Reloading Q from a wanna be beginner

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qman2

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With the prices of ammo, I've been thinking of re-loading for a while. That and everyone keeps telling me I should.

I haven't looked into it much but I ran across a guy who's selling all his stuff for $350. He tells me he has everything in this RCBS Rock Chucker Supreme Reloading Kit kit plus more (a couple hundred bucks more he says):

http://www.gamaliel.com/cart/product.php?productid=1314

He's also including this rifle rest:

http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/s...1_19752_425005004_425000000_425005000_425-5-4

I don't know much about equipment and I know questions like this are kinda open ended but what do y'all think about this price for used reloading equipment?
 
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I'd compare his stuff to the prices at some big retailers like Cabelas & Midway & then check the condition. If it's what you want then work out a price. Reloading stuff seems to still be selling well.
 
RCBS, virtually has a lifetime warranty on their stuff and it's tough as boar meat. Without knowing exactly what extras he has, it's hard to tell how good a deal he's giving you. Without knowing what you are reloading for and how much ammo you will be loading, it's also hard to tell if this is the right set-up for you. If he has RCBS dies and shellholders for you calibers, they are worth about $30-$40 a set. The more dies he throws in, the better the deal. I use a Rockchucker Supreme and load approximately 500 rounds a month for various rifles and handguns. It works well and produces very good ammo. Being a single stage, it works very well for rifle calibers and also does handgun ammo well, but it's not a high production press for handguns like a turrent or progressive. I have yet to move up to a progressive yet because of the number of rounds I shoot a month, the prohibitive cost and the fact that I like the reloading process. If you expect to be pumping out 1000 rounds a month in three hours time, you best be thinkin' in a different direction. If your situation is like mine, you'll be quite happy. Besides, if you ever decide to move up, resale values of RCBS equipment is quite good or you can always keep it for a backup or a dedicated bottleneck case reloader.
 
Thanks guys.

He's including one set of dies for a .308. I don't shoot a .308. I shoot 7mm Rem Mag, .270 Win, 30-06, and a .243 WSSM (shortened .308 brass necked down).

I don't shoot much and will definitely not be loading thousands per month. Maybe a few hundred a year. The main reason I want to do this is cuz I now have 3 kids that hunt and if I have to buy 4 boxes of rounds we're talking about a hundred bucks. When I was big game hunting myself a box would last me a couple years. I maybe fire one or two pre-season to make sure I'm still sighted in and then a couple more during season if I'm lucky. With the kids I want to have them shoot a lot over the upcoming months and years to make sure they're good and safe. I'm figuring that over the years I'll get my $350 back since I'm pretty sure prices of ammo isn't gonna go down.

But I will have to buy my own dies.

BTW, nice sig buck.
 
Gman2
You sound like more of a hunter than a shooter. If you only need a hundred dollars worth of ammo a year, I'm not sure reloading is the financially smart thing to do. By the time you have all the dies and powders that you'll need, you will have spent several hundred dollars. Reloading is really more for people who want to fire hundreds, or even thousands of rounds per year.
 
Like some of the other above have said, it depends on what is included with the package as to if it is a good deal. RCBS is good stuff. A set of 308 Win Dies from Midway is $29.00. Price what he has against the prices at Midway, then you'll know.

The cost of a few boxes of .243 WSSM & 7mm Mags will go a long ways towards the cost of a reloading system. Of the five calibers you list they are the most expensive, the .308, 30/06 & 270 are reasonable. All of them can be reloaded for basically for the same cost except the additional powder cost for the larger rounds.

By the way the .243 WSSM is based on the Winchester Short Magnum case not on the .308 winchester, the .243 Winchester is based on the .308 Winchester case necked down.

Jimmy K
 
People reload for different reasons. For some it's a financial benefit, especially if they shoot in volume. Others enjoy the process of creating a generally superior product to something off the shelf. I think for most though, it's both.

Action Can Do has a point. If one shoots a few hundred rounds a year it will cost as much or more to get setup even with a low cost single stage & equipment that can be saved initially. If you look at it as an investment over 10 or 20 years, then things change.

Even if I didn't save a dime on reloading, I would still do it simply because I enjoy it. I'm sure there are a lot of others on this board who feel the same.
 
Buying ammo off the shelf I pay anywhere between a buck to two bucks per round. When hunting myself, a single 20 round box of Winchester SuperX lasted me 3-4 years. Mostly cuz I always seemed to slack when the game and I would cross tracks and I'd not get off a shot. Not this past season. I just missed the trifecta (pronghorn, deer, and elk). I missed my opportunity on the deer 5 minutes into opening morning. Sumbich was 350 out on the side of a bald hill so I moved closer. The sun was coming up so everything was orange. At first I thought it was a cow elk but upon moving to within 250, I saw it was a buck (had licenses for both.) Scoped it with my binocs, put them down and raised my gun and he was gone. I'm not kidding. That bstrd just vanished from dead center of a 700 yd high bald hill. I boogied up that hill as quickly as I could and there was nothing there. But I digress.

Anyway, this was my first pronghorn season and my shots were long or running. Couldn't get close initially so I took two reaaaal long shots that fell well short. Finally brought one down with two shots on the run. Same with elk. Took me 5 rounds to get one on the run.

I didn't realize the long stock length on the .243 WSSM I picked up for my 12 year old would affect his shooting so badly. He blew through two boxes of $35/box rounds before I realized the problem.

Sorry about the long story guys but I guess I'm just trying to show how easy it is to blow through a hundred bucks in a couple weeks. Ya, I know it won't be like that every year but in all honesty, I'd like to get my kids out shooting a lot. Maybe a thousand rounds each (x3 kids) per year.

Anyway, I was just wondering if the price of that kit was worth it. What would any one of you give (or ask) for a used RCBS Rockchucker Supreme kit that retails for $350?

And another thing.

How much is it costing you per round to reload it yourself.

BTW, thanks for everyone's inputs.
 
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Your reloading price per round will vary. Depends on prices of and quality of components. Buying in bulk will also save some. Read the posts above(top of page) on what you need to start reloading, then compare the price offered and what you can get it for from say Cabellas or Midway USA. You should do a little research and compare prices. BTW I usually only pay half price for used equip. These days the prices tend to go a little higher and I don't buy, I don't need it right now though and can wait for a better deal to show up.
 
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I don't shoot much and will definitely not be loading thousands per month. Maybe a few hundred a year.
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If you get the reloading bug you will likely shoot a whole lot more then you do now. There is always that elusive "Perfect" round that we all seek.
 
Bought the kit. It came with everything in that Rockchucker kit (retail $300-350), the gun rest (retail $100) a set of .308 dies ($30-40?) and a few other items that seem to each retail for around $50. So when I add it up it seems like around $500-600 worth of equipment at retail prices. I paid $300. I guess that's OK.

BTW, anyone want to trade a set of .308 dies for 7mm, 30-06, .270 Win, or .243 WSSM?
 
qman2 - Sounds like you got a good deal and your pleased with it. Good luck on your reloading, If you enjoy it half as much as many of us do, then you'll have a hobby for life.
BTW - I have the same kit you do and even though I don't use it much anymore since picking up a LnL AP, the Rockchucker is built like a T-34 tank and will last almost forever. My RC kit came with the 505 scale which is great and I prefer it over my digital scale.
 
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