Yep. That stuff is a scarce as Pope's poop or 22 shells.
Looking to start reloading, What should I buy to get started?
- Thread starter Mattppq
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Yep. That stuff is a scarce as Pope's poop or 22 shells.
Indeed they are Ken - my retirement hobby has blossomed into an unpaid job of being a gun writer
.22 shells aren't scarce. Neither is powder. At least, not around here.
Then you should count your blessings. It took me a year to find Trail Boss. The Varget I had to order from Vancouver, H322 is impossible to find, black powder is Mission Impoessible. Thre are a few places that have .22 shells, but 22 Win subsonic are an extinct species around here, CCI very hard to find, to name just a few.
That's because you are looking now. I stocked up WELL 2 years ago. I have been here before. The first time was awful. The second time was better since I had a little bit of money to invest. THIS time, I spent big. I'm good for another couple of years or more.
I'd take pics, but no one needs to know what I have.
I was stocked up, but my stocks have run out.
Well, I was lucky.? My step-son came to live with us last year. Immediately got in trouble and was banned from weapons. I barely shot anything last year beyond .22LR for gophers. Now he is incarcerated and I have been making up for it.
Buy quality and you only cry once. I recommend novices start on a single stage press. That's why I recommend the RCBS Rockchucker Supreme Master reloading kit. Add dies, powder, primers, bullets and brass and you're good to go. Add an inexpensive digital caliper and tumbler and you basically have your bases covered. The Speer reloading manual is included with the RCBS kit. I would invest in at least one more to double check min/max loads against as they can vary greatly on occasion.
Since you seem to be looking at loading primarily pistol cals, an alternative to the RCBS single stage would be a quality turret press. RCBS makes a good one, but the Redding T-7 is the tops. With the purchase of additional turrets, you could have all your dies pre-adjusted, making switching from different calibers a snap. The turret option will speed production substantially over a single stage.
Progressive presses aren't the best choice for a novice reloader, but if you go that route, buy quality. The Dillon 550B, 650XL and Hornady L-N-L are great machines.
For my money, RCBS has the best warranty on the planet, Dillon is a close second, followed by Redding. I've lost count of the times RCBS has sent me the parts to rebuild used/abused presses, dies, etc I've picked up at garage sales, the EE or eBay at no cost and shipping included. Dillon is almost as good.
Since you seem to be looking at loading primarily pistol cals, an alternative to the RCBS single stage would be a quality turret press. RCBS makes a good one, but the Redding T-7 is the tops. With the purchase of additional turrets, you could have all your dies pre-adjusted, making switching from different calibers a snap. The turret option will speed production substantially over a single stage.
Progressive presses aren't the best choice for a novice reloader, but if you go that route, buy quality. The Dillon 550B, 650XL and Hornady L-N-L are great machines.
For my money, RCBS has the best warranty on the planet, Dillon is a close second, followed by Redding. I've lost count of the times RCBS has sent me the parts to rebuild used/abused presses, dies, etc I've picked up at garage sales, the EE or eBay at no cost and shipping included. Dillon is almost as good.
