Reloading..Youth...Old Age...Versatility

[petemi]

For my 69th Birthday, my wife gave me cash with the directive to buy reloading equipment and supplies and start on it.  I  did, and that was three years ago.  I never got started previously because I was intimidated by what I thought was a complicated process.  It is not...it is precise, but not difficult.  I wish I had begun long, long ago in my youth.  Save money?.....that's a joke.  I probably spend more reloading than I did buying ammo.  I was miserly with that.  Reloading, I probably spend quite a bit more than before, but I  shoot about 20 times as much and don't worry about it.  One of the expensive ones I shoot is the .356 and .358.   I can reload them for under a quarter the cost of off the shelf ammo.

The other big advantage to reloading is you can take virtually any caliber and load it up or down to suit what you want to do with it.  Factory ammo only gives you what the manufacturer thinks is right for your rifle or pistol.

If you're sitting on the fence about reloading, now's the time to get off and do it.  Don't be a dumbass like me and wait.  It ain't gonna get any better.

Pete

[cudatruck]

I agree completely Pete! i waited till i was 40. same reason. i was intimidated by the complicated and semi dangerous aspects. not so much having a mishap reloading but making a mistake and having it present itself in a firearm! I still load everything on a single stage press, even 9mm. i take my time and double check everything just like when i started. confidence is NOT going to be allowed to leed to carelessness. Just like you we can afford to shoot more now, but i have found i enjoy the reloading hobby a little more than the shooting hobby! strange but true. I am even playing with loading calibers i don't even have guns to shoot! I aquired a .244 krag die set with form die, probably will never afford a gun to shoot it, but it is a lot of fun to squeeze that 30-40 down to 6mm. Gonna start loading .32s,L,h&r, and 327 fed mag. don't have one of those yet, but might try a stub barrel project for that one. Have fun, Mike.

[Old Syko]

I'm one of those that started at about the age of 14.  Damn wonder I survived.  When you're young and take on such an endeavor with no supervision things can be a bit dicey, but over time I learned max velocity + shouldn't be the goal.  There's something about that feeling of being indestructible when you're young that makes reloading more unsafe than it needs to be.  The thing is, I did survive, and gained experience that I have done my best to pass on to others both young and old.  Some of that experience took hundreds of thousands of rounds to acquire but it was worth it ten fold.  I one of those who believes it is more about the journey than the destination.  With loading, to succeed in producing ammo that exceeds anything that can be purchased is more of a bonus than merely the goal in some cases.       

[gypsyman]

Started when I was 18. I am now 57. Thru the years, sometimes I get so wound up working, I don't touch any of my press's for 3 or 4 months. Then, I get the bug and start cranking out ammo. Just got a new Ruger SR1911, so am cranking out the 45acp ammo. Shot the gun with some stuff I loaded 15 years ago for my Auto-Ord. Shot just fine, but with all thats going on in the world, and, since I have a few thousand rds of brass and primers, might as well put the 2 together. Might not get a chance to shoot it all, but, my 2 sons have graciously volunteered to help me. In the last 10 years or so, now I'm more concerned with just having fun reloading and shooting. Instead of turning necks,reaming primer pockets and such. gypsyman

[cudatruck]

gypsyman, thats kinda where im at. i have primers and powder, a little short on some bullets, but have been buying and trading for brass and a few bullets. i figure i might as well load em up. they aren't much use if i need them and they are still in pieces. trying to figure just how many of each i can afford to stock up.

[geezerbiker]

I started when I was 18 with a Lee loader kit, a box of bullets, primers and 1 can of 3031.  The only rifle I had was an Arisaka that was passed down through my family and it was expensive to shoot.  I bought 2 boxes of Norma ammo and saved the brass. I got more into reloading when I got more rifles about 10 years later...  I'm 55 now and I had to have help loading and unloading my reloading supplies when I moved a little while ago.  When I was 30, I could get all my reloading supplies in one empty Budweiser case...

Tony

[cybin]

I started reloading when I was a teenager--started out reloading shotgun shells with a Lee Hand Loader (12ga)---worked great with paper shells, was a bit of a pain with plastic shells. Graduated to a Lee Hand Loader for .357--used that for several years--then after Vietnam--bought a RCBS single stage press --which I still use. I own a old Lyman turret press--but seldom use it--I  prefer the single stage RCBS. Any more I think I enjoy the reloading more than the shooting, and enjoy teaching others how to reload even more. Especially when they are under the age of 35 or so--they will live long enough to get their money back if they stay with it. Starting at my age (63) is fun--but not a money making deal by any means. Not that reloading is a money making deal--we just shoot a lot more and not worry about the cost--as much.
 
If bullets stay hard to get--which I doubt--I may start looking into casting my own for my handguns. Watched some video's on U Tube that walked you through the process--be a pain getting the right kind of lead but very doable I think, and can probably get into it for around $100.00 or so. May some day be the only way to go.
 
cybin

[charles p]

I get more pleasure from reloading in the off season, than I do from target shooting my loaded rounds.

[calvon]

Got the reloading bug during my thirties, began with a C&H C-press and a handed down Pacific scale, one of those that used weight substitution gadgets, no damping, took forever for the scale to settle. When Lyman came out with a magnetic damped scale bought one, also a RCBS Rockchucker when you could buy one for $30. I'll be 90 on my next birthday and have no inclination to quit reloading. Load for 9mm, .357 Sig, .40 S&W, .222, 22-250, and .35 Whelen. Cast my own for the pistols and the Whelen. It's still fun. I don't kill things any more mainly because my git-along doesn't work so well any more. Can't scramble through the boulders to hunt chukars any more. Gave my Browning Superposed shotgun and a pre-64 Winchester M70 .30-06 to a nephew who is putting them to good use. Kept the others to shoot for fun, punching holes in paper and making big rocks into little ones.

[necchi]

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[Gun Runner]

Started when I was 10, am 72 now. Started with a hand loader for 12 ga. Had several adults there all the time. Over the years I have taught about 50 people to reload, from young to old. Any military base I was at managed to get an area where I could reload. (20 yrs Navy) Aboard ship I managed to scrounge small arms brass when ever I could. Getting ready to teach my S I  L and Daughter this spring. Have owned a lot of diffrent presses, and other loading stuff. Finally down to a Dillon 550 and a RCBS Mk2 press. I load for a hobby, and I still learn something new all the time.

Gun Runner

[Lloyd Smale]

I started when i was 13. No help from my dad. He was a avid hunter but not an avid shooter and had no interest. I got a 3030 lee loader for christmas that year, bought a c&h c press later that summer, two years later i bought a bullet mold and started my casting hobby. Fooled around with it through high school and when i got out of the service I started the obsession.  I chuckle when i think back on it. How many parents these days would let a 13 year old without supervision start loading ammo and then take a 3030 out to shoot it without even checking in. Id have to say i doubt i would have let my own kids start loading at that age without supervision. I have to add pete i sure hope i look as good as you when im 69!

[petemi]

Thanks Lloyd, my brain still thinks I'm 21, but the body doesn't believe it    Patty and I hope to see you and shoot with you again this Summer.  She was tied up with the band and other things last Summer.  We didn't even make our annual trip to Buckley.

Pete

[stimpylu32]

I started about 15 , a friend's dad had a small shop he ran from his house and most times I would hang out with the dad and he taught me the basic's , now its more of the odd ball stuff for me , the can I make this from this type rounds . I have even offered to " Mentor " anyone around here that wants to learn , but alas , so far no takers . Even my kids are not too keen on loading , they will only help if I tell them -- NO SHOOTING -- unless you help load some ammo , not the best way to get them to help = Yet it does work for me ! 
 
stimpy

[petemi]

I have a buddy who owns more guns than I do.  He doesn't reload.  He recently bought a little revolver in .32 Long.  I had bullets I wasn't using plus primers and powder.  I told him I'd order the dies and brass for him, give him the bullets etc, and teach in to reload them.  He came over one time for about a half hour.  We loaded about ten rounds to try and that was it.  He hasn't been back to finish up and is showing no more interest.  He was in the market for an AR before the current panic, and now all he can think about is "shoulda done it before".  The guy's a well off, retired, 100% disabled Vet, so time or money is not his problem.

Pete

[cudatruck]

this hobby is just not for everyone. i have tried to get a few people into it, but no takers yet. Seems it takes a certain kind of person to enjoy this part of the shooting sports. I know some guys that reload but view it as a chore they have to do to shoot more. I view my loading time as relaxing, interesting, and fun. way better than mowing the lawn or doing dishes.

[bosephus]

 if you realy want to spend more money to save money  just take up bullet casting