Author Topic: i want to get into reloading (Read 1152 times)

dragthewaters · « **on:** February 17, 2003, 02:03:31 PM »

i want to get into reloading and have no idea were to start i know i will be reloading pistol and rifle cartridges, is there any good starter kits or anything, and what is everything i need and about how much is all of this going to cost me?

thanks, :-)

22hornet · « **Reply #1 on:** February 17, 2003, 02:30:01 PM »

I would get the RCBS master reloading kit comes with Rockchucker press and some other goodies pretty much everything but dies bullets powder and primers to get started but again this is just my 2 cents.

http://www.midwayusa.com/rewriteaproduct/646599

Don't know if thats the cheapest or what have you but Midway has done good by me in the past...

dragthewaters · « **Reply #2 on:** February 17, 2003, 02:58:22 PM »

hey thanks,

and yeah thats cheaper than the other places i checked and that isnt the 1st time that that kit was reccomended, and if i buy an rcbs press that means i have to get their brand of dies. is that correct?

benenglish · « **Reply #3 on:** February 17, 2003, 03:38:34 PM »

To answer your last question: Nope. You don't have to use RCBS dies. Dies are generally a standard size and thread so they interchange between most presses. And you'd have to make a real effort to get stuck with some of the oddball stuff out there; it's pretty rare.

But your first question is the one that intrigues me - how to get started. How do you like to approach things? Do you want the best of everything? Is money a huge concern? I think most reloaders would be tickled pink to use the kit that's been recommended for the rest of their lives. RCBS is a good choice.

But if you plan on just testing the waters or if money is a big concern, Lee makes useful tools at low prices. Their dies are good and their hand-held priming tool is just fine. And most of their stuff is so inexpensive that you won't mind retiring it if you decide you *really* love reloading and want to go whole-hog at a later date.

Two last points that I always pass on to beginning reloaders:

1. Get books. You can never have too many reloading manuals and associated reference books. I really like the Lee, Vihtavuori, and Sierra manuals. There are also plenty of more advanced texts in the back of the Sinclair International catalog. BTW, catalogs count as reference books, too. Get as many as you can. And visit the web sites of every powder manufacturer you can identify; nearly all of them have a way for you to provide a mailing address to which they will gladly send a free basic reloading manual. Heck, some of them are even available online.

2. Get a tin of Imperial Sizing Die Wax. I've never found a pad-applied or spray lubricant for resizing that was anywhere near as easy to use, easy to clean, economical, and effective as Imperial. It is incredibly good stuff and will make reloading much easier for you.

dragthewaters · « **Reply #4 on:** February 17, 2003, 04:22:54 PM »

ok thanks about the thing with the dies

yes i do usually like somthing that is the best of them all, but the thing is money is an issue, actually i will be buying this before i will buy my rifle and i will be shooting a .380auto and reloading for it while i save up for my rifle. it is not that it has to be the best though, i just want the best for the money i am going to spend, basically the best value, i will probably doin a good deal of reloading after i get into it for about a year, the thing about buying the basic now and get good a year from now, well it has never appealed to me, it just doesnt make any sense,"if you are going to end up with it just get in the start"

if by testing waters means basicallly that to see if i like it, i wont need to be testing waters then. i am sure i will love doing it, its just the type of thing i will be like doing, and i looked at lee but "is it the best for the money"

the only thing that will be hard i think i am not sure though is learning it, i have nobody to teach it to me, or even somebody who even knows that a rifle shell could even be reloaded :?

as for books, i feel that is the only way i will be able to learn how and, i will get alot of books on reloading.

and for the siszing wax, im sure it works if you say, so far people say the spray is the best but i always like to try different thing so i will try it as soon as i get into reloading

i got a bunch of brass waiting for reloading

thanks,

ricciardelli · « **Reply #5 on:** February 18, 2003, 02:02:46 AM »

Buy the RCBS Rock Chucker Master Reloading Kit and the RCBS Accessory Kit. That will give you everything you need, except for shell holder and dies.

As for shell holder and dies, there is absolutely nothing wrong with RCBS. I have been using them since the early 1960's.

Now, abut "trying something new"...DON'T!

Hell, don't even think about it! You are just starting...use the lube that comes with the kits and keep it simple.

benenglish · « **Reply #6 on:** February 18, 2003, 05:41:15 AM »

Dragthewaters -

It bodes well for you that you've already thought through the permutations well enough to decide that Lee isn't for you. At a much later point in your reloading you may decide to pick up one or two of their tools for specialty purposes, but by then you'll know what you need and why. For now, for you, forgetting Lee seems perfectly appropriate.

One clarification: I meant absolutely no disrespect to RCBS dies. They're fine and I use them extensively. My comments weren't meant as a recommendation for or against, only to clarify the point that the hole in the top of the RCBS press would accept any standard dies from any manufacturer.

