Newbie Advice for Hand Loading?

bitruns

bitruns

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Hi There!

I'm a relative noob to shooting, and I wanted to get the more experienced opinions of those who Hand Load.

I've only been shooting factory ammo and I'm hoping to switch to handloading asap to save money in the long run.

Any books/articles/blogs on where to start that anyone can recommend?

Or just "If I could do it all over" replies?

Anything would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Bitruns
 
I started with a Lee anniversary kit, single stage press.. does the trick , upgraded as I went ..digital scale, trimmer setup.. been at it for about a year. Depends how much you shoot, how many calibres your loading.. by the sounds of it you should start small?
 
Read reloading manuals understand the caliber your reloading for it's limitations - watch some YT to see the basics (YMMV) just because some dude posting a great load the worked fantastic in their rifle doesn't mean it would work for yours - speed doesn't = accuracy. Forget about touching the lands - start by measuring the length of the type of bullets (factory ammo) that are giving you the best accuracy. For example my 223 has an overall cartridge length of 2.260 - the factory rounds that give my rifle the best accuracy measure anywhere between 2.219 and 2.208 (Winchester) when I reload this is where I start at - going through my notes I have never loaded beyond 2.260 overall length.

A single stage Lee press is what I started with at the time I bought it, it cost $119 - still use this along with another single stage press I bought after three years of reloading (Forster CO-AX)
 
Get the current edition of a good reloading manual. Lyman makes a good one. Sit down and read the first few chapters.

Read and follow all the instructions for any press, scale, powder measure and die set you get. Keep these booklets for reference.

Minimize distractions while you are loading. Strictly follow published load recipes. Wear saftey glasses when you are priming cases.

You dont have to spend a fortune on gear. Lee equipment is more than adequate to get started.

If I were to start all over again, I would still buy a single stage press since I just reload a few rifle cartdiges. The lee anniversary kit is a good starting point. I dont use the beam scale much anymore.
 
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