What is the true savings of reloading?

[bebop4212000]

I have been considering reloading. I was told than ammo will double in price in 2008(?). I have read several threads and articles on reloading and it appears to me it is more of a hobby than a cost savings. From the information I have read it appears that a kit is the way to go. "Everything you need is here" BUT, you also need this and this and that also. I would like to know what it will REALLY cost me to get started, where to buy the powder, brass, etc., what type of bench set up I need and so on. The only place I have to set up is in my workshop that is a large tin building without any insulation and is not climate controlled.

Any advise will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

 

[Lone_Gunman]

In the end, there really is not cost savings. Its a hobby. You will find there is always some new gadget to buy, always something you can get that will tweak your rounds and make them just a little better, or allow you to make them a little (or a lot) faster. I am not sure the savings you get offsets these costs. Its a lot of fun though, and opens whole new worlds of experimentation. You can do so much more if you reload.

I guess if you approached it strictly from a cost standpoint, and wanted to turn out minimally acceptable ammo at a slow rate, you could get a kit and do OK. Its not going to be a lot fun, its not going to be very fast, and your ammo isnt going to be as good as it could be..

 

[Grandpa Shooter]

Peace of mind. All depends on what that is worth to you. If you enjoy working with your hands, seeing something you undertake come to a successful resolution, and benefit from the knowledge gained, it's worth every penny.

If you are going to do it take advantage of the sales BEFORE Christmas.

 

[TN Shooter]

I'm with Lone Gunman.

It's hard to justify reloading just from a cost savings point unless you shoot thousands of rounds in competition. For me, it is about performance and the satisfaction that comes from "rolling your own", kind of like tying flies for a fly fisherman.

Not having a climate-controlled environment would be a detriment, too, especially in the extreme heat of summer/cold of winter when I would rather be inside reloading than suffering in the elements.

 

[John4me05]

My advice would be to hit Ebay... Sometimes you can find a group deal but look for idividual items like presses and stuff... Look for the "off" brands as well (not cheap but also not the big names)..
I scored a Pacific press and thrower, 30-06 RCBS die set, caliper, funnel, case lube pad, BNIB 5-0-5 RCBS scale, and a couple other things for 115 a coulpe years ago.... Got my .223 dies of Ebay for 12 delivered for a RCBS set, shell holders for 2 bucks apiece... It takes a little investment to start up but its well worth it when you can create perfect ammo...

After start up it costs me about 7 dollars per 20 for my 30-06 and 5 bucks for 20 for my .223
Compare that to 20 a box for the 06 and 15 a box for the .223 and the fact that my ammo is fit to my guna and wayyy more accurate it justifies the expense and time

 

[ny32182]

I am currently buying the equipment to get set up reloading. I don't think it will save me much money as far as plinking ammo, but I hope to one day build high quality accurate ammo for considerably less money than factory match grade stuff.

My equipment expenses so far have come to just under $800, and I'm not done yet. Set aside about 1K for your initial setup money. If you come in at less than that, congrats. And you certainly can, depending on what you buy.

If you are building quality plinking ammo, say, .223... it will take about 4000 rounds before you break even on the equipment cost.

 

[Starter52]

I shoot a variety of calibers and reloading has saved me thousands of dollars over the years. It also allows me to shoot the loads that I want and not just what the factory offers.

Custom ammo, lower price. What's not to like about reloading?

 

[armoredman]

I like it. I shoot more, but it's cheaper ammo, and I know each one has powder, and primer installed correctly, because I didit, not the Big 3 machines. I just got into casting bullets for 38 and 9mm, and that's a blast, too. Initial startup is a bit, but with swapping guys on the Internet for some equipment they don't use any more, (which is how I got into it!), can save you oodles over new.
And it doesn't have to take up a bunch of space - this is the same "bench" I have been using for years. Shelves on the side hold brass, the only things stored separately is powder and primer, both safely secured away from each other, and all the casting gear/raw lead is in the garage.

 

[zxcvbob]

It depends a lot on what you shoot. If you shoot a lot of .45 Colts, for example, you can save a ton of money reloading -- more than enough to offset the cost of the equipment. If you shoot 9mm, the savings are still there but not really.