I think, given your further clarifications, that ricciardelli is absolutely right and the RCBS kit is probably about perfect for you. And since you don't have anyone to guide you, I especially agree with him about using the lube that comes with the kit. It gets the job done and doesn't complicate things.

Later, of course, you'll try the Imperial, it'll be a revelation, and you'll never go back. But save that for a future time when you're more experienced and, having used RCBS pad lube for a while, you already understand what a royal pain in the posterior it is to use most lubes on the market.

dragthewaters · « **Reply #7 on:** February 18, 2003, 10:30:34 AM »

i dint get near as good as help anywhere else

thanks, i think i will get the RCBS rockchucker then, ill let ya know how i do when i get :lol:

Black Jaque Janaviac · « **Reply #8 on:** February 19, 2003, 06:21:46 AM »

I wouldn't rule out Lee. They may not be Cadillac quality. But they are certainly worth the price for certain users.

Here's my advice. Try to imagine what your reloading needs will be.

A coworker just reloads a box or two of highly accurate ammo per YEAR.

I want to plink a 200 to 300 rounds per month at popcans, metal gongs, and milk jugs.

Another aquaintance wanted to punch one-hole groups at great distances.

Yet another friend has to reload for an entire family who shoots 3 times a WEEK.

There are different reloading tools for EACH of the above purposes. And probably another tool for YOUR purpose.

Find out what tool you need FIRST. THEN consider which brand has that tool.

In my case, I need minute-of-popcan accuracy. I don't have any money to buy ammo with NOR do I have any time to reload (ok, I'm exaggerating). A turret press is the exact tool I needed. Cranks out decent ammo, at a decent rate. It's easier to learn on than a progressive press, and it's potentially a lot faster than a single-stage press.

Lee makes a good turret press. It ain't exactly "contractor grade", but why pay for more than I need?

Considering the cost of Lee products, and my needs, I'll probably be in the grave before I spend the equivalent money of Dillon by replacing worn out Lee equipment.

For other people, they may see replacing worn out Lee as "nickel and diming" themselves to death.

Questor · « **Reply #9 on:** February 19, 2003, 07:58:17 AM »

I think the first thing to spend money on is information. Get a good loading manual, like the Speer manual.

dholepuncher · « **Reply #10 on:** February 19, 2003, 03:46:41 PM »

dont buy the kits, half the crap is inaccurate, get you a press(turret maybe) get you pact digital or rcbs digital scales, with lazer and get the automatic powder feeder that works with it. i quit reloading once cause it got to be tiresome and manual scales absorb loads of time,if you start out right you may stick with it cause it is rewarding, i havent bought factory ammo in ten years. go ahead an get a redding br powder dump and when u use the spherical powders you hardly ever have to redump its almost perfect every time( ihave a sinclair and an redding and love both.) easiest way to trim brass is lee cutter and trim guides(about 4.00 a caliber and then there is no guess work or hand work cause you can use a rechargeable drill, no hand crankin. look there is a lot of people that like the old and slow and hard way but i shoot over 30,000 round a year in every caliber you can think of and i found that there is no bad gun, just bad factory ammo. dont beat your self up, i have lots of that old reloading crap i wouldnt give you for free cause that would be a terrible thing to do, kits have to many obsolete tools that u will replace when u figure out how much easier you could have been reloadin, its fun and relaxin when things go easy., i can take any kit scales and i bet u cant weigh out within half a grain in ten tries( digital is within .01 everytime and half a grain is the difference sometimes in sub moa groups or fliers .)you can get what u need at natchez or lock stock and barrel(both online)any time u can get competion seaters u are better off (special .22 cal) cause its easier to load the bullet in the brass.think of this when u buy dies. dont buy lee dies cause theychange if you unscrew them and rdding and rcbs doesnt and consistancy, and i mean consistancy is what make reloading work.

dholepuncher · « **Reply #11 on:** February 19, 2003, 03:48:27 PM »

use hornady spray lube old lube fouls things up it sucks.

dholepuncher · « **Reply #12 on:** February 19, 2003, 03:51:43 PM »

and dont waste money on books ,everything you need is on line, you have a printer dont u go to hogdgon on line or imr both give you all the info you need to load. most of every load in a book is just a starting point if you have only loaded what the book called for then your reloading is incomplete.

dholepuncher · « **Reply #13 on:** February 19, 2003, 03:53:56 PM »

if anyone wants to argue with me then send me your gun ,i will send it back to you shooting bullets ill give once that will leave no paper at a hundred yards, im not braggin, im that good,and i love makin rifles shoot

dragthewaters · « **Reply #14 on:** February 19, 2003, 04:24:22 PM »

so you think that it is much better to just buy all the peices seperate, but the problem is i dont know what im doing so i cant walk into a store and say
i want a rcbs blah blah and a lee primer tool and a hornady 68gr bullet, ect... and who knows i may put together a worse kit than i am getting and i am on a budget

benenglish · « **Reply #15 on:** February 19, 2003, 04:59:41 PM »

<<<who knows i may put together a worse kit than i am getting and i am on a budget>>>

You've got a good point, there. Only you can decide how you want to proceed.

