Made My First Batch Of Ammo

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I don't hunt Washington State even for a resident it is to expensive. I fly round trip to upstate New York for $350
. Stay and hung with family and friends. Small game & big game non-resident hunting license is $100. You buy your license online or walk into Walmart to buy it. You can buy two doe tags which are transferable. Between myself, my brother, my one son and two friends i met through this forum we harvested eleven deer.
The deer are there you just have to be in the right spot at the right time and don't screw up.
 
Just finished making my first batch of 50 rounds. Forgot to raise ram with cartridge up a couple of times when charging and got powder all over the place. Finally got a routine going. Pretty darn fun I must admit.

I'll take them out to the range tomorrow and see how I did. I used 4.4 grains of Hodgdon Titegroup with 125 grain TMJ's in .38 Spcl cases. I was amazed of how little of powder that is. Looking forward to shooting them and then making more.
Nice! This is one of those hobbies where being addicted is a good thing! The other hobby is shooting, a match made in heaven.
Let us know how they shoot. You’ll get a lot of good advice here at THR. Be diligent with Titegroup, it’s a good powder but as you noted has a high energy density. There are lots of powders that will work well in .38, hopefully you’ll try a few more!
 
I loaded and shot my first handloads this past weekend. Went pretty good. .38 Special - I used Win 231. Weighed each charge by hand twice, did not find it too difficult to measure or check, but a little time consuming being new and worrying if I'm doing all the steps correctly, but figure that is a good thing.

I only used 3.3 grains, and they were very mild with LSWC bullets comparted to factory ammo.
 
OP-

Glad to hear it.

Go slow. go carefully. Be safe. Reload stone cold sober, not in the middle of the night if you get up for one reason or another, or if your attention is elsewhere. We have all been where you are with your first hand mades.
 
Much to my surprise all 50 of my very first reloads went bang and my pistol did not explode. I was actually stressed that I did something wrong even though I stepped thru my written out reloading process very carefully. Checked with 3 reloading books and the Hodgdon website to make sure my load and COL was safe. After the last round went bang and I realized all was well with the world, I got a really big smile on my face and I was hooked.
It's a good feeling!
As you learn more, you'll realize how valuable this forum can be. A lot of great experience comes through here. :)
 
Today Was Range Day!

All went really well. But, I gotta admit... I was a little nervous. My hands were sweating a little. I felt like a kid getting ready to ask a pretty girl on a first date! NOW.. I can make the next batch with a little more confidence and fine tune my procedure. YEP... I'm hooked!
 
Congrats! I love my Dillon, just sit down, put on a good western movie and just crank em out!
 
Please, please, please be careful.
We don't need to hear of another kaboom.

It's so easy to double charge with powders like Titegroup.
Thanks for the concern and the heads up. The oversight was part of my learning curve and just establishing a routine. It happened in the first few rounds, then I got into a rhythm after that. I did empty out any stray powder that got in the casing. I double checked several casings after any minor distractions. I'm getting ready to do a larger batch and will have some strict guide lines for my safety. I was amazed at how little powder 4.4 grains is... not anymore after firing a couple of my reloads. That's a good thing, as that tells me my powder will go a long way.
 
Thanks for the concern and the heads up.

You're welcome.

My concern is due to an error on my part.
Several years ago I accidentally double charged a .357 mag case using Titegroup.
Lets just say it didn't turn out well for my SP101.

But Sturm, Ruger & Co. stepped up & went way beyond expectation.
They offered a new SP101.
Coulda blown me over with a feather.
 
I was amazed at how little powder 4.4 grains is....

Now prepare yourself to really be amazed and measure out just 0.5gr of whatever powder you are using and then realize that for most handguns that is the difference between a start load and a max load. Sure some of the slower powders can get to a 1gr. spread or that some of the really fast powders like Titegroup or Competition can get down to 0.3gr between start and max.
 
You're welcome.

My concern is due to an error on my part.
Several years ago I accidentally double charged a .357 mag case using Titegroup.
Lets just say it didn't turn out well for my SP101.

But Sturm, Ruger & Co. stepped up & went way beyond expectation.
They offered a new SP101.
Coulda blown me over with a feather.

Glad the SP101 took the hit and not you! In the dealings I've had with Ruger...that seems to be their mantra.
 
I use Titegroup in my pistol loads. It works well, but definitely scorches casings. A little goes a long way and you can easily double or triple charge so please be careful.
 
Congrats. You've entered a whole new world.

I noticed a few people posted up their reloading routines. A safe and consistent routine is one of the best habits to get into. Not to preach to the choir - but mistakes should be out-of-character and obvious.
 
Alive and in one piece. Congratulations.

One bit of unsolicited advice- You stated you turned out 50 rounds and it was your first batch. In the future, I would suggest that as really start fiddling around, you make smaller batches until you hit on your perfect load, etc. I know nothing re: pistols, but I load for a rifle and there are few things more frustrating than pumping out 50-100 rounds of what you THINK is going to improve your shooting and winding up with either 45 or 95 foulers for your next several range visits.
 
Alive and in one piece. Congratulations.

One bit of unsolicited advice- You stated you turned out 50 rounds and it was your first batch. In the future, I would suggest that as really start fiddling around, you make smaller batches until you hit on your perfect load, etc. I know nothing re: pistols, but I load for a rifle and there are few things more frustrating than pumping out 50-100 rounds of what you THINK is going to improve your shooting and winding up with either 45 or 95 foulers for your next several range visits.
Good advice..I have planned exactly that.. I'm going to make another batch of 50 in 10 round increments.. stepping up 1 grain at a time to see what load I like the best.
 
Made a second batch, this time 100 varying several different charges within spec to see which one I like best.

Took 'em to the range today. It was nice to be able to compare the different charges and where they hit the target.

I'm definitely hooked on this reloading thing!!
 
Are you working with only one powder?
Once you get going a little it is nice to try different types of powder.
 
I use several types of powder for our 38spl/357mag.
Trailboss, Win296, 4227, Clays and several others.
Powder out here averages about $30 for a one pound container.
With the elections coming up I will be stocking up on primers, powders and bullets just in case things go left.
Our govenor, attorny general and the whole left side in our state are anti-gun. So we have that front to contend with. Way to many sheeple over here on the west side of the country.
 
How are you set for brass? If you need any i can get you some once fired 38spl or 357mag here locally and mail it to you

Are you putting the crimp with a crimp die or resetting the seater die?
 
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