Thinkin' about Reloading?

[Old Syko]

If these loads are doing what you want done there's no reason to change. But what if, since so much has changed over the last few decades, there is a better combination out there? Gets complicated searching for it then doesn't it? That's part of the intrigue.

as one whose long been in the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" school of thought I'm not likely to make any changes .... mind game, yep .... taking action, nope .... I do make it a point to try and stay as uncomplicated as possible .... I enjoy long range shooting but couldn't ever become serious about it .... I do highly respect the efforts long range shooters go to in an attempt to put all of their bullets in the same hole at distances further than I'd want to walk .... should there come a day when I do my part and my firearm doesn't deliver a clean kill shot, that is the day I'd get serious about figuring out how to correct it .

I do hope you understand I've enjoyed pokin atcha over the "complicating" thing. If you're happy with what you're doing and it's safe we're all good. I probably hate change more than anyone you know yet I'm always in search of better things. It's a complicated world. If we ever get to the point we are willing to accept good enough the future is going to be very dull.

[JEBar]

many things in the world are indeed complicated .... thankfully, with the equipment available today, reloading isn't one of them .... as to good enough, much depends on where that line is drawn .... in my case and I believe its the same for all of the folks I know who load there own ammo, the good enough line is drawn pretty dang high and the results are far from dull

[Old Syko]

I wish it was that simple for us all but it's not. If the bar is set at anything lower than perfection it's just not high enough.

[Mistered]

With reloading perfection is a subjective term.
A person can produce perfect ammo with an RCBS Jr press while some with the highest end Dillon and related gear still can't get it right - I have seen it.
A large part of the 'perfection' With reloading is is ensuring everything is done properly and consistently regardless of the equipment used.
No amount of equipment can replace the most basic part of reloading and that is the 'human' element that is the biggest part of it.

[RanchRoper]

"Perfection" is a lot of pressure that I won't be putting on myself. I just like to shoot and now reloading my own ammo is part of it. My thought behind this thread was to let people who don't reload know that I found it intimidating but now that I do it I see that it can be done & enjoyable. Hopefully some others will try it. If experimenting with powder, loads, etc is someone's passion, hats off to 'em.
A safe reloading session with western tunes playing and a Henry mug full of tea, and filling targets full of great big holes near the middle with my historic cowboy guns is perfect for me. Later on this summer I'll add an old cowboy long range rifle into my arsenal and be able to make full use of the 25 - 250 yd range I shoot at....as Hickock45 says...life is good.

[JEBar]

"Perfection" is a lot of pressure that I won't be putting on myself. I just like to shoot and now reloading my own ammo is part of it. My thought behind this thread was to let people who don't reload know that I found it intimidating but now that I do it I see that it can be done & enjoyable. Hopefully some others will try it. If experimenting with powder, loads, etc is someone's passion, hats off to 'em.

A safe reloading session with western tunes playing and a Henry mug full of tea, and filling targets full of great big holes near the middle with my historic cowboy guns is perfect for me. Later on this summer I'll add an old cowboy long range rifle into my arsenal and be able to make full use of the 25 - 250 yd range I shoot at....as Hickock45 says...life is good.

I couldn't agree more

[BigAl52]

Badger Dakota and I a real proud of ya to RR. See I knew you could do it. Sons of the Pioneers and Chris LeDoux while those 45 colt shells are gettin reloaded.

[Rifletom]

My 30-06 groups shrink considerably when I switched from 150 grain to 180 grain bullets. Others may do better with the 150s.

interesting .... decades ago our family settled on 30 caliber for our hunting rifles .... after a good bit of testing we settled on :

150 gr for our 3 308's (2 Ruger M77's & 1 Browning BLR)
165 gr for our 3 30-06's (2 Ruger M77's & 1 Remington 700)
180 gr for our single 300 WBY Mag (Remington 700)

with their histories of preforming well while hunting, we haven't revisited any of those loads and it might be good to do so

At the risk of a small topic hi-jack, I'll just add my load for my Ruger No.1B 30-06:
180gr Hornady or Nosler Partition
A good amount of H-4350
Win cases
CCI LR primer
OAL: 3.245"
This load, when I use to hunt big game dropped mule deer and elk promptly.
I also went to the same school as RR. Non complicated. [for my .45 Colt loads.]

[JEBar]

I'll just add my load for my Ruger No.1B 30-06:
180gr Hornady or Nosler Partition

today we are blessed to have a good number of high quality brands of bullets to choose from .... based on 50 years of use, Nosler suits us .... the Nosler Partition revolutionized the world of hunting bullets .... it was designed by John Nosler and introduced in 1948 .... the dual-core Nosler Partition was the first of the modern American premium bullets .... he had experienced bullet failure during a moose hunt and committed himself to coming up with a better design ..... the result is his Partition bullet which was designed to positively prevent jacket/core separation .... we stock hundreds of them in most every weight for loading in every hunting caliber we use for which they are offered .... in 2003 Nosler introduced the AccuBond bullet ... through its design they wanted to combine the killing power of a Partition with the long range accuracy of their Ballistic Tip .... every since we have loaded Ballistic Tips for practice and corresponding Accubond bullets for hunting, specially at longer ranges .... we've found little, if any, scope adjustment is necessary when switching between them .... not being in a state that restricts hunting with bullets containing lead, I didn't pay much attention to Nosler's introduction of their lead free, solid copper E-Tip (Expansion Tip) bullets back in 2007 .... that changed when one of our sons started talking about wanting to hunt in an area where such bullets are required .... we are now purchasing a supply of them for all calibers and bullet weights they offer them that we can use .... the process of working up loads with them is just beginning .... we have noted a correlation in their impact points with that of the Ballistic Tips but its way too early come to any conclusions .... all of this being said, we wouldn't hesitate to go on high-stakes, dangerous game hunts with Partitions in the chambers of our rifles ....

[Rifletom]

Agree JEBar. The Hornady's were for Ca. mule deer, the Partition's for Colorado elk. Never tried the E-tip, only the Barnes TTSX, but, gave up on hunting Ca., except for upland birds.