How much did you spend on equipment (not supplies) to reload?

[Moose Whacker]

Back in '57 I started reloading with a 310 Lyman hand tool, in '58 I upgraded to a Lyman single stage press, and I still use it today.
Add a beam scale, Lee trimmer and you can get started. I now use the same outfit to load about a dozen different calibers.

 

[lyle2231]

Ok, who's wife on here put you up to this? Cheer's A lot!

Now that's funny!

 

[Flyingdaddy]

I started with a Lee loader and 300 rounds of .38 special brass which I reloaded on Friday night and shot on Saturday EVERY WEEK. Pretty soon, I got pretty good with that revolver.
50 years later, I still like Lee precision presses and dies. For precision rifle match ammunition I use more expensive gear, but the discipline involved is the same and the results on target make it worth the effort. YMMV. All depends on what you want to do.

 

[RidgeTop]

I had a mentor and used his equip. until I decided what I wanted. Then I would look for items and over time, put together everything I needed. Then added some 'extras'
I found used from friends, ads and even estate sales and flea markets.
I have no idea how much it totals, I load for 17 calibers and been doing it for about 60 yrs.

 

[epags]

......... All in, how much do you have in equipment only?

First: Posters should price their equipment at today's prices (what you paid 10-15 years ago need to be adjusted due to inflation (your $ way back then was stronger than today's dollars.
Having said that I started to reload for my 45 ACP habit with a single stage and non-carbide dies. Quickly outgrew that and today I reload for five pistol calibers and four rifle calibers.
Dillon Precision, Lee, RCBS and Forster have my CC# on file.
I share my work space with my spouse's art room.
I run two Dillon 550c - one for rifle and one for pistol.
I am not a competition type shooter, just want as much accuracy as I can without becoming too anal.
Having said all of that I was dismayed to find, as of today, that I have over $4,500 invested in equipment.....not counting gun smithing tools or reloading supplies.
Considering the number of rounds that I have shot (rifle and pistol) since I started reloading I figure I have depreciated my equipment to an average of about $0.50 a round and all the equipment is still working so that number will continue to fall as long as I don't fall. LOL

 

[arch408]

That seating depth tool sounds interesting. More please.

Cheap calipers, on line or Harxxx Frexxxx. Sgueeze the neck of a fired case so it will hold a bullet. Insert the bullet you want to use. Place in chamber and close the bolt. With the dummy cartridge carefully as to not bump the bullet and change the seating depth. Measure that with your caliper. That is your maximum C.O.L. with only that bullet or bullets with identical ogives and only that rifle. Record that length. You could also make a dummy round with a fully resized case so the bullet cannot move. Use that length as your basis for seating so you can change your seating depth to give you some bullet free travel before it hits the lands. That will lower pressures so you could actually gain velocity. You can play with seating depths and see if it affects accuracy.

 

[Mike D Texas]

Holy moly! I thought I spent a lot. Have similar stuff. Although, I would like the AMP. 3200 all in for me, since 1972. Started with 12ga and 16ga. Then .38/.357, 9mm, .45, .223, .308, 30-06, 25-06, 243, 270, 45-70, 375HH. And the list goes on. Granted I sold off many I don't use anymore. But all told with plus and minus, it comes to around 3200 or so. Cripes!

I may be overshooting it but theres lots of stuff I didn't list. All of it adds up.

 

[bikerbowhunter]

Bought my first RockChucker kit in 2012 for 350$ on sale at Cabela's. I load for 11 rifle cartridges and and 7 handgun handgun cartridges. So dies are another $600 (many bought used on Ebay) . Other accessories added over the years to increase either accuracy or speed I estimate to be another $600. I was recently given a Lyman All American Turret press and dies by a reloader's widow, so I keep that set up now for 38 special only as well as a collet bullet puller . I anneal all rifle brass every reload. Total $1600-2000 in non consumable equipment. That does not include chronographs etc, another $1200.

