What Will I Need To Start Reloading .308/7.62x51 Ammo

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JohnnyFlake

JohnnyFlake

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I am, or have been, strictly a Handgun Ammo Re-loader, with the exception of a few matched lever gun rounds, .45 Colt & .454 Casull, I have never re-loaded any type of bottle neck cartridge. I have a Lee 3 Position Turret Press and a Heavy Duty Single Stage RSBS Press, with all kinds of dies. I have all kinds of large & small handgun primers, some small rifle primers, about 20lbs of various handgun powders and two brass tumblers.

What will I need to start reloading .308/7.62x51 ammo?

Suggestion from those who know, will be appreciated.
 
A reloading manual that explains every detail of reloading bottle necked cartridges.

A set of FL .308 dies.

Large rifle primers.

A suitable powder. 4895, RL15, 4064, and quite a few others of similar burn rate.

A way to trim cases.

A case gauge would be nice, but not essential.

A way to measure where the shoulder is at different stages is nice, but not essential.
 
Ill add the following.
An annealer, a wide variety of bullet components, brass if you don't have some, something to clean your brass, #34 primers if you're loading for an automatic rifle, case prep center or handheld tools to do the same, powder dispenser. There's lots you can get. I spent well over $10k on getting everything I need. Everything from benches, cabinets that lock, components, powders, Lapua brass, etc.
 
Okay Guys, some good info so far!

Walkalong - "a way to trim cases" Suggestions please, not super expensive please.

**** - "An annealer, a wide variety of bullet components, brass if you don't have some, something to clean your brass, #34 primers if you're loading for an automatic rifle, case prep center or handheld tools to do the same, powder dispenser."

I have several powder dispensers, I hope they will work. I am not sure what your referring to when you say "An annealer, a wide variety of bullet components" and "a case prep center or hand held tools to do the same"

OMG, I am already thinking this may not be for me. LOL!
 
No too big of a deal. Walkalong nailed it.

I too came from straight walled cartridge reloading.

Aside from the component differences (bullets, brass primes) The biggest difference you will see is the case prep stage. Check and trim OAL. Chamfer and debur case mouths.

Case trimmer - probably in the $80 range. Chamfer / debur - maybe $20 (if that).

Case Gauge maybe useful. What rifle are you reloading for?

Annealing - later on.
 
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Here's a vote for Lee's case trimming system. Inexpensive, and repeatable. Stick with the RCBS chamfer tool.
 
Some folks are making this seem harder than it really is (which is not very). Walkalong got it right, out of his list I don't even use case gauges. Anything outside of Walkalong's list may be nice to have, but not necessary to start. I used Lee trimmers for years, they are inexpensive and work fine. Lube, size, trim, prime, measure powder, seat bullet, bang.

You definitely don't need an annealer, but a copy of Lyman's 49th (or 50th if it's out) would be a good investment.
 
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You'll want to get an annealer, regardless. Weather it's an auto-annealer, or a simple blow torch. I imagine you're posing this question as a 'help a starter 308 reloader' because your main reason is to save money, correct? Money saving reloaders of the 308 are going to want to reload the case as often and safely as can be done. That said, you're going to get a lot more reloading opportunities from any given case, if you anneal your cases, than if you didn't anneal. There are a bunch of youtube vids out there that show how to anneal with a simple $7.00 blow torch. On the contrary, there are videos out there of very expensive annealers as well. Regardless, you're going to want to get an annealer. (read: blow torch, or an other auto annealer.)
 
Brass tacks....

You'll want to collect as much of the same kind and manufacturer of brass as possible. Then get (1) neck bushing for that specific neck (measure the neck of a loaded bullet and subtract 0.001" and get that bushing) Bushings are not cheap. They are about $20 w/shipping.

Or you can get a die set that includes three sizes of bushings:

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/79...n-bushing-3-die-neck-sizer-set-308-winchester

^this one I believe comes with the 32,34, and 36 size bushings.
 
An important question(s).

What are your goals, and what are you intending to shoot these reloads from?
 
Keep it simple, here are the basics to start with :
Dies
Shell-holder
Brass
Bullets
Primers
Powder
Case lube, important with steel dies and bottle neck cases.
Manual / Load data ...but you know that .

All the other stuff can come later, you might have most of it already. Use your rifles chamber as a gauge....it must fit your chamber not some gauge .
 
^this one I believe comes with the 32,34, and 36 size bushings.
Click to expand...

From the Midway link for that Redding die set:
(Bushings are sold separately)
Click to expand...


Thinking about this one?

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/81...neck-sizer-die-with-3-bushings-308-winchester

I have one, but chose to go FL sizer with bushings.

The bushings come in increments of .001.

Such as the ones that come with the Forster sizer I linked to (And show in the first pic)
Bushings included: 0.336", 0.334", 0.332"
Click to expand...

attachment.php


attachment.php


I also have the RCBS FL bushing style sizer because PSA put it on sale for like $27, but I haven't done anything with it yet.
 
An annealer is way down the road for a newbie getting started. Too many other more important things to worry with.
 
FL bushing sizers are nice (I have one on 6.5 CR that I like), but they also aren't a necessity for a beginner. I load .308 on a Lee die set (shellholder included) for a rifle that regularly turns in 0.5 moa groups. You can spend a fortune getting set up, but for most purposes, it's really not necessary. No point in scaring off the OP when a basic setup is probably all he needs.
 
The inexpensive Lee "doorknob" case trimmer works well and is about your cheapest option. It can always be modded later to work with a cordless drill to speed things up.

Other than that, dies and shell holder (a 45acp shell holder is the same size) case lube is important.
As far as dies? I've got Lee, RCBS and Hornaday. I like them all about equally.
I've been buying mostly Hornaday just because of their free bullet deal honestly. They all work equally well, one or the other may have a feature or two slightly different than another, specialty or higher end versions for spefic applications notwithstanding. A standard 2 or 3 piece set will be sufficient.
 
What is your intended loading/shooting volume and type of loads?

For a trimmer i love my L.E. wilson trimmer. It is a little expensive but it is incredibly accurate and is easy to do 50rds or less in a session. I upgraded to a drill chuck and that helped production while maintaining consistency



Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
 
And oh yea, I did start simple at least. :)

A set of FL .308 dies.

Large rifle primers.

A suitable powder. 4895, RL15, 4064, and quite a few others of similar burn rate.

A way to trim cases.
Click to expand...
 
Then there is the Lyman E-Zee Trim which works well and is pretty fast with a drill and trim dies which are inexpensive but a little more labor intensive.
 
I did some 7.62X39 cases with one last night. It works well with cases of the same headstamp, or that have the same thickness in the web area.

I made my own pilot for .458 Win Mag. (Pictured with a factory one for .45 Colt.)
attachment.php
 
WOW!

There is a ton of good information here guys. Thanks!

It's going to take me awhile to read and follow some links, to absorb this information.

I want to start up as cheaply as possible, to see if it's something I will really want to do. This is certainly more involved that straight wall cartridge loading.
 
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