Beginner Guide to Reloading - What equipment did you upgrade early on?

[BackofBeyond]

Appreciate that feedback. Like @Addicting was saying, since it's going to be used for hunting purposes I don't need 3 shot groups to fit into a penny (nice shootin by the way!!). Moreso, looking at the buy-once, cry-once type of purchases that will help me over the long term of hopefully the next 30 years of doing this. $150 is doable as a nickel and dime add on. I was hoping to get away with an initial investment of around $2-$3k. Looks like the expensive chronograph and all the extra electronic do-dads and stuff I don't need will be the real killer.

Thanks everyone for the help and suggestions. Looks like I've got some searching to do in order to get the best prices. Any websites you guys aware of that sell these components and tools at the cheapest price? Midway? Natchez? Amazon?

Definitely not Midway if you're looking for a deal.

 

[44hunter45]

Appreciate that feedback. Like @Addicting was saying, since it's going to be used for hunting purposes I don't need 3 shot groups to fit into a penny (nice shootin by the way!!). Moreso, looking at the buy-once, cry-once type of purchases that will help me over the long term of hopefully the next 30 years of doing this. $150 is doable as a nickel and dime add on. I was hoping to get away with an initial investment of around $2-$3k. Looks like the expensive chronograph and all the extra electronic do-dads and stuff I don't need will be the real killer.

Thanks everyone for the help and suggestions. Looks like I've got some searching to do in order to get the best prices. Any websites you guys aware of that sell these components and tools at the cheapest price? Midway? Natchez? Amazon?

No doubt I have bought a lot more reloading equipment at gun shows and pawn shops over the years than I have guns.

 

[derek_s]

Frankford Arsenal is very hit or miss. I had the Intellidropper for a while before it broke and got my money out of it. When it broke I got the Hornady and it is also good. I have tried their universal die during Covid and everything else was out of stock and it was junk.

The Hornady COL gauge is cheap and makes things easier. And as others have said a digital charger isn't required to get started but makes things easier as well.

 

[Carl]

How far do you plan to shoot?

 

[millerkiller77]

Frankford Arsenal is very hit or miss. I had the Intellidropper for a while before it broke and got my money out of it. When it broke I got the Hornady and it is also good. I have tried their universal die during Covid and everything else was out of stock and it was junk.

The Hornady COL gauge is cheap and makes things easier. And as others have said a digital charger isn't required to get started but makes things easier as well.

I dont think I could honestly recommend anything FA that is going to be reliable long term or for high volume reloading.

The Hornady comparator kit and OAL kit are an excellent value. The Hornady comparator kit allows me to measure CBTO on loaded rounds while the Forster datum dial kit will not, I use both brands of these.

A quality case mouth cutter is a real time saver. Trim to length, inside & outside chamfer all on one tool. For hunting, a manual one (or powered by a cordless drill) is going to be just fine

 

[mtmuley]

How far do you plan to shoot?

Carl is luring you down the rabbit hole. Listen closely. mtmuley

 

[gwhunter]

How far do you plan to shoot?

500 and under. But probably, if I'm being serious with myself, 400 and under. I like the idea and draw of being able to roll my own and tinker with the process.

 

[TheJason]

How far do you plan to shoot?

Can you elaborate a bit on how things would change in yardage increments? Ie 500 and in, 500-700, 700+?

 

[turbobrick]

Powder scale/dispenser is probably the best upgrade if you can find a good one. I haven't found one yet that doesn't have as many bad reviews as good ones until you hit the $1,000 mark.

competition dies and shell holders were my upgrade

AMP annealer will be next upgrade, currently using a friends

Beam scale gets set with check weight kit every every time I reload

never used a prep station
never used a chrono
quit using the tumbler

Man, that AMP is a life changer, so expensive but it really fits how I want to reload. I can't imagine doing any reloading without a chrono, I love my Magnetospeed, still trying to get the hang of the Labradar, but liking it so far.

 

[mtnkid85]

So I'm going to be taking the plunge into reloading starting from absolute scratch. No equipment or knowledge on how to do it other than basic rifle and ballistic knowledge needed to use a hunting rifle(and of course what i've picked up through osmosis reading through HT).​

As I'm doing my investigating into the process and learning the 'how' to do it, it's looking like I'm going to be coming to a crossroads with this new hobby just like hunting/fishing. Needing to get all of the 'entry-level' equipment to even get into the game vs. getting equipment I won't ever need to replace. So my question is as follows:

For the serious re-loaders, what equipment did you find yourself replacing or wanting to replace right off the bat? I'm not rolling in cash, but have the discretionary funds to splurge on those 1 or 2 items that will eventually get replaced anyway. For a hunting comparison, going from the Bushnell binoculars to the BX-3s would have saved me $100 had I just bought the BX-3s to begin with. What have you found that you just "had" to replace eventually? I will likely get to a point where I will just "NEED" to replace certain things, but don't know what I don't know, yet. (Powder scale, press, calipers, etc.?)

