new to reloading
01-23-2008, 03:45 PM
#11
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Texas
Posts: 425
RE: new to reloading
It's apparent "The Rifleman" is clueless about all things reloading. He fails to realize that saving money on ammo cost is just the tip of the iceberg for reasons to reload. He even thinks cleaning primer pockets is a cost.
Anyone who is reallyserious about shooting and guns is missing a big part of the sport if they don't reload. I know some people who are just too busy with their career etc who can't reload because there aren't enough hours in the day. But I've always believed you never really get to know a gun, rifle or pistol, until you reload for the beast. Each one really has it's own personality, if you will. I've enjoyed my 50+ years of reloading every bit as much as I have my 50+ years of shooting. Reloading to me is as fun and theraputic as gardening is to many. They grow flowers and I grow bullets.
Anyone who is reallyserious about shooting and guns is missing a big part of the sport if they don't reload. I know some people who are just too busy with their career etc who can't reload because there aren't enough hours in the day. But I've always believed you never really get to know a gun, rifle or pistol, until you reload for the beast. Each one really has it's own personality, if you will. I've enjoyed my 50+ years of reloading every bit as much as I have my 50+ years of shooting. Reloading to me is as fun and theraputic as gardening is to many. They grow flowers and I grow bullets.
01-23-2008, 04:22 PM
#12
Fork Horn
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location:
Posts: 264
RE: new to reloading
ORIGINAL: The Rifleman
Just my opinion
But with the rising price of bullets and power and primers there is no way that a person starting out could justify reloading their own ammo.
My advice would be the rule of thumb that my dad taught me when I was a boy.
Dad gave me three 20 gauge shotgun shells to go hunting rabbits.
Everytime I came home with a rabbit, he gave me another shell.
Pretty soon, I didn't have anymore shotgun shells and when I had to buy my own, I took all my shots seriously. If I knew that it was a bad shot, I didn't shoot.
So instead of going out and shooting hundreds of shells in a weekend. Only shoot what you intend on shooting.
With this rule of thumb, a box of shells should last you a pretty long time.
Buying components and reloading your own will not produce a cheaper round.
By the time you clean the brass and clean out the primer pockets and buy all the components - you could have bought 2 boxes of factory loads to your one box of reloads.
Since the 223 is a modern firearm, it is already loaded from the factory to maximum specifications and there is not much improvement that you can make with a hand load over a factory load in that configuration.
Just my opinion
But with the rising price of bullets and power and primers there is no way that a person starting out could justify reloading their own ammo.
My advice would be the rule of thumb that my dad taught me when I was a boy.
Dad gave me three 20 gauge shotgun shells to go hunting rabbits.
Everytime I came home with a rabbit, he gave me another shell.
Pretty soon, I didn't have anymore shotgun shells and when I had to buy my own, I took all my shots seriously. If I knew that it was a bad shot, I didn't shoot.
So instead of going out and shooting hundreds of shells in a weekend. Only shoot what you intend on shooting.
With this rule of thumb, a box of shells should last you a pretty long time.
Buying components and reloading your own will not produce a cheaper round.
By the time you clean the brass and clean out the primer pockets and buy all the components - you could have bought 2 boxes of factory loads to your one box of reloads.
Since the 223 is a modern firearm, it is already loaded from the factory to maximum specifications and there is not much improvement that you can make with a hand load over a factory load in that configuration.
My contention is if you hope to save a fortune by reloading then I say you won't accomplish this goal, especially with the 223. When you get into large calibers and stuff the savings goes way up but then again, you will find yourself at Cabelas or somewhere when they come out with the new improved this or that and you will just HAVE TO HAVE IT so it all kind of evens out.
It's kind of like going 20 miles out of your way to get gas .03 cents cheaper.
Reload for accuracy not to just save money.
01-23-2008, 04:31 PM
#13
Fork Horn
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location:
Posts: 364
RE: new to reloading
I don't know if you save a single penny by "rolling your own". You end up shooting more and so you end up shooting twice as much for the same money, heck but who stops at just shooting twice as much.
01-23-2008, 04:57 PM
#14
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Texas
Posts: 425
RE: new to reloading
RJ...you have struck the nail squarely on the head.Most peoplego into reloading with the notion of "saving money," which of course they CAN do. But as you point out, what all of us ultimately doing is simply shooting a lot more for the same budget. The good news is the quality of our ammo and our shooting sport enjoyment skyrockets. The simple fact that a person CAN reload their ammunition cheaper than they can buy everything but a very few varieties of mil-surp stuff really has nothing to do with it. Hell, reloading is fun!
01-24-2008, 05:09 PM
#15
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Spokane Washington
Posts: 1,042
RE: new to reloading
For my son and I, what it boiled down to is that I wanted him to get good and comforatable at shooting his rifles, which I couldnt afford to allow him to do too much at current ammo prices. I bought an old Lee Classic reloader in 270 caliber and went to banging away at 100 rounds of ammo and saw that I could reload, it isnt that hard and it is something that I enjoyed doing. So then I bought one in 30/30 and hammered out 60 rounds for my son and gave them to him for Xmas. Well I figured after all of that banging away on the kitchen table that it would be a wise investment to get a Lee Anniversary kit and I have been nickel and diming myself since then. So for the amount of ammo that I have shot since starting reloading, so far the money saved has went right back into equipment and I figured that I am about even now. So from here on out it should pay me back to load my own. Not to mention I have found some good loads for my rifles and pistols and my son has learned a lot about pressures, ballistics and overall knowledge about guns that he otherwise wouldnt have gotten if we hadnt started loading our own.
01-24-2008, 05:49 PM
#16
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Texas
Posts: 425
RE: new to reloading
TUK, your story in one form or another is how most of us have walked the reloading path. One thing leads to another and you learn every step of the way. Basically a person's imaginationbecomes the limit of their ammunition and I've loaded up and down and around some crazy things.
I used to have a set of custom built bullet swagging dies in .224 caliber. I got a 22 core mold from Lyman and some short jacket cups and created a 26 gr HP that I shot in my K Hornet. This bullet was so explosive that when it hit a rabbit or something, it sounded like someone just clapped their hands. When you picked up a Jackrabbit after one of these little bullets caught up with it...........there was only ONE side of the rabbit left. The "exit side" was simply gone.
I used to have a set of custom built bullet swagging dies in .224 caliber. I got a 22 core mold from Lyman and some short jacket cups and created a 26 gr HP that I shot in my K Hornet. This bullet was so explosive that when it hit a rabbit or something, it sounded like someone just clapped their hands. When you picked up a Jackrabbit after one of these little bullets caught up with it...........there was only ONE side of the rabbit left. The "exit side" was simply gone.
