Help please. Deciding to reload or not..

A

AllBlackCollection

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Hello all!
I am a firearm owner since 2010 and have fallen in love with collecting and shooting. I currently have 10+ in 7 different calibers. I don't go to the range very often, but when I do, I enjoy taking at least 3 firearms and going through a couple hundred rounds of ammo each.

My questions are: 1. Do I buy setup to reload and save money or will that be more expensive for someone with my usage profile?
2. Is it more expensive to do multiple sizes? (Should I only reload say 2 favorites?)
3. Is it safe to attempt this without an experienced helper as long as I follow instructions from user manuals or online tutorials?

Although I never post here, I have been a member for years, reading up almost daily on facts and opinions from more experienced owners and experts and I truly value everyone's opinion. Thanks in advance for your time and input!

Oh, in case it makes a difference, I currently have the following:
12 gauge
7.62x39
.223/5.56
10mm
.45 acp
.44 mag
.50 ae

Thanks again!
 
1. You don't really save money, you just shoot more for the same money. Not to mention the constant equipment upgrades and purchases.

2. The more calibers you reload, the more dies, components, trimmers, gauges etc. Are needed

3. If you read some manuals and check out YouTube it is very doable on your own.

You have some calibers on your list that make sense to load and a couple that might not be worth your time
 
I think you would definitely save money. Especially if you focus on the 44 mag, 50 ae, and 10mm. The others you can buy cheap enough you could skip those, at least initially. Whether or not you decide to shoot more given the savings is up to you.
 
I don't think you save a lot of money, it's a hobby in its self though. As mentioned,upgrades ,accessories,components is all costly.
I always end up buying more than I need:).
Also ,it's very time consuming, easily 15 to 20 hrs a week. That's when you start buying time saving equipment.
But I never run out of ammo at the range.
As for learning how,it's not that bad.
You tube,CGN ,were my go to ,for help.
Mostly CGN.
Just take your time and be careful.
It's the little things that can bite you.
Example: last night ,I was loading 6.5x47 ,37 g varget. I had a few rolled ,when I realized the small weight on the scale,wasn't sitting exactly in the slot.
They were 3 1/2 g over.
 
Get away from focussing on the economic aspect of it.

Yes over time you'll save money, and yes you can create loads that you can't even buy for sale.

But it's much more about expanding your experience with the hobby, similar to doing maintenance on your own car.

I haven't been reloading long, but I find it incredibly relaxing and rewarding. It's almost like a man-spa, really, in that it's therapudic.
 
You might save money but by reloading you have the pleasure of making better quality ammunition than factory loaded that is tuned and tweaked to your rifle.

And in Canada you have your long cold winters to reload unless you just got married and have better things to do. ;)
 
You probably won't save money, except on handgun ammo, but as long as you keep supplies around you'll always have ammo, no more "We'll have stock next week." A big plus is you can experiment and get rounds that are more accurate then any factory ammo.
 
1. Yes you will save money BUT because your ammo will be cheaper you will likely shoot more of it. So overall you likely won't save money.
2. Once you have a press and all the various tool, additional calibre's won't cost as much. So yes, reload for it all accept for maybe the surplus rifle stuff.
3. I learned to reload mostly from youtube videos, CGN and one reloading manual. I started with 45acp then several other straight walled cases. Rifle is the same thing accept you will need to trim brass because it's bottle necked.

You will pay for your equipment in to no time if you reload for your 10mm, 44mag and 50AE. If you end up enjoying reloading you will likely end up with a single stage for precision and rifle rounds then a progressive for handgun stuff.
 
12 gauge and 7.62x39 are not cost-effective to reload unless you are trying to get something not readily available otherwise You will realize substantial per round cost savings on all of the pistol cartridges you mention. For .223, the cost savings won't be as dramatic, but you will still be able to make better, less expensive ammunition compared to equivalent factory ammo.
 
Been there done that just a few short years ago. Self taught. The Internet and forums were a great help after a good manual. Yes you can save money, how much depends on your circumstances. For instance I reload 12 gauge slugs for a fraction of what I would buy them for. I have probably seen more savings that some reloaders as I also got into bullet casting. My cast plinking ammo is still quite a bit cheaper than the cheapest bulk ammo
 
Take the plunge you won't regret it. It's not cheap but what is anymore? Reloading enhances your enjoyment of the sport wether hunting or just punching paper. Buy a starter kit and give it a try !
 
grumpyold said:
You probably won't save money, except on handgun ammo, but as long as you keep supplies around you'll always have ammo, no more "We'll have stock next week." A big plus is you can experiment and get rounds that are more accurate then any factory ammo.
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X 2!! Mind you, for my .303 and 6.5 Swedish Mauser, reloading is much cheaper than the buying the factory stuff. For me, the big advantage has been in accuracy. For instance, my SKS couldn't produce better than 3"- 3-1/2" groups at 50 yds with any factory ammo I fed it. I loaded a lot of different bullet/powder combinations and finally found one that give me 2-1/4" groups at 100 yds. Since I use my rifles for hunting, accuracy is my biggest concern as I abhor the idea of wounding an animal. Now I can take out any of my hunting rifles with the confidence that if I get a clean shot, it's a done deal. I prep ALL my brass at the same time. For instance, once everything is tumbled and clean, I set up my resizing dies and deprime and resize all the cases of every caliber. Next I set up my case trimmer and trim all the cases to spec. I set up my hand priming tool and prime all the cases. It's a lot of work, but I separate the cases by manufacturer and bag them in lots of 20. When I'm working up loads or prepping known performers, I just take out the appropriate powder and the bullets that I plan to use, grab a bag of ready-to-go brass, and it's off to the races. I know the initial investment may be daunting, but speaking for myself, it's well worth it. Good luck to you which ever route you choose to go.
 
A sincere thank you to everyone for your input, looks like I've got some shopping around to do!

And I did have my listening ears on, I won't just focus on cost. I wasn't aware so many people enjoyed the actual act of reloading but I definitely predict that I will soon share the same enthusiasm!

Thanks again all, take care!
 
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