benches, components stored in proper cabinets. If you are handloading for handguns in any significant volume, a single stage or turret press is so slow that you will want to rip your face off as you become a slave to your bench.

There are so many little 20-30 dollar odds and ends that we seem to collect to make this job easier/faster more precise that if most of us had only a $1000 in our set up we would be doing backflips. Remember, you get what you pay for. A good chronograph, used to measure the speed and variations of your handloads, will cost several hundred dollars. Like everything, you can find one for inexpensive but this is one of those ancillary things no one ever mentions to the aspiring handloader. And there are numerous ancillary items on the bill of material.

If none of this discourages you then welcome aboard mate.
Click to expand...
So I will not be able to reload 40s&w with a $200 or so kit? As of right now and the foreseeable future, that is the only round I will be reloading. Factory 40s&w is about $30-$40 per 100 of target ammo at Wal-Mart and my LGS. Are you saying that I will not be able to reload for less than that?

FWIW, My goal right now I'm isn't to fix have the latest and greatest equipment, but rather to be able to shoot more for less money on ammo. I do not want to, at the low end, spend $60-$80 a month on factory ammo on top of rage and class fees.
 
Last edited:
thomas15 said:
It is true that a <$200 investment in hardware will make something that goes bang but in all honestly unless you are willing to open up that wallet and pull out 5 or 6 bills, better yet 10 of them, then reconsider jumping into this semi-bottomless pit.
Click to expand...
Not trying to be condescending, but, in your opinion, what does that mean exactly? If I can reload range worth ammo with a $200 kit, why would I end up "needing" to spend $5 to 10 thousand on equipment and supplies?
 
Not to be a wet blanker but most of the kits are intended for rifle. They will work for pistol but they are intended for rifle. By the time you purchase the things not in the kit that you will want and/or need (additional tools and consumables) your wallet will be +$100 lighter anyway. The best advice I can offer is see if there is someone local to you that is an active handloader and ask for a demo. In 30 minutes of watching live you will learn more than you can in 500 internet posts. Both the good, the bad and the expensive.

ON EDIT: I started off with a kit. And I taught myself how to do this. It is not rocket science. But if you really want to do this activity and you shoot handguns and have a full time job/spouse/family/home, then take a deep breath and make some practical decisions.

When I purchased my starter kit I bought one that was over $350 Good stuff some of it, the actual press is single stage and I use it still but not for pistol. My experience was start with a single stage, needed more speed so I bought into the "semi-progressive" turret press fantasy, then moved on to a progressive. I made mistakes. I now have a total of 5 bench mounted presses and a lot of other stuff.

If you want to learn from me at least save your money get a good powder scale, a progressive press (Hornady or Dillon) these come with good powder measures, a case tumbler, several load manuals, calibers, dies, consumables, a sturdy bench with good lighting, storage space. You are looking at some money.
 
Last edited:
What folks are trying to say is, that most of us aren't satisfied with the bare minimum that will load ammo.
There's always another tool we can't live without or a press we want. Then you just can't have enough brass, primers, bullets etc.

We all said we were going to reload to save money. And we all spend twice the money we did before we started.
But...........we shoot any time we like as much as we like. The last ammo shortage did not effect my shooting habits one iota.
Also we found a hobby that we enjoy nearly as much as shooting. I have literally went to the range simply because I needed brass to load. True story.

Your experience may be different. I know some folks just see reloading as a means to an end, and that's certainly okay too. But I would wager that most of us love it as much as the shooting part, or pretty close.
The money adds up in that case.
 
Styx said:
Not trying to be condescending, but, in your opinion, what does that mean exactly? If I can reload range worth ammo with a $200 kit, why would I end up "needing" to spend $5 to 10 thousand on equipment and supplies?
Click to expand...

Good question. Allow me to answer by asking another question. In the OP you state that you have invested heavy in 40S&W, have several handguns, each with several magazines. OK. since you can only place 1 magazine into your handgun at a time. why have more than 1 of them? Since you can only shoot 1 handgun at a time, why have several?

Some people, and we all know some that are like this, some people do an activity 1 time and they claim that for the rest of their lives they are partakers of that activity. You know they take (1) 60 minute karate lesson and 10 years later they are all karate although they didn't learn much in their 1 single lesson, don't ever practice, have put on 30 pounds in the intervening 10 years and have lost their dobok or it is too small after putting on 30 pounds.

Others take 1 lesson, then another and another and 10 years later they are a 3rd degree black belt and they know what they are doing. If you aspire to be a reloading black belt or even a brown belt then you gonna put more than 200 dollars on your handloading bench. And you are gonna do it sooner than you might imagine.
 
Just another perspective... I think @thomas15 is trying to give you a "most likely for success" suggestion.

But, my own experience is that for 500-800 rounds per month, you can do quite well with a LCT if you have the time (5-6 hours for that amount of reloading including any prep work) and you can reload .40sw for $13-15 per 100 depending on cost of components (after you have acquired your fired brass). I would say you can get a really good start for around $250-300 even including a necessary few items like a vibratory tumbler, calipers, and scale. For pistol reloading... if you get into higher volume-- yes a progressive press would be very nice-- however, I've been very content with loading a number of pistol calibers on my LCT over the years and have turned out quality ammo, consistent in accuracy and reliable in function. (.380acp, 9mm, .45acp, .44magnum, .22TCM) I enjoy the reloading process, and there's always something to tweak (if you are a tinkerer!;)). If you are just wanting the ammo, then you can just load away pretty quickly once your loads are developed and your equipment is set up. There's very little adjustment needed-- just double check your produced ammo regularly. A chronograph tells you where you are with velocity but is not necessary for loading good ammo as long as you CAREFULLY FOLLOW YOUR RELOADING DATA IN PUBLISHED MANUALS!

