A Minimal Kit---easy set up and tear down

[John Joseph]

I've got a lot of reloading gear---an entire bench crammed into three large plastic black and yellow crates(you know the kind) in storage---covering every aspect of the game from bullet casting to shot shells.

With the current shortage going on, I'd like to set up a minimalist portable kit I can keep in one smaller box to set up and break down as needed. No bullet casting (yet) or shotgun/rifle ammo needed (yet) just two handgun calibers---.38 spl and 45 acp to suppport.

So far I've retrieved my Redding beam scale, Lee cast iron press, Lee hand primer. RCBS Uniflow powder measure, hand made wooden loading blocks. carbide dies for both calibers, bolts and a board for mounting the press and c clamps to clamp it all down solid to a table top. The only things I think I'm missing is a 6" caliper (I found my dial caliper, but my old eyes might do better with a digital read out so I've got an excuse to buy another toy!) and my powder trickler, which must be in hiding
OR is there something else I've overlooked?

Of course I have loading manuals and components and a rock tumbler for case cleaning waits in the garage along with half a bag of ground walnut shell media. What concerns me is the hardware.
Any suggestions?

 

[nofendertom]

Get a magnifying glass to read your dial caliper---might help.

 

[mdi]

I used a ram prime which eliminated fooling with a hand primer. Personally I dislike digital calipers (had bad experience with 2), and if you can read a wrist watch, you can read a dial caliper. I think your kit is sufficient to safely do some reloadin'...

My small kit all fit in a plastic shoe box, except powder and brass. I had a Lee hand press, two die sets, ram prime, a few sleeves of primers, and a couple misc tools (I wasn't reloading semi-auto ammo so I didn't have to measure OAL). Worked for me reloading in my small apartment or my camper...

 

[jmorris]

I'd like to set up a minimalist portable kit I can keep in one smaller box to set up and break down as needed. No bullet casting (yet) or shotgun/rifle ammo needed (yet) just two handgun calibers---.38 spl and 45 acp to suppport.

For those two rounds, I don’t think you could get more minimal that this.

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1012833230

If you took the stuff out of the box you could fit both of them in your pants pockets.

There are small presses out there the benchrest crowd is a source for ideas because they take their gear to the match with them.


That said, they can likely size their 6mm PPC cases with less effort than you could your 38 or 45 cases because they are made for the rifle they are shooting precisely and are not “blown out” like one would expect from most firearms.

The little Lee C press is pretty compact and everything you’d need to load could fit in a 5 gallon bucket, that could also double as your seat.



Not sure of your intentions exactly but before I had built a range in my backyard, I took my stuff to where I could shoot to work up loads. In a tub about the same size as the cooler I also took with me, I could fit a press, bullets, primers, cases , jugs of the powders I wanted to test, a chronograph, calipers, powder scale/see through cake pan lid (to block any breeze) and my log book.