hazmat charge vs order size
- Thread starter cemjr
- Start date
- Status
Iron Sight
Member
Consider your travel expenses to and from where your nearest reloading supplies are located along with possible savings on on the internet?
I like the stuff dropped at my door. I don't have to pay for the gas or ware on my car to go get them & I need the time that would be spent.
The added bonus is it is way cheaper then getting them local. The bad thing is I can't get the best deal on powder & primers at the same place so I do 2 orders. I get about 20K primers & maybe pick up some lead bullets on the same order, I order 6 jugs of powder from another place which 6 jugs is the limit on the hazmat, & I order jacketed bullets from another which there is no hazmat for them. The only thing I buy local anymore is V-M bullets which I can't bet Walmarts' price on them & since I go there from time to time I buy 6 or 7 boxes to hold me so I don't make a trip just for them. Another bonus is you can get by without paying tax if you order from another state.
The added bonus is it is way cheaper then getting them local. The bad thing is I can't get the best deal on powder & primers at the same place so I do 2 orders. I get about 20K primers & maybe pick up some lead bullets on the same order, I order 6 jugs of powder from another place which 6 jugs is the limit on the hazmat, & I order jacketed bullets from another which there is no hazmat for them. The only thing I buy local anymore is V-M bullets which I can't bet Walmarts' price on them & since I go there from time to time I buy 6 or 7 boxes to hold me so I don't make a trip just for them. Another bonus is you can get by without paying tax if you order from another state.
Hondo 60
Member
My last order included 6,000 primers & 10 lbs of powder.
I had x dollars to spend & spent it all.
That'll keep me in powder for a year & primers for 6-8 months.
But the minimum would depend on the break-even point when figuring total cost.
I had x dollars to spend & spent it all.
That'll keep me in powder for a year & primers for 6-8 months.
But the minimum would depend on the break-even point when figuring total cost.
oldreloader
Member
If I order 2k primers I have saved enough to more than pay hazmat fees compared to my LGS. I usually order more than that though.LOL.
T Bran
Member
My nearest BPS is 60 miles from home and 7.00 per LB more expensive than my online source for powder. So 25.00 hazmat fees are really a bargain for me.
RustyFN
Member
If I order by myself I usually buy 8 pounds of powder and 10,000 primers. I usually order with a couple of friends and we max one out.
A $250-$300 order begins to be the break point for me.
Around my parts, the powder and primers I prefer to use are not always easy to find. Much easier to find it from the comfort of my living room.
Gun shows are another source for me. Better these days than in 2009.
Around my parts, the powder and primers I prefer to use are not always easy to find. Much easier to find it from the comfort of my living room.
Gun shows are another source for me. Better these days than in 2009.
1SOW
Member
The fact of your asking the question, probably means you have trouble finding supplies you need, or your cost is high locally.
That alone is pretty good justification for a $25 fee on say a $250 or more order. That $250 is an arbitrary amount. A bigger order is of course more economical, but I've made smaller orders due to 'necessity'.
Primers and powders can often be found cheaper on the internet. You usually don't have to pay sales taxes, and you don't have to buy gasoline to travel to get local supplies. After all that justification, it's also VERY convenient having it arrive at your front door.
If you shoot at local ranges that have organized shoots, you can often find other shooters to place bulk orders with.
Hope this makes sense.
That alone is pretty good justification for a $25 fee on say a $250 or more order. That $250 is an arbitrary amount. A bigger order is of course more economical, but I've made smaller orders due to 'necessity'.
Primers and powders can often be found cheaper on the internet. You usually don't have to pay sales taxes, and you don't have to buy gasoline to travel to get local supplies. After all that justification, it's also VERY convenient having it arrive at your front door.
If you shoot at local ranges that have organized shoots, you can often find other shooters to place bulk orders with.
Hope this makes sense.
tooltech
Member
In my local stores, primers are selling for $33-$39 per 1000. If I buy 5000 online at $20/1000, pay haz-mat and shipping, it comes out to $28 per 1000. If I add a jug of powder to the order, it spreads the fee even thinner.
