keeping costs down -9mm reloading

nickorette

nickorette

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I've just finished buying some components for 9mm reloading.

Brass once fired cleaned and sorted: $24/1000 X 5 + $38 Ship
Bullets Plains Cast Round nose: $74/1000 x3 + $60 Ship

Primers: $140/5000
Powder: $23.50 x 3

I've tried my best to look for the best prices on the brass and bullets, the haz mat charges aren't worth it for shipping the powder and primers, I'll be getting them local

I was a bit disapointed on the bullets. I saw them advertised for $55/1000, and when I went to buy them, they said there was a price increase since the catalogue printing.

Has anybody come across any better deals for anything, or have I made out pretty good here?
 
I see that you have to pay for shipping, which sucks.
I can pick up primers for less, brass for less and metal jacketed bullets for about $5 more.
No shipping costs to be concerned with.

I have a few K of lead bullets that were given to me and I will not shoot them through my gun. I will only use TMJ, FMJ or JHP, so that costs just a few dollars more per thousand than you.

It seems you have found good deals.
 
While he's not a sponsor, Wolf has excellent hard cast bullets, and I believe still goes to most of the IPSC matches east and west of Kingston. Saving transport costs on lead is a good thing. Google Wolf Bullets.

Although you got an excellent price for brass, Wolf's is industial full length sized from the base up, and super shiny in and out whenever I got any.

Other than that, I can't see where you're going to save much more. Get yourself a .45 and shoot that a bit, then you'll feel a whole lot better about your 9mm savings! :D
 
nickorette said:
I've just finished buying some components for 9mm reloading.

Brass once fired cleaned and sorted: $24/1000 X 5 + $38 Ship
Bullets Plains Cast Round nose: $74/1000 x3 + $60 Ship

Primers: $140/5000
Powder: $23.50 x 3

I've tried my best to look for the best prices on the brass and bullets, the haz mat charges aren't worth it for shipping the powder and primers, I'll be getting them local

I was a bit disapointed on the bullets. I saw them advertised for $55/1000, and when I went to buy them, they said there was a price increase since the catalogue printing.

Has anybody come across any better deals for anything, or have I made out pretty good here?
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10+ years ago I thought I would like to reload 9mm. In the end, the math didn't work for me.

Here is the new math.

5,000 pieces of used brass [(5 x 24) + 38] -------------- $158.00
3,000 bullets <cast, least expensive?> [(3 x 74) + 60] --- $282.00
5,000 primers ------------------------------------------ $140.00
Powder ------------------------------------------------- $70.50

Total -------------------------------------------------- $650.50

If I up the estimate for the cost of 2,000 extra bullets and more powder, I get a total of about $885.50 before taxes to load 5,000 rounds.

That's about 17.7 cents each.

My latest batch of 1,000 CCI Blazer Brass ammo cost me $252 taxes in. That's 25.2 cents each.

The equipment costs about $500? That makes the break even point round 6,700.


You have to do this for the hobby fun. There's no way picking up 9mm brass spread over 10 square meters of gravel and sand can be considered enjoyable. :) How much time and work will it take to make reloads work as well as factory ammo? May have to use more expensive jacketed bullets for most modern 9mm pistols with OEM barrels?

For ammo that's $1 each and used at the same rate, that would make sense. Just my $0.000002.
 
Why would you buy 5000 cases, and only 3000 bullets?

You buy 1000 cases and 5000 bullets. Then, you scrounge brass at the range while looking for your own. Next thing you know, you have 2000 cases and zero bullets. That is how reloading works.
 
Brutus said:
Wow, alot of trouble for what I see, as by far the cheapest centrefire round to shoot factory ammo.
In the Halifax area, 50 rounds go for 11 bucks. That's 7 dollars cheaper than 38 special.
To each his own....
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glad you're not my accountant.:eek:
 
BattleRife said:
Why would you buy 5000 cases, and only 3000 bullets?

You buy 1000 cases and 5000 bullets. Then, you scrounge brass at the range while looking for your own. Next thing you know, you have 2000 cases and zero bullets. That is how reloading works.
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+1

????

Nix 3000 casings and thats another 1K bullets you can buy.
 
Brutus said:
Wow, alot of trouble for what I see, as by far the cheapest centrefire round to shoot factory ammo.
...
Click to expand...

