Asking someone to load ammo for you?

Fucha

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I own several antiques, and would love to shoot some of them. Only problem is I don't have the space or the money to invest in a reloading setup. Does anyone know if it is possible to buy .41 LC or 8mm French ordnance commercially?

I am trying to stay away from Fiocchi if possible, nobody seems to have anything positive to say about them, and the gas rounds I fired in Europe years ago were the dirtiest I'd ever used.
 
My travel reloading setup fits in a wooden tool box ( a gift from my daughter, grade 7 or 8 wood class ). Aluminum C & H press and Lee powder measure / scale. A set of dies and Bob's your uncle. 2 'C' clamps and possibly a nice smooth sanded board or two to protect a counter / table top.
You will need to reload sooner or later, eh
 
The latest Lee reloading equipment is comparatively cheap by comparison, so much so that I have four permanently set up for the four calibres that I load most. They also make a very nifty hand-loader that only needs a firm grip - VERY little for straight-wall cases like the .41LC.

tokguy has the right idea, as well, of course, if you want to move around with the reloading. After seeing the price of older small-scale ammunition in a few places, $10 for a SINGLE round is not uncommon, you'd be well-advised to invest a little to save a lot.

Apart from GP11, which is now priced out of the stratosphere here in UK [$1.60 a shot] I have never bought a single round of centre-fire ammunition in over forty years.

tac
 
A Lee hand held reloading tool works quite well,is affordable and all components for reloading can be stored in a large box when not in use.When needed loading can be done at the kitchen table or other such place.
 
My travel reloading setup fits in a wooden tool box ( a gift from my daughter, grade 7 or 8 wood class ). Aluminum C & H press and Lee powder measure / scale. A set of dies and Bob's your uncle. 2 'C' clamps and possibly a nice smooth sanded board or two to protect a counter / table top.
You will need to reload sooner or later, eh

This is great for developing loads "at the range" if I find a cheap set I may well add this to my loading regime..
 
I enjoy this aspect of my hobby. You can play with different loads and shots, depending on the gun, one can set up a nice little reload kit to fit the guns you have. You can feel much safer by doing up the loads yourself- and hey- even a girl can do it. Check out some of the vendors above- find some one in your area, go talk to them. I like Wolverine. https://www.wolverinesupplies.com
Very top of page far right. (support your local vendor)
jan.
 
I own several antiques, and would love to shoot some of them. Only problem is I don't have the space or the money to invest in a reloading setup. Does anyone know if it is possible to buy .41 LC or 8mm French ordnance commercially?

I am trying to stay away from Fiocchi if possible, nobody seems to have anything positive to say about them, and the gas rounds I fired in Europe years ago were the dirtiest I'd ever used.

I don't know if either of these cartridges are still commercially available, but to help answer the question you pose in the threads title.
Having someone else do your reloading for you is possible but not recommended. I know many guys do this but fail to consider the consequences.
What happens and who will assume responsibility in the event of a problem such as damage to the antique firearm or worse the person shooting it? Household liability does not extend to these sorts of things. Having to sue a friend always sucks, but in many cases is the only option especially when major expenses such as loss of income due to injury occur.

Frankly the dies for these cartridges are going to be spendy and given that they are relatively uncommon few guys will have them.
Reloading does NOT have to take up much room and does not have to cost a ton of money when only loading handgun.
If old style is your style why not look at cap and ball, that way there is no reloading gear required and it is a ton of fun to shoot?
 
Actually the dies for these cartridges are readily available and not crazy expensive.

Components are also available and not so hard to get. But reloading is mostly a necessity.
 
If you can find the LEE dies they are not to crazy expensive. But in checking at Budget Reloading's web site I see that Henry has both the Lebel and .41Colt dies listed from Hornady and Redding. At around $130 per set. So much for the budget.......

For this sort of casual and occasional reloading I'd say that the generic stuff in a full kit is the way to go. Again Budget lists the Lee classic turret kit at $350. Now I'm not normally a fan of the Lee turret press but in this case I think it would be a match made in Heaven at only a slight increase in cost over a basic single position single stage. And that kit has everything Fucha needs to reload his ammo other than the dies and components.

But look at what we're at for cost! $230 for dies and another $350 for the kit. Add in taxes and shipping and we're well up into the mid $600 range.

It sure wasn't this much a couple of years ago.... "sigh".

The trick would appear to be to find the Lee dies. Which currently at $50 a set would cut this down by around $130 to a perhaps more manageable $530'ish.

Fucha, even if someone local to you were willing to reload for you. You still need to find the dies for them. Unless you're darn lucky you're not going to find anyone that has those sizes sitting on the shelf. At least not local to you.
 
If "8mm French Ordnance" is the same as 8mm Lebel then Titan Reloading has these in stock for ~$29.00 USD. I buy a lot from Titan, good company to deal with.

