Paying for load Development

The question to me, I'd what am I buying....you can try the "I'm special, pay me $1000 for a recipe method."

i think you kind of have to approach it as 2 iteration ladder method, 3 iteration OCW or 10 iteration OCW, etc
My point is you have to sell the labor and not the results. If you get trapped into the guaranteed accuracy thing, someone will send you a rifle that checks all the boxes, but can't hit ****. Then you are fixing the rifle or issuing a refund for work done.
 
I charge $500 to get a load at 3/4 MOA or better, a and then zero the rifle at whatever distance they ask, and then shoot and verify the load out to 1K every 100 yards with a drop chart. Been doing it for 20 years and never had an issue. I've done probably close to 100 rifles over the years for friends, family, and word of mouth customers. Customer supplies all components. It takes a lot longer than most think to work up a load, trips back and forth to the range, loading up the ammo, and then verifying everything out to 1K, and finally loading more ammo to go with the rifle. To each their own...
 
Kind of like paying someone to take your boat and gear and catch you fish! shooting, reloading and developing the right load for your gun and your shooting ability is the enjoyment of the hobby. Satisfaction comes from your hard work And the accomplishments You achieve. I am not Including folks with handicaps or someone who just wants to go on a hunt of a lifetime but has no desire to develop a load; but then again they have factory ammo..Just an opinion.
 
That's how I figure it too. Steve put time into it as well, and again, with long-range facilities and expertise that I don't have

If I buy loaded rounds from Steve they come out to around 5 bucks a round.

This is my main hunting rifle so I am not going to put thousands of rounds though it plus I use cheap stuff to shoot steel
How do u get a hold of Steve
 
This is spot on and I'm pretty sure you have to have an FFL to do that for starters, legally of course. I have helped a friend do load development for his rifle and he just paid me back the actual cost of components that he used.

What I would consider doing for actual pay (profit) is taking the rifle from the friend and doing the full load development FOR him, and then giving him his rifle back with the load recipe that he can then take and use to make his own ammo. Price is hard to say ... if it's a good friend, you enjoy the process, and you have the time then do it for the cost of components plus a case of beer and call it good. If it's more like a friendly acquaintance then $100 plus components for what I described seems plenty fair.
All good, but your liability status changes when you become one "in the business". You are now held to similar liability standards as are other "professionals".... IF he follows your advise, yet has a problem, hum!!
 
If you could pay someone to develop a load for your rifle, What would you be willing to pay?

That's like paying someone to take a vacation for me.

Although for many years, I held an FFL and a Class 6 Ammo Makers license, and did this very thing plus bulk sales of reman ammo and components. It takes a fair amount of time per each rifle, and I was lucky to live in the country and had a shooting range and concrete bench on my property. Eventually and due to other job obligations and ATF rule changes, I closed the business.
 
Last edited:
I think paying someone to do the load development takes out some of the understanding of the system. At this point you don't know how wide the node is, if there was a load that shot almost a good, but might be more constant over barrel wear. The most accurate load which will look good to a client, isn't always the best load for the rifle or long range performance (SD)
 
For ammunition? That's news to me. So, if I sell someone a box of CCI 22s I own as a private individual, I have to have an FFL to do so?

No, but if you "manufacture" the ammo for sale, you are required to hold a Class 6 Ammo Makers license. Also, you are responsible for collecting and submitting the Excise tax, and if you are a routine manufacturer, Liability Insurance and other zoning requirements.
 
For ammunition? That's news to me. So, if I sell someone a box of CCI 22s I own as a private individual, I have to have an FFL to do so?
No, you did not manufacture that ammunition, totally legal to resell. Some confusion in this thread over charging for load dev and the requirements needed for actually selling handloads. You can buy a rifle and the seller can throw in a couple boxes of handloads, but if he invoices that ammo and charges specifically for it, he has broken the law if he is not a Class 6 or 7 FFL holder.
 
Last edited:
Warning! This thread is more than 5 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.
Top