What do you think the shipping charges on this mess will be?

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au_prospector

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Might be pocket change for some of you, but to me its a lot of money already. Heard some good things about "Powder Valley" and thought I would give it a go. As I was building my order, I figure I should make it worth while to save on the Hazmat fee. Then I started adding bullets. I placed the order, but they dont give the shipping charges right away. I took a second look and am now worried all that weight from the lead is going to kill me in shipping. Anyone know about Powder Valley shipping? I am hoping for reasonable. :(



1 ALL2400-04 * ALLIANT 2400 - 4 LB. 58.50 58.50
1 ALLUNI-08 * ALLIANT UNIQUE - 8 LB. 103.90 103.90
1 WINW209 * WIN #209 SHOTSHELL PRIMERS (1000) 27.95 27.95
1 WINWLR * WIN LARGE RIFLE PRIMERS (1000) 26.00 26.00
1 WINWSPM * WIN SMALL PISTOL MAG PRIMERS (1000) 26.00 26.00
1 WINWLP * WIN LARGE PISTOL PRIMERS (1000) 26.00 26.00
2 IMR3031-01 * IMR 3031 - 1 LB. 19.95 39.90
1 ME-CORN05 Ground Corn Cob - Plain - 5 LB. 4.50 4.50
1 ME-PLNCO05 Crushed Walnut - Plain (coarse) - 5 LB. 6.00 6.00
1 HOR050009 HORNADY CASE SIZING LUBE 3.15 3.15
1 BRY58299 BERRYS 45-70 350 GR RS (150) 39.55 39.55
1 BRY83330 BERRYS .38/357 (.357) 158 GR HP (250) 26.97 26.97
1 WB762MC147100 .308 147 FMJ / C / BT per 100 22.70 22.70
1 BRY00208 BERRYS .44 (.429) 240 GR HP-DS (500) 67.79 67.79
1 HOR451771 HORNADY 45 CAL .451 230 GR FMJ-RN (500) 87.68 87.68
2 HOR45230 HORNADY 45 CAL .452 300 GR HP/XTP (50) 14.65 29.30

Subtotal 595.89
Insurance 2.50
Additional Hazardous Material Shipping Charge 27.50
 
I haven't ordered bullets from them in some time but I seem to recall them using a USPS flat rate box for those. Most all of the bullets will fit in a single large flat rate though they might have to break it up for weight reasons. That's good actually, because the two pack of tumbling media are bulky but not heavy and almost fill a flat-rate by themselves. The primers will be a third box and the powder a fourth.

Rest assured though that PV will not gouge you on shipping like some other places do.
 
I once had an email that outlined their shipping prices. It was similar to the way cabelas figured shipping. It was based on the order total and not the actual weight. I once ordered powder, primers, and two thousand bullets from them. The best I can remember the shipping was around 16.00. You call call them and they will give you a quote on the shipping charge. I have gotten orders from them with bullets, powder, and primers all in the same box.
 
I have never bought bullets from them. When I bought 50,000 primers ( 70 pounds & one hazmat ) the shipping was $27 but that was a couple of years ago. Your order should be split. One should be powder and primers and the other the rest of what you ordered.
 
Look at the PVI home page, scroll down and you'll find how they calculate and set shipping charges. Generally based on purchase price, with Hazmat and heavy material adjustments. They suggest you call them for assistance.
 
Thank you John, based on my subtotal of 595.89 looks like I will pay $15.95.

Worth every penny!

Oneounceload, thanks for the tip. Did not register that pet stores would sell crushed corncob and walnut as bedding for small animals. Will check it out!
 
Yeah, that shipping charge looks just about right unless they add a weight adjustment. (but that won't be too much) You are correct ordering bulk to spread out the hazmat charges. Ordering 24 lbs of powder and 4000 primers does make it sting a little less. I think I would have ordered a few more boxes of primers to go with all that powder because you are already paying the hazmat fee but that's just a thought.

Which powder are you going to use the SP magnum primers with? Neither 2400 or Unique should be used with a magnum primer.

BTW, you mentioned some may look at this as "pocket change". Well, no one I know considers over $600 pocket change by any stretch of the imagination. That's a lot of money for almost anyone.
 
Oneounceload, thanks for the tip. Did not register that pet stores would sell crushed corncob and walnut as bedding for small animals. Will check it out!
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I found the pet store walnut to work fine. Be careful with the corn cob, I found it to be too big for cleaning rifle cases but may work fine with pistol. I bought some 14/20 blasting cob from Grainger that works great.
 
Which powder are you going to use the SP magnum primers with? Neither 2400 or Unique should be used with a magnum primer.
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This will be my first time loading .357 magnum. My Lyman manual calls for several recipes of small pistol magnum primers with 2400 powder.

