is reloading cheaper??
 

I'm considering getting into reloading and was wondering how much money if any is actually saved by reloading instead of buying ammunition at the store

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Short term....not cheaper. Long term....not cheaper because you can load for less but you will end up shooting more. :D

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Well, if you like to shoot but dont because you cannot afford to because of ammo prices then its cheaper. But the initial investment is pricey and it will take you some time to recoup your investment. If you want to try out reloading on the cheap, look into the Classic Lee Loader in your particular caliber you wish to reload. You can get a brand new kit for around $15 and it will have everything that you need tool wise minus a rubber mallet to get started reloading. You will then want to pick up some empty brass if you havent been saving yours and some primers, and powder and bullets. You will be into it about $50-$60 depending on where you buy at and what brand you buy. This is how I got started and it is a fun hobby and I have shot a lot more than I would have at $25-$30 per box of .270 rounds and I have since bought a 30-30 loader, and a .44 magnum loader. I have loaded a few hundred rounds for what I would have spent on 60-80 rounds of factroy ammo. You can figure once you are set up it will cost you .03 per primer, .20 per bullet and $20 per pound of powder and anywhere from 70-200 rounds per pound, depending greatly on what you are reloading. Those are the inflated prices from the local gunsmith too, so you can save more $$$ by shopping around. I am hoping that I get a reloading press for Xmas to make it even easier to reload.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

No!

Reloaders use math to justify reloading in a money saving sense, but it never works out that way. You usually start out by calculating that you need to reload 800 of xy-caliber to break even on the price of a press, dies, and otehr equipment. Problem is that after loading that number of rounds or a multiple of it, you decide you can now justify a $500 progressive setup so that you can really crank out the rounds. Along the way, you buy expensivetools that make the job easier- tumblers, chronographs, various case guages, better scales, competition dies, etc, etc. Pretty soon you are into $1000+ in reloadign equipment, and another 1000+ in components. All the while instead of shooting a 1/2 box of factory loads per range session, you start shooting 75-100 rounds at a time- all in the name of saving money. Then one day you are browsing the local gun shop and see a used rifle on the rack that is chambered in .264 Norma UltraThundercatMegavelocity Ackley Improved Magnumand you know that you can make cartridges for it if you buy a bit more equipment, you want to be the first guy on the block to have a .264 NUTMAIM- just because you can.

If you really want to lose a lot of money by trying to save it, start casting bullets. For about $400 you can get a good setup and start casting away. Then you'll decide that you want to try different moulds at $50 a piece, and maybe a 1/2 dozen new powders at $20/lb. If you consider how much time it takes to cast bullets, and if time is worth anything to you, buying bullets from a store with jackets made of 24ct gold might actually be cheaper.

Its a worthwhile hobby, but don't fool yourself about saving any money- save the money saving calculations and estimates to propose to your significant other on why you need a fully automated progressive reloading system:D

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

As true as all that is, you can save money if you stick to your guns and reload to do so. Now, if you are like Briman and turn reloading into an obsessive compulsive hobby then you may as well go to vegas and drop a grand on #7 because you are just as likely to save money on reloading as you are at winning it on #7. It is cheaper to shoot reloads, but you still may not save any money in the end.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Buy a Lee Loader. They only cost about $20, and you only end up loading 20 rounds at a time. It definately could save a person money over factory laods.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Hey Briman, I meant no disrespect to you in using you as an example up there lol. Have a good one man.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Briman hit the nail on the head.;)

I believe a person should buy good equipment from the start. I recommend the RCBS Master Reloading Kit. I also recommend a digital scale & thrower.

If I were to buy everything I needed/wanted to start reloading with today? I could buy it all for just under $1000.[&:]

I do not think I will ever save money reloading. I reload so I can customize my ammo for my gun.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Save money no. Per cartidge, maybe. But theres always a new powder or a new bullet you want to try, because it might be MORE accurate than what you have now. So you buy them, load them, and go to the range to test them. Take your results, go back to the bench, load some more, and fine tune them. Then go to the range and test again. About the time you've taken that bullet/powder combination as far as it can go, you buy a different bullet or a different powder and start over from square one.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

NO! NO! NO! NO! .......................and NO!!!!!!!! Trust me Ive tried to justify it with the wife and no matter where I fudge the numbers it never comes out. Shes an accountant BTW [X(]

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

When I got into it I was told I would save alot of money by doing it. Unless I get some refund check I didnt know about then the answer is no. I'll keep checking the mail box and let you know if it comes.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

I guess that even though I havent even bought a press yet and am only reloading with the Lee Classic loaders I still have not saved a lot of money. By the shell/load, yes and it has been a fun hobby to do with my 13 year old son. But I can say this, by the round I am paid ahead for a long time to come since I now have a couple hundred rounds of ammo to burn up lol.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

While I agree with those that say you don't save money because you shoot more, overall I feel that I have reduced my shooting costs by reloading. It really depends on what you shoot and how much you shoot it. It would take me a lifetime to break even loading things like 9mm, 30-30, 30-06 & etc, others like .44-40 or my .243 varmit rounds surely pay to reload. A box of 44-40's in my area go for 20+bucks and I can easily load smokeless for less than 5 and I shoot alot of them. Then there are specialty loads, like black powder, I shoot 38 bp re-loads to the tune of 3K per year, one year of that will easily pay for a Rockchucker and whatever else I need to load them, if you compare the reloading costs to buying commercial BP rounds, and I use that press for lots ofother rounds.