And I don't have to drive 30-45 minutes to get to a store that has them in stock.
And I don't have to drive 30-45 minutes to get to a store that has them in stock.
Let's see, primers are $15 per thousand cheaper, no sales tax at 8.375%, don't burn $20 in gas getting there and back. For 90% of us, mail order is the way to go.
Then you have the gun show option, $11 to get in, $10 for parking, no joy when all the discount stuff is gone by 2pm on Saturday..... You'll be hard pressed to beat the prices on the net. A big reason why Kali is trying to collect sales tax on all that stuff off the internet.
Last time I ordered hazmat stuff I got 5K primers and 5 pounds of powder from Graf's. So the $25 was spread over a bunch of stuff, saved about $100 buying from them instead of the local yokels.
Then you have the gun show option, $11 to get in, $10 for parking, no joy when all the discount stuff is gone by 2pm on Saturday..... You'll be hard pressed to beat the prices on the net. A big reason why Kali is trying to collect sales tax on all that stuff off the internet.
Last time I ordered hazmat stuff I got 5K primers and 5 pounds of powder from Graf's. So the $25 was spread over a bunch of stuff, saved about $100 buying from them instead of the local yokels.
evan price
Member
iirc there is a 60# maximum on one haz-mat charge. I typically max out a haz-mat ticket. You can mix powder and primers in one order. 6 cases of primers (30K) and 4 jugs of powder (32#) is a good order. I think i get 70K of primers in one HazMat ticket.
I ordered 255,000 primers in one order and it took 4 haz-mat tickets if that helps.
I ordered 255,000 primers in one order and it took 4 haz-mat tickets if that helps.
Fortunately, we don't have parking charges but I consider the entry fee as an entertainment expense, not as part of anything that purchase. I enjoy cruising the show and looking at stuff.
Hazmat
From the vendors I've purchased supplies from I can order up to 50K of primers on one Hazmat charge or 32 pounds of powder.
The Hazmat charge is determined by the number of boxes shipped with one Hazmat charge per box.
The last couple of orders I placed I had one Hazmat charge for 50K of primers for one source and two Hazmat charges for another 50K of primers from another source, which due to weight made the shipment be two boxes.
In the past one wholesaler would not ship a 25 pound keg of powder which I ended up having to go get.
Many places will let you pick up your order and I've done that if I was in the area or I was traveling by where I ordered it from.
From the vendors I've purchased supplies from I can order up to 50K of primers on one Hazmat charge or 32 pounds of powder.
The Hazmat charge is determined by the number of boxes shipped with one Hazmat charge per box.
The last couple of orders I placed I had one Hazmat charge for 50K of primers for one source and two Hazmat charges for another 50K of primers from another source, which due to weight made the shipment be two boxes.
In the past one wholesaler would not ship a 25 pound keg of powder which I ended up having to go get.
Many places will let you pick up your order and I've done that if I was in the area or I was traveling by where I ordered it from.
res45
Member
I always try to support my local gun shops and reloading supplier as much as possible,that wasn't much of a problem when I only lived about 10 mile away and prices were such on powder and primers that it was better than paying the hazmat and shipping ordering online.
That's not the case now,I had to move about an hour and a half away to find work and the only local shop has pretty outrageous prices so much so that I only have to order 3K primers and 2 lbs. of powder from PV to break even. I usually order more than that at one time so I actually save money over what I can buy it locally for. It's a shame but that's just how it is.
