Getting started reloading

[LoneTraveler]

I would suggest a press with compound linkage like the RCBS Rock Chucker also. This type of linkage puts the power in the press. You would not have to build a big, heavy, special reloading table to take the stress, When Magnum full length sizing, I have a RCBS Rock Chucker, recess bolted from the bottom, To a piece of 2X6 board reinforced with cross bolts. I clamp it to a table including my kitchen table at times with 2 C clamps and full length size 270 Win, 338 WM and 300WSM with no problem.

I like some of Lee's products.
I have used the Lee trim to length set up for years.
Get a Lee case holder that fits a drill or power screwdriver.
Once the case in to holder, trim, inside/outside champher and true flash hole on new cases all at same time.

You said you now shoot 20 to 40 rounds a month. Look for that to at least double if you get into reloading, Reloading has a way of getting into your blood like guns.

 

[okie man]

the lee kit is nice but the rcbs stuff is much better stuff. if you decided to get out of reloading youll get alot mre of your money back out of it

 

[gte901m]

You can get started with the bare minimum for $300 (list below).

A few of the items are on sale, but you could always buy used for similar pricing.

-single stage press; a Lee press with Breech lock bushings ($70) will do everything you want and produce great ammo once you have the skill; Hornady copied the bushing concept which is a compliment; don't forget to buy bushings if you buy lee($9) or hornady presses; you can prime cases on the press without buying additional priming equipment
-dies: you will need a shell holder, Full Lenth (FL) sizing die, and seater die; lee dies include a shell holder and work fine($32); you can also buy used dies on the forum; for my purposes, all FL sizing dies produce the same quality of ammo; you may wish to try other styles of dies later, but a FL sizing will get you in the game
-load data: free sources: hodgon website (hodgon/imr/win powders), nosler website (various powders), alliant website, Ramshot website, googling will even turn up Sierra data in pdf format
-calipers: I prefer old school dial calipers; you don't need a digital display, precision is the same for all entry level calipers at 0.001"; Lyman sells a unit for $30 or so
-tumbler: if you don't clean your brass before sizing, you will eventually ruin your sizing die by forcing grit and powder residue into it; all the mainstream manufactures sell decent tumblers; buy one on sale ($50) and a bag of generic corn cobb media ($10)
-case lubrication: I have tried several (lube pad RCBS/Lyman/etc, Lee's water based, & waxes) and prefer imperial sizing wax for everything I do; however, they all can work if used correctly ($10)
-scale: a balance beam scale or digital scale; I am not a fan of the Lee balance (it works, but I found it difficult and slow to operate as a beginner); Midway has an RCBS digital on sale for $45 right now
-a powder measure speeds up the process of dispensing charges; even if you intend to weight check each one on your scale; the Lee Perfect powder measure is hard to beat for the price ($26); if you really want to get cheap, use the scooper included with the Lee dies and scoop from the powder bottle directly onto the scale pan - slow but it works
-powder funnel $5
-case trimmer: eventually your cases will get too long and require trimming; lee makes an inexpensive option for each cartridge ($8 trimmer head + $6 pilot =$ 14); many other brands of trimmers to chose from if you want to spend more
total: ~$300

 

[Kansaswoodguy]

I still use the RCBS turret press I started with 15 years ago replaced a few parts because I wore them out along the way. RCBS sent them to me at no cost. If I was starting out this is what I feel you will need.

Good quality leather notepad/binder for notes.
Press of some make. My RCBS press has a built in primer if the press you choose doesn't you will need a priming tool also.
Scale no need to break the bank on this it just needs to be repeatable.
Deburring tool.
Dial calipers.
Powder funnel.
Brass holding tray or make one out of a board.
Reloading manual
Bullet puller the plastic hammer style is fine.
Lee trimmer system that uses a drill to spin the brass and to trim it. These are cheap. The huge advantage to this system is because the brass spins you can clean it with 0000 steel wool. No need to buy a tumbler especially for such small volume reloading.
I personally don't weigh my powder charges I use a Redding powder throw. The scale is only to check the powder throw against because all reloading manuals use powder by weight.