Buy good equipment up front and get it used if you can. Looking behind me here I have4 presses set up, 2 I got in trade forsomething I was not using, 1 was given to me and the other I bought new in 1990. With them, I can loadalmost anything you want by just purchasing a set of dies and dies are not expensive-generally. The biggest ways to loose money is to open a Midway(or similar) cat. and start ordering, casting bullets is almost surely a no win situation and shotshell reloading costs are just plain nuts. There are many people who start reloading and find it's not for them, you might be one of them, take your time, look around,people who decide to get out of reloading often sell their tools rather cheaply. (Avoid Ebay for the most part, prices really get up there on that site).

Doug

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Nope....You can't compete with the prices at Wally World...[8D]
BUT MY WIFE SMOKES...SO I CAN JUSTIFY IT...:D:D
But those Premium bullets,they can cost alot up here in Can...
Heck,atmy local gun shop,a 25 box of Speer TBBC bullets in (.30cal 180gr.), is the same price as1 commercial box of Fed Premium loaded with a 180gr.TBBC for my 30-06...
Around $55.00...
I handload because I love the hobby,and I do get tighter groups when shooting..
And again its no more expensive than smoking..:D:D

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Yes you can save money, raid the brass bucket at the range for free brass, buy Nosler seconds, buy powder in 5-8 lb containers. I shoot competitivly in USPSA and IDPA, 20,000 rounds a year and it goes up every year as I get new guns.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

I could not afford to shoot as much as I do if I did not reload. Mags are expensive to buy. Or if you shoot a pistol you can save money. You have to watch the power you use and not get carried away with trying many brands or types.

I really enjoy it. I just need a better bench, work room, better powder measure, storage racks, need to put a target barrel on my 22-250. See how cheap it is.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Although I dont yet reload rifle shells, I have reloaded shotguns shells in the past. I cant reload them for the $3.50 price wallly gets on the cheap stuff, BUT I get a hotter shell w/ 1 1/8oz #9 shot. At that load, yes its cheaper becuase thats the 'trap' load that comes ina black box.

I picked up a progressive reloader at a yard sale for $25 and had been saving shells for a long time.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Thanks R.R. I'll look into that.......

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Hey gang.......haven't been around in quite awhile....[/align][/align]Had to chime in on this one, even thought it's an age old question (and already probably been answered)[/align][/align]The short answer is, you won't spend less money, but you'll get far more shooting for the money you do spend. [/align]After 35+ yrs. at casting & handloading, I don't regret ever spending that money, and have enjoyed it far more than I ever thought I would initially. Shooting, casting& handloading had led me intoa career doing it, and after 16+yrs. as a Firearms Instr. with the local Sheriff's Dept., and hitting my19th year overall, I retired. [/align]I attended many gun armorer's schools, as well as other courses, and the love of guns panned out for me. [/align][/align]The feeling of handcrafting ammo that is built to perform superbly in a given gun, and taking game with that ammo sucessfully, really gives you a feeling thats hard to explain, and needs to be experienced.[/align][/align]Take care guys, [/align]Bob[/align][/align]

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Many years ago, I was fortunate enough to have received a pretty complete RCBS reloading setup (from a guy that had given up on it) for no charge. Bought a few dies, bullets, powder and a few accessories and I was in business. Since then, about all that I have added are dies and powders.

I get the most pleasure out of dialing in a load for each of my rifles and then dropping an animal with it. It gives you a lot of versatility and you can get more use out of a single gun. I have .243s loaded from 58 gr. up to 100 gr. and .270s from 90 gr. to 150 gr. Pretty well covers coyotes up through elk.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

The most expensive component of a round of ammunition is the brass case! It's initial cost represents about 75% of the total cost of the cartridge. To throw it away after firing is just plain wasteful.

However, to answer your inquiry, whether you are going to save money by reloading those cases depends on several factors:

The most important of these is "How much shooting will you do?" If the answer is "a box or two every year", it will NOT save you any money if you don't already have the press, loading dies, and a powder scale. However, if you DO already have the equipment, or free access to it, even if you only reload 100 rounds, you can save money by buying powder, primers, and bullets separately.

