Economics of handloading - - Compiled Threads

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The 550 and 650 was what I was looking at. But I wasn't sure they could do both rifle and pistol calibers.

This is a moot point as early on I would only load for .45 but instead of having to buy new equipment I would rather have familiar equipment to grow into.

Chris.
 
Chris,

I have a couple friends who shoot thousands of rounds a week. They both use 650's.

Alternatively, many people end up with a SDB for each pistol caliber they reload.

-z
 
The 550 and 650 both are well suited to large amounts of ammo produced weekly. I have a 550, love it dearly.

With 230 grain jacketed bullets my 45ACP loads cost me $3.70 per box. With 200 grain lead bullets my cost is $2.50 per box.

Buying a rifle capable loader now is a wise choice.
 
Are .357 loading dies different then .38 Special loading dies?
Click to expand...
Yes, they're longer. You would have difficulty seating bullets, and decapping and belling .38's using .357 dies. I've tried it, but was unable to properly bell .38's. The decapping and sizing are possible-sort of..
However, the good news is that you can reload both .357 and .38 with .38Special dies.
 
Looks like the average cost for a FMJ round of 45 ACP is .07 via reloading...if you spend $1000 for the equipment and want to amortize your costs at .03 per round (to bring your per round cost to .10), you will be loading 33,333 rounds of ammobefore you recover the costs of equipment.

I can buy 50,000 rounds of 45 acp for probably .10 per round and not have to reload it myself...what is your time worth?


WildreloadingisfunnotnecessarilyeconomicalAlaska
 
I will touch on this matter only briefly as everyone has given all the main points of reloading.

Reloading is a whole hobby within itself. It just happens to coincide with my other favorite hobby, which is guns...

One off-topic comment before I go. DAL, I find your tagline MOST offensive. Islam in itself is not the issue... FANATICISM of a religion IS the issue.

Mike
 
Dillon 550B $330
45acp dies $50
Powder scale $30
Calipers $50
------------------------
Total cost of equipment $460.

The above is really all you need, load data is available off the net, and you are reading this. Add 25% for some tools to help out like a tumbler and things that make loading easier for a total of $575. That is a lot more than you need for sure, but why not do it right?

Factory hardball is $12 per box, and that is a good sale price. My handloaded hardball is about $4 per box, for a savings of $8 per box. $575/$8=72 boxes to pay for the equipment. 72 boxes*50 shells is 3600 shells, 3600 shells later the cake is in your POCKET or feeding your insidious gun habit.

The numbers I have used above are pretty conservative, you could easily cut the payoff number down. If you also shoot 357 magnum or somthing like it the savings get bigger by quite a bit.

A 35K round payoff would pay for a 1050 for every day of the week.
 
Hsmith...

I am in the proces of buying my reloading set up. With the Dillon 55B, the absolute bottom line is about $1,000.

I am starting with nothing and am not looking to purchase anything fancy, but am looking for quality products.

I figure that at 5,000 rounds I will have a payoff...although I haven't been able to download any of the spread sheets that some of the fellows have posted
 
Jmurman, that is interesting. I put one together WAY under $1000, and I am loading several calibers. If you don't mind me asking what all are you buying? If you wanted to PM that would be fine as well. Maybe I overlooked some things and maybe you are buying something you don't need?
 
Sure thing. Keep in mind that I am starting out from scratch so there are some things that aren't reloading related that I feel are necessitites.

Dillon

Dillon 550B $330
Power upgrade (roller handle, bullet tray, strong mount, low powder indicator)$107
45acp dies $50
Spare part kit $23
Video $6
Case guage $9
Wrench and spare rings $9

total $527, not including shipping

Midway

Electronic scale $97
Franklin tumbler $50
Walnut media $15
Empty boxes, 1000 rnds $14
Loadbook $8

total $179, not including shipping

Electronic calipers...free from my Dad

Brownells

Pistol cleaning rod $21
Bronze brushes $4.75
Nylon brushes $9.02
Large pk patches $28.75
Lewis lead remover $13.75
Extra bronze screens $2.70
JB Bore compound $7.95
Accu Bore $6.95
Hoppes #9 $3.04

total $98.20 not including freight.

Total purchase approx $800 not including freight

I am also using the 550B for 30.06 However, at this time I am not getting those dies, or accesories for rifle. This also doesn't include any powder, primers or bullets, or bulk brass.

I was raised to do the job right form the start. The only "extravagance" I can see is the electronic scale, but with rifle reloading, I feel that this is a must have.

What do you think?
 
The electronic scale is $70 more than my suggestion for a startup and the cleaning supplies I would not consider part of the reloading operation so $170 less. You have some "niceties" in there like the power upgrade, case gauge and spare parts kit that are not needed right off the bat and could be bought a couple pieces at a time, the cost of them brings your list to about $550 plus freight. If you can spare the money by all means buy the list exactly as you have it laid out, it is a VERY nice kit you have planned.