Edit: (Apparently for the rifle, not the revolver)

.41 LC doesn't pop up on their site, but it is so common I am sure you can find some dies - even via a WTB ad in the EE?
 
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I own several antiques, and would love to shoot some of them. Only problem is I don't have the space or the money to invest in a reloading setup. Does anyone know if it is possible to buy .41 LC or 8mm French ordnance commercially?

I am trying to stay away from Fiocchi if possible, nobody seems to have anything positive to say about them, and the gas rounds I fired in Europe years ago were the dirtiest I'd ever used.

Fucha, I too was like you and allowed myself to make a bunch of excuses why I don't reload. It was fear mostly for me but soon the supply of 44 Russian factory loads dried up and I love to shoot my antiques. Took the plunge and I laugh today as I did not realize how easy and cheap this is. If we do see any of the obsolete ammo hit the shelves especially when the U.S.$ is so out of whack you will only be shooting birthdays and xmas as a treat lol Good luck and get started and get shooting the antiques love to be shot
 
We need to stop suggesting LEE dies - I'm fairly certain Lee doesn't currently make 41Lc dies (never did?) and LEE certainly don't make 8mm Lebel Revolver dies and never did.

LEE DOES NOT MAKE DIES FOR THE LEBEL REVOLVER - They only make dies for the 8MM LEBEL RIFLE. The revolver cartridges are not the same as the rifle cartridge. Be careful, you wouldn't be the first person to order the rifle dies by mistake.

The 8mm Lebel is a French rifle cartridge, the world's 1st military cartridge designed for smokeless powder. It is also commonly known as 8mmx51 Lebel.
The 8mm French Service Revolver or 8mm French Ordinance Revolver is commonly (but incorrectly) known as 8mm Lebel Revolver, and occasionally also listed as 8mmx27R.
There are pictures of the cartridges here: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=8mm_French_Ordnance&redirect=no ; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8mm_Lebel

The best 8mmLR dies I've used are Hornady. The Hornady die set has a tapered expander that works well for expanding 32-20 brass, the RCBS and C-H not quite as good. http://www.midwayusa.com/product/59...de-new-dimension-3-die-set-8mm-lebel-revolver Hornady only makes a run of these dies every 1-2 years. Watch ebay. I got mine on ebay for $80 shipped.

41LC dies are easier to find, Redding and RCBS. https://www.buffaloarms.com/Buffalo_Arms_Company_it-163133.aspx?CAT=4044 for about $100 plus shipping. I got my 41LC dies on the EE here for $50 shipped.

Cost? the dies are a one time buy and no great consideration - people who buy and shoot obsolete and antique firearms aren't doing it because they want economical shooting. If you want cheap dies and components you should have bought a 30-06 and a 38 special. When you buy a $1000 - $5000 antique revolver, spending $100 or $150 on dies is nothing. And the other components will cost more as well.

Plan on spending well over a $1/case for 41 LC brass. Bullets are available if you look. Cheapest is to cast them yourself but 41LC molds are harder to find and can be expensive. The popular Ideal HB mold hasn't been made for 40 years and sells for over $300 - $400 on ebay, when they show up.

8MM LR bullets are also available and occasionally there is some Fiocchoi brass around, but it is rare. Most people make this brass from 32-20 brass, which is readily available, see my earlier note on Hornady dies. The best 32-20 brass to use is Winchester and Starline, with preference to the Starline. Avoid Remington. Expanding the brass is simple, but heavy trimming is needed - over a 1/4" - so a hand trimmer is hardly practical. If you are going to use 32-20 brass, get a shellholder for 32-20, NOT the Hornady 8mmLR shellholder. Yes, there is a difference.

NEITHER the 41LC or 8mmLR is a great choice for a new reloader to learn on and start out with, but it is do-able. If you want to shoot these old guns, reloading is going to be more expensive than the regular run-of-the-mill stuff, but if you were only worried about cost you wouldn't be dabbling in antiques anyway.

OP: If you posted your location in your profile you might find someone that would be willing to give you hand with loading. Being shy and anonymous doesn't work when you're asking for favours.
 
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I'm fairly certain Lee doesn't currently make 41Lc dies (never did?) and LEE certainly don't make 8mm Lebel Revolver dies and never did.

8mm Lebel i
s a French rifle cartridge, the world's 1st military cartridge designed for smokeless powder. It is also commonly known as 8mmx50 Lebel.
8mm French Service Revolver is commonly known as 8mm Lebel Revolver, and occasionally as 8mmx17. The revolver cartridges are not the same as the rifle cartridge. :).

LEE DOES NOT MAKE DIES FOR THE LEBEL REVOLVER - ONLY THE 8MM LEBEL RIFLE. Be careful, you wouldn't be the first person to order the rifle dies by mistake.

...

Ahhhh - happily corrected! My bad.
 
Hey there, I am currently in a little trouble with the mods so I can't PM. You had some information about the 8mm?
 
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