New to Reloading

[memphis]

Hi Everyone,

      I have recently been bitten by the "gun bug" and have purchased 5 rifles in the past three months.  My personal favorite is my Savage 11G chambered in 223 Remington.  I would like to get into reloading my own rounds and I will be the first to admit that I know very little about it.  My question is about the Lee Anniversary reloading kit.  It seems to be very affordable, but does it contain everything you need to get started?  If anyone would share their opinion on this setup, I would really appreciate it. I will only be reloading the 223 cartridges if that is any help.


                                              Thanks,
                                              Memphis

[jhm]

Memphis :  First get you a couple good reloading manuals and study them nothing that dificult about reloading just need to understand what the process is all about, now about the Lee products I only use a few of their items and it is limited to specific jobs, I would recomend looking around the classified section for some reloading equip, I know you will only be reloading one caliber, (but do you have any idea how many of us started out reloading saying that same thing) and today with a shelf full of dies, bullets and everything else we have collected of the years we wonder why we only thought about only one caliber, anyhow start out with some of the basic items (quality) press/ scale/ dies/ and a place where you wont be bothered,   JIM

[KN]

Welcome to the club! My personal recomendation is to stay away from the Lee stuff. Some people will probably jump on me for saying this but I have thrown away just about every piece of Lee stuff I ever bought. With the exception of their dies. I have never had a problem with Lee dies. If you have spent that much money on guns in the last 5 mounths then you really don't want to skimp on your reloading tools. Look into the RCBS kits, they have some really nice starter packages. You won't find every thing you need or want in any of the kits but it will get you statred. My personall preferences are with RCBS, Hornady, and Lyman. For rifle dies I prefer the Hornady. KN

[longwinters]

Yep , hee hee, another one bites the reloading dust :-D  :-D

[Questor]

It depends on how many cartridges you want to reload. If you expect lonegevity and durability, buy the RCBS Rockchucker kit, buy dies, and a Lee autoprime tool, and you'll be in business for a long time.  That is top quality equipment.  I will never buy another Lee product except maybe the occasional die and autoprime tool.

[Ol` Joe]

Welcome to the board. You`ve been given some great info.

I don`t know what all you have in rifles but for the 223 and any cartridge smaller in lenght then large magnums you don`t need a press the size of the rockchucker. I agree with the others "don`t but cheap" but you can do very well with a RCBS reloader spcl or one of the other small press`s and tools by Redding, Lyman, Hornady,  if $$ is tight.

I started loading on a RCBS Jr 35yrs ago and still use it at times. I have loaded cases up to 7 mag in lenght on it and the only fault is on the larger cases there is not enough opening in the press window to get your fingers and bullet in comfortably. With 308 and smaller cases there is no problem.

Buying good equipment that works as it`s supposed to when you need it is never a bad idea. If you stay with reloading you`ll find you`re going to up grade and replace tooling, but it never should be because what you bought 1st doesn`t do its job.

Get a manual, read it, you`ll find what you need to load and it will answer a lot of your questions. The questions you have after ask here and someone will have the answer for you or can tell you where to find it.
RCBS, Redding, Lyman and the bullet and powder companies have toll free ph # that you can call with questions about their equipment. Don`t be afriad to call them,

Safe loading, and again, welcome to the club...................  

[snuffy]

BASIC RELOADER RULES & REQUIREMENTS
1. Do you have the patience to do detailed work away from distractions, (TV, Children, guests)?
2. Do you have a secure area that can be dedicated strictly to a loading bench?
3. Do you thoroughly understand what goes on inside a cartridge when you pull the trigger?
4. Are you mechanically inclined? In other words can you understand and follow instructions exactly, to make needed adjustments to equipment?
5. Do you know how to use measurement tools such as calipers and micrometers?
6. Read the front sections of several reloading manuals. I suggest one manual, printed by a company that sells reloading equipment AND bullets. The other one should be by a company that sells only powder. Case in point Hornady then Hodgdon. After reading and understanding the “HOW TO” section in those manuals, find someone who already loads to show you how and talk you through a box of shells. Better yet find a NRA Metallic/Shotshell Reloading instructor and take a basic reloading class.
7. Never be in a hurry. If you are pressed for time, this is when a mistake will be made.
8. Do not under any circumstances smoke, eat or drink, especially alcoholic beverages. The reasons are obvious, but I’ll state them anyway. Smokeless powder burns at a very high temperature; it makes a dandy accelerant to start a fire. Drinking causes loss of motor skills and judgment.
9. Wash hands thoroughly when you are through. You are dealing with lead in many forms when handling bullets and primers.
10. Walk before you run. Buy a single stage press to start out with. The progressives are neat and useful when doing large quantities of ammo. You will always have uses for the single stage loader for special loads later.
11. Stay with the basics at first. The tools for neck turning, flash hole uniforming, primer pocket uniforming and checking concentricity will be useful after you get some experience.
12. To start with, stay in the mid-range of the suggested loads for medium power levels. Save the maximum loads for when you have more experience.
13. Buy the best equipment you can afford. It will last a lifetime; the cheap stuff will wear out and need replacing.
14. Have ONLY the bullets, powder, primers and empties on the table that you are loading at that time. Put everything away as soon as you are done, in a separate place.
15. The only stupid question is one that doesn’t get asked. If you’re not sure, ask somebody. Use common sense, logic is a great tool for a Reloader.
16. Maintain a log of all loads developed and the test results. Label all boxes with the load data and date of load.