Mostly it will become another hobby. You will save money on ammo, but you will spend that money msking more ammo (you will shoot a lot more.) Plus you will probably spend a lot on upgrading you equipment, buying 1 pound cans of every imaginable powder, etc. But you can get by very well with a used top quality (or a new Lee) single stage press, a used Lyman or RCBS or Herters scale, Lee dies, and one 8# keg of powder, and never upgrade from this.

It doesn't have to take up a lot of room. I have an old C&H "H" style press and a bullet lubrisizer (I'm also into bullet casting) set up on a sturdy sawhorse in my basement. It's easy to move around. I just wanted to see if that was an adequate minimalist reloading bench, and it is.

 

[jeepmor]

It depends on caliber. You're not going to save much with 9mm plinking fodder, but if you own a 10mm, it quickly makes sense.

Also try craigslist.org for your area, I've found some good deals this way. If you are a frugal person, this and ebay, and patience, are the way to go.

 

[rcmodel]

I've been saving money since I started reloading almost 50 years ago.

By buying all that expensive reloading equipment & supplies I just have to have, I save even more money.

Heck, I'll still be saving money when I run clean out of money


rcmodel

 

[jfh]

Since reloading is both a hobby AND has a high benefit / cost ratio

IT REALLY DEPENDS ON HOW AN INDIVIDUAL USER MAKES HIS CHOICES.

For example--I set up a major reloading project this year--which so far, has cost me several hundreds of dollars in components alone. To keep the example simple, I can now load ammo that replicates a factory PD round for

1. about 25 cents a round using the factory JHP bullet or
2. about 10 cents a round using a Lead cast bullet.

Now, how much do I shoot?

Buying factory ammo in small quantities, I would have probably shot no more than 50 rounds a month--that's $600.00 a year for the ammo alone.

With the factory bullet reloaded, I can shoot 200 rounds a month for the same cost, and 500 rounds a month with the lead bullets. These costs, BTW, include a 1.5-cent amortization for the brass--e.g., buying new starline brass and allowing no more than ten loadings.

Before, with a cost of $1.00 down to nominally 50 cents a round for the factory ammo, I (would have) shot little, and it was really driven by budgeting. IMO, with PD ammo--ammo for a carry gun--that's a false economy. The carry gun is a lightweight j-frame, and I needed to shoot a lot to get used to it and become proficient.

About six months ago I costed out a Lee Classic Cast 4-die Turret / .45ACP reloading package, with everything a new loader would need, ranging from a tumbler and media up through a max case gauge. From Kempf's, that package would come to about $350.00 with shipping; it could be done for somewhat less.

Components to load 2500 rounds came to about $250.00, IIRC. The breakeven over buying WWB ammo was at about 2500 rounds if one shot economical loads--i.e., 200 gr. LSCWs over 231--and one would have powder left over and brass to reload.

So, if one were disciplined, you could shoot 200 rounds of .45ACP per month and pay back the entire investment, and yet still have powder left over and 500 pieces of brass to reuse indefinitely.

The question is, will you get the payback and shoot less, or do you want to now shoot more?

ABOUT THE SHOP NEEDS: There's a thread here that shows reloading bench pictures. The 45ACP package above could easily fit into a 30-36" workbench setup, and people have even set up temporary workspaces of B&D WorkMates and a file cabinet.

Jim H.

 

[jenrob]

If you have spare time and like to shoot and like to tinker with stuff and are happy with yourself when you get it done. then go for it. Like others have said you can save money but you won't. you'll find this and that then that's not as good as this then you wife will tell you that you can't afford to save anymore on reloading. But if you are just doing it to try and save money and don't have any spare time don't like to tinker. We will enjoy bidding on your stuff in 6 months

 

[C.F. Plinker]

If you are shooting 200-300 rounds a year of one caliber, you probably want to think seriously about reloading with a single stage press. By the time you get to 1000 rounds a year, you will be considering adding a progressive press. Look at Midway and Midsouth for prices of both the kits and separate pieces of equipment. A minimal setup based on a Lee Classic Cast press will be over $200 when you include dies, powder measure, scale, books, primer tool, etc. If you go with RCBS equipment it will be over $400. It's sort of like getting a car. You pick out the make, model, and features you want. This site is an excellent source of both information and opinions.
You will probably not save a bunch of money. You will just spend it differently. But along the way you will get loads that are more accurate than factory ammunition, and will be able to load them for a cost that is lower on a per round basis than the equivalent factory ammunition.
If you get reasonable quality equipment you will be able to use if for decades. Try to find someone you know who is a handloader and have him or her show you what is involved. They may even allow you to start loading using their equipment. This would allow you to see what works for you and what doesn't. Also check with the large sporting goods stores such as Sportsman's Warehouse and see if they have any reloading classes.

