Recommend my first rifle cartridge reloader

[wacki]

Looking for a reloading kit for my father. Any suggestions?

Right now he's looking at some $100 LEE reloading kit for his Mossin Nagant. We know surplus ammo is cheap but we are interested in picking up reloading rifle rounds as a hobby.

Also, any good suggestions for 7.62x54R brass?

 

[ls0n3]

i always suggest leee classic turret kit from kempf gun shop.

You can remove the index for a single stage like set up. I am pretty sure itll do all rifle calibers save for mybe 50 bmg

 

[MartinFA]

RCBS rock chucker press makes a good start. Avoid progressive presses when just starting out.

 

[bullseye308]

The Lee classic cast is the reccomended press, and Grafs is the place to get the brass.
http://www.grafs.com/product/194801

 

[rfwobbly]

Wacki -
Although a bit more pricey than the Lee Classic Turret, you might look at the Lyman T-Mag kit. Since you're starting out, you're going to need all the accessories and not just a press. The Lee is a good sturdy press, but the accessories, while adequate, are plastic and tend to be on the "iffy" side.

The Lyman press is also a single ram with a manually rotated turret. However the difference is in the accessories. The Lyman manual always gets rave reviews here. The Powder measure is top of the line. The case trimmer is one of the industry standards. The scale is a magnetically dampened Ohaus that goes up to 500gr. This is all top of the line stuff.

So it boils down to...
• how much do you can afford to spend on equipment
• how long you intend to keep the gear
• whether he wants to start simple and keep investing in equipment, or buy good quality gear at the outset

It's also important to remember not to blow the entire budget on the press kit, simply because no vendor offers a kit with all the equipment you'll need. There's still calipers and a lot of other "must have" tools.... besides the primers, brass, bullets and powder.

Hope this helps!

 

[jjohnson]

Reloadable Ammo

Just for fun, if you get the reloading gear for this cartridge, instead of buying new brass, you can just get factory ammo that's boxer primed, so you can see how it shoots with good new factory ammo.

You can buy fairly inexpensive ammo from PRVI for $14 (at Graf's) a box and that's reloadable. This is a pretty good deal if you subtract the price of 20 pieces of brass you'll have left over from shooting their ammo. The Wolf "Gold Line" ammo's brass is also reloadable.

 

[jim4065]

I would get the Lee Classic turret because by lifting out the rotation spindle you have an old style turret, suitable for batch loading, just like the Lyman. When you're ready to increase your production rate just pop the spindle back in and now you'll be able to process one round all the way through the reloading cycle without removing the case from the shell holder. It's the best of both worlds.

Pick and choose for the rest of your stuff. No manufacturer makes the best of everything, and you'll be able to save more money by buying a scale here, case trimmer there, etc. A big part of your cost savings comes from buying the components at the best price possible - which simply means comparison shop at Midway, Mid-South, Natchez Shooters Supply, Graf and Sons, etc. I wouldn't waste much time on ebay - that's a sellers market now (for reloading gear) and you'll frequently pay more than new list for used products.

 

[jem375]

RCBS Rock Chucker....

 

[ranger335v]

I've loaded for over 45 years. I use a Rock Chucker but I would buy a Lee Classic Cast single stage instead of another RC if the need arose. Better lever design, bigger, stronger frame, the spent primer catcher system actually works and it's all made in the USA. And it sells for much less money if that means anything to anyone. What's not to like?