At what price - stop buying/start reloading 9mm?

At what price would you quit buying and start reloading 9mm?

  • I already reload 9mm

    Votes: 158 87.3%

  • 20 cents per round

    Votes: 5 2.8%

  • 25 cents

    Votes: 5 2.8%

  • 30 cents

    Votes: 9 5.0%

  • Cost is irrelevant / I'd never reload 9mm

    Votes: 8 4.4%
  • Total voters
    181
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9mm was the first cartridge I reloaded for. It wasn't really to save any money it was availability. It has been at least 8 years since I have bought a box of factory 9mm, and I have no idea what it is going for, I don't care. For me the ability to load target ammo and have ammo available is worth it. I know I am loading for less than shelf prices, and I load probably 3500-5000 rounds a year.

Lately the range I shoot at has a spotty supply. The only people shooting are people that have an ample supply or reloaders. Most are folks who have an ample supply which I like so I can pick up the brass :)

-Jeff
 
I started loading 9mm because it was an easy caliber to load and learn on. I quickly learned that I could produce 9mm that shot better in my hand-toys than factory did. Most of the time, I only save a couple pennies a round, other times I save 20 pennies or more a round. Right now I'm shooting 9mm like I haven't a care in the world, and a couple friends are scouring the internet and local stores hoping to find a "decent" deal on any 9mm.
 
I have a finite amount of time during the week/month that I can devote to reloading tasks. As I use a single stage press, I get more bang for my buck (sorry...couldn't resist) reloading for revolver and rifle rounds. I do save my 9mm brass and have collected some 9mm components so at some point down the road I might load for it.
 
For me, I'm one of those 'my time is worth more than reloading 9mm'... sorta. I have the capacity to reload 9mm, and I'm currently working up some new powders with it so I have ready to go recipes for it, but just like reloading 5.56mm, very often when my time is factored in... it's just as cheap to buy factory. Coming out of the Dark Ages a few years ago, I realized I needed to have the components to load 9mm, so I'm not ever left empty handed, just like with 5.56mm.

Because I have limited time to reload, I would rather spend it on cartridges I CAN'T buy at a reasonable cost... .41MAG, .45 Colt, and most of my other rifle cartridges besides 5.56mm. That, to me, seems better time spent than crunching out 2000 9mm's I can buy for cheap.
 
Hrbie22 said:
A year ago I would have said no. Because I was loading on a single stage press at that time.
Click to expand...

Since the first of the year I've reloaded over 8k rounds of 9mm on my single stage, along with 6k rounds of other calibers. Yeah, I've got time on my hands!

otisrush said:
Economics don't enter into my decision to reload 9mm. I have the benefit of much available free time and the fact that I enjoy the loading process - even on a single stage. The benefit of loading it is having accurate ammo that carries with it a pride of being manufactured by me......and by chance I happen to save a little $.
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That's me. I'm retired and enjoy reloading as a hobby. I also go to the range once or twice a week so I need a steady supply of ammo. Any money I save is just icing on the cake, but I could not afford to buy all that factory ammo.

jmr40 said:
When the price of loaded ammo goes up, so does the price of components. When loaded ammo is in short supply so are components.
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Absolutely the truth. Price of components has really gone up lately and bullets are out of stock most places. I've got a good stockpile but I'm starting to wonder if it's good enough.
 
I quit reloading 9mm for around a decade when I could buy it for $2.99/a box of 50. Even when I started back reloading it, it cost me more to load it than it did for the cheap factory 115gn FMJ but the ammunition I loaded gave me an advantage in the gun games.
 
I tailor 9MM ammo to my needs/liking, so I will continue to reload it
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This

If there is a good sale I might be able to buy it for the same cost (- my time) as I load it, but would it be as good as what I load? Most likely not.
I shoot matches so I load up a lot of 9mm ammo at about 128 PF (1030-1050fps with a 124)
 
Nine millimeter was one of the first cartridges I started handloading for. That was 15-16 years ago. I've been able to weather several dry spells since then. Since Walmart stopped selling handgun cartridges, the real inexpensive ammo is not an option.
TTv2 said:
No price point would ever get me to reload 9mm because if factory 9mm became so expensive I would buy a progressive and load .40/10mm and probably never shoot 9mm again.
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I have a 10mm and a .40 barrel that has seriously cut into the time I used to spend shooting the 9mms, but I still shoot them. It's great to have options.
 
Last coupla ammo shortages made so a lot of folks took the leap into reloading. For a while it was fine, but nowadays, it seems reloading components become hard to find and their price goes up even before it hits factory ammo. So many folks shoot 9mm because factory/surplus ammo was cheap and plentiful as compared to other calibers. When reloading, most components cost the same or at least relative to bullet diameter/weight. This is why in the past, it didn't make sense to reload for 9mm. Same went for .223. That source of cheap plentiful ammo has dried up too. There are other reasons to reload than just to save monies. Everyone has a different price of the time it takes to reload. I could make more in a weekend doing a side job than I ever could by spending that weekend reloading. But for me, reloading is just more fun.
 
I got into reloading not to save money, or for accuracy, it just interested me and I wanted to learn. The empty ammo shelves during Obama's administration was what really made up my mind, so I started with .38 special and 9mm on a turret press because that's what I shot the most of. I upgraded to a Lee progressive last year and love it, I found the time on the turret too tedious but "everyone on the internet" says to start reloading on a single stage or turret so that's what I did. I'll still buy cases of 9mm when it gets to $0.16/round every couple years just to get fresh brass, but otherwise I've got enough finished 9mm sitting on my ammo shelf to ride out this current storm.
 
