Advice for a newbie? |
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Bear43
Special Member Donating Member Joined: August 11 2010 Location: Doland, SD Status: Offline Points: 3059 |
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Posted: February 07 2020 at 10:10am |
I am planning to get set up to start reloading. With ammo prices and such I figure that is going to be most economical, plus I would like to do some reduced loads to plink with to take it easier on my arthritic shoulder. That said, any recommendations on gear? What are the must haves? Any certain brands better than others? Basically I would appreciate any advice you guys may have for me.
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Shamu
Admin Group Logo Designer / Donating Member Joined: April 25 2007 Location: MD, USA. Status: Offline Points: 17603 |
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Reloading manuals! Knowledge is power & starting off is where you'll make the most mistakes. I'd get a couple & read them a couple of times till you've gotten over that first steep part of the curve. Some general tips. Don't "go cheap", you'll regret it down the line & good equipment lasts decades. I like the "kits", some do, some don't & you will have to add bits & pieces to all of them as you progress, but they give you a tried & tested set of the basic tools that are absolutely compatible with each other. I've had my Lyman kit since the 1980s & I still use it. Its so old it isn't even Orange! RCBS are excellent as well. Look at used equipment! The new stuff is pretty similar to the old stuff & you can save a bundle. The old original Lee Whack-a-mole is not only a simple "get you started tool" but its also a good neck size only loader to learn on because its all 100% utterly manual. It will (with a couple of hours practice) load a round about every 45 seconds, which isn't too shabby. Get the add on dipper set! (It greatly expands your reloading options for powders.) The hand held case trimmer & a 6" caliper & you're good to get started. |
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Don't shoot till you see the whites of their thighs. (Unofficial motto of the Royal Air Force)
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shiloh
Senior Member Joined: January 08 2019 Location: Ontario, Canada Status: Offline Points: 2369 |
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I started with one of the lee press kits, plus the dies sets I needed, works great.
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Lead from the front; eliminate all obstacles...
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britrifles
Senior Member Joined: February 03 2018 Location: Atlanta, GA Status: Offline Points: 6539 |
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Absolutely agree with Sham, get a few current reloading manuals, at least one anyway! Sierra has a very good manual with lots of detail on the reloading process. Read them. Then read them again. Then after the third time you read them, keep it out next to you as you follow the process.
If you are going to do any more than 50 rounds a year, I would get a press. A single stage is ideal for rifle cartridge reloading, even if you do 120 rounds a week. The Lee Classic press is solidly built, I’ve loaded tens of thousands of rounds with it, and this price is very reasonable. I mostly use Lee reloading dies. Some claim they are cheap (well, they are), but I have not seen any quality issues or functional issues with them. I’m a big fan of their collet neck sizer, especially for .303 British! But you also need a Full Length sizer so buy the three die set. I have other dies, RCBS, a few others. They all work. I don’t crimp rifle cartridges, so don’t bother getting a crimping die if your loading for box magazine rifles. I believe it is unnecessary and adds another variable to the reloads. May be necessary for tubular magazine rifles. A digital scale is very convenient, but not essential. A case trimmer is essential. I used a L.E. Wilson trimmer for years, I wore my arm out trimming 100+ cases at a time. I now have a RCBS power trimmer and can’t imagine going back to the hand operated trimmer. But, these are expensive. If cost is a significant factor, getting a starter kit is an economical way to get the essentials. If I didn’t reload, I wouldn’t be shooting. |
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A square 10
Special Member Donating Member Joined: December 12 2006 Location: MN , USA Status: Offline Points: 14452 |
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good on you bear , you will never regret getting into this except for asking where do i stop ?
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Bear43
Special Member Donating Member Joined: August 11 2010 Location: Doland, SD Status: Offline Points: 3059 |
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Thanks for the advice and links, it is appreciated. I will start with one of the kits and go from there since in the end I plan to reload quite a bit. I have a lot of hungry Enfields to feed. Having my own shooting range I have been burning through a lot more ammo so this should help make it more economical in the end.
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Shamu
Admin Group Logo Designer / Donating Member Joined: April 25 2007 Location: MD, USA. Status: Offline Points: 17603 |
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Saving money will not happen. You will shoot a lot more for the same price though!
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Don't shoot till you see the whites of their thighs. (Unofficial motto of the Royal Air Force)
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Honkytonk
Senior Member Joined: December 30 2017 Location: Brandon Mb Status: Offline Points: 4770 |
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I've never did the calculation, but savings are probably minimal, unless shooting 100's of rounds a season like some members do. I like the idea of knowing each round was made in stages that I oversaw and know exactly what that round has in regards to components. I have a buddy that I deer hunt with that still has the same box of factory ammo he bought 15 seasons ago. He still has 10 rounds left. Figures he still good for ammo for several years!
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Bear43
Special Member Donating Member Joined: August 11 2010 Location: Doland, SD Status: Offline Points: 3059 |
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Another question for you guys, how many times do you neck size before you full length resize?
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Shamu
Admin Group Logo Designer / Donating Member Joined: April 25 2007 Location: MD, USA. Status: Offline Points: 17603 |
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3 maybe 4. One reason I use partial full length resizing is because you never have to change the method. Reloading is all about consistency, round to round & lot to lot. Every change is an inconsistency.
