New to pistol shooting - cost of reloading .38 .40 .44 rem .45 vs shooting cheap 9mm

[VinnyQC]

If you're gonna reload for handguns don't bother with a single stage. Get a progressive right away.

I would also suggest for your first pistol not to get a norinco. They're ok, but not great. If budget is a concern, get a 22lr. A nice browning buckmark will cost only a bit more than a norinco, it'll work flawlessly everytime, and you'll get to shoot 500 rounds/day for 30-35$.

If you insist on a centerfire, either go for a CZ Shadow1 if you want a pistol or a Ruger GP100 if you want a revolver. Both are great quality guns for the their prices, they'll last a lifetime, and they have reasonable resale value should you decide to change.

If you go 9mm and only shoot 1000 rounds/year, don't bother with reloading. For just about any other calibre, the savings are a lot higher. I save about 65¢ per round of 44magnum that I reload, so I paid a whole setup (press+dies+tumbler) with just 1000 reloads. I need to reload between 6 and 7000 rounds of 9mm to get the same saving.

 

[coreyd]

If the OP had said he was going to shoot more than 1000 rounds a year, I would agree with everyone saying to go progressive. The fact that the OP is just trying to offset the cost of ammo slightly would lead to thinking a single stage to start would be fine. Once he realizes his own ammo is better than factory and starts to shoot more, he will post another thread about getting a progressive and then we can go through the whole "which progressive is best" debate for a 148th time here.

 

[Chas59]

I wouldn't reload 9mm, unless I had a progressive, certainly not for 1000rds. I've reloaded larger pistol calibres like .357, .45 colt, .44 magnum, and .460 on my Redding Turret and for me that works fine for my volume.

 

[digitalblue]

Your reloading press should match the type of gun you're shooting, reloading for a semi should be done on a "semi automatic" press(ie. progressive). You wouldn't use a single stage to load for a load for an MP5, likewise you wouldn't use a progressive to load for a 577 martini henry.

In terms of cost savings, it will heavily depend on how far you're willing to go. I was initially loading 9mm for ~80% the cost of factory by buying once fired brass. Just by picking up my 9mm brass and optimizing component selection, I'm shooting for ~60% the cost of factory. You save a ton more/shoot a ton more with more expensive calibers (45acp, 357, 38spl), it all depends how much you shoot and how far you're willing to go.

Every little bit helps, just depends how you shoot and what lengths you're willing to go.