I do load it. Not sure if I will continue.

Before the latest panics I pretty much decided that i was losing money loading it, now I'm not sure.

I added it up when it was $160 cases.
My cost per 1000:

Jhp bulk bullets $100(dont want to use lead)
Powder $20
Primers $30
Value of used brass $25?

Plus I pick a bunch of extra 9mm brass everytime at the range that could be sold if I'm not hoarding it for reloading. I could probably do better on component price but would be pinching pennys to maybe break even.

Still have a bunch of components for 9mm , so gonna at least use that up. working a bunch of different loads for learning experience with chrono if nothing else. If I come up with something that performs better than the cheap factory plinkers guess I might continue. If I didnt already have the stuff I dont think I would buy it at this point.

Guess it would be about at $0.30 around I would do it to save money no matter what.
James
 
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About 30 years ago I stopped counting pennies and comparing handloads to factory ammo. I reload because I like to. I used to fish quite a bit and I never compared the cost of bait and perhaps party boat fees to how much halibut cost in the fish market. When we go for a Sunday ride, my wife and I don't compare vehicles (her Acura vs my PU) to find out which gets the best gas mileage to "save money" for a fun time...
 
When I started reloading 9mm was cheap so I reloaded cartridges that were on average 15.00 per box of 50. Mainly 45acp, 44 spl, and 357/38. Nowadays I cannot find 9mm ammo anywhere near me. I eventually started 9mm reloading and it's fairly quick. I didn't reload that cartridge as much when prices were down.

Looking online now, prices have increased considerably, which one has to include the shipping cost and any semblence of "cheap" goes out the door. Trying to find 9mm locally is like looking for a unicorn nowadays.

Reloading 9mm now looks very cost beneficial along with 45acp, it's one of the cartridges I shoot the most.

I like tailoring loads and trying them out. Plus, I like the fact that when I leave the range, it's not because I ran out of ammo. I always have plenty to fire on hand.

CH
 
I started my reloading adventure with 9mm about 2010. At that point, 9mm ammo that I liked was at about 22 cents a round. Since then, that same factory ammo price have gone as high as 35 cents to as low as 17 cents per round.

The only factory 9mm that I have purchased in the past 5 years was when federal ran the rebate. Ended up at about 16 cents a round.

I load 9mm at a hair over 12 cents per round. So I guess that is my price point where I will pause 9mm reloading and use factory.
 
I've reloaded a lot of 9mm, but not in a decade. I've been able to buy 9mm well below $0.20 each for several years and have stocked up. I use my reloading time for 40S&W, 357 mag and 44 mag. I've stashed away quite a few 124 grain projectiles and have buckets of brass should I need to reload again. I selected 20 cents in the poll.
 
Suedenflames68 said:
I do load it. Not sure if I will continue.

Before the latest panics I pretty much decided that i was losing money loading it, now I'm not sure.

I added it up when it was $160 cases.
My cost per 1000:

Jhp bulk bullets $100(dont want to use lead)
Powder $20
Primers $30
Value of used brass $25?

Plus I pick a bunch of extra 9mm brass everytime at the range that could be sold if I'm not hoarding it for reloading. I could probably do better on component price but would be pinching pennys to maybe break even.

Still have a bunch of components for 9mm , so gonna at least use that up. working a bunch of different loads for learning experience with chrono if nothing else. If I come up with something that performs better than the cheap factory plinkers guess I might continue. If I didnt already have the stuff I dont think I would buy it at this point.

Guess it would be about at $0.30 around I would do it to save money no matter what.
James
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You should try some coated lead. It's all I shoot. I have no problems with leading in any of my multiple 9mm firearms.

I cast and coat my own bullets. Total cost right now is under $5/100. I'm using 3.3 gr of Clean Shot and it's a very soft shooting load that cycles everything we've tried it in.

I'm broken and retired and have lots of time. The actual loading time is quite low with my Dillon 650. Casting doesn't even take that long since I have a slick sided 8 cavity mold. I can cast over a thousand bullets in a couple of hours.
 
Been eyeballing the precision coated bullets for 38 loads. I might have to give it a try and see what they are like. Would definitely get 9mm price down to a point where it would be cheaper than commercial stuff. (even more so lately) Dont think I'm wanting to cast my own at this point but really considering taking the plunge on a progressive. A couple hours for 1000 rounds vs 10+ hours would make a BIG difference for if it feels worth it or not to me also.

James
 
Right now the ammo that is available at any sort of "reasonable" price is not the kind I would shoot in my firearms. Like steel.

Went to range earlier this week and the guy at the next table gave me 300 carts that he just shot I was ecstatic until I brought it home and saw that it was all Aquila 9mm. I will not reload it.

my 2 cents.
 
First set of dies I bought were for 9mm. I have one 9mm pistol that I carry and shoot once in a while. It's a carry gun I don't really enjoy shooting it over my other pistols. All I can seem to find for range pick up is 9mm. I have a ton of brass and rarely load for it.

I actually went as far as to build a 9mm upper just so I would have a reason to load more of it. My bcg was not compatible with the Endo mag I bought and I haven't touched it since. This was a good reminder to find a compatible BCG.
 
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