Now, it will take you a while to get your process/procedure sorted out so you can get into a "rhythm" of reloading, but once you get through the learning curve, I bet you will find your rate of production to be acceptable and attainable.

I would love to have a progressive, but it's not necessary for my use, and I have enough time to use a turret press.

The cost would be recovered fairly quickly based on the retail ammo price you quoted.

EDIT: I probably have invested $500+ in my reloading setup, even including multiple die sets. A single caliber can be done for quite a bit less.
 
The point I'm trying to make is first forget about saving money and second it's not that you need to sell off your General Motors stock before you pull the handle for the first time, but rather get into a mindset that you are going to spend way more than 200 bux in the first year unless you are the kind of individual that takes only 1 karate lesson.

I started out with a kit to "save" money. I eventually ended up with (Hornady or Dillon) progressive and good powder scale and measure (actually several of each) but spent more money trying to be thrifty than if I had done it correctly at the start. Handloading is like any other aspect of firearms. It will suck the life from your soul and the money from your bank account.

Other than that they are fine... :)
 
Styx said:
So I will not be able to reload 40s&w with a $200 or so kit? As of right now and the foreseeable future, that is the only round I will be reloading. Factory 40s&w is about $30-$40 per 100 of target ammo at Wal-Mart and my LGS. Are you saying that I will not be able to reload for less than that?

FWIW, My goal right now I'm isn't to fix have the latest and greatest equipment, but rather to be able to shoot more for less money on ammo. I do not want to, at the low end, spend $60-$80 a month on factory ammo on top of rage and class fees.
Click to expand...

I'm going to back off now as I've said enough and there are differences of opinions on this subject. My opinion is only one of several good opinions.

I do not as a rule make product recommendations mainly because there are numerous paid and unpaid product missionaries on this board more than willing. If all you are going to load is 40 S&W mull over getting a $40 electronic powder scale, a low cost vibratory case tumbler, a 20 dollar digital caliber, the Lyman handloading book, a primer flip tray and a Dillon Square Deal B reloading press. The press comes with dies which are proprietary (the only negative) and powder measure. From there you will need some pistol primers, primer pick up tubes (I think), an appropriate smokeless powder, bullets and of course brass. If you decide to get out of this hobby you can sell the press quickly for 85% of what you pay for it. In the meantime you have a fairly fast and robust press that will last and last. You are then going to be in it for less than a grand and will not be ripping your eyeballs out in frustration.
 
Last edited:
Styx said:
Not trying to be condescending, but, in your opinion, what does that mean exactly? If I can reload range worth ammo with a $200 kit, why would I end up "needing" to spend $5 to 10 thousand on equipment and supplies?
Click to expand...

I was asking myself the same thing!

I first started reloading in 1980, there was no internet, no forums, no YOUTUBE videos, just Loading books and monthly magazines.

I started loading for just the 38/357 because I wanted to shoot more and reloading was half the cost of store bought. I started with a Bonanza "86" single stage press, RCBS dies, an RCBS 505 scale, Speer #10 manual, a reloading block, Lee dippers, a funnel and a caliper. I reloaded for 3 years like this and made thousands of rounds. Then life happened and I had to give it all up.

So 3 years ago now I got back into this sport/hobby and knew I would reload again and know again that it would be ONLY pistols and I knew I did not want to do this again on a single stage press. The very 1st press I bought this time was a Lee Pro1000, Used, I paid exactly $90.81 which included shipping. It was almost complete for 38/357 missing only the bullet feed tubes and the primer tray cover. I quickly added Lee 9mm dies with a turret head, also used for $26.50 shipped and a Pro1000 #19 shell plate and carrier $37.83. Then bought a Lyman D5 beam scale used for $30.51 shipped. Two used manuals; Lyman Pistol and Revolver Handbook and another Speer #10, $23.00

I've been doing it with this just fine for 3 years and it has met all my needs. The only thing added that was really needed was an inertia bullet puller. Sure other things have been added but they were not essential to my reloading needs I could have done just as well w/o them.

To me, buying bullets, primers and powders is no different than buying worms, minnow, hooks or Golf balls and Tees. It's all part of the game. If ya don't have bullets well then ya just can't shoot.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

Skinnedknuckles
  • Locked
Costs for reloading 12 gauge shotshells
Replies
7
Views
2K
fecmech
F
S
  • Locked
getting started with .45 ACP
Replies
10
Views
799
PsychoKnight
P
T
  • Locked
Cost per round calc for 9,15acp,40 should I start reloading?
2
Replies
28
Views
2K
giggitygiggity
G
S
  • Locked
  • Poll
Anyone reload for a production class gun that you compete with?
Replies
8
Views
896
AZ Jeff
A
S
  • Locked
Why it is a bad Idea to encourage friends to reload
Replies
12
Views
1K
jjohnson
J
Back
Top