Now that "the long run" is here...

[ChCx2744]

I have a preponderance I would like to sort out about whether I should start reloading 9mm or just buying it...I remember when the Obama panic happened and 9mm was nowhere...Either that or the markup on what WAS in stock was outrageously high. Now the shelves of my local wally world are beginning to have the Federal red box, WWB and BB. The Federal and BB are about $9.75 a box of 50. Have the prices of dies, primers, powder and bullets also gone down? How about the availability of the aforementioned items? I am definitely interested in reloading as a hobby, to have reserves AND to save money, but I live in an apartment on the second story...I don't know if my carpeted floor will be leveled/sturdy enough for reloading...Opinions needed, thanks!

BTW I just realized that this was posted in the wrong forum and was moved to the correct one...Thanks mods and sorry about that, heh.

 

[Wadero]

Start reloading. Even if the price of components is high you will still be better off! Stock up on reasonably priced components and you will be set for the next scare.

 

[Rollis R. Karvellis]

I'm in the mindset of being able to reload everything I, own including 9mm and 44mag., I, only shoot my 1980's era 29 about 100 rounds a year, but can start cranking out loads anytime I, want. Even though I, will start reloading for 9mm and I, slowly putting up conponints for it, I, by factory now. You can have a press, scale, and die's for about $100-150, and buy you conponints, little by little, and when Obama rears his ugly head again you will be prepared. Remimber hoarding is good especelly when everbody else isn't.

 

[xanderzuk]

Rollis: Where can you get a press and dies and everything for $100-150? I'd love to get into reloading but it seems like its $500 for a press.

 

[CoRoMo]

The last time I made the trip to the nearest Sportsman's Warehouse, the reloading aisle was stocked with primers of every brand and type. they even had good defense ammo in stock. I remember when 1,000 rifle primers were about $21.99, but now they are up around $35, so hopefully the price will change as the supply accumulates.

 

[sailsail]

xanderzuk

I got a decent reloading kit from lee for $40.00 the dies are about $25.00 a set.
Don't get the handheld one, go ahead and get the one that you can bolt to your table.

http://www.midwayusa.com/viewproduct/?productnumber=121744

 

[M2 Carbine]

As a rule of thumb, reloads, on your brass, cost about half of what factory ammo costs.
I started reloading in 1962 because I couldn't afford store bought ammo. I still continue reloading because I refuse to pay the high cost of store bought ammo. I shoot a LOT.

All through this ammo shortage I have had a almost unlimited supply of reloads at $2.50 to $4.00 a box.
I just loaded about a thousand .380, .223 and 38 Special.

I don't especially like to reload. I mostly reload during the times I have nothing else to do, so I'm not reloading when I could be doing something else. Even at that, I can easily load a thousand rounds a weeK.

Without a doubt, reloading has been one of the smarter things I've done in my life.

What ammo shortage?

 

[bullseye308]

xanderzuk Rollis: Where can you get a press and dies and everything for $100-150? I'd love to get into reloading but it seems like its $500 for a press.

You can get a Lee setup easil for that price with everyting you need to start reloading. Dilligence, frugality, cheapa$$edness, and some luck and you can get some components, enough to start loading even for that price.

Here is your long term goal: You will not load ammo to save money, you will load ammo to be more accurate, and also to have some on hand whenever you want. You will also buy(barter, beg, "borrow") in bulk to ensure bunches of components on hand to get you through shortages.


ChCx2744, if you are in a position to afford factory, then you might be best served by shopping around and buying a press, scale, dies, etc as you find them on sale or can trade for them, however you can get them(or just order them). If the time comes that you need to get into reloading, that will not be the time to be looking for stuff to buy. That will be the time to dust it off and ask about how to use it and the components you have on hand.
Or, you could just buy it all now and get started slowly as an additional hobby and get ramped up for a time when want to add in more calibers that you can see a bigger savings on.

 

[ambidextrous1]

If you have a bit of spare time and aren't intimidated by machines, I strongly recommend reloading. It will turn into a new and satisfying project (hobby?) for you.

Aside from that, you'll be loading better ammunition than you can buy, and at a considerable saving.

Until recently, .380 ammunition was unobtainable; but I didn't run dry, because I had all the components I needed to "roll my own".

Reloading isn't dangerous, if you're careful and knowledgeable. You should start by buying a couple of reloading manuals (the more, the better), and read their description of the reloading process. The manuals also contain extensive caliber-specific reloading data. Help & advice are also available on this & other forums.

 

[doubleh]

When 9mm was $5.50 a box I didn't mess with reloading. When it just disappeared I started reloading. All I had to buy was a set of dies. Now that I can find it for $10.50 a box I still save money reloading even with the cost of components.

Lee can put you in business with a Press and dies for less than $100. You will still need some other stuff like a good scale and that will put you above the hundred bucks.

 

[RandyP]

You can well expect that asking on a reloading forum if you should reload will get you a lot of positive responses - lol

That said you can set yourself up with a very good Lee single stage or turret press with dies, a tumbler, caliper etc. for 'about' $200-$250. Other brands do cost more and are excellent machines too.

Heck for about $30 you can buy the famous Lee Loader (whack it with a mallet) and just need components to make safe, reliable and accurate ammo in a variety of calibers.