For brass lube I mix 1 part 100% liquid lanolin to 10 parts 99% isopropyl alcohol and mist the brass in a pail before sizing allowing the alcohol to evaporate first. The Hornady One Shot may work as well I've never tried it.

I like the cheap Lee dies their inside finish simetimes needs a little polishing with 400grit Emory cloth chucked up into a drill when you first get them. If you have kids that may "help" dad once in while the Lee dies may not be the best option as they have a seating adjustment that is easily manipulated by little fingers. As you progress in your reloading you can add things as you want/need them.

I shoot 50-100 rounds most weeks from about mid July until January. I have a 400 yard range at the house and 1000 yard range at the family farm a few miles away.

 

[Zerk]

I prefer turrets. I don't like spending time adjusting stuff.

While good advice to read up first. But at some point have to get feet wet.

If your goal is to just save money, this at or may not be for you.

You can make it cheap, but myself I like to me things easier and quicker. One of my goals is more accurate.

I suspect there is cost savings when loafing really big stuff. But stuff that is 20-30 a box, you would have to do some math.

In addition to press and manuals, balance beam scale, calipers bullet puller , and pourer are what I consider about the basics.

I have added check weights and electric scale. Organizers. More manuals.

 

[Jester896]

I use a Rock Chucker Supreme press. I do not prime on it. For the most part it is a good unit. What I don't like is the primer catching system. I did pick up an item on this site that relieved that issue for me but now I have to watch my fat little fingers because it takes up a lot of room. The piece allows spent primers to fall in a box under the bench. The Redding Big Boss allows the spent primers to fall through the ram, and down a tube in the same fashion but leaves the platform area more open. I think if I had to buy a press of that type today with the experiences I have had...it would be the Redding Big Boss or any one that collected spent primers in this fashion.

None of this may be important to you with the amount you are currently doing. Once you get up and running and doing a much larger quantity this may be important to you.

I am not a kit fan to a degree...can't stand a lube pad. I use a little different method of the Lanolin mix mentioned above...I find it much less messy.

 

[68w]

I'm out on about 2k acres in eastern Kansas, ranges over 1k yards are easily obtainable for plinking, but most of my time is spent stalking and predator hunting. Helps keep the ammo cost down. I would likely increase my range time and interest if ammo wasn't so expensive too I could see 100 rounds a month. I don't consider this really high volume, but I don't want to invest in junk either. Starting small and buying quality piece by piece.

 

[just country]

Sounds like your budget may be a bit tight. I can highly recommend the Lee Anniversary starter kit. It is a good way to start without investing a ton of money. That is what I started with and I still use most of the kit. Buy a set of dies for the rifle you want to shoot the most, stock up on powder, primers and bullets, acquire some brass and you are in business. You can buy more expensive reloading tools, but your ammo will not be any more accurate than that you load with the Lee kit and a set of Lee dies. The Lee case length trimmer is an inexpensive and accurate way to trim your cases to length. People either love or hate the Lee Safety Scale. If it is set up correctly and zeroed each time you use it, this scale will weigh as well as any other scale. You can modify it by adding stronger magnets for the damper and it will be faster. Once you learn to adjust it, the Perfect Powder Measure will throw charges as accurate as any other, more precise than most.

Once you get your equipment, one of the more important things to learn is how to adjust your sizing die to properly size a case. If you follow the directions that come with the dies, you will probably be over-sizing which will affect brass life.

Youtube can be a good resource. Just be aware that some of the people on youtube are much more knowledgeable than others. You can usually figure out quickly which ones to watch and which to pass on. There are some good videos on there on how to customize some of your equipment, such as the magnets in the Lee Safety Scale.

I use only a single stage press. I enjoy the hand loading process so I am not in a hurry to turn out a high volume in short time so I don't need a progressive press. You can sometimes pick up some used equipment at gun shows. That is how I got my second press. Now I use one for sizing and one for seating so I can have both dies set up at the same time.

