I concur with a number of previous comments. If you think the long range bug will get you and want to shoot out past 1000 yards, I would suggest investing in good quality equipment now and you will learn how to use it over time. First, the price will only go up and as others have said, the pain is only once.
Some of the equipment I like is an RCBS RockChucker or Forester Co-Ax press. Area 419 makes a top of the line press, but it is $1275 plus some of the accessories you need are also expensive (die rings @ $25 each). For dies, I like Redding Competition and a Sinclair mandrel. I understand Lee Collet Dies work very well but have not tried one. Annealing will be another area you will want to investigate. I have an Annealeez, which is OK for the money but would suggest there are better options. I have used a RCBS ChargeMaster for several years and received my AutoTrickler v4 a couple weeks ago and very impressed. It not only speeds up the powder drop process but the accuracy is phenomenal once you get it dialed in. For example, with IMR4350 it is down to a single kernel of powder every time. No under target drops possible and accuracy to +/- 0.02 grains if desired.
Other things to consider are buying the best quality of brass you can find. Lapua, Peterson, ADG, and Nosler (in order) are all very good. Purchase enough brass of the same lot number as you anticipate needing for the life of the barrel. I weigh each case to get a relative measurement on case volume. You will need a case trimmer. There are several good ones from Sinclair, RCBS and Hornady but I prefer one from Lee (fast and easy and I can't find any appreciable difference in accuracy compared to the lathe type trimmer). You will need a case prep station. Hornady, Franklin Aresenal, Lyman and RCBS are all good. Also get a good set of digital calipers made by Mitutoyo. They are a little more expensive than others but well worth the investment. Bullet comparison and headspace measurement tools are a necessity to get accurate reloads. Hornady is one vendor but there are others. Neck turning tools will be something that can wait until you have mastered reloading. Lots of opinions on whether the effort is worth the accuracy gain. You will find other specialty tools that you may want to gather over time, but this is the basic list that I can think of for now. Lastly, find the bullet your particular rifle likes. Hammer, Barnes, Berger, Hornady ELD-X, Nosler ABLR and Sierra GameChanger are some you may want to try. Weigh each bullet and sort into groups of 0.1 grain variance. The quality of most bullets are excellent these days but occasionally you will find an outlier and you don't want that one on a critical trophy hunt.
Best wishes to you and keep us up to date on your reloading journey.
Some of the equipment I like is an RCBS RockChucker or Forester Co-Ax press. Area 419 makes a top of the line press, but it is $1275 plus some of the accessories you need are also expensive (die rings @ $25 each). For dies, I like Redding Competition and a Sinclair mandrel. I understand Lee Collet Dies work very well but have not tried one. Annealing will be another area you will want to investigate. I have an Annealeez, which is OK for the money but would suggest there are better options. I have used a RCBS ChargeMaster for several years and received my AutoTrickler v4 a couple weeks ago and very impressed. It not only speeds up the powder drop process but the accuracy is phenomenal once you get it dialed in. For example, with IMR4350 it is down to a single kernel of powder every time. No under target drops possible and accuracy to +/- 0.02 grains if desired.
Other things to consider are buying the best quality of brass you can find. Lapua, Peterson, ADG, and Nosler (in order) are all very good. Purchase enough brass of the same lot number as you anticipate needing for the life of the barrel. I weigh each case to get a relative measurement on case volume. You will need a case trimmer. There are several good ones from Sinclair, RCBS and Hornady but I prefer one from Lee (fast and easy and I can't find any appreciable difference in accuracy compared to the lathe type trimmer). You will need a case prep station. Hornady, Franklin Aresenal, Lyman and RCBS are all good. Also get a good set of digital calipers made by Mitutoyo. They are a little more expensive than others but well worth the investment. Bullet comparison and headspace measurement tools are a necessity to get accurate reloads. Hornady is one vendor but there are others. Neck turning tools will be something that can wait until you have mastered reloading. Lots of opinions on whether the effort is worth the accuracy gain. You will find other specialty tools that you may want to gather over time, but this is the basic list that I can think of for now. Lastly, find the bullet your particular rifle likes. Hammer, Barnes, Berger, Hornady ELD-X, Nosler ABLR and Sierra GameChanger are some you may want to try. Weigh each bullet and sort into groups of 0.1 grain variance. The quality of most bullets are excellent these days but occasionally you will find an outlier and you don't want that one on a critical trophy hunt.
Best wishes to you and keep us up to date on your reloading journey.
