Example of 204 ruger, INCLUDING buying new brass, loading the new brass 10 times and throwing away....
If you shoot 5000 rounds in a year, you will have saved enough money to purchase ALL of the components consumed and purchase ALL of the reloading equipment....you will save, on 5000 rounds (375x5= $1725 to $700x5= $3500!!!)
My reloaded 204 rounds costs:
Bullet ($33/250 count) 0.13
Powder ($135/8lbs) 0.07
Primer ($23/1000) 0.03
case (use 10 times, $17/100) 0.02
Twenty five cents per round....or $5 per box of 20 ....or $25/100....or...$250/1000 rounds.
For reference...check Cabela's website. Prices range from 124.99 to 189.99 per 200 rounds. So...$625/1000 to $950/1000 (plus shipping). Hmmm...$375 to $700 to spend on components and reloading equipment....on your FIRST 1000 rounds. Same amount on the second 1000. (note...do NOT try this logic on your wife....you will be buying SHOES or EARINGS or SOME GOOD SMELLY STUFF instead).
Bottom line...saving $1725 to $3000 is some serious cash. I load approximately 5K rounds per year, total, of various calibers. Some are cheaper to reload for, some are more expensive. I load for ACCURACY and the cost savings. There is no way that I could afford to purchase 2000 rounds of 204 per year...let alone rounds for my 357 mag, 44 mag, 17 Remington, 223, 243, 6.5x55, 270, & 7.5x55.
Thursday afternoon, as witnessed by my prairie dog hunting partner, I shot two different prairie dogs, on two different mounds, at 445 yards, one after the other. Yes, it cost me 50 cents, but it was worth it. Had it been store bought ammo, the cost would have been close to a dollar per shot.
If you shoot 5000 rounds in a year, you will have saved enough money to purchase ALL of the components consumed and purchase ALL of the reloading equipment....you will save, on 5000 rounds (375x5= $1725 to $700x5= $3500!!!)
My reloaded 204 rounds costs:
Bullet ($33/250 count) 0.13
Powder ($135/8lbs) 0.07
Primer ($23/1000) 0.03
case (use 10 times, $17/100) 0.02
Twenty five cents per round....or $5 per box of 20 ....or $25/100....or...$250/1000 rounds.
For reference...check Cabela's website. Prices range from 124.99 to 189.99 per 200 rounds. So...$625/1000 to $950/1000 (plus shipping). Hmmm...$375 to $700 to spend on components and reloading equipment....on your FIRST 1000 rounds. Same amount on the second 1000. (note...do NOT try this logic on your wife....you will be buying SHOES or EARINGS or SOME GOOD SMELLY STUFF instead).
Bottom line...saving $1725 to $3000 is some serious cash. I load approximately 5K rounds per year, total, of various calibers. Some are cheaper to reload for, some are more expensive. I load for ACCURACY and the cost savings. There is no way that I could afford to purchase 2000 rounds of 204 per year...let alone rounds for my 357 mag, 44 mag, 17 Remington, 223, 243, 6.5x55, 270, & 7.5x55.
Thursday afternoon, as witnessed by my prairie dog hunting partner, I shot two different prairie dogs, on two different mounds, at 445 yards, one after the other. Yes, it cost me 50 cents, but it was worth it. Had it been store bought ammo, the cost would have been close to a dollar per shot.