Now a tip for lubing cases. When you start loading more than 5 or 10 at a time and want to quickly lube 20 - 50 cases at a time, you can put a dollop of the Lee Sizing Lube in the bottom of a tupperware container that is large enough to hold the cases and have some room for them to move around. Add the cases, put the top on the tupperware and shake vigorously. You can lube a lot of cases quickly with this method. You will probably add more lube than needed at first, but you will learn how to adjust the amount.

FWIW,

the very first item to buy is a very good introduction with photo's manual on the process on handloading ur own ammo. I started reloading 40yrs ago. I am still learning, reading. u have to read a lot!! Read the manuals, see if u want to spend
the money to handload. I have as others spent $thousands of dollars on handloading. Never ending sponge for knowledge and money. very gratifying. READ!!!!

 

[RandySch]

I started researching reloading equipment about 5 years ago. I wasn't convinced I would really benefit. Then I bought a new Weatherby rifle. Both hunting rifles I have are in .270 Win. The other rifle is a Savage 111. The reason I bought the Weatherby was to reach out a little farther, it has a 4" longer barrel. I was buying premium ammo which was costing me $30 a box. Nothing I liked was available locally so all purchases were mail order. After many trips to my local shooting range I noticed inconsistencies in point of impact after 500 yards, especially at 650. Elder gentlemen who are regulars at the range pointed out that my rifle setup was good. But my issue was most likely to do with inconsistent factory ammo. They were too kind to mention that the shooter was also in need of more practice.
Having accumulated a lot a brass I decided it was time to start reloading. Having compared the cost of purchasing individual components with buying a kit, I found it was way more economical to buy a kit. The best value for the money I found was a RCBS kit that I got at a discount from Midway USA for what I considered a great buy. This kit included a RCBS Rockchucker single stage press and a Rangemaster digital scale. The whole kit cost about what these two items combined cost would have cost. What it did not include that I considered essential was a set of dies, digital calipers, a primer pocket cleaner, a neck brush, and a flash hole reamer. I went with a Redding Premium die set and do not regret the extra money I spent over cheaper alternatives. Included with the kit I purchased was a Nosler Reloading Guide. Reloading guides are essential but there is a lot of reloading information published online by reputable companies like Nosler & Barnes. With a purchase of power, primers, and bullets I was ready to get started. The first trip to the range I was satisfied with what I had accomplished but realized I was at the beginning stages of load development.
I know this is getting long so I will just make some quick points. I have never purchased a brass tumbler/cleaner. There are ways to clean brass without them.
If you feel the need to purchase a chronograph read Brian Litz's Chronograph Performance Review Article first. You will definitely save yourself headaches and wasted money. Has reloading saved me money? 1200 rounds later, I would have to say yes. It is difficult to quantify but it has provided me with the opportunity to shot a lot more than I would have, making me a better shooter. It has also resulted in giving me better more consistent ammo and I can reload bullets that are not available in factory ammunition.

 

[Bullet bumper]

