I am thinking about getting into the game of relaoding. I would be reloading mostly 9mm Luger and I would also like to get into reloading 3.5 inch 12 guage. Any suggestions on gear to get started, any types to avoid, or any "must haves" to make it easier?
Thinking about reloading
- Thread starter cnose
- Start date
For the 9mm, get a progressive or turret press that you can switch easily to manual indexing for doing rifle ammo later on. Or if not, something that will allow you to cycle one round at a time through all the stations. Rifle rounds tend to spill powder when doing them progressively and loaded close to the top.
A USED Dillon is good but don't spend the $ on a new one if you aren't going to do lots of ammo because there are competitors out there who can do the same job for a lot less $. Lee sells a good turret press with everything you need except dies and primer feeders. It works well for the $ and will serve as a good backup and for doing small jobs when and if you do upgrade to a progressive or more expensive machine.
Your shotgun ammo is an entirely different type of press and setup.
Plan on needing $ for needed extras like a scale, dies, powder measure, optional safety equipment, a tumbler and other things.
A USED Dillon is good but don't spend the $ on a new one if you aren't going to do lots of ammo because there are competitors out there who can do the same job for a lot less $. Lee sells a good turret press with everything you need except dies and primer feeders. It works well for the $ and will serve as a good backup and for doing small jobs when and if you do upgrade to a progressive or more expensive machine.
Your shotgun ammo is an entirely different type of press and setup.
Plan on needing $ for needed extras like a scale, dies, powder measure, optional safety equipment, a tumbler and other things.
- Location
- Niagara Region, Ontario. For now
Check out the Lee turret had mine a year and love it. 9mm, and .45. plan on buying some extras though. manual, primer feeder, dies, ammo boxes, etc. I prolly spent 400 bucks after dies and extras. problem right now will be finding primers for the 9mm. Might check out buying primers first. If you fail to start reloading you wil make your money back on the primers guaranteed. people are desperate for small pistol rimers right now.
Howdy neighbor ! You won't save money reloading 9, if that's your aim. For this caliber, you'd be better off buying ammo from a commercial reloader like "Wolf" then selling your spent brass back to them. I agree there are plenty of excellent benefits to be gained from "rolling your own" but penny pinching with common calibers isn't one of em.
The real benefits typically include cleaner burning powders, more reliable cycling and a wider selection of bullets, not to mention that the interest reloading generates makes the activity fun in its own right.
Press choices and brands are many. If you have the budget for a progressive, you owe it to yourself to take a look at Hornady's Lock and Load with case feeder now being offered with a 1000 free bullet promotion. Mine cost me $C 948.00 including taxes and delivery. Subtract a couple of hundred bucks for the free bullets and you've got a top of the line, top quality setup, with a lifetime guarantee for $750.00 bucks. Now this doesn't include dies, tools and certain accessories but none of em do.
If you're looking for something less expensive, look at the Lee line of presses. They have thousands of happy customers and sell everything you'll need.
Hope this helps.
The real benefits typically include cleaner burning powders, more reliable cycling and a wider selection of bullets, not to mention that the interest reloading generates makes the activity fun in its own right.
Press choices and brands are many. If you have the budget for a progressive, you owe it to yourself to take a look at Hornady's Lock and Load with case feeder now being offered with a 1000 free bullet promotion. Mine cost me $C 948.00 including taxes and delivery. Subtract a couple of hundred bucks for the free bullets and you've got a top of the line, top quality setup, with a lifetime guarantee for $750.00 bucks. Now this doesn't include dies, tools and certain accessories but none of em do.
If you're looking for something less expensive, look at the Lee line of presses. They have thousands of happy customers and sell everything you'll need.
Hope this helps.
Excellent advice here. I'd also remind you to budget for an electronic scale and digital caliper. I've been using a Lee classic turret for a year now and find it works well for me. Primers are scarce for 9mm, so when you do find some, buy all you can afford. I've also found WSF powder is easy to find and works very well for 9mm, and you can use it for shotgun too. Best of luck, reloading brings a whole new side to shooting, and makes you feel great when you shoot a nice group with ammo you built yourself.
