This has probably been asked many times, but I am wondering how people reload their own rounds, the general purpose, and how costly is it?
I have never reloaded, never seen it done, and (not afraid to admit either) have absolutely no clue how to do it to begin with.
Here's the firearms that I could see a need to reload, (weigh the cost of a new box of shells, versus reloading):
Marlin 30-30:(I love this old rifle, and can easily go through a box of Winchester 170gr silvertips or Remington Core-Lokt's like no tomorrow). Rounds are about $10 - $15 per box of 20.
Taurus .38sp snubby: All I have for this is a box of Federal Hydra-shok home defense rounds. Normally if I go to the handgun range, I just shoot semi-wadcutters at about 5-10 yards. Don't really know if it would be worth it to reload a .38sp snubby.
So anyway, for someone who's never reloaded, nor has any clue how to get started, what would be the first step?
The first step would be to buy a good reloading manual and read it, then reread it. There are several: Nosler, Sierra, Lyman, Hornady, etc... These will explain the basic steps and tools involved. Most reloaders I know own 2 or more reloading manuals. You can get these at a gun shop or online from various sources. Here's some online sources:
I started out reloading to save money. It didn't take long to realize I was actually spending more money, because I was shooting a lot more and I was buying the top notch equipment. But I do think it's worth it. It's fun and by carefully working up a load I can achieve a level of accuracy I can't get with factory ammo. There's a certain satisfaction you get when you take an animal with your own handloads that you don't get with store bought stuff.
one of the main reasons to reload is that you can get a load that is more consistant, and thereby more accurate than factory rounds. Also,if you like a certain bullet and the rifle doesnt seem to be as accurate as it should you can vary the powder charge and usually find an accurate combo for your rifle. The price factor is also a valid one, but usually you dopnt save any money, you shoot 3-5 times as many rounds. with my 6mm I can reload about 78 rounds for just over the price of 20 factory loads, but more importantly I CANT buy a similar round from the factories.
Reloading is kind of a fixed and variable cost equation. To answer your question in an extremely simple way, what is the variable cost of reloading "ONE MORE" box (group of 20) cartridges, here is a ballpark idea.
Primers - 1.7 cents per round (based on $1.70 per hundred)
Powder - 11 cents per round (based on 40 grains per cartridge, 7000 grains per lb, $19 per lb cost)
Bullet - 14 cents per round (this is a non-premium bullet $14.00 per hundred, and can easily get to as much as 80 cents per round if you chose a premium bullet)
Total - 27 cents per round, 20 rounds per box, that's about $5.40 a box.
The above ingredients are used up for each shot you fire, so they do not last beyond that cartridge.
For the first reload, add the cost of brass - maybe 15 cents a round. (also can vary from a low of about 5 cents a round to maybe 80 cents a round for larger, and less popular calibers). At the same time, many of the popular calibers can be picked up at the range, your cost being free.
For your fixed cost, you will need the equipment the do the process. If you put $500.00 in a jar, you would be able to buy more than what you will need for quite some time. Anything beyond that will be a "I would LIKE to have a ...." Once you have these items, you have them and they do not get used up (for the most part). Brass actually does not last forever, 3-10 loadings per case.
Now realistically, you could call this a hobby. Hobbies cost money. As a hobby, reloading is one of the least expensive hobbies I have. For example, I can not go to the bar and drink and have it cost me less than my reloading hobby. My fishing hobby costs me more than my reloading hobby. My woodworking hobby actually has a negative cost, since I sell some of the products I make. You will have to figure out how much you can spend on this "Hobby".
The cost is not the primers, powder and bullets. The cost is when your done. You have spent a full 6 months developing a recipe for your 30-30. You've loaded and fired maybe a 100-150 rounds getting the best combination of bullet, powder primer, and construction. You have reloaded 100 bullets for deer hunting, and now you have enough cartridges loaded to last 20 years because you only use 5 a year to sight-in and hunt your gun. So to continue your hobby, you need another gun to re-start the same process.