I started reloading just before the election after 4 decades of buying factory made. I enjoy it as a hobby.. I don't save any money, just shoot more for the same cash outlay.

 

[Marlin 45 carbine]

if you have or plan to buy a 9mm Carbine then handloading may be the best way to get top performance ammo - the 'premium' rounds are expensive.
buy the cheap stuff for plinking and load the hulls with good powder and slugs such as Rem's Golden Saber.

 

[ranger335v]

"I'd love to get into reloading but it seems like its $500 for a press."

You been pointed in the wrong direction. Lee's tiny bench press, the "Reloader" is strong enough to handle AT least 7mm Mag, it's far stronger than needed for any handgun round and runs around $35 when I last bought one and that included a very good reloading manual too.

Of course it won't last as long as a honking big cast iron press, but if you keep the ram sorta clean and lightly oiled it should last for at least a quarter million rounds, by then you MIGHT want to buy a new $35 press!

Lee's little "Perfect" powder measure and "Safety Scale" aren't impressive to look at but they sure work fine. So do the Lee die sets and they include a "free" shell holder that would cost you another $8-9 from other makers.

Get all that and try reloading for a few years, you may well be entirely satisified. If not, you will have the experience/knowledge to make your own decisions of what you want. And the original stuff won't go to waste, you will still find occasional uses for all of it.

 

[owlhoot]

If you do or intend to do a lot of shooting, go ahead and spend the $500+. for a good progressive press and accessories. You can expect to crank out 1000 rounds in an evening without breaking a sweat.

A single stage press such as those suggested is good if you intend to just shoot a little bit or if your objective is to tailor rifle rounds for very precise shooting. But consider this, if you place a dollar value on your time, say ten bucks an hour, you would be much better off buying your ammo at $10 per box than loading it on a single stage press. You will be hard pressed to load more than 50 rounds per hour on a single stage. So you have to place zero value on your time in order to come out ahead.

However, on a good progressive press you can load 400 per hour. Now you are saving some serious money. But, if you don't shoot often, it is difficult to justify the initial investment.

But if you approach reloading as a hobby in itself. That changes the equation. And reloading is a very relaxing activity. In this case, you don't place a dollar value on your time anymore than you would if you were shooting hoops or taking a walk. With this approach there is nothing wrong with going cheap with an inexpensive single stage press. But if I did that I would be at the loading bench three or four nights a week. I don't think my wife would approve of that in the first place and in the second place, an enjoyable hobby would become a chore.

 

[Rollis R. Karvellis]

I, can't add much more then already has been said. The Lee C press goe's for about $30.00, a set of RCBS dies for about $45.00, and the Lee safety scale isn't all that expancive. After using the Safety Scale, you will be willing to sell the house and kid's for a better one.

 

[Sapper771]

I just recently started reloading 9mm and it is worth it. It is rather easy to load and there is plenty of data floating around to use as reference.
I am reloading using a Hornady LnL AP press. I can usually churn out 200 rounds in under 30 minutes(not including prep time or spot checks).
My cost for reloading premium 115gr FMJs is under $7 a box. Still cheaper than Wal-mart WWB or Red Box, and a lot cleaner, more consistent, and more accurate. Yeah, I am only saving $3 a box, but the ammo that I am cooking up is better, and I don't have to worry about going to wal-mart and them not having any in stock. I can shoot when I want, and I am not a slave to supply vs demand when it comes to ammo.
If you decide to use lead, you can save even more money.

 

[Alabama2010]

Rollis: Where can you get a press and dies and everything for $100-150? I'd love to get into reloading but it seems like its $500 for a press.

Lee Handpress- $30
Lee 45 ACP carbide die set - $26
The other necessities, bought from Lee, will see you in the 100-150 range. It's an accurate set-up, and more importantly, it's safe.

I buy once fired cases and also scrounge them at the range. I buy lead SWC from a local company. AA No 5 and primers....It's way cheaper than buying even bottom shelf commercial ammo.

 

[MachIVshooter]

I'd love to get into reloading but it seems like its $500 for a press."

$500 would get you a full RCBS rockchucker single stage kit ($320), plus a small tumbler ($50), digital calipers ($25) and 2 or 3 die sets ($25-$40 ea). The RCBS turret kit (manual indexing and case charging with primer tube) is another $80.

You don't need a progressive press, unless you wanna churn out large quantities in short timeframes. But remember, there's set-up time. If you're like me, and will sit down to load 100 rounds of this, and 50 rounds of that and 50 rounds of yet another, it's actually slower with a progressive. OTOH, if you wanna crank out 1,000 rounds of 9mm range ammo in an evening, you'll want a progressive. Never hurts to have both, either.

The RCBS progressive is over $500, though. Dillon and Lee are less.

 

[mongoose33]

With my most recent purchase of smallballs I'm reloading 9mm for under 10 cents a round.

I can't buy it, including tax, for less than 20 cents per round.

I can reload 300 rounds an hour at a leisurely pace; I save 10 cents per round. It's like having a part-time job that essentially pays me $30 per hour, plus I like the peace of reloading, I find it relaxing, I make better ammo than I can buy, I'm not subject to supply shortages, and I'm set in any SHTF scenario.

Other than that, it has no value to me.