I and a bunch of others on the NAHC website created this just for this thype of questions. Good idea? Can anybody see anything to add? this is a work in progress.

[Questor]

Those are excellent points to remember and apply.  The log is very useful. I have a log book of every load I've ever made. One of these days I'm gonna count up the amount of ammo I've made and estimate what I've spent on shooting. Scary.

My log is a spiral notebook with four sections:
1) A record of the ammo produced at each session. This includes
Date, load name (I give each load a name, like 45ACP-6A), quantity produced, and brass lot used).

2) Loads I have developed. This includes all the usual data you'd expect, like powder quantity and such, but I also add the micrometer setting for my powder measure and what gun it's intended for. I also add velocity as chronographed and a note on what I intend to use it for, like deer hunting or bullseye shooting.  For loads that I am happy with, and where top accuracy is important, I tape a test group taken from a target with the load data. The source of the data is also listed (e.g., Speer manual #13)

I often put in a short note that indicates why a load is good or bad.

3) Favorite loads. I only have a few favorite loads that have evolved over time.  These are written in a summary section of a few pages that repeats the load data for only my favorite loads. This is the section I refer to when I want go to make some ammo based on favorite loads. It's a quick reference.

4) An appendix that includes the manual for maintaining my progressive reloader, instructions for making casting metal, instructions for doing a total disassembly and cleaning of the 1911, and probably a few other seldom-used but necessary pieces of info.

[Loader 3009]

Here's a few "DON'Ts" that I prepared for my students......hope they are helpful.



                                               RELOADING DON'Ts


 Don't drink alcohol or take any medication (legal or otherwise) before or during a reloading session.  

 Don't load with a hangover.

 Don't load from memory……always use a manual.

 Don't mix powders (lot numbers, brands or types).

 Don't start with a maximum powder charge.

 Don't go over maximum powder charge……ever.

 Don't use formulas from the Internet without double-checking with a manual.

 Don't shoot ammo that someone else has loaded.

 Don't have any other powder on your bench other than the one you are using.

 Don't team load (having others involved in operations).

 Don't allow distractions.

 Don't mix components. (i.e. Winchester primers and CCI primers)

 Don't load from memory.

[KN]

Loader's absolutely right on his don't do recomendations. It's real easy to get complacent with the hobbie and make mistakes. But always remember that a mistake in this hobbie can be dissaterous. I always double check my load data even if I'm "sure" I'm correct. Too much at stake to let yourself get sloppy.   KN

[Ron T.]

Memphis…

Questor mentioned the “Rockchucker Kit” from RCBS.  I’m not sure what powder scale comes in the Kit, but get the less expensive RCBS Model 505 powder scale, NOT the more expensive Model 1010.

Ohaus makes the RCBS powder scales now.  Originally, Ohaus made and sold their excellent powder scales under their own brand name, but now they only make their scales for RCBS.  I owned an Ohaus Model 505 Powder Scale… and it served me well for over 30 years of heavy reloading.

I called Ohaus to buy parts to fix my Model 505 or to buy another Model 505 and was told Ohaus only makes scales for RCBS now and had stopped selling powder scales under their own name.

I asked them if they had any “old Ohaus models laying around” and was offered the top-of-the-line RCBS mechanical powder scale, the RCBS Model 1010 that was a “demonstrator” they had from a big gun show.  They assured me this Model 1010 had just sat at the big gun show as a “display model” and was never touched by anyone.  Since it was offered to me with a full “new model” warranty and for less than what a new Model 505 cost, I took it.

