Matt / PA

I' m not much of a rifle hunter.......but I enjoy shooting. I like the " do it yourself " aspect of outdoor sports as you can fine tune things exactly the way you need and want them, and many times you wind up with stuff that' s quite a bit better than factory..........I tie all my own flies for flyfishing,build arrows and do bow work for bowhunting, muzzleloading obviously you are forced to do it yourself etc.

I used to reload shotshells when I shot trap, but even that part of reloading is too far from my memory to be of any practical use for reloading centerfire ammo.

My main gun to reload for will be a new .30-06 I just purchased.......how much of an expense is it to get started the RIGHT WAY and what equipment will I need? Even powder recommendations will be welcomed. Is it even (other than the " Play factor" ) practical in the long run for the average hunter/casual shooter to bother with handloading?

Boy ,this is what the new bowhunter must feel like when he gets on the Bowhunting Forum and asks" Do I need right spin or left spin feathers?"

Maybe a simple rundown style list with approx prices would help me decide.

bigcountry

Gosh, its hard telling. You can get started for less than 100 dollars with a Lee setup or as much as 600dollars for topnotch RCBS setup. I started out thinking I just wanted to match factory accuracy and it turned out to be a disease that can' t be cured. Really depends on your budge.

I recommend the RockChucker setup. You need a set of calibers, and a primer brush. You can do this for 250 dollars. Sooner or later you will want to upgrade your scale, and your trimmer. You still need dies. Buy Full Length ones. RCBS are good, not great but good.

For powder the most popular for that 30-06 bolt is IMR4350.

ColoradoElk

I followed the advice of many here, and bought the Rockchucker Supreme setup and am very glad I did. It comes with just about everything you need and can be found for about $250. I bought it to primarily load .45-70 and .416. I " saved" enough on the 416 loads (100 rounds) the first time I handloaded to recover the entire cost of equipment vs factory loads at $80 per box.

Power

Depends on what you plan to reload. If you just have a .270 or 30-06 it' s not worth the time and money unless you just want another hobby or are very anal about accuracy (like me).

That being said, it' s a great hobby and I can' t seem to get enough of it. I have RCBS kit and I believe it is worth buying the better quality stuff as it lasts longer and is more precise. Cost with the RCBS Master Kit is going to be around $250 plus figure another $100 to get bullets, primers, powder, dies, shell-holders and misc. that is specific to your caliber. Just make sure to read the manual thouroghly. I really like the Nosler books and they are a great read to help you get started. The dies come with directions too so anyone can set them up right.

You' ll want to neck-size only all your fired brass, they last longer when you only neck-size. The rest you' ll pick up by talking to everyone here and reading around.

If you have more questions you can email me direct.

boltman

I' ll also chime in and recommend the RCBS kit. It' s got everything you need except calipers (they are a necessity) which can be had for $20 from midway. I might get howls for this, but for dies get the lee deluxe die set, it' s got a full length die, bullet seating die, and their excellent collet neck sizing die, plus you get the shell holder thrown in. I' ve got redding, RCBS, hornady, and a few other brands, the lee' s are just as good as any of them. Powders for the 30-06 are numerous. I like RL-15 the best, IMR 4064 is an old standby and IMR4350 works well also. Really, there are so many powders that work well for the 30-06 that you probably couldn' t list them all.

bearhuntr

I' m going to have to agree with Power on this. If you want another hobby, then go for it. 30-06 ammo is cheap just about everywhere and available no matter where you go.

Briman

30-06 is fairly cheap, but you can reload it for much cheaper than you can buy it if you are going to shoot alot. Reloading=cheap ammo=more shooting. I load only match ammo for my 30-06 right now but at considerable savings.

100 168gr Sierra Match kings =$20
100 Federal large rifle primers=$2
4750 gr or IMR 4064 =$11
total =$33

Federal 30-06 match loads =$20 per box of 20
100 rds of Federal match loads=$100

savings =$67

if you want to reload fro hunting loads, the figures will be fairly similar, except that you will use a few bucks more worth of powder and up to twice as much for the bullets, in any event, you will save a large amount of money IF you plan to shoot alot.


If you were going to put together a kitfor reloading here' s what I would suggestmost of these items can probably be found cheaper on Ebay)

-RCBS rockchucker press- around $100
-RCBS or Lyman powder scale: about $50
-RCBS deburring tool: $15
-If bolt action: Lee collet die set :$28 (has seating, neck, and Full length dies) or RCBS FL die set:$24
-If any other action type: RCBS SB die set :$24
-Lee case trimmer set (lockstud, cutter, and depth guage):$10
-reloading block:$5
-reloading manual $5-$60
-powder funnel:$5
You can probably go cheaper on the press, you can even get a Lee hand press set for 30-06 for under $20 that includes the dies and press, but you would only want to go this route if you are going to reload in low volumes.

I would like to say that the equipment will pay for itself, but it won' t. IF you get into the habit of shooting and reloading alot, you' ll end spending your so-called savings on more equipment, brass,and books. Other things you will eventually ' need' to pick up include: a quality dial caliper-$50, case tumbler-$50, OAL guage set=$60, 2 or 3 more reloading books sets $100+, powder thrower $50, bullet puller $20, extra dies sets for neck sizing $25, chronograph $150+, and there are ALOT of other neat gadgets out there that I haven' t listed.

Mykey

Warning.....it' s very addicting I got lucky when i started reloading because i had a friend who was getting out and sold me all his reloading equipment cheap. I' ve added some things since then because i have more calibers now. If i had to start from scratch i would go to one of the reloading suppliers and buy the rockchucker kit, i don' t think anyone would go wrong with that kit. Reloading is a great hobby and it' s very satisfying rolling your own and seeing just how accurate you can make a rifle shoot. It' s also very rewarding to harvest an animal with a bullet i tailor made for myself. Anyone who loads for the 30.06 will do well to have both imr4064/4350 in their reloading cabinet, i' ve had great success with both powders. When buying your equipment don' t forget the most important thing, a pair of safety glasses. God Bless! Mike

wimp

Everyone is going the expensive route. I have a lee anniversary kit, for I think $75, add dies $25, podwer, and components $50, a few other misc items $50. You can get all you need for $200. It will serve you well, and handle all that you need it to.

Power

Went to Wal-Mart last night and looked over their prices;

$275 RCBS Master Kit (most of the stuff you need)

$25 hand primer (pretty much a necessity-you can do it with the Rock Chucker but the hand primer is the ONLY way to go).

$25 dial-caliper (forgot the brand but it was nice stainless steel by the reloading stuff).

BTW, Wal-Mart also carries many guns, even some that they can order (Beretta, Remington, Weatherby, etc.) I' m not a W-M pimp, just happened to be there last night talking to the Sporting Goods guy and he is a gun nut too.