cost of reloading

[Clearmore]

I was (and still am) seriously considering reloading.  One thing I didn't completely account for when I got my 243 handi was how much I would want to shoot.  I thought I could start reloading so I could afford to shoot more.  When I brought this up at my work and at the local gun shop, I was told that I shouldn't plan on saving money by reloading.  I was told that it was a fun hobby in itself, but one could not really save by doing so.  This just doesn't seem to add up when I do the math.  

After getting the hardware - Lee Anniversary Reloading Kit and a set of dies - I think I can reload for about $0.28 a round.  This is using Sierra 85 grain BTHP bullets, CCI primers and IMR4320 powder all purchased through Cabela's.  Compare this to about $0.74 a round buying Winchester 80 grain ammo from walmart.

It would take 11 or 12 boxes to pay for the reloading equipment but after that I should be saving a bunch.

Am I missing something here?  Can I really save by reloading myself?

[Mac11700]

Welcome Aboard  

Yes you can...especially when loading specialty rounds or premium bullets...you can save a tremendous amount...but...you yourself have hit the proverbial nail on the head...

One thing I didn't completely account for when I got my 243 handi was how much I would want to shoot.

You can and will shoot up your savings if you start shooting a great deal...then...if you wish to continue shooting a-lot...you'll have to reload or you'll wind up spending a great deal more on factory ammo...or replenishing your reloading supplies...

It's a catch 22 situation...the more you shoot...the less you save ...and the more you reload...the more you'll save over the cost of going out and  buying factory ammunition...

If you wind up casting your own bullets...you'll save even more...unless you are figuring your labor in all of this...

In the long run...you can save over buying factory rounds...but this shouldn't be the only reason to get into reloading...because as the needs and wants get a hold of you...you'll start spending a-lot of money on different reloading dies and tools and things like Chrongraphs more barrels ...and the list goes on  and on and on......it's not really a Hobby...it's a Passion...you would be suprised just how much you can spend over the years......so...can you really save..........the answer is still yes...and I think you'll enjoy the challenge...

Mac

[Clearmore]

Thanks, Mac, that's a good point.  I might not save $$ overall, but I'll get to shoot more.  I can do that!  

I know I would really enjoy reloading, too.  It seems whatever I get involved in I go the do-it-yourself route.  i.e.-fishing; I make my own lures, astronomy; I made my own telescope.  I really like doing things with my hands, so I think I am going ahead with the reloading plan.  Thanks!

[redneckd1]

I used to reload and would like to get back into it, but time is too scarce. To answer your question in simple terms without doing serious math, you will not save one red cent, but you will shoot much more for every cent spent.
Before I reloaded it was almost painful to buy factory ammo then go shoot it all in just a couple of hours at the range, but when I started reloading I didn't think anything of cranking out 50-100 rounds and shooting up a storm!! I know I was spending money and looking for new reloading tools all the time, but I wasn't walking into the gunshop, buying a box of rounds and shooting them, made the money I was spending seem to go much further, plus the reloading part is fun as well!!!
BTW - I had the Lee turret press and it made loading very easy, all the dies were in the turret and just a few cranks of the handle and I had a loaded round. If I wanted to switch calibers, I had extra turrets with the dies already set, just pop one out and the other in and I was loading for something else. So, if you are going to load different calibers, it is worth a few more bucks. It is only money, you'll make more!!!!

[BuzzKill]

Clearmore-
One more thought, you could put your proposed reloading capital into an additional 223 rem barrel ($80-100) and shoot the everpopular, ever -accurate Win. 45 gr. JHP .223 round for $0.28 a round.  Shoot this for practice and 'bang' gratification, while using your .243 for the real deal hunt.
Similar idea, but for a bit more $, you could buy the H&R 17 or 22 caliber guns for +/- $120-150 and shoot endlessly for even less pennies per round.
Nothing against reloading, just some additional thoughts.  You will however undoubtedly save money, tune your loads, design your own loads, and pick up a new hobby with reloading.
BuzzKill

[Mac11700]

To answer your question in simple terms without doing serious math, you will not save one red cent, but you will shoot much more for every cent spent.

