Reloading...help me out with some questions.

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Reloading:

Overview: I know there are all different types of equipment, powder, casings, etc. It's a bit confusing, so give me some pointers.

What equipment should I look at? (I think I want something versatile; something that could do 9mm, 38 special, 357, 45, .223; if that kind of equipment even exists ; I warned you, I'm new to this.)

Does it depend on what caliber I want to reload?

Any reason not to buy used reloading equipment?

How reliable are reloaded rounds? I've heard you should not trust you life to them, but they're fine for plinking.

Do you really save that much money over time?

Are there government restrictions or liabilities?

How complicated is it. I don't want to risk hurting myself because I had no business messing with ammunition.

Any other info that would be helpful for me would be appreciated. Thanks!

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So many questions, such a lousy typist replying! Oh well...

I've been extremely pleased with the products and service from Dillon Precision over a fifteen year period. Now keep in mind that all they sell are progressive loaders and gear, but it sounds like you want to do a volume of loading in several calibers. If you take your time, read all the instructions, and keep their 1-800 hotline phone numbers handy, you shouldn't be facing an insurmountable learning curve my friend. Dillon's 'No BS' warranty is truly that.

Also, get a reloading book (ack, a BOOK in the Age of the Internet?) from someone with a long established track record like Speer, and you'll havea great variety of data for all commonly known calibers. And don't be afraid to make notations in the book of what works best for you, it doesn't have to go back to the library...

Oh, far as cost goes, what typically ends up happening is this: You'll be spending as much on ammo as when you relied on 'store bought', butyou'll have two or three (or more) times as many rounds to show for it. Not to mention that over a bad season of winter weather, you can get far enough ahead to cover the reloader up from May thru October if you so choose. Enjoy, and feel free to press ahead with more questions in the meantime.



One more bit of advice: Whe you sit down to reload, do not allow other things to distract you, and do not get in a huge hurry. Those two mistakes have lead to more fouled up ammo--and subsequently in a few cases, firearms--than all other factors combined, from what I've observed.

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Brian D. wrote:

One more bit of advice: Whe you sit down to reload, do not allow other things to distract you, and do not get in a huge hurry. Those two mistakes have lead to more fouled up ammo--and subsequently in a few cases, firearms--than all other factors combined, from what I've observed.

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Definitely don't want to be distracted! Nothing like ruining a gun because you didn't pay attention to what you were doing, huh?

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double post

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triple post! :shock:

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In no way amI an expert:
I have only used Dillion equiupment.
Dillions Square Deal B was/is my first and only reloading press and I love it.
The only draw back (IMHO) of the sq deal b is it can't be up graded to load rifle.

The 550 or 650 would be a better choice if you truly intend on loading rifle.
Dillion has stood by their no BS policy, my press was bought used in 1991and they still honor the warranty.

you might want to start with a single stage press :idea:


How reliable are reloaded rounds? I've heard you should not trust you life to them, but they're fine for plinking.
That is true more for liability than anything,I think.
Do you really save that much money over time?
It really depends on the calibers you load, how much you shoot and what components you use.
For me it pays off,I shoot 10mm.
Are there government restrictions or liabilities?
Nothing that I know of but check locally.
How complicated is it?
Start off slow, with no distractions and double/triple check your self, when in doubt start over.

invest in a bullet pullet

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:bangheadT.



Edit/fix
there are plenty of single stage presses available.

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I bought used reloading equipment from the same neighbor that I got my first guns from. Since them I have got more guns and reloaded more calibers thus gotten more equipment. Most of my equipment is RCBS with some of the newer stuff being LEE precision.

For I new reloader I would recommend a single stage press kit. LEE's kit is the most economical. Get carbide dies for pistol reloading. They are a lot quicker and easy to usebecause you don't have to lube the cases first. Youmight be able to find a used press from someone who has upgraded to progressive like I did. Check out the used equipment for wear just like you would a used gun. Use a bore light to look inside the dies for obvious wear. I would look at new one's first to know what the should look like. Don't trust any scale until you use check weights. The only exception is the LEE safety scale being made of plastic it's either accurate or broken.

Reloading can be dangerous. You must pay attention to what you are doing and no smoking. If you mishandle the primers you can have a explosion. The most common mistakes are squib loads and double loads. This happens most often with progressive presses. Squib loads come from failing to load enough powder. The bullet gets stuck in the barrel and if another round is fired after it = blown up gun. A double load comes from putting powder in the same cartridge twice = blown up gun.

