Economics of Reloading
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GeoDudeFlorida
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The post seems more declarative than interrogatory. No comment required.
Anchorite
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No one ever saved money reloading. Ever.
What I like about reloading isn't just saving over the current prices, it's the fact that I am making a lot (in numbers and in a sitting) of ammo at yester-years prices. I still have the depleted pound of Bullseye that I gave 20 dollars for that I started reloading 45 ACP with about 10 years ago, even after I went through all the individual bullets I bought with it. I still have a lot of S&B primers that I picked up on sale in 2014 (15?, 16?) for about 20-25 dollars per thousand. The money just goes further, and while I have to spend the time to put it all together, when you are paying 35-40 dollars per box of 45 ACP, I already paid the 6 dollars plus my time and knowledge to pull the lever. Furthermore, I have the ability to create different loads for different purposes; have you tried loading 150 grains of birdshot under a 200 grain bullet in 45 Colt? With this load, I can take anything from mice and birds to deer. Where could you buy this load commercially?
n2omike
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Unless they just bought a Lee Loader. lol
I started at gramps knee when I was like 11. But I got my own stuff (my dad and bro went in on the original stuff) in 21. At that point in the middle of a divorce etc, it was either a hobby or start therapy or something. Haha. And, I have no idea how much I’ve spent since, though I do have a rough idea. And, I can honestly say I enjoy time at the reloading bench as much as time at the shooting bench. I suppose the cost per round is cheaper, but I shoot a whole lot more than I used to.
You keep track?
Yep.
Started as a list of equipment I wanted as a goal and keep me on track. I put priorities and dollars to it to get an idea of budget. I was/am buying some equipment in lots and selling some to help my budget and slowly getting more stuff on the list. The list helps me with that as well with resale. OCD? Maybe a little?
bullseye308
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I started because what I wanted to shoot wasn’t available. I wanted a ballistic tip in my 30-30 Super14” TC to extend the range a little. Once I got to shooting more it was all about savings and being cheap. I’ve loaded everything but .22 and 12ga for 25+ years and saved quite a bit more than I spent. I did load for 3 years on a loadmaster, but other than that it’s all been done on Lee single stage presses with lee dies, lee pot and lee molds. I have less than a grand in everything and for about 15 years I shot 16k of 9mm, 3-4k of 357, and 2-3k of 38, 5k of 308, and 2-3k of 223. All were tuned to each gun they were fired from for the most accurate load I could get.
I bought powder and primers locally in bulk, sold or traded brass to buy powder or primers, and never bought a piece of brass. I mined berms for lead, got tons from Craigslist, and put the word out I was in need of fired brass or lead and got lots more.
You can save money reloading, just most folks keep buying more stuff to make it easier or quicker. I enjoy it and have plenty of time, and I’m poor, so what works for me obviously doesn’t for most of you.
I bought powder and primers locally in bulk, sold or traded brass to buy powder or primers, and never bought a piece of brass. I mined berms for lead, got tons from Craigslist, and put the word out I was in need of fired brass or lead and got lots more.
You can save money reloading, just most folks keep buying more stuff to make it easier or quicker. I enjoy it and have plenty of time, and I’m poor, so what works for me obviously doesn’t for most of you.
JFrank
Member
A fella can dump a lot of money into reloading equipment and even more into things that are simply not necessary also. I know guys that spend over a thousand on a single stage press, another twelve hundred on an annealing machine, it can get out of hand for sure.
I am guessing I have spent $3000-$4000 on equipment in the last 30+ years. It wasn't necessarily the Dillon 650XL that makes up the bulk of that amount, it is the dozen heads, powder measures, dies etc. for all the different cartridges I reload. Then there is all of the accessories like scales, case trimmers, tumblers, case feeder, primer tubes etc. I still don't have a bullet feeder or automatic primer loader.
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CQB45ACP
Member
Yes it was. But I’m playing along at home.
Like others have said, handloading is a hobby. Don't know how much I've spent over the years on equipment and components and don't really care. I get a lot of enjoyment from this hobby. If I buy a piece of equipment that does what I want it to do, price is quickly forgotten. However if it does not meet my expectations, then price becomes important because I feel that I spent more on that item than it was worth. Pretty much applies to anything we buy, not just handloading tools.