I have a couple hundred 125 grain JHP I planned on mating with 14 grains of 2400 and the magnum primers. Is that not a good start to my .357 career?:confused:
 
I also like to get my orders from PV right around $500-$600 as that seems the most economical way to get bulk orders from them. At that price the Haz Mat is almost a non issue. I usually only get Haz Mat items from them and get my bullets/brass elsewhere. I also find there shipping prices are quite reasonable for what I order.:cool:
 
PV has always been very fair on shipping prices. my last order was three pounds of powder, 5k primers and 1k 125gr bullets and it was only $12 in shipping. also, my favorite 357 mag load is 7.5 grains win231(well, actually HP-38 because its same exact thing but only $16) with a berrys 125 grain copper plated. quick little accurate load and I havent had a case split in over a thousand loads. easy extraction as well.

also, dont be hesitant to try tulammo primers. I was at first, but having fired 5k, I wont look back. that $6,7,8 saved can be spent elsewhere.
 
Love Powder Valley. They're one of the few that ship primers and powder together. They might even price match too. Last time I ordered from them, I found a few friends and we all split ONE hazmat fee.

Good store.
 
I have always found them to be fair with shipping costs. You can call them and get an estimate. It should all ship together saving some on the cost.
 
I just don't know if they'll ship the primers with the powder not sure but I'm sure they'll let you know and they'll usually tell you the best way to buy from them,for your benefit. OH is it Christmas already ?? with a list like that,it would be for me :D
 
I have always been happy with their shipping charges, but I have never ordered that much from them.
 
My last order was 10K primers & 6lbs of powder.
Came to $266.40 subtotal, shipping was $13.95, $27.50 Hazmat & $1.00 insurance.
Grand Total was $308.85
 
au_prospector said:
This will be my first time loading .357 magnum. My Lyman manual calls for several recipes of small pistol magnum primers with 2400 powder.

I have a couple hundred 125 grain JHP I planned on mating with 14 grains of 2400 and the magnum primers. Is that not a good start to my .357 career?:confused:
Click to expand...
While it's usually a good idea to follow the recipe in the load manual 2400 is known to perform much better with a standard primer. Also, using a magnum primer with 2400 can cause pressure spikes. I use standard CCI or Winchester SPP with 2400 and I'm not alone. Most reloaders know to use a standard primer with 2400 and save the magnum primer for hard to ignite ball powders like HS-6, HS-7, W296/H110.
 
Love Powder Valley. They're one of the few that ship primers and powder together
Click to expand...

Everyone EXCEPT Midway does this, and Midway doesn't because they have the powder drop shipped from Powder Valley - thus hitting you up for two hazmat charges
 
no one I know considers over $600 pocket change
Click to expand...

It's not pocket change, but it doesn't take long to go through $600 worth of components.

I should just go back to shooting factory ammo a couple of times per year. :)

-J
 
Update

Received my shipment yesterday. Overall I am very happy with what I received. Two weeks on delivery was a little long, but I guess they might be busy this time of year and post election.

They double charged me on the shipping. $15.95 times two. I called them on it and they said it was because they had to divide the order between two boxes on a count of the heavy bullets I purchased. So readers beware if you order a bunch of primers/powder AND a bunch of lead from Powder Valley they are likely to split the order between multiple boxes due to weight and charge shipping times the number of boxes. This is NOT stated on their shipping information disclosure on the website. :cuss:
 
From PV:

We will ship via the best method to save you money. Shipping will be calculated and added to your order. Our typical shipping charges are based on the subtotal of your order. Subtotal <$150.00, shipping $9.95; <$300.00, $13.95; <$600.00, $15.95; >$600, $19.95. Please use this as a guide only.

******
I have placed many an order with PV. I run group buys locally and we do HazMat only because we called to confirm pricing if we added large amounts of bullets and they indicated an additional shipping charge. Bullets are always done as a separate group buy.

I understand your frustration, but they DO indicate that the tiered pricing is a guideline and not a rule.
 
I love powder valley. I always combine orders with fellow loaders. This way you can split the shipping and haz mat charges. Although I always end up being the one to order and initially paying for it but I trust the ones that order with me.

On our last order we beat local and gun show prices by a lot. However, I order only primers and powder from them, never looked at bullets due to weight and free shipping from both Berry's and Montana gold.

Either way, powder valley is a good deal and I hope they stick around for a long time

Disclaimer-this is my opinion and yours may vary.
 
My post above makes like I was more upset than I really was. After receiving the boxes, I can understand why they charged for shipping x2.

I would certainly do it all over again. Since Powder Valley is out of everything and not accepting backorders, looks like I timed it right. (Sadly I could use some more .357 bullets and I would like to start loading 9mm)

Thank you everyone for the input. Powder Valley is good!
 
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