If you have to buy a press, powder scale, and a set of dies as well as bullets, primers, and powder, you will have to load 500 rounds or more before you break even - this depends on the CARTRIDGE. For example, a box of 20 .416 Rigby cases costs me $40.00. But if I buynew LOADED rounds, it's going to be in the vicinity of $100.00 or more for just one box!

I started (in 1954) reloading .30/'06 ammo so I could shoot more (ie., save money). But I soon found that the handloading of ammunition was so fascinating, and had so much potential for various things, that I quickly gave up on saving money! I'm still spending money on exotic tools, strange calibers, bullet moulds and other bullet-making equipment, Berdan primers, etc., etc., that I have completely forgotten about the idea of saving money. Today, I own a great many arms which have never been sullied with one round of factory ammunition!

But, you can save money! To START reloading, all you need is a single-stage press, a powder scale, a set of dies, and one box of bullets, a can of powder, and 100 primers of the correct type.

You can get the toolsoff of e-Bay for very little, usually no more than half the retail price. I bought a "used" RCBS Rockchucker off e-Bat last year for $50.00. When it arrived, I could not tell that it was not brand-new

I usually buy my powder, primers and bullets from GRAF's orMidway, and some locally.

I startred reloading .30/'06 ammo with a Lyman 310 tool + dies for itand a simple Pacific powder scale. That's all that's REQUIRED! Later on, you might add a case trimmer, BUT you can do without that at least for awhile!

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

I guess I'm with just about everyone else in this thread,.... No, you won't save money. I've only been reloading for a couple of years and find myself always picking up a new powder or another box of primers (just in case), or maybe some brass that you just can't pass up when Midway has some special going on.

I started out with the bare minimum stuff (Lee Anniversary set), and while it was fine for loading my 45LC, it wasn't quite up to snuff for the 30-06. I kept feeling like I was going to break the press. So, I started upgrading about a year ago and haven't stopped.

Reloading for me is worthwhile because I really enjoy it. I enjoy shooting my own product and getting the satisfaction of knowing EXACTLY what's in that particular cartridge.

You can also come up with variations that aren't available in stores.I likeshooting remington Core-Lokt 165 gr in my 30-06 (deadly on them Hogs) but have yet to find them in stores. 150 and 180 gr are common, but not the 165. There, see,...I have to reload. Ha! THEY just don't make what I use. Justification and gratification in one fell swoop.
I dig doing it and it keeps me off the street.

P.S. Semper Fi, brother.
2d SRIG
24th MEU/SOC

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

You just get to shoot a lot more for the same money. Going and buying 20 rounds for my .270 cost me $20+ and reloading I get to shoot those shells about 3-5 times depending on the components that I use for the same money. But you must remember that you generally buy your components in some type of bulk, boxes of 100 or more or by the pound and the up front costs can be quite expensive. So if you dont plan to shoot, dont reload. But if you do plan to get the most out of your rifle and want to get friendly with it by shooting the daylights out of it then there is no better hobby to start than reloading. Have fun man, I know that for the past 2 months I sure have enjoyed reloading. [:-]

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

To answer the question at hand, I couldn't save any money reloading. I went the Lee Loader route for my 375 H&H, and for what I spent on different powders, different grain bullets, digital scales, etc, etc,... I could have bought SEVERAL boxes of factory ammo. In my case with the 375 H&H, I don't shoot it that much, so it might have been different with a caliber that I shoot volume rounds with.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

NO! We all just tell our wives that so we can shoot more and load more. Don't let you wife catch wind of this secret. She might spread the word then we would all be in trouble.

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

Dude I am an accountant and YES YES YES it DOES TOO save money. IF you shoot enough to justify it.

When I started shooting 375 H&H I was paying $1 per cartridge $20 per box of 20 factory loaded cartridges.That's 5 boxes at $20 = $100 for $100 cartridges. Powder costs $20 per pound and loads 100 cartridges. Projectiles cost $30 per 100. Primers = $2 per 100. So the cost of loading 100 cartridgesmyself =$52. I save $48 per 100 cartridges. Shoot and reload $500 cartridges = save $240 which is about what my RCBS kit cost me at the time. Every time I shoot past that I'm saving money. I figure I'm about $500 ahead by now :D

RE: is reloading cheaper??
 

BUT!! Being able to shoot more is a type of saving money! Yes, you may spend more than the cost of a couple of boxes of factory ammo, BUT you will end up with a lot more shots that you can fire for the same amount of money - in other words, the cost of firing each round of handloaded ammo is a lot lower than the cost of firing a round of factory stuff...... and in addition, you get the pleasure of shooting a round that is exactly what you want, not what some company sees fit to provide..... (not to mention the fun of doing the work, and being able to experiment with bullets, powder types, primers, etc., etc., that are just not avaliable any other way! For example, where can you buy 20 rounds of .416 Rigby ammo that's loaded to 2100 FPS with 350-grain cast gascheck flatnose bullets for target shooting and deer hunting??)