I don't know if anyone else has noticed this lately, but it seems the price of a lot of the stuff we buy for our hobby has gone up!
I don't know if anyone else has noticed this lately, but it seems the price of a lot of the stuff we buy for our hobby has gone up!
OS/N
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I call myself a low volumn precision loader. Use only single stage presses (2) one for lube, powder, and FC when called for and a coax for sizing and bullet seating. Handgun dies are mostly hornady or lee but I use Wilson and Lyman Pro rifle dies which adds up after a few sets.
Since 2018 cost for equipment and supplies has almost doubled in most cases. Quality and availibility of factory ammo is the worst I've ever seen so if you want good ammo you have to load it or pay someone else to load custom ammo for you.
I enjoy loading as much or more than shooting so it is what it is but sure aint what it used to be.
Since 2018 cost for equipment and supplies has almost doubled in most cases. Quality and availibility of factory ammo is the worst I've ever seen so if you want good ammo you have to load it or pay someone else to load custom ammo for you.
I enjoy loading as much or more than shooting so it is what it is but sure aint what it used to be.
sparkyv
Member
Interesting. You got us all pegged!
Anchorite
Member
You left out the part about being closet hoarders and scroungers. Just this week I picked up a wheel weight in the post office parking lot.
How much one spends is a product of any factors. Things like:
How many different cartridges are loaded
How precise the ammo needs to be
Set-up time and production speed
Appearance of finished ammo
I haven't tracked expenditures.
How many different cartridges are loaded
How precise the ammo needs to be
Set-up time and production speed
Appearance of finished ammo
I haven't tracked expenditures.
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Yep. My post was intended to be declaratory. It was my observation that almost every post about the economics of reloading doesn’t include the potential resale value of the durable goods.
When you start reloading, you may not think you will sell your equipment in the future, but just like guns, you can.
Maybe the underlying question, posited in the form of a statement, was, “Should you ignore the cost of equipment when thinking about reloading?” My conclusion, in my case, is “yes” - so far.
Remington1911
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Very true, and those that don't reload and are grabbing at every straw to defend that position will latch onto everything.
Aside from all the reasons, that might or might not be applicable. I doubt many on here are top F class shooters that are looking for that exact same pressure to seat the bullet. If you have a progressive we all know you don't. More likely is you play some form of hand gun game and you are blowing 300 rounds a week during the season. But again we all know this is the internet and while everyone will do that, not many really do. Then you get into the, well you are not going to find it on the shelf.....even in the best of times. Tell me the last time you saw .25 Remington on the shelf. Unless you are over 50, you can't, and even then I will doubt you unless you are looking at a "vintage" cartridge box display.
I reload because what I shoot is very hard to find if you can find it, and when you do find it very expensive. Well over $2 per bang. I still want to shoot those rifles, so I reload.
That is why I did it.
How do you square the economics of reloading when the other option is not to shoot it. How do I put a $ on that. You can't. 351wsl does not exist anymore. So when I "make" it, what are my costs vs......letting a really fun rifle just sit?
You can't.
GeoDudeFlorida
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Exactly. That’s just how I was brought up: if you’re going to own a gun, you have to know how to load it.
I learned to shoot on .22’s with the understanding that I would someday step into the world and knowing how to handle a firearm was part of life. There wasn’t a debate on the topic.
JEBruns
Member
So you don't think the bullet can be important to accuracy/consistency?
No it's not. I can and do tune my loads for the properties I value such as recoil, accuracy, low flash, etc. Can't do that grabbing a box off a shelf at Bass Pro.
JEBruns
Member
I know that's a common saying. You'll shoot up the saving, etc. But there are, of course, times when it does pay. I first got into reloading for trap shooting. Was buying Winchester AA's for a while, but that started to add up at 10K rounds a year. Decided to get a MEC progressive reloader and very quickly paid for it. Finding out how much I enjoyed the hobby was just a bonus.
GeoDudeFlorida
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My poll answer - $1000-$2000 - includes things that were given to me (like my first press, dies, scale, brass, powder, primer, etc.) over the course of 50 years of handloading. The only thing I never reloaded is rimfire.
I just added it up but it’s under $600. I’m still running on my first press, a Lee single stage. I have some other odd and end dies like a universal decapping die and a flaring die for cast loads in 30-30. The Lee Ram Swage and Hornady powder trickler saved more frustration than anything else.