If you get a kit (RCBS, Lee, whoever), you have the following pluses:

1. All the work is done in selecting the initial tools.
2. You didn't have to spend all your spare time for three months reading volume after volume, web page after web page to figure out how to put together the tools you need.
3. You can get started NOW.

Any kit will have the following minus:

If you decide you really like reloading, at least one of the tools will be designed in such a way that it bugs you. Dholepuncher, for example, likes the Redding powder measure over the RCBS. (I agree, btw, but it's not a big deal as far as I'm concerned.) If you reach the same conclusion, you'll wind up replacing that tool at some cost and telling yourself "Gee, if I'd only done some more thinking before I got into this, I would have gotten the right tool to begin with." Being in such a situation bothers some people.

Now, I'm one of those people who believe experience counts and my time is worth something. If I don't have experience with something, I expect to make some mistakes. It doesn't bother me to have to re-buy something as long as I didn't spend too much money the first time around and I get the right thing the second time. But I'm not willing to spend months studying something, frozen by indecision, until I know exactly what's perfect for me. Why? Because when I've chosen that course of action, my inexperience inevitably catches up with me and I wind up getting something less-than-ideal anyway, only it costs a lot more than if I had simply gotten something cheap and used it to gain valuable experience.

So here's my take on this: Get the kit. There may be tools you'll decide you don't like and will replace but in the RCBS kit, for an average reloader, those tools will be few if any.

One last thing: Books. They're important. The 'net is fine for what it is, but it sure doesn't replace books. If you're still on the fence about what to buy, buy a couple of books. A good reloading manual or one of the how-to books on the subject (such as The ABCs of Reloading by C Rodney James and others), read thoroughly and internalized, will give you more confidence about what to buy than anything else I can think of. You can never have too many reference books about a hobby.

Dadgummit, if you lived near me I'd be happy to show you how it's done. Any chance you're near Houston, Texas? Wherever you are, have you looked for someone to help? If you're in the U.S., the NRA certifies reloading instructors and you can go to their web site to search for one in your area.

Good luck. I think you're gonna be all right.

The Shrink · « **Reply #16 on:** February 20, 2003, 01:22:45 AM »

One other thing - go to a local gun store that sells reloading tools and components and hang around. Ask to meet people who reload, let them know you want to start. At a guess, on any given Sat. you will have two or three offers from established and experienced reloaders to give you instruction. The same would be true at any organized gun club. Most of the members will be relaoders. Most of them would be delighted to help you get started.

dholepuncher · « **Reply #17 on:** February 20, 2003, 01:24:10 AM »

list me your budget and i will show you how to save 35% (up to) than store costs. specially on the presses(turret on sale rcbs 129.00) digital powder dispenser with digital scales(on sale in natchez right now for 156.00 and 146.00)lee auto prime(13.00)not all lee product are good enuf to last but some of their little items save aload of time.digtal calipers all over ebay for 29.00 or less (6 inch) and thats 20.00 less than be ordered, get your dies from natchez 19.00 unless you get competion seater then higher but not need unless you load bullets .243 or less.if bought a new 200.00 leupold then sold it a year later it would still bring 160.00. thATSTHE SAME WITH WHAT(opps) im telling you to buy.i have a whole storage bin of kit crap that is old and not as accurate as what you can replace it with today. if you call natchez and tell them what i told you want the know exactly what to give you.two brass trays to hold empy or semi full or primed brass while loading are 5.00 apiece, then you can spray lube with one shot (by hornady) and wont have a hell of a mess.i you are serious i will pm you with my number and will sit down with catalogue or on line and help you not buy stuff you will regret .

dragthewaters · « **Reply #18 on:** February 20, 2003, 04:42:03 AM »

I can spend about, 350 max, i know it wont get me much but it is what i have to work with :?

the shrink, i live near chicago, and i cant exactly say that most the people at the guns shops are too friendly unless you are buying somthing, unless you find a nice one, there is a guy i talk to in the bigger shop by my house and he is helpfull no matter what., nut i am going to a gunshow this saturday and wil be talking to some reloaders i know.

benenglish I think may try to get all peices seperate, mostly because of what i expect of what i buy, if i get somthing and it isnt working to my expections than"im ready to test the strength of the drywall"

dholepuncher, i would like that about talking to you about this, but i would like to do it a little later, because i do not have the money i am using for this yet( long story) but i will have it definetely. do you have AIM instaint messenger?

thanks everyone,