I started researching reloading equipment about 5 years ago. I wasn't convinced I would really benefit. Then I bought a new Weatherby rifle. Both hunting rifles I have are in .270 Win. The other rifle is a Savage 111. The reason I bought the Weatherby was to reach out a little farther, it has a 4" longer barrel. I was buying premium ammo which was costing me $30 a box. Nothing I liked was available locally so all purchases were mail order. After many trips to my local shooting range I noticed inconsistencies in point of impact after 500 yards, especially at 650. Elder gentlemen who are regulars at the range pointed out that my rifle setup was good. But my issue was most likely to do with inconsistent factory ammo. They were too kind to mention that the shooter was also in need of more practice.
Having accumulated a lot a brass I decided it was time to start reloading. Having compared the cost of purchasing individual components with buying a kit, I found it was way more economical to buy a kit. The best value for the money I found was a RCBS kit that I got at a discount from Midway USA for what I considered a great buy. This kit included a RCBS Rockchucker single stage press and a Rangemaster digital scale. The whole kit cost about what these two items combined cost would have cost. What it did not include that I considered essential was a set of dies, digital calipers, a primer pocket cleaner, a neck brush, and a flash hole reamer. I went with a Redding Premium die set and do not regret the extra money I spent over cheaper alternatives. Included with the kit I purchased was a Nosler Reloading Guide. Reloading guides are essential but there is a lot of reloading information published online by reputable companies like Nosler & Barnes. With a purchase of power, primers, and bullets I was ready to get started. The first trip to the range I was satisfied with what I had accomplished but realized I was at the beginning stages of load development.
I know this is getting long so I will just make some quick points. I have never purchased a brass tumbler/cleaner. There are ways to clean brass without them.
If you feel the need to purchase a chronograph read Brian Litz's Chronograph Performance Review Article first. You will definitely save yourself headaches and wasted money. Has reloading saved me money? 1200 rounds later, I would have to say yes. It is difficult to quantify but it has provided me with the opportunity to shot a lot more than I would have, making me a better shooter. It has also resulted in giving me better more consistent ammo and I can reload bullets that are not available in factory ammunition.

That's an excellent reply and good advice . You can't go too far wrong with RCBS and Redding stuff , Fosters dies are good also .

 

[ltcjwb]

I still use the RCBS turret press I started with 15 years ago replaced a few parts because I wore them out along the way. RCBS sent them to me at no cost. If I was starting out this is what I feel you will need.

Good quality leather notepad/binder for notes.
Press of some make. My RCBS press has a built in primer if the press you choose doesn't you will need a priming tool also.
Scale no need to break the bank on this it just needs to be repeatable.
Deburring tool.
Dial calipers.
Powder funnel.
Brass holding tray or make one out of a board.
Reloading manual
Bullet puller the plastic hammer style is fine.
Lee trimmer system that uses a drill to spin the brass and to trim it. These are cheap. The huge advantage to this system is because the brass spins you can clean it with 0000 steel wool. No need to buy a tumbler especially for such small volume reloading.
I personally don't weigh my powder charges I use a Redding powder throw. The scale is only to check the powder throw against because all reloading manuals use powder by weight.

For brass lube I mix 1 part 100% liquid lanolin to 10 parts 99% isopropyl alcohol and mist the brass in a pail before sizing allowing the alcohol to evaporate first. The Hornady One Shot may work as well I've never tried it.

I like the cheap Lee dies their inside finish simetimes needs a little polishing with 400grit Emory cloth chucked up into a drill when you first get them. If you have kids that may "help" dad once in while the Lee dies may not be the best option as they have a seating adjustment that is easily manipulated by little fingers. As you progress in your reloading you can add things as you want/need them.

I shoot 50-100 rounds most weeks from about mid July until January. I have a 400 yard range at the house and 1000 yard range at the family farm a few miles away.

I can remember when lubing a case meant a clean, uninked stamp pad (does anyone here remember rubber stamps?) soaked with lanolin. But that was a looong time ago.

 

[Bullet bumper]

I can remember when lubing a case meant a clean, uninked stamp pad (does anyone here remember rubber stamps?) soaked with lanolin. But that was a looong time ago.

What do you mean still remember them ? I still use them ! For lubing just the body of the case for sizing in a body die they still work fine .

 

[blinderthanascope]

you can find good used equipment if your on a budget, don't be in a hurry and don't buy a kit, buy pcs at a time a 5-10 rcbs scale is a good place to start or a 1010, I like the 5 10 better myself or a Ohaus M5 is the chit, rcbs rockchucker is a great press, get a good priming tool Sinclair or something of that nature, with any of the stuff I just mentioned you will be good to go forever, go to accurate shooter or here hit the classifieds their is stuff for sale all the time in a few months you can accumulate all you need or your budget allows, K&M priming tool is good

 

[blinderthanascope]

Wilson tools and dies are a good place to start also and Forester the Micrometer forester seating die is nice I run only 2 calibers 6mm 6.5 and lots of my stuff will interchange, try to set yourself up where you don't have so many diff calibers keep it simple