Key word there is "factory" ammo. Most of us who reload 9mm don't do it for cost savings since as you say it is the cheapest centre-fire ammo. You don't save all that much with reloading 9. We do it for powder choice, bullet choice and custom tuned ammo.

Plus we don't gotta run out to buy some when we run low. As long as we have enough components on the shelf, just roll our own in our spare time.
 
Depending on where you live reloading 9mm can be pretty inexpensive. In these parts the police have no problem leaving all their brass for those who reload so brass is free. If you cast you can now load ammo for 5 or 6 cents a round. If your shooting 10k plus rounds a year the savings add up enough to justify another gun purchase;-)
 
medicstimpy said:
Key word there is "factory" ammo. Most of us who reload 9mm don't do it for cost savings since as you say it is the cheapest centre-fire ammo. You don't save all that much with reloading 9. We do it for powder choice, bullet choice and custom tuned ammo.

Plus we don't gotta run out to buy some when we run low. As long as we have enough components on the shelf, just roll our own in our spare time.
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Bang on.
I load for everything I shoot...well.. except for 22LR
 
Cost me $2.20/50 rounds of 9mm.
Powder $28/lb (7000gr)
Primers $28/1000
Brass = FREE
Bullets 124gr RN lead cast = FREE (I melt down wheel weights supplied for free from friends garage)

I don't know anywhere you can buy 9mm for $2.20 a box.
If you have to pay for wheel weights, figure $20 for about 300#.
300 X 7000gr = 2,100,000gr
2,100,000 / 124gr = 16,935 bullets
($20 + $5 propane) / 16,935 bullets = $0.00147/bullet

50 rounds of 9mm @$2.20 + (50 bullets * $0.00147/bullet) = $2.27

So I can shoot 200 rounds of 9mm for under $10, and there are those who say there is no savings?

9mm brass is usually free. All you have to do is bend down and pick it up. since last winter, I have filled a 20L pail full of 9mm. I have enuff to last me a lifetime, well my lifetime anyways.
 
"...Tons of 9mm brass left at the ranges..." That you have no idea how many times it has been loaded, with what or by who. Picked up a whole bunch of cop 9mm long ago. Primers were lacquered or whatever in. The base got removed, but not the rest of it. Scrap.
"...We do it for powder choice, bullet choice and custom tuned ammo..." Exactly. Still cheaper than jacketed factory though.
 
Griffoneur said:
If you have to pay for wheel weights, figure $20 for about 300#.
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If you can get them for that scoop them up while you can.:)

Wheelweights are going for $0.30/lb here in NB now. A few years back, most garages were happy to give them to you just for hauling them away but that's not the case any more.:(
 
PROMO and R&R

My pal Rick at RandRbullets@mountaincable.net makes a number of very nice bullets. I am currently using his 125CNBB 9mm bullets. Plus he has just got a very nice 40S&W 155 grain SWC bullet. Cast of course.
Rick also makes 9/45/44/38 bullets too. He is on the mountain in Hamilton. If you can pre-order your requests in advance, he can make them for pickup later.
For 9mm & 40 I am currently using Aliant's very nice flake powder called PROMO. It comes in an 8 pound container only, but for C$85.00 is a real bargain, and the powder is very energetic.
Rick at R&R makes a good product. Try him.
 
Well, I went with 3000 bulets because that's all the place had. That and I didn't want to buy 5000 and find out they don't shoot to how I'd like them to.

I'm shooting a Sig 226, so as far as I'm aware, lead bulets should be ok (no hex barrel here)

I went with 5000 pieces of brass because it's once fired and dirt cheap. That and I'd like the ability to load up lot of rounds when I'm not too busy, so that when I am busy that I can still shoot and not have worry about reloading.
 
outnumbered said:
While he's not a sponsor, Wolf has excellent hard cast bullets, and I believe still goes to most of the IPSC matches east and west of Kingston. Saving transport costs on lead is a good thing. Google Wolf Bullets.

Although you got an excellent price for brass, Wolf's is industial full length sized from the base up, and super shiny in and out whenever I got any.

Other than that, I can't see where you're going to save much more. Get yourself a .45 and shoot that a bit, then you'll feel a whole lot better about your 9mm savings! :D
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'll have to go with wolf next time. Shipping should be cheaper because he's closer. They're only $64/1000
 
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