I have used a beam scale for my entire reloading life, with only occasional access to an electronic scale. The electronic are VERY nice but a bit extravagent in my book. I plan to get one but there are other things that will come first.

You are definately doing it right, and are not missing anything that I see at all. The 30-06 will add some requirements but that bridge can be crossed then.
 
I came into a little extra money that i should be receiving in a month or so. If I didn't I would not be buying with the "niceties", just the basic and over time adding those.

I am really excited about my new hobby!
 
CSLINGER, check out the Hornady Lock-N-Load Automatic tool. The Dillon 550-B has been at the top of the heap for many years, but their design is getting a bit long in the tooth. Planning to buy a Dillon, I loaded on a friend's first...changed my mind, because: (1) it costs $39 for a cartridge conversion kit plus dies...and I reload about a dozen cartridges. (2) The Dillon powder measure is obsolete design...difficult to change loads. My buddy bought 3 extra measures at over $60 each just to avoid the hassel. (3) Inconvenience in removing problem cases if a problem occurs.

Checked out the competition...the Hornady is currently tops. Somewhat lower in cost (and Midway currently has them temporarily on sale for $300!), MUCH cheaper to change cartridge set-ups, uses a modern rotary powder measure easy to change loads, easy to retrieve problem cases at any station.
 
Ammo Reloading Costs

...depends upon your cost of components, once you have the basic equipment. Does it pay? YOU BET!!! :D As examples, my 9-mm Luger total cost is $2.26/50, which is about half the cheapest bargain factory 9mm cost (and don't forget to add the sales tax!), .45 Auto is about $2.83/50, and .308 Win/.30-06 is about $3.00/20.

Strategy to save the most:

(1.) Buy components in bulk!
(2.) Standardize powders (I use Win #231 for everything in pistol from 9-mm Makarov to .45 Colt, and #4895 for everything from .223 NATO to 30-06).
(3.) Shop around for best prices...there's a lot of variation! My best sources have been mail order, but don't forget to add in the shipping and handling charges for comparison!
(4.) Combine orders with friends to get the benefits of larger bulk purchases and sharing of shipping charges.
(5.) Check gunshows for bargains.
(6.) Use free range pick-up brass...the case is the second most expensive component of the cartridge.
 
Is reloading worth it to me? Well ! I'll tell you since you asked. I reload for two primary reasons. One, I like to do it and two I reload for accuracy. If I save money in the meantime, then that is definitely a benefit.

If you are reloading to save money I will tell you my reloading story. Back in 1989 I purchased a significant amount of primers, powder, brass and bullets to reload. When I say a significant amount, I definitely mean significant. I intended to load and use the materials over a period of years and years.

The Bad News: Unfortunately I never had the time to shoot year after year and the materials sat and sat. The good news: I stored my components correctly and over the past two years I have been able to load and shoot at an extremely low cost compared to today's prices.

Can you imagine shooting .308 Win match ammo for a cost of 7 cents per round. .223 Rem even cheaper and 9mm and .45 ACP for only a few cents per round.

The price of ammo will only go up as with the price of guns. Buy all you want now because as one ammunition manufacturer said to me. "Ammo is the new currency of the millennia."
 
WOW a 6 1/2 year old thread, how cool. tootaxed even responded to himself 1 1/2 years later!
 
FREONER22, re my posts: same general topic, different information items. They are even more appropriate in today's high ammo cost situation! I bless my having bought components at the time in large quantities...at the time I thought they were a bit expensive.

And in the future, the same will apply for those who buy now!:D
 
Is reloading worth it?

Nowadays ammo is getting harder to find and the price is through the rood, even in bulk. I load .308 WIN using good components but not buying powder, etc. in the larger quantities for about a third of the cost of match ammo off of the shelf. But.....I am heavily invested in all the equipent because I found myself shooting a lot more and so was unable to avoid the temptations to get more efficient machinery. Such as, electric case trimmer, electronic auto feeding powder measure/dispenser, micrometer seating die, good case cleaner, progressive reloader, extra presses for the single stage bench, you get the picture. Even with spectacular cost savings for reloading supplies it will be about about nine years equipment payback time for me. Assuming no new gadgets come out. But still, the thought of paying $35 for a box of twenty rounds is horrible. Like was said when the old Ford Falcons came out, if you want economy you have to pay for it.
 
Wow, what a way to resurrect an old thread!

For me, I started reloading to support USPSA match shooting and at 1000+ rounds a month, it just took several months to break even. About 18 years later, I guess my cost savings over factory ammunition is over $100,000 and growing. :D
 
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