 

[tony d willIiams]

1st my sweet wife gave me a Christmas present. She knew it was the wrong unit, so there was a gift receipt and a note inside telling me to take it in. They didn't have the right one.
+ $350.00
+ a few more $hundred for a sonic cleaner and scale.
And then some raw materials, and then a few shooting trips for data. And more raw materials. Shooting trips are a few days out on the Yuma Proving Grounds, or the High desert. Different GPS locations, and different angles of shooting.
I built a reloading table, thankfully I have carpentry skills. My wife lets me do as I wish in our garage. Our home is hers. I get choices in the kitchen as I do a lot of our cooking.
And a chronograph, then a better scale, then an acid pen, then a,,, maybe a couple of,,. I cannot remember everything. But I can reach out and touch things at good distances.
Hmm, I am a bit elderly, but probably less than $7k. I did say probably.
The programs I wrote to collect the data and make spreadsheets for was just time and the joy of writing them.
I do expect that several more $thousands will be spent. But retirement provides time for hobbies.

 

[C-130 Dude]

Cheap calipers, on line or Harxxx Frexxxx. Sgueeze the neck of a fired case so it will hold a bullet. Insert the bullet you want to use. Place in chamber and close the bolt. With the dummy cartridge carefully as to not bump the bullet and change the seating depth. Measure that with your caliper. That is your maximum C.O.L. with only that bullet or bullets with identical ogives and only that rifle. Record that length. You could also make a dummy round with a fully resized case so the bullet cannot move. Use that length as your basis for seating so you can change your seating depth to give you some bullet free travel before it hits the lands. That will lower pressures so you could actually gain velocity. You can play with seating depths and see if it affects accuracy.

Thanks

1st my sweet wife gave me a Christmas present. She knew it was the wrong unit, so there was a gift receipt and a note inside telling me to take it in. They didn't have the right one.
+ $350.00
+ a few more $hundred for a sonic cleaner and scale.
And then some raw materials, and then a few shooting trips for data. And more raw materials. Shooting trips are a few days out on the Yuma Proving Grounds, or the High desert. Different GPS locations, and different angles of shooting.
I built a reloading table, thankfully I have carpentry skills. My wife lets me do as I wish in our garage. Our home is hers. I get choices in the kitchen as I do a lot of our cooking.
And a chronograph, then a better scale, then an acid pen, then a,,, maybe a couple of,,. I cannot remember everything. But I can reach out and touch things at good distances.
Hmm, I am a bit elderly, but probably less than $7k. I did say probably.
The programs I wrote to collect the data and make spreadsheets for was just time and the joy of writing them.
I do expect that several more $thousands will be spent. But retirement provides time for hobbies.

I kicked dust at YPG, a million years ago. Don't miss that place!

 

[thefrenchman]

I have been acquiring reloading equipment for about 10 years. I have bought everything used except 1 set of dies. I have a progressive shotgun press, a Dillon xl650, a rock chucker supreme, a charge master and about 30 calibers worth of dies. Bought them all off classifieds and garage sales. Definitely under $3k and am currently equipped for 27 calibers last I checked. I don't have the nicest or the newest but they work and have fit my budget.

 

[C-130 Dude]

I have an entire room in my house dedicated to reloading. In equipment alone, I am way up there.

There is no bottom to the money well.

 

[OldElkHunter1961]

Funny the differing relationships we have with our spouses. If mine sees me looking a something more than a couple times she suggests I buy it, or it'll just show up on the front porch one day as the delivery truck speeds off.

I bought the initial "everything" at once when I retired and stopped executing orders to somewhere else every couple years. The core of "everything" included RCBS RC Supreme Master kit, a MEC 9000 and MEC Size Master and lesser sundry tools. Totaled about $1800. Added Case Prep station, Charge Master and more dies over the next few years. All of which push the original total added to about $2600. Not included is all the lead casting kit. 20lbs bottom pour, heated luber-sizer, molds, handles, thermometers...total just under another $1000 I think. So the core gear was around $3600. It has of course grown since. It's a disease.

 

[OldElkHunter1961]

The saving grace is that there's a washer and drier in my handloading room. Hence it can be called the laundry. Not the handloading room. That would be just selfish.