Dillon reloader

[clovishound]

A lot boils down to how much you plan on reloading each week/month. If you are going to load a couple hundred a month, I would stick with a single stage press. RCBS makes excellent presses. Lee makes a good single stage, but spend a little more and get the Lee classic, they are much more robust. If you are going to be loading more, then a turret press might be the best way to go. I have the Lee classic turret. I can easily run 150 rounds per hour. They do require a little more setup and tinkering, but are not as complex as progressives. If you are going to be loading a whole bunch of ammo every week, then a progressive is the way to go.

If you decide to go with the single stage or turret, you won't have that much invested in the press, and most people that upgrade to a progressive end up keeping their SS or turret for certain operations, so it isn't a waste.

[JEBar]

Realistically I shoot maybe 1200 rounds a year based on 7 months of ideal weather. 1500 tops.

my bet is, if/when you load your own, that number will go up .... doing so won't give you any more months of ideal weather but it will offer you an opportunity to increase the number of rounds fired during your trips to the range ... this morning we are baby sitting our 10 month old grandson .... while here I picked up another couple of hundred rounds of our handloaded 44 Mag ammo .... that gives us a little over 300 rounds on hand .... we are due to pull out in a little over a month on our trip west I hope to be able to take 750 to 1,000 rounds with us .... we've scheduled 4 days on this trip to spend at Missouri shooting parks and do hope for some unscheduled firing while in South Dakota .... by the time we get back we hope have thoroughly exercised our Henry rifles, Ruger Redhawk and 11-87 shotgun .... a thousand rounds of cheap American Eagle factory loaded 44 Mags at Cabela's would run about $800 / 80 cents each .... given, our equipment is old and has more than paid for itself, by reusing our brass, our handloads (of a considerably better quality) cost us in the neighborhood of 25 cents each .... that difference of about $550 alone would buy some very nice equipment .... in our case we can afford to shoot more and shoot more often

REVISION : I just got back from Cabela's where we stocked up on W296 and CCI Large Pistol Magnum Primers .... they've gone up a bit since we stocked up a couple of years ago .... just figured it up and our cost per bullet is up about 4 cents each to about 29 cents per round .... that's still a good bit better that 80 some cents each

[PT7]

Over the last few years, I've asked myself similar questions that RR is posting on the Forum. I've tried to run some estimated figures both on reloading .357 magnums, and also 1-oz. shotgun slugs. Never have come to an adequate, clear answer yet.

I know you've been reloading for a long time now, JEBar, and you're experienced. It's good to read your numbers showing the bottom-line savings you acquire: 80 cents/round manufactured ammo vs. 25 cents/round reloaded ammo.

$550 is nothing to sneeze at!!

I also agree with those who have commented about the "why reload" question. In any number of chats with CT_Shooter, he has said the primary reason for him to reload is not the goal of saving $$$; rather, it is an important and fun extension of shooting. It's pretty simple from that perspective when he said "it really is a good feeling to go to the range and shoot bullets you just have made yourself." Sounds good to me, and I agree with that focus of reloading being a part of the shooting sports.

Good Luck as you ponder your final decision, RR. And BTW, I do trust that if you blow yourself up due to generating a static electricity powder explosion, your wife "won't kill you."
PT7

Realistically I shoot maybe 1200 rounds a year based on 7 months of ideal weather. 1500 tops.

my bet is, if/when you load your own, that number will go up .... doing so won't give you any more months of ideal weather but it will offer you an opportunity to increase the number of rounds fired during your trips to the range ... this morning we are baby sitting our 10 month old grandson .... while here I picked up another couple of hundred rounds of our handloaded 44 Mag ammo .... that gives us a little over 300 rounds on hand .... we are due to pull out in a little over a month on our trip west I hope to be able to take 750 to 1,000 rounds with us .... we've scheduled 4 days on this trip to spend at Missouri shooting parks and do hope for some unscheduled firing while in South Dakota .... by the time we get back we hope have thoroughly exercised our Henry rifles, Ruger Redhawk and 11-87 shotgun .... a thousand rounds of cheap American Eagle factory loaded 44 Mags at Cabela's would run about $800 / 80 cents each .... given, our equipment is old and has more than paid for itself, by reusing our brass, our handloads (of a considerably better quality) cost us in the neighborhood of 25 cents each .... that difference of about $550 alone would buy some very nice equipment .... in our case we can afford to shoot more and shoot more often

I also saw a couple of youtube videos where guys seemed to be quite focused on "static electricity" while reloading. Ok I get it, it's gunpowder, but is this something that's an issue you think about when you reload? Just curious. If I blow myself up my wife will kill me.

[RanchRoper]

I will keep you posted. I am talking with a company right now that may reload my brass for me at .35 cents a round. They supply the cowboy action shooting crowd for years. Might be a good option.

[CT_Shooter]

I will keep you posted. I am talking with a company right now that may reload my brass for me at .35 cents a round. They supply the cowboy action shooting crowd for years. Might be a good option.

This might be a great solution for you. The only downside is that it eliminates the pleasure of reloading your own, which (IMHO) is a substantial sacrifice. I really do enjoy the reloading process and consider it integral to the shooting sport. Nonetheless, this seems like a good first step toward containing the cost of ammo.

[RanchRoper]

They will only reload their own brass; still a good deal cuz I was buying more ammo anyway. .78 cents a round for the first order, send the brass back and .37 cents a round after that until the brass is done I guess. Some freight but still better than Cabelas at $1.24 / round.

I'll think about the reloading; truth is I really cannot get excited about physically doing it, even after watching a dozen or so videos; which is maybe a good reason not to based on what most guys are telling me. I would be that guy just looking to save a few cents per round. Hey at least I'm honest....

[JEBar]

I will keep you posted. I am talking with a company right now that may reload my brass for me at .35 cents a round. They supply the cowboy action shooting crowd for years. Might be a good option.

certainly worth considering .... will they provide you with full power or cowboy action level loads .... its worth considering that at .35 a round they are making a profit

[RanchRoper]

I would buy just the 200 gr light load target stuff just for the range.

[CT_Shooter]

They will only reload their own brass...

Then, you might likely find some interested buyers for your own already collected brass right here. Just a thought.

[JEBar]

I would buy just the 200 gr light load target stuff just for the range.

have you fired much of the light load ammo .. .. I know with our 44, out to 25 - 30 yards, not much difference in trajectory .... after that they start dropping .... the longer the distance, the higher the rainbow .... not saying that's something that can't be handled ... just that it will be considerably different than firing full power loads