How much economical sense does it make to reload for shotshells. I am having trouble finding shotshells at the moment and the loads I think I like are generally not available even when I can find ammo. I generally see HV #7.5 @1250+ and I would like #8.5-#9 @1150-1175. I was able to shoot a few boxes a member loaded and really took a shine to them.
I would make do with anything between #7.5-#8 but one more reason to reload would be to tailor loads to my liking but the primary reason is I would like to just have a simple setup that would enable me to load what I would need for weekly shoots. How much would it cost to get set up, rough estimate? Any tips or advice on what to look for, one system better than the other? Is it even recommended right now with the status quo on ammo and reloading supplies or does shotshell reloading fly under the radar enough that it would be a worthwhile endeavor?
Just rapping, any thoughts?
I got into shot shell reloading this summer with the following:
PRESSES - I bought a new MEC Sizemaster for 12ga (LOVE it!). That was around $340 - Happy birthday to me. I probably spent another $120 on charge bars, bushings, and a mount for the press. The mount wasn't a must have, but it allows me to easily remove it from my bench if I need the room for something else.
A guy at my club sold me an old but functional Hornady progressive press for 20ga... $40! Those kind of deals are out there, and will make this process a lot easier to justify.
COMPONENTS - I found 5K Cheddites at a reasonable price on-line, and wrote off the shipping/haz-mat fees as the price of doing business in the current climate. I have since found a LGS with a predictable supply of the same primers. I know they aren't the first choice of many, but in these times, you load what you have, not what you want to have. The same LGS is a good source for powder, shot, and wads. Like the primers, his selection of powder is acceptable, but not necessarily ideal. A bird in hand...
My club does a group buy of reclaimed shot that is surprisingly nice. Shop around... If it is good stuff, reclaimed shot could save you quite a bit.
As for hulls, I bought 1K of grey AA once fired for trap, 1K red AA once fired for skeet (different colors to make keeping track of different loads easy), and 1K Remington STS once fired for 20ga. These were expensive, but I'll get at least 10 loads from each hull, so I look at it as a good value for my dollar. You could use the hulls you find at your range, but you won't get many loads out of them (perhaps only one), and you have no way of knowing what was done to them before you picked them up. Finding appropriate wads may be an issue as well.
I figured the following cost per round for my loads:
Primer - $.04
Powder - $.06
Wad - $.05
Shot - $.11 (reclaimed will be less)
Hull -
$.02
Total - $.28 per round, or $7.00 per box
So... is it economical to load vs. lurking at Wal-Mart and buying factory loads by the flat when you can find them? No. But I love doing it, and I can tailor each load to my specific need and gun.
Good luck!