Is there a good beginner guide to reloading?

drpestilence

drpestilence

Regular
Rating - 100%
15   0   0
Location
Victoria
I'd like to get into this part of the hobby to make 308 and 32 cheaper, just wondering if there's a guide with recomened things to start out with and all that jazz (was looking at a cabellas press for around 200, is that good enough?)
 
Lee reloading equipment is reasonably priced and works well a good place to start.
A good reloading manual is a must.
 
I recently got into this as well.

I have RCBS single stage press. I ended up buying an electric Frankford case prep station as well, definitely speeds things up. I have a RCBS digital scale that came with the press but I plan on upgrading to a dispenser after a while.

Next on the list for now is a Frankford brass tumbler.

A decent youtube video to look up is "reloading 101" from RCBS
 
ColinD said:
I recently got into this as well.

I have RCBS single stage press. I ended up buying an electric Frankford case prep station as well, definitely speeds things up. I have a RCBS digital scale that came with the press but I plan on upgrading to a dispenser after a while.

Next on the list for now is a Frankford brass tumbler.

A decent youtube video to look up is "reloading 101" from RCBS
Click to expand...

A dispenser sounds awesome, is that a device that pours a pre measured amount of powder back into your case? That would be cool.
 
drpestilence said:
A dispenser sounds awesome, is that a device that pours a pre measured amount of powder back into your case? That would be cool.
Click to expand...

Yes it is. From some videos I watched, you just set it up for a particular load you're doing at the time, and once it's good to your load requirements it dispenses the correct amount every time.

They recommend you double check with a scale every 10 or so rounds when using one.
 
ColinD said:
Yes it is. From some videos I watched, you just set it up for a particular load you're doing at the time, and once it's good to your load requirements it dispenses the correct amount every time.

They recommend you double check with a scale every 10 or so rounds when using one.
Click to expand...

Check weights or an object of known weight works also, like, say a projectile. ;)
 
You can make them cheaper but you will not save money, unless you are a high volume shooter.

Some basic tools you will need are:

A press. An O shape frame single stage is sturdy enough and it will last for life, even those of AL body.
Dies. A simple set of dies will also last for life and cover 99% of your needs. You can also upgrade to micrometer set competition dies if you want to pay more.
Scale. Here things get a bit complicated. You have balance scale - cheap, accurate and slow. Digital - cheap, not so accurate and repetitive but fast. Higher end digital scales more $$$. Digital powder dispenser fast, accurate but more $$. You can also use a combination of a slow scale with a powder dropper.
Trimming tool. Die type trimmer - cheap but for one caliber. Or a cutter type - more expensive, faster and for several calibers.
Chamfer and Deburr tool
Caliper. It can be dial type or digital.
Reloading tray.
Case lube


Some more advanced and non basic stuff would be:
Headspace Comparator
Universal deprimer
Flash hole Uniformer.
Neck turning tool
Tumbler

welcome in club and have fun.

 
The press is probably good enough, but I'd probably pay a little more and get a good one, like an RCBS. I like Lee dies and most of the equipment. Some might not be as polished, but generally works well. Lee does specify their die tolerances, and if someone can prove that a certain more expensive set is better, I'd be interested to see that.

Buy the Lee reloading guide. Lots of info, and by far the best value. A lot more info on pressure, and cast bullets than most other guides. A ton of load data as well, also listed with volumetric measurements which is handy for using dippers and dispensers marked in such a way.
 
Last edited:
Ariu said:
You can make them cheaper but you will not save money, unless you are a high volume shooter.

Some basic tools you will need are:

A press. An O shape frame single stage is sturdy enough and it will last for life, even those of AL body.
Dies. A simple set of dies will also last for life and cover 99% of your needs. You can also upgrade to micrometer set competition dies if you want to pay more.
Scale. Here things get a bit complicated. You have balance scale - cheap, accurate and slow. Digital - cheap, not so accurate and repetitive but fast. Higher end digital scales more $$$. Digital powder dispenser fast, accurate but more $$. You can also use a combination of a slow scale with a powder dropper.
Trimming tool. Die type trimmer - cheap but for one caliber. Or a cutter type - more expensive, faster and for several calibers.
Chamfer and Deburr tool
Caliper. It can be dial type or digital.
Reloading tray.
Case lube


Some more advanced and non basic stuff would be:
Headspace Comparator
Universal deprimer
Flash hole Uniformer.
Neck turning tool
Tumbler

welcome in club and have fun.
Click to expand...


Thank you! I'm not a high volume shooter, bit I'd def like to shoot more (spend a day at the range instead of a couple hours kinda deal). Particularity my 308 and 32 which are both kinda pricy to shoot.
 