BIG MISTAKE!

While the Model 1010 is a good scale, the “tenths” of a grain (weight) scale is on an elongated round, threaded counter-weight type device with very hard-to-read numbers for these old eyes compared to the very easy-to-read graduations on the RCBS Model 505.  I now very much regret saving a few dollars and ending up with something that was harder to use than my original Ohaus 505 which is now the RCBS 505.

Again, I don’t know which powder scale comes with the RCBS “kit”, but insist on the Model 505 and you’ll never regret it.

Incidentally, RCBS does make excellent, high quality reloading equipment.  I have a half-dozen of their reloading dies which are top of the line in my book.  However, I believe the Lyman #55 Powder Thrower is superior to the RCBS model.

You’ll find reloading is a great hobby unto itself… and once you get into reloading and start to save a lot of money as well as develop more accurate loads for your guns, you’ll begin to understand why those of us who reload would never go back to “factory-loaded” rounds again.

You’ve gotten some excellent advice here so far, listen to it… it’s good, honest thoughts expressed by obviously experienced and careful craftsmen.


Strength & Honor…

Ron T.

[jhm]

Memphis:  If you are considering the rock chucker supreme master kit it will only have the 5-0-5 scale there is a big difference in price between the scale in the kit and the higher end 10-10 scale, looks like a good starter kit but I believe you can shop around and put together a pretty good set up (used) by attending a few gunshows and watching the clasified section here and then on e-bay just watch and dont get into a bidding war for a item and you can save a few $$.   JIM

[TScottO]

A few other things that are important:

Make sure your reloading bench is rock solid. I fastened my to the studs in my wall with wood screws.

Keep your bench clean and organized. Develop a very methodical system with everything separated and in order. Reloading trays very useful. One tray for sized brass, another for primed and flared brass, another for brass with powder charges in them, and if you are going to seat and crimp in two separate steps have a tray for each of those. Though with rifle loads most people don't crimp unless they have a heavy recoiling rifle.

Store your powder in a closet or somewhere out of the way out of reach from children.

Keep an accurate logg of what your loads, what worked and what didn't work.

I prefer to keep my powder scale on a table by its self and make sure this table is level and away from fans or AC vents.

Actually a floor with a solid surface is better for a reloading room. i.e. not carpeted.

Develope a steady technique. Try to pull the handle the same way evey time.

Pick up some fine steel wool also and maybe a variable speed drimel tool with a bit that has cup shaped end that will hold a pinch of steel wool. This works great for polishing the ends of trimmed cases. It only smooths the case mouths and doesn't hardly remove any brass.

You will also need a pair of pliers to squeez the case mouths closed on damaged or out of spec brass.

I also use break cleaner to remove all of the oil from a new set of dies.

Your dies and powder measuring equipment must be free from every trace of oil.

It's hard to beat the RCBS Uniflow powder measure.

Everyone here has given you very good adice IMHO

Welcome to reloading. I hope you enjoy it.

Good luck and be safe.
Scott

[snuffy]

Ron t, you don't like the 1010, that's fine. I like mine. It was a giant step up from the POS hornady I had. The main reason I went with it is it's capacity. To be able to weigh more than 1 ounce! I do a fair ammount of shotgun loading, so being able to weigh more than an ounce of shot is important. I never had any problem seeing the graduations on the drum, maybe you should see an optometrist?

[Dave in WV]

memphis, I bought a Lee Challenger press over 14 years ago. Mine broke this morning.  Spend the extra money and get a good press. Everything about metalic cartridge loading depends on the press. I've got more than my money out of the Lee press but now I'm out another $100 for the Lyman press I ordered. When your press goes all of your dies have to be readjusted AND you cna't reload while you wait to get another one. :x  Dave

[Jack Crevalle]

I second snuffy's suggestion that you get some instruction. It is good to get some hands-on not only to to learn the nuances but you also get a feel for what kind of equipment you'd like to use. I wish I'd gotten instruction before I bought most of my equipment. I've got a couple of hundred dollars in stuff I'll never use. My instructor also pointed me to stuff like the Stoney Point OAL guage that I consider just about esscential to safe reloading.  

Good sources for instruction are gun clubs, the NRA ( go to www.nra.org and look for a metallic cartridge reloading course in your area ), and the National Reloading Manufacturers Association  www.reload-nrma.com. The NRMA has names and addresses of reloading instructors as well as on-line tutorials.

[jhm]

Memphis:  check e-bay item 3621952006 might be something you could use.   JIM