 This really isn't serious math...but just a breakdown of 1 paticular premium load you can make and save a-lot on...In components for his 243...taking a 100 grain Federal Factory  Nosler partition load which cost around $25 a box shipped of 20 x 5 comes to $125...and reloading 100 rounds of it using the equivalent of factory primed brass and IMR 4064 powder and the same bullet...at a cost for the components of $46.57 should show you a substantial savings of $78.43...now...amatorize the cost of the reloading equipment using just this 1 load...it won't take very long to pay for his equipment and start saving money by rolling his own...which in turn will give the opourtunity to do more shooting...granted...it he shoots everyday...all day...he can shoot up any savings he would have made...but it still would be cheaper to reload...than to go out and buy factory ammo and shoot it all up... also...the amount of savings increases...once he starts using his brass over...or if he starts off with his own 1 x time fired brass...then he's only paying for the primers...yes...you can find cheaper loads to shoot and use cheaper components...this too adds to the savings over buying factory ammo...all in all...it's still a wise deceision to reload..is it for everybody...no...it's not...but to the majority of us...we wouldn't be able to shoot as near as much as we wanted to. or shoot as many premium loads..if we didn't...

Mac

[stiff neck]

Don't forget...  You can "tune" your handloads to fit your barrel's likes.  In other words, you are more likely to realize the accuracy potential of your rifle if you experiment a little while handloading.

What's not to like?  More accurate ammo, and more of it for the same or less amount of money!

[bajabill]

Once I started loading, my new guns get 20 rounds of factory loads.  The first couple of meals worth and the breakin clean/shoot regimen.  That meal is the cheapest box of winchester I can find.  Then the 20 pieces of winchester brass gets mixed with the bag of unfired winchester brass and put into circulation.  Also, I chrony a few of the factory rounds to establish a rough baseline of performance for the gun.

I do want a 223 just so I can shoot one gun without having to make the ammo.  Sometimes, I get an opportunity to hit the range and find myself without anything to shoot the night before and have to scramble, or pass.  Realistically, is the 17 or 22 mag rimfire much cheaper than 223?  I did not think it was so my rimfire will always be the 22lr.

[Badnews Bob]

I don't save any money directly but there is no way I could shoot as much as I do if I didn't reload, I'll shoot several thousand .38/.357s alone this summer not counting all the handis I gotta feed. I really enjoy hand loading and reading /learning more about it also there is so much to learn and the web ( GBs in paticular) is a great way to do it.

[Leftoverdj]

Clearmore. your cost estimate is way high. Careful shopping will get you primers at $15m, powder at about $100 an eight pound keg, and Remington bulk bullets at under $10 a hundred. You can come in at under 20 cents a round. I always try the Remington bulk. Some rifles shoot them as well or better than bullets costing twice as much.

[JPH45]

You can save money by reloading? Since when??  :-D  :grin:    :-D

I can't tell in 20 or so years of it that I have ever saved a dime. I do get to shoot more for the same money, true. But I also have to get more goodies like bullet molds, bullet sizing dies, case resizing dies, more scopes mounts, a chronograph (I shot my most recent example), boxes of bullets I'll never use, The Best Whatever Tool ever made that seems made only to get your money. Actually kinda rare in the reloading industry, most of what I've ever bought did what the advertisement said it would do, finding out if I really wanted that or not is a different story. Do I save money? Only to the extent that it is snowing outside and I hate shooting in the snow.  :grin:    :-D  :grin:  :-D (In case you didn't notice, I live in Alabama, we don't get a lot of snow)

The single most important thing I have gained from reloading is shooting experience. I pop caps at a rate of 10:1 perhaps even as much as 30:1 of most hunters I meet. I can make that 1000"s:1 for some hunters I know. Most hunters can't tell you what 100 yards looks like. I can generally call yardage to 150 yards and be right to within 10. I don't know how my rifle shoots with one load, I know how it shoots with 5 or 6. I can pick up one of 4 rifles and tell you what I was shooting in it last, what it has liked so far and what I'm trying next in it.

Have I saved money reloading? Not one red cent. But I am by far one of the most educated shooters in the woods on opening day, and I can tell you more about the load I am using than most can tell you about their rifle, for that matter any single peice of equipment they may be using that season.

Reload, you'll get more out of it. Save? I don't know any reloaders who do this to save money, that is the excuse we give to those who want to know whats in our wallet.