Does that help describe what you would be getting into?
Reloading can be as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be. More expensive equipment might mean faster production, or slightly more accurate ammunition. In prctical terms, though, there will be little difference between ammo produced on a $900 progressive press, and a $15 hand tool.
I would recommend a copy of Richard Lee's book, Modern Reloading. \Many folks will talk down to Lee products, but Richard Lee knows more about reloading than just about anyone alive, at this point.
Wow..... Thank you all for the replies. [8D] I didn't know reloading would be that cost efficient in terms of brand new boxes of shells versus the step-by-step reloading process. That is really great!
I would be interested in starting out simple, with a basic setup for only the 30-30, since that is what I would be reloading. I also have a Remington 870 12GA, besides the Taurus .38sp snubby, but probably would not reload them. I don't think you can reload a shotgun shell, can you?
Anyway, I saw the links posted above and checked them out. Thanks.... I also found RCBS on the internet and am amazed at how much stuff they have. I am going to get a book on reloading and see what it is all about first.
Yes Butch, you CAN reload shotgun shells.................but that involves TOTALLY different equipment than the pistol/rifle stuff and will cost just as much for it as well.
Actually, loading .38Spcl is a great way to start loading. They are easy & cheap to reload, the brass lasts practically forever since they aren't loaded that hot, and they use very little powder and cheap bulk cast bullets can be shot a LOT!!! That's how I got started and it was a breeze to expand my loading from there.
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well heres my take on this matter, KareImp did a very good job explaining this, but with one thing left out. These numbers are correct if you find the correct powder bullet primer combination on the first try. I cant tell you how many cans of powder and boxes of bullets I have bought that I dont intend to use. (usually I give or sell the remainder off cheap to a friend) But I do not reload to save money!!! I could go out and buy a box of 7mm rem mags at Cabelas for $25-30, go to the range a month before rifle season, shoot 3 shots, and say "she ready to go" and settle for groups that are anywhere from 1.5-3". Or doing it my way, I spend about 3 days a month at the range (sometimes more) testing new loads, trying new primers, tweeking my powder charges. I get the fun of hanging out with my reloading buddies at the range and when I kill something, It is very rewarding to know that YOU made the bullet.
My feeling is that you only save money uder certain conditions:
1. You want to shoot premium bullets and shoot more than 100 rounds per year.
2. You are shooting a foreign cartridge that either isn't made in America, isn't available in America, or is poorly loaded by American manufacturers.
3. You plan on shooting thousands if not tens of thousands of rounds per year.
For number 1, I reload 30-06 and .308 with siera Match kings for target/ competition purposes, I also reload the same cartridges with Nosler partitions for hunting. Buying match grade or premium bullet loads from factory ammo costs anywhere from $1-2 per round while I can handload them for about 1/2 the price.
For number 2- I reload 7.5x55, 6.5x55, 8x57, and 7.62x54R because the selection of factory ammo is either very limited or nonexistant.
3. This one will most often apply to handgun and shotgun cartridges. If you trap shoot and burn through 5,000+ rounds of ammo a year, you will save money by reloading. Same for pistol- if you shoot a magnum handgun or a caliber that you shoot in high volume, it makes sense to reload with a few exceptions- I simply cannot reload 9x19 for high volume shooting and beat the price of winchester value pac ammo, so I don't even bother with it. With the .45 auto, I get tremendous savings as I cast my own bullets so that the price of a loaded round ends up being <$0.05 a piece.
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"You won't save money by reloading, you'll just get a lot more shooting for the money you do spend".........
Added to that..........ammo that's much more accurate, and a love for the craft or hobby itself.
I've been handloading for over 30+ years, and I still love to go down and load ammo and cast bullets.....(sometimes it's just an excuse to get away from the wife & kids)
Curiosity (never reloaded, totally clueless)
. with my 6mm I can reload about 78 rounds for just over the price of 20 factory loads, but more importantly I CANT buy a similar round from the factories.
That's how I got started and it was a breeze to expand my loading from there.