With a single stage press and loading block, after you load the powder you can look down into the cartridges and see that the powder is at the same level in all of them.

Start with loading pistol cartridges. It is the most simple with less possibility for dangerous mistakes. After you get experience and research how to reload rifle then you can start reloading for them too. IF you know anyone who reloads, see if you can get them to coach you with your first time.

A lot of money can be saved perround 50% or more. This depends mainly on bullet choice. For plinking or targetammo cast lead bullets are cheap. If you really get into it you can also cast your own bullets from scrap like used wheel weights.

Reloaded rounds can be just as reliable as new ammunition. Especially carefully hand-loaded rounds with new or once fired cases. Also with the ammo being cheaper you can afford to test many more rounds to make sure they operate reliably in your gun. Most competitors reload. However if you have an assortment of cases from varying manufactures with unknown number of firings, use them strictly for practice.

There is a theory out there. That if you have a self defense shooting with nonfactory ammo. You can be characterized in court as some kind of mad scientist type with super killer bullets. I have not seen a verified example of this ever happening, but the possibility of it makes many people use only factory ammo for carry.

I think there are some states where you can't get powder or primers. If they are available at your local gun stores then you have no problem with government restrictions. Keep your powder and primers in the containers they came in and away from any source of ignition.

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How reliable are reloaded rounds? I've heard you should not trust you life to them, but they're fine for plinking.
That is true more for liability than anything,I think.

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I think that is more of a myth than anything else. Massad Ayoob look at this issue and found that while handloaders were more likely to be indicted, the conviction rate was unaffected. And as the joke goes, "I could indict a ham sandwhich if I wanted to." However, the guy at Anarchangel states that handloads are generally more likely to suffer failures to fire due to primer containimation. But Since I don't have any experience of my own I'll jsut leave it at that. http://anarchangel.blogspot.com/2005/08/primers-and-liability.html

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Hmpf, I just got my Hornady progressive loader and assorted reloading paraphanelia about a week ago, though I'm still trying to find a place to mount it. I'll report back with my experiences...

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vmaxanarchist wrote:

Reloaded rounds can be just as reliable as new ammunition.  Especially carefully hand-loaded rounds with new or once fired cases.  Also with the ammo being cheaper you can afford to test many more rounds to make sure they operate reliably in your gun.  Most competitors reload.  However if you have an assortment of cases from varying manufactures with unknown number of firings, use them strictly for practice.

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So, how many times can one re-use a case before it is unreliable or unsafe? It makes sense to use new/once fired cases for defense loads in the name of reliability. However, to minimize costs you would want to reuse the case as many times as is safely possible.

A_Deuce

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A_Deuce wrote:

vmaxanarchist wrote:

Reloaded rounds can be just as reliable as new ammunition. Especially carefully hand-loaded rounds with new or once fired cases. Also with the ammo being cheaper you can afford to test many more rounds to make sure they operate reliably in your gun. Most competitors reload. However if you have an assortment of cases from varying manufactures with unknown number of firings, use them strictly for practice.

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So, how many times can one re-use a case before it is unreliable or unsafe? It makes sense to use new/once fired cases for defense loads in the name of reliability. However, to minimize costs you would want to reuse the case as many times as is safely possible.

A_Deuce

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For my straight walled pistol cases, I reload them until they crack. Nothing bad happens with a case neck crack. It just makes for an inaccurate shot.

However with a rifle case having the possibility of a case head separation. Inspect for a ridge inside the case with a piece of wire and throw that case out. Also, if I was using the ammo in a semi-auto rifle I would throw all the cases out that have the same number of firings as the bad casefor safety.

As for reliability problems, my main trouble in that area has come from using assortedrange brass. Some manufactures make thicker cases that tend to stick in the chamber. If I wasusing reloads in competition I would separate my casesby head stamp, and use only matching cases thatI've tested for reliability. Also keep track of the number of firings. So, you can switch them to practice use before they crack and give you a flier.

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This sounds like something that would be best done after someone who is experienced has shown me the ropes. I am fairly confident that I could figure it out, but I would be wiser to have someone teach me.

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dngreer wrote:

This sounds like something that would be best done after someone who is experienced has shown me the ropes. I am fairly confident that I could figure it out, but I would be wiser to have someone teach me.

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Hmm... anyone up for an OC/reload meetup?