The best place to start is with a reloading manual and there are many books available from most of the manufacturers. In addition to the actual load data, they all have sections on the reloading process as well as tips and other bits of info. youtube is a good resource but like all subjects, it is good to have a bit of knowledge before you can trust some of the videos.
Published material is the way to start in my mind, I really like the Lyman manuals because they are not a component manufacturer so they have a wide range of components listed. Like the LEE book, they also have good coverage of cast bullet data but in the end, they are all trustworthy. Buy one, read it cover to cover and go from there.
When you get your second manual, (yes it is good to have multiple resources) you will find that different companies have different recipes for the same cartridge/components. While they are all safe to load, some manuals will be more conservative than others, leaving more room for error. Typically when I am working up a new cartridge or I am switching components, I will have up to six books on the bench, making notes and putting together a plan to work from.
Last piece of advice is try to find a mentor who will help you through your first couple of loads. It is always nice to have someone back you up when you are starting just in case.
Good Luck and welcome to the party.
 
tbhupe said:
The best place to start is with a reloading manual and there are many books available from most of the manufacturers. In addition to the actual load data, they all have sections on the reloading process as well as tips and other bits of info. youtube is a good resource but like all subjects, it is good to have a bit of knowledge before you can trust some of the videos.
Published material is the way to start in my mind, I really like the Lyman manuals because they are not a component manufacturer so they have a wide range of components listed. Like the LEE book, they also have good coverage of cast bullet data but in the end, they are all trustworthy. Buy one, read it cover to cover and go from there.
When you get your second manual, (yes it is good to have multiple resources) you will find that different companies have different recipes for the same cartridge/components. While they are all safe to load, some manuals will be more conservative than others, leaving more room for error. Typically when I am working up a new cartridge or I am switching components, I will have up to six books on the bench, making notes and putting together a plan to work from.
Last piece of advice is try to find a mentor who will help you through your first couple of loads. It is always nice to have someone back you up when you are starting just in case.
Good Luck and welcome to the party.
Click to expand...

A mentor is an exceptionally good idea, I can read and love to but I'm very much the lean by doing kind of guy so spending some time with someone who knows what they are doing is a good call.
 
reb said:
Lee reloading equipment is reasonably priced and works well a good place to start.
A good reloading manual is a must.
Click to expand...

I'll put in a plug for more than one relaoding manual. The bullet manufacturer's manuals include their bullets. The Lyman and Lee manuals are more generic with their bullet choices.
Every manual I have has some tidbit of information not found in the others. The ABC's of Reloading (from what I've seen of it) has a good overview, as does the Lyman manual. The Lee manual is loaded (no pun intended) with plugs for their gear, and understandably so.

For a start, follow the recipe. Start with a starting load and work your way up. If you have any questions, adk

You'll end up spending as much (or more) on your ammo, but you'll shoot more.
 
Start with a reloading manual. They all have a section on reloading basics.

Do not rely on information from the internet. The internet has lots of bad (read dangerous) information on it.
 
I started out with YouTube, and advice on forums. I have the Barnes reloading manual for rifle and the Lymon Shotshell for shotgun. I only use the RCBS Powder Drop for powder measure, and confirm every 5th load on Digital/RCBS Beam scale. The RCBS powder drop can be used for Shotshell (some powders don't flow well), but the clear plastic neck ensure all powder is dropped when shotshell reloading. I did all my case trim by hand and only use RCBS Single Stage Rocker Chucker for reloading. I ordered the Franklin Arsenault Case Trim & Prep machine 2 yrs ago ($229 delivered Amazon) and have not looked back, so much time saved with this one tool. The most efficient tool on my bench is the LEE decapping tool ($20), which has decapped 20K+ brass and still has original pin (I bought 5 spare and haven't used yet). Decapping with factory dies caused many a pin to break and sourcing new ones was always a challenge, not any more. Also, the LEE decapping operation take one less action (depriming), out of the equation when resizing. Lymon brass media tumbler, with Walnut shells, supplemented with Brasso brass cleaner poured in. Still have the same walnut media for 3 yrs now.

They say you don't save money reloading - but you get to shoot 3 times the ammo for same price. I source all my brass and shotshells from Range, which is huge cost saving.

I reload all winter and shoot spring/summer/fall. Always picking up powder, primers, wads, bullet heads year round to ensure the costs are spread out all year.

Almost all my reloading gear has been purchased used and I have 3 press for rifle and 3 MEC presses for shotgun reloading, MEC 600JR, 650 and 700 Steel/lead 12/20 gauge
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom