Virginia Gun Owners Forum - VGOF

I think this is the year I get started in doing my own handloads for my various firearms. I'm primarily interested in reloading 9mm, .45ACP and .38 Special for target practice. I think I'd also like to reload some .30-30 for my Winchester. Ammunition is getting more expensive, and worse yet, much harder to find for any reasonable price (the gun control crowd has done more to sell guns and ammo than any ad). Anyone have suggestions on equipment and getting started in handloading these calibers? I'm trying to get together a working starter kit of equipment to do this. I'm not looking to spend a ton on it, but I want something that will actually work and produce safe and reliable ammo for paper target shooting.

They all work, and You produce the safe and reliable. So next you determine how much ammo you want to turn out, and then go from there. You won't save money reloading, you'll just shoot more...

You might save if they're expensive rounds like .45 colts at about 40 bucks a box. Cheap ammo like 9mm and .45 acp though, no.

And you should realize that according to all manuals that by using reloaded ammunition you are voiding the warrenty on your weapons.

Other than that have fun and don't explode!

thekinetic wrote:You might save if they're expensive rounds like .45 colts at about 40 bucks a box. Cheap ammo like 9mm and .45 acp though, no.

I'm loading 9mm for about $6/50... I can't recall the last time I was seeing it under 10 a box for factory ammo.

sounds like thekinetic needs to find a new place to shop for supplies.

I started with the Lee Challenger Single stage kit and still use it.
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/423081 ... ersary-kit

Now that I shooting IDPA would like to upgrade to:
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/161975 ... -9mm-luger

I enjoy the reloading almost as much as the shooting.

jdonovan wrote:

thekinetic wrote:You might save if they're expensive rounds like .45 colts at about 40 bucks a box. Cheap ammo like 9mm and .45 acp though, no.

I'm loading 9mm for about $6/50... I can't recall the last time I was seeing it under 10 a box for factory ammo.

sounds like thekinetic needs to find a new place to shop for supplies.

No pmc brand from my fav gun shop at about $10 box for 9mm. But I have never seen .45 colts for un $35 a box. So .45 colts I would reload and considering I already have a weird habit of collecting my brass needlessly!

Now I would consider loading/reloading if it were shotgun slugs because 3 boxes of 5 .410 slugs cost me 14 bucks, they were fun though through my judge!

45 acp cheap?where?

thekinetic wrote: No pmc brand from my fav gun shop at about $10 box for 9mm.

so $10 is still quite a bit more than the $6 I load for.....

I vote for a Lee Classic Turret Press. They are pretty cheap with the press running about $120. Can get set up with about everything you need for about 150-200 dollars. Give or Take.

What a loaded question...no pun intended.

Anyway...I reload for everything I shoot...I also cast my own bullets for my pistols and some of my rifles.

Bullets will be your most expensive component. Brass is reuseable, powder and primers have to be bought.

Sample prices for reloading 1,000 .45 ACP with self-cast bullets:

Brass: Paid for
Primers: $32.00/1,000
Powder: $15.75 (5 grains Bullseye powder (7,000 grains in a pound)/round at $22/lb)
Bullets: $4.00 (230 grain round nose cast bullets costs: wheel weights/electricity/propane/lube)
Total Cost for 1,000: $51.75 or $2.59/box of 50.

Self-cast bullets are really that cheap. For $100 you can buy a lead furnace for casting, a mould and a sizing/lube die (all Lee Precision stuff). You get out the junk wheel weights from the local tire store/garage, put them on your turkey cooker gas ring inside a cast iron dutch oven and blaze away...dip out the steel clips floating to the top of the molten lead, toss in a piece of wax/flux to remove impurities and ladel the lead into moulds (I ruined several cupcake tins doing this till I discovered the cast iron pan with wedges in it for cornbread...cheap and it works great). All the expense is your labor turning out bullets by the thousand, it's really very easy.

I also make lead bullets for surplus rifles. Mostly old 30 caliber stuff (Krags, Winchesters, Marlins) and I even cast 750 grain bullets for my 50 BMG. All these get gas checks stuck on them to minimize leading. You can buy single bullet moulds for any caliber anything for $14. No more waiting for bullets to hit the market again.

Presses...get a progressive press (single stage presses are a false economy..cheap to buy but slower than the second coming), it'll save so much time and it removes the variables to bad shells once you get it set up. Used presses are good things.

Good Luck