That's not the case now,I had to move about an hour and a half away to find work and the only local shop has pretty outrageous prices so much so that I only have to order 3K primers and 2 lbs. of powder from PV to break even. I usually order more than that at one time so I actually save money over what I can buy it locally for. It's a shame but that's just how it is.
higgite
Member
- Joined
- Dec 17, 2009
- Messages
- 2,081
6# powder and 2000 CCI APS primers (I gotta try them) plus insurance, plus hazmat, plus shipping = $203 from Powder Valley to my doorstep. (No association with PV, just a customer)
Same stuff at my LGS, out the door = $258. It was a no brainer. (I qualify)
Same stuff at my LGS, out the door = $258. It was a no brainer. (I qualify
)RustyFN
Member
This is what you can order for one hazmat charge,
primers - 70 pounds or 50,000
powder - 48 pounds
powder and primers mixed -48 pounds
lightman
Member
I order the max amount that they can ship,like rusty posted.Its easier if you get some friends to go in with you.The more you order,the less the fees hurt.In this economy,it just makes sense to shop smart. Lightman
I've enjoyed reading all the responces so far. I wish I could order more at once to reduce the impact of hasmat/shipping charges. I suppose I could have gone with tula vs cci and saved a little 15.50/30.00 and 8# vs 6# of powder. Add in 1k of 45 acp bullets and the total was $404.xx frm pv. Retail around me is out of the question.
oneounceload
member
primers are typically sold by the sleeve of 5,000 - buying unbroken sleeves is typically cheaper than by the 1000; buying powder in 8# jugs usually drops the price per pound
AlliedArmory
Member
Some of the newer powders I wanted to try were out of stock or not carried at my last local gun show. I placed the order online for only 3lbs of powder and 5k primers. After shipping and hazmat, the price was almost identical to buying local. Couple $$s more, but they got delivered to my door.
evan price
Member
@RustyFN: I was wrong, had to go back to check...Powder Valley shipped 220,000 Wolf primers in various sizes and 1.5k CCI 50-bmg primers (221.5K total order) as 4 hazmat shipments. I did a group buy on another forum for primers in Jan '08 right after the Obama scare started. (Never doing another group buy again...)
Funshooter45
Member
The break-even point for me has gotten even easier lately than it was a year ago. Even though the availability and selection of powders is much better now than a year ago, for some reason the price on powders has gone UP not down around here.
The way I calculate the minimum order to break even is as follows:
HazMat= $25.
For Hodgdon powder, the local price is $25/lb. Powder Valley cost is $19/lb. Therefore it would take about 4 lb of Hodgdon powder to break even if that's all I ordered.
For Alliant powders (a couple of my rifles are picky about that ) the local price is a whopping $29/lb. Powder Valley price is $19/lb. So just 3 lbs on an order means I have SAVED $5.
Primers are about $5/1000 for CCI cheaper there. For Winchester primers it's about $10/1000 cheaper at PV.
The answer is it doesn't take much powder at all to buy from PV. Obviously, it saves more the bigger the order, so I always wait until I am nearing the end of my supply for one particular powder. Buying 20 lbs of powder and 5000 primers for my rifles is nice. My budget doesn't always permit that though.
For pistols, it's not as big a deal for me. I shoot revolvers only so I don't go through the ammo like some folks do. For some calibers I can get 1000 rds out of 1 lb of powder. But even my biggest rounds still yield about 350 rds out of a pound. It's a whole different ballgame for the rifles though where 1 lb of powder only gets you 100 shots.
The way I calculate the minimum order to break even is as follows:
HazMat= $25.
For Hodgdon powder, the local price is $25/lb. Powder Valley cost is $19/lb. Therefore it would take about 4 lb of Hodgdon powder to break even if that's all I ordered.
For Alliant powders (a couple of my rifles are picky about that
) the local price is a whopping $29/lb. Powder Valley price is $19/lb. So just 3 lbs on an order means I have SAVED $5.Primers are about $5/1000 for CCI cheaper there. For Winchester primers it's about $10/1000 cheaper at PV.
The answer is it doesn't take much powder at all to buy from PV. Obviously, it saves more the bigger the order, so I always wait until I am nearing the end of my supply for one particular powder. Buying 20 lbs of powder and 5000 primers for my rifles is nice. My budget doesn't always permit that though.
For pistols, it's not as big a deal for me. I shoot revolvers only so I don't go through the ammo like some folks do. For some calibers I can get 1000 rds out of 1 lb of powder. But even my biggest rounds still yield about 350 rds out of a pound. It's a whole different ballgame for the rifles though where 1 lb of powder only gets you 100 shots.
- Status
