how much cheaper to reload

[jdeerhunter270]

How much cheaper is it to reload a 243 than buying factory ammo

[rcw280]

Its going to depend on how much you shoot. If its just a couple of time a year it will take a long time to break even, after buying all the equipment. But you can put together a number of different cominations of components like powder and brass primers to get the most out of you rifle. This is the reason I reload.

[Vapodog]

it varies of course.....but you can reload the .243 for up to half the cost of new shells.

[thndrchiken]

I don't feel that it is any cheaper, you get to shoot alot more for the same cost. Where the benefit comes in is tailoring a load to your gun and the ability to use bullets that may not be loaded in factory offerings.

[Briman]

You can load premium bullets for less than you can buy the cheapo rem corelokt loads at the local walmart.

Unfortunately there is a cost to reloading:
-Equipment to start with will set you back $100-200 depending on how involved you get.
-To really get cost savings, you need to buy the bullets in bulk- 500 to 1000 piece lots, which means you need to shoot more to justify the cost savings.
- You will shoot ALOT more, negating any savings that you originally intended.
-You will come to use some sort of convoluted logic with your significant other that if you shoot more, you will save more money (Its ok, Women use the same justification for shopping at sales time- saving money by spending money)
-To shoot more and save more money, you need to spend hundreds of dollars on bulk bullets and powder again, thereby starting the cycle over again.

If you are only planning on shooting 20-50 shots through a rifle a year, its hard to justify reloading, unless you are shooting a rare caliber that is difficult to find good factory ammo for.

My recommendation- buy a reloading manual and read it cover to cover. The Lyman, Speer, and Hornady manuals are really good. You will learn alot about what you are getting into and will learn alot about your rifle as well. If you like to tinker, and like to shot alot, go for it!

[halcon]

If all you are going to be reloading for is a 243 win and aren't looking for a custom ammo ,then it wouldn't be a good investment in my opinion . If you are looking for a hobby its priceless . You could get set up decently for as little as $100. and even quite a bit less if you know where to buy .

[corey006]

I have found that it is 60% cheaper to reload(depending on the life of brass)...but it does cost a fair bit to get a decent set of reloading equipment.

Don't kid yourself if you trying to save money. You do it cause you enjoy it and its your hobby. Not really saving money. It does encourage you to shoot more. For 44mag, you save money if you try to match plinking loads. If you try to load XTP's, you will save 50% maybe. If you buy laser cast in bulk with Unique loads, maybe 75%. For my 300RUM, I save considerable. I mean think about it. 18 dollars 50 200gr nosler PT. 50X100gr Retumbo loads=5000gr, lets say = 15 dollars. 2 dollars for primers. Thats around 35 dollars for 50 rounds. That would cost me 70 dollars factory and not near as accurate. So around 50% savings. But it would take me 4 hours labor. Bottom, line you got to enjoy and forget about the time.

[icthruu]

I started reloading a year ago to be able to shoot more for less money. Of course by the time that you buy all the equipment, powder, ect it may not really be all that much better. I reload for .30-06 and depending on what i am reloading for (practice or hunting) I can either load cheap components and save about half of the cost of factory ammo, or for hunting I can use premium bullets etc for about the same cost as the cheap factory ammo, and have a load tailored to my gun and needs.

[andy_o]

Unless you plan on shooting alot than its going to cost more. If you want better accuracy which most people do than it will be worth the money.