Dividends for a new shooter

camster

camster

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Super new to reloading, but started because I'm frugal (partly cause I got sick of chasing cheap bulk rimfire and now gallery load my beloved centerfires).

Today is th'day where reloading for frugality's sake shines... I want to shoot 6.5x50 Jap/Arisaka. I'm set up for 6.5 Swede (various bullets, ,moulds, powders etc...) for < $200 in at dies and brass(100x) and factory being close to $50/20, and not shipped yet. I really I dunno why Santa waited until Xmas2015 to bring me gear...
 
camster said:
Super new to reloading, but started because I'm frugal (partly cause I got sick of chasing cheap bulk rimfire and now gallery load my beloved centerfires)....
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I'll share. I've been reloading for just over a year so consider this a novice response but...if you are believing you will be saving money then we'll revisit in a year. lol.

From my experience reloading started because we had so much brass from 2 rifles in the same chambering. Initial reloads were by FAR more accurate than any factory offering and from there it just took off. Why? Because I wanted to get better yet and we're only reloading for hunting accuracy. If you think the same way prepare yourself because for me and my 16 year old son it's way too addictive. It hasn't been a cost saving either but the dividends are so rewarding IMHO. (My wife is getting a little jealous of my time in the house office/reloading shop :p)

We've gone from a simple Lee kit, to neck turning, to purchasing some measuring components to understand cause and effects from everything from cartridge to chamber fit, bullet ogive to base measurements, and to explain why there are differences from reloaded round to reloaded round. An extreme for most that reload for hunting only, but I'm learning with what I have and perhaps one day I'll get into competition. Right now competition is fenced to bragging rights between hunting buddies and striving to be at the top of that pile is good enough for me. :cool:

If you have any questions, my suggestion is to research the threads that have been posted in this forum, and investigate on your own with manuals. The content here is so good...when it can be comprehended, and it took me a bit. I've become a student again. My fear of appearing ignorant fueled concise posts and the responses have been amazing...there are a lot that take the time to share that know so much.

Other experienced reloaders have offered this "Be cautious and enjoy!"

Regards
RonR
 
I don't save any money, but I pull the trigger more. I also just plain find the process enjoyable.

One way to really see it as economical is to develop different loads for different kinds of shooting. Aside from .22 the calipers I shoot the most are 3030, 303B, and .444. I have at least 5 pet loads for each, usually with a different bullet and powder. For .303B I have 7 different projectiles and 3 different powders. 30-30 is 5/3 and .444 is 6/2. 90% of them are cast, so projectiles are plentiful and not expensive. Nothing is cheap though.

It's a lot of initial investing, but I get a lot of mileage out of some powders due to the loads. If I wanted to buy 5+ types of factory ammo for each caliber I'd spend more and shoot less. Yesterday I brought 500 reloads of .303B for 2 guns and came home with 35 that were unspent. I never shot that much before I started rolling my own.
 
freedomintheskies said:
Sometimes I go out and shoot just so I can free up brass to reload... I know; It's a real problem...
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I know that feeling :)

I started reloading because of 8x56R.From there things went crazy and I'm reloading too many calibers.
Even if I'm shooting a lot more than I should I still save a lot of money-lead bullets+shotgun powder=fun on the cheap
 
Try $82 / box for a box of 20 for 348 Winchester! Thank goodness I reload cast and get my costs down to <$10 per box of 50.

The mainstream calibers are bad enough, but when you get into the oddball stuff, then the savings look much more manageable. Kinda makes sense buying a gun that is nonconformist so that you can load your own and make those old girls sing.

I haven't bought factory ammo in years, other than last month where I cashed in some Canadian Tire money to buy some PRVI ammo for the 303 British, which I pulled the bullets, and am now loading with cast...At least I didn't fire them off to get the empty brass to reload
 
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