 

[Walkalong]

IF you buy cheap, and just the bare necessities, and you only shoot as much as you did when you were buying ammo, then you would save money, but that is not going to happen.

I am like rcmodel. I have saved so much money I can barely take it.

 

[jenrob]

1000 rounds a year I wouldn't even think about a progressive that is less than 20 rounds a week. at one point and time both me and my wife together was shooting around 3000 a month. I have loaded 700 rounds a week on a single stage with planty of time to do other stuff.

I think at this time for starting out that the Hornady classic kit is the best deal. One reason it comes with every thing but the trimmer and dies and micrometer. You get 500 bullets free from Hornady worth about $180 The Hornady press kit is on sale at Cabelas for $289.99 minus the $180 that you would have spent on the bullts you just got that press kit for $110 If you load that up and decide that you dont like it you will get all well over $110 that you have in it.

IMO you should always start out with a single stage. You can do more on a single stage than a progressive ever try to swag on a progressive (unless you have a 1050) Load development is easier and start up cost is less so if you don't find it to be you cup a tea then your not into it for as much. If you find that you enjoy doing it and as you start to shoot more then upgrade.

 

[Lazuris]

Zero, nothing, nada, zip, zilch. Why because once you get into it you have to keep buying something. Or you need a new gun to load new brass. Its a never ending cycle.

 

[jmorris]

The true savings is in the soul as you get to shoot more than you would otherwise.

 

[jlficken]

I started out doing it to save money but that quickly turned into more equipment to load more calibers which in turn required more components and on and on. In the end it will only allow you to have about double the loaded ammo for the same cost as buying retail. The question is do you want to be able to load to your own specs or have a company tell you what your loads should be. It is the versatility of reloading that drives alot of people. I want to say I save money by reloading but looking at my monthly credit card bill you wouldn't be able to tell

 

[Thirties]

If you live in a sparsely populated area, as I do, you will save a lot of time and gasoline not having to drive far away to the only gun store within 150 miles that has a larger selection of ammo (and I'm talking even popular -- .45acp).

When you load your own, you can be as exotic as you wish, and you reload your brass (that's where the money is saved, really).

Like the others said, it's a great hobby, especially with the right caliber (thinking .38spl, .45acp).

 

[scout26]

You will not save any money, but you will be able to shoot more for the same amount of money.

[Although Mrs Scout thinks I'm saving money....]

 

[SASS#23149]

wow,so many naysayers on savings.

In my case,I load .45colt for cowboy shoots.They run at least 20.00 a box of 50 for factory ammo,closer to 5.00 rolling my own.
I'll take a 75% savings anyday.

shotshell is a whole nother ballgame with shot being sky high these days.

So,it depends on what you are loading ,etc.

 

[Roccobro]

Price per components used in each trigger pull goes down. Spending stays the same. Enjoyment of your new AND old hobby goes up.

Justin

 

[VARifleman]

I save about 10 cents a round versus the factory stuff I used to buy. Now I'm using premium components with accurate JHP bullets, and going right at the power factor I want to be at, instead of 15 higher than I want. I load .45 ACP at 170 pf.

 

[redneck2]

I mainly shoot .45 Colt. I can load a box of 50 (at today's prices) for about $5.50. Factory stuff is maybe $20-28 per 50 now. I also load 10mm and save about 75%. That doesn't take into account the various rifle calibers.

I also shoot a lot of .223. Match grade stuff can be loaded for 1/3rd of what run of the mill stuff runs.

While a lot of the posters here think it's cute to say "I don't save money, I just shoot more".....

that's a load of crap if you shoot anything other than milsurp or .22's. That line's getting REAL old real quick. IMO, you're doing a disservice to guys that want to justify getting into reloading.

If you shoot 45Colt, 44 mag, etc. you can pay for a good progressive (as in Dillon or Hornady) and all the stuff you need in maybe 20 boxes of ammo.

Look at it this way...when I go to the farm to shoot, I take minimum 200 rounds of reloads. Costs me maybe $20 for all the shooting I want. If I buy factory, I drive 15 miles, shoot 50 rounds in 15 minutes, and spend more money.