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Don't shoot till you see the whites of their thighs. (Unofficial motto of the Royal Air Force)
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britrifles
Senior Member Joined: February 03 2018 Location: Atlanta, GA Status: Offline Points: 6539 |
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I probably neck size 10 times before FL sizing. I wait until I feel some light resistance in locking the bolt, then FL size that lot.
Much depends on how hot the load is. My loads tend to be under the Mk 7 velocities, about 2400 fps with the 174 gr Sierra MatchKing. I just recently ran all my brass thru the FL die. I carefully set the die to just bump the shoulder back about .003 inches. But, I had several case heads separate today. It was with a new load I tried, 46.0 gr H4350. I haven’t inspected all the cases yet, but I suspect many are cracked. Yes, the brass is likely tired, been reloaded at least 50 times. I’ve not experienced this this high percentage of case heads cracking ever. |
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philtno
Senior Member Joined: May 04 2019 Location: Blenheim, NZ Status: Offline Points: 261 |
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Well, in my case, I full length resized my brass after 10-15 reloads/neck sized with the Lee Loader. But I probably waited too long before doing that as the accuracy suffered big time with my brass being clearly out of standard size. Now I'm more conscious of the issue and check my brass after each shooting....just to see if they chamber easily or not. It's been 4 shooting sessions since I full length sized them and, so far so good....still shooting well
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Stanforth
Senior Member Joined: January 08 2017 Location: Oxford England Status: Offline Points: 773 |
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Keep it simple.
I have bought many presses over the years. I have them ranging from an automatic press to a Wamadet high power press for some serious re forming of brass. BUT in the last 10 years the only one I have used is my Lee Hand Press. It allows me to load in the garden in summer indoors in almost any room in Winter and has the added advantage that it can be used on the range. I use Lee dippers and stick to one type of powder. Lee dies with a Factory Crimp die, that remove much of the need for case length checking. Good luck.
I always say the Shooting without reloading is like sex without foreplay. |
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Life.. a sexually transmitted condition that is invariably fatal.
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Bear43
Special Member Donating Member Joined: August 11 2010 Location: Doland, SD Status: Offline Points: 3059 |
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Goodness, so much information. You guys are so helpful, I appreciate all of it.
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britrifles
Senior Member Joined: February 03 2018 Location: Atlanta, GA Status: Offline Points: 6539 |
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Yup! Thats why it’s best to read a reloading manual first. It’s really a fairly simple process, but different ways to get the same results.
But I do think neck sizing with a collet die is the simplest method, no lube is required, and no subsequent cleaning off the lube either. This will maximize case life. Only the neck is sized. A moderate powder charge will also minimize brass stretching and allow you to get about 10 reloads before FL sizing. Several of us here use Lee dies, they are great value. I’ve not found accuracy issues with neck sizing, even up to the point I feel resistance to locking the bolt. Philtno had this problem, so it may depend on the rifle. The manuals are full of cautions, most are obvious if you think about it. Unless you are reloading for hunting at 400 yards or more, back off the maximum published charge weight by one or two grains. I’ve never found accuracy improvement at max charge. Bear, you must have a pile of brass if you have never reloaded! A tumbler is nice to get it clean, but not essential. Best not mix up the brass, sort by head stamp, this will reduce case volume inconsistencies. If you don’t know which rifle they were fired it, you may want to FL size first. Or, see if the cases will chamber in the rifle you intend on firing them in. There is one last thing I will say, it’s easy to get fooled on a particular load by only shooting 5 rounds. If they group well, you may declare success and then next time you shoot, the group is poor, or there is one flier. After shooting tens of thousands of rounds, I’ve concluded that we can not eliminate operator errors that are completely variable. The rifle and ammo also demonstrates variability, there will be random fliers not caused by the shooter. You can get stuck in a never ending quest for the perfect load where in fact it is just normal operator, rifle and ammo variability. In all the combinations of bullet, powder type and powder charge weight, I’ve only found one particular bullet that would not group in my No. 4 rifles. Powder type and charge weights made very little difference, as did COL. |
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Honkytonk
Senior Member Joined: December 30 2017 Location: Brandon Mb Status: Offline Points: 4770 |
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My equipment was given to me 30 years ago. Brother-in-law was/is an IPSC shooter and reloader and decided to get a progressive. It's an old Case press, RCBS Powder Measurer. At the same time I bought an RCBS 505 scale and lube pad. I also bought full length RCBS dies. Trimmer is a product I haven't seen since I bought mine. The brass fits into a she!! holder which fits into a hand drill. A twist tightens the brass. A cutter arbour made for the specific Calibre goes in and a pin at the end bottoms out through the primer hole. Trim, then I chamfer and deburr. Then into my kids rock tumbler filled with iguana cage litter box medium (crushed walnuts). My long winded point being when starting out, you can make quality ammunition with the barrel minimum of investment. Stuff like I use comes up for sale all the time as people move to more sophisticated systems. One more point... Don't rush! I find it a very soothing and rewarding hobby.
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