As an example, is an Area 419 - Zero reloading press 'worth it' or is the Rock Chucker or Hornady Kit going to get me by for my entire reloading career? I don't shoot at matches and my reloading will only be for my hunting rifles, if that matters. I currently have 3 rifle calibers and 3 handgun calibers I would want to reload for. Thoughts on what you wish you would have bought from the start?

p.s As an additional question, what equipment did you find that the juice wasn't worth the squeeze for creating hunting rounds? I think of an annealer as possibly fitting into this category. Or maybe it was SOOO worth it? What else fits into/not into this category?

The thing I "splurged" on right away was a RCBS charge master. I still use it today and Im really glad to have it. I did eventually buy a balance beam just to have around, but I always use the charge master for the actual loading.

 

[Addicting]

Can you elaborate a bit on how things would change in yardage increments? Ie 500 and in, 500-700, 700+?

The amount of time I spend on brass prep, chasing the smallest group possible, weighing out components, and getting the lowest ES I can.

My attention also go into the gun and glass to make sure it’s built to accurately shoot longer distances.

I can sling a round 700 with any rifle and load. But, I can consistently first time hit with a well tuned load and rifle.

 

[Carl]

500 and under. But probably, if I'm being serious with myself, 400 and under. I like the idea and draw of being able to roll my own and tinker with the process.

Those distances, and not competing in an accuracy discipline (like benchrest) make things a whole lot more forgiving

A lot of people getting into reloading initially (myself included) want to make the BEST ammo possible at look at what the benchresters are doing. I bought "The Benchrest Shooting Primer" and studied the techniques when I only had factory Remington's. This was a waste of time; you can't see the difference in most of what they do unless you're doing ALL of it (rifles, rests, wind flags, etc) and it certainly doesn't make a difference in field shooting.


Powder dispensing:
I would consider a GOOD mechanical powder measure. I have a Harrell's Precision measure (I have their cheapest one, was ~ $200 at the time) that I use to load at the range or for some production loading situations. It is repeatable and FAST. I definitely prefer using it to something like a Chargemaster, and it is more portable and durable. You'll still need a scale, but a balance beam scale is fine for getting the measure calibrated. I should do a write up sometime on how I set mine up. You WILL have some variation in charge weight more than weighing every charge, and it won't show up on target. ***Warning - Extruded stick powders with large kernels are less smooth and less accurate with these measures***

If you do go with a cheapie electronic thrower, I'd get the Chargemaster and skip the rest. I HAD a Hornady, wouldn't recommend.

When I weigh charges, I use a FX120i/Autotrickler V2/Ingenuity Precision setup, which is fast and very accurate, but you have to piece everything together. It is the first place I'd splurge on fancy equipment for what I do.



Presses: almost all of them will work fine. The Rockchucker is solid, I like Hornady's bushing system, and the Forrester has excellent leverage. I do all my loading (except at the range) on a Hornady LNL AP progressive, but it would be hard to recommend to someone just getting started. The Zero looks like an amazing piece of equipment but I couldn't personally justify the cost, plus I really like my progressive and the workflows it allows.



Chronograph: very useful to confirm velocities especially when learning. Because velocity correlates so closely with pressure for a give cartridge/bullet/powder combination, it really helps let you know where you're at. For the distances you're shooting, you can get away with a LOT of velocity variation, so don't get hung up on SD or ES.

Budget choice: Magnetospeed sporter
Compact, more costly choice: Magnetospeed V3
Favorite: Labradar


Tumbler: I use a big dry media vibratory tumbler, and a media seperator to get the walnut media back out. I typically only tumble to get case sizing lube off, I could also wipe them with a towel but it's slower. I size brass dirty (unless it's actually muddy) and don't put much value on the shine. Wet tumbling with or without pins gets things really shiny but can introduce it's own issues, half the people I know who tried it switched back.



Annealing: getting started out, I'd opt to not mess with annealing. The primary advantage is brass life, the secondary is that if it is done well each load cycle behaves more consistently regarding sizing and neck tension. I do anneal some of my brass, and would love an AMP, but it is it's own rabbit hole and is optional IMO.



Case prep centers: I have one, almost never pull it out. I chamfer by hand when brass is brand new or when I trim, and I avoid trimming if at all possible. I don't brush necks and I never touch primer pockets. I would like a Giraud or Henderson trimmer, and would probably trim more often if I had one.


Measuring tools: I use the Hornady comparators to measure bullet seating depth and shoulder bump. There's way's around it but these are cheap and really useful to me. I have a basic (~ $50) dial caliper from Amazon I like, haven't embraced digital tools here.


Dies: I like the Redding micrometer seaters, but anything that will seat them straight will do. I also like bushing dies, as you can size the neck down just enough vs a standard die that will significantly oversize it, then bring it back up to the right size with an expander ball. You get straighter brass that has been worked less (less need to anneal) and grows less (less need to trim).

Brass: I like Lapua and Alpha, and I absolutely keep batches together. That said, it can all work, and work well, sometimes you have to run Hornady because that's what's available.

Got to get ready for the day, but that's a decent start. It can be a pretty deep rabbit hole.

Can you elaborate a bit on how things would change in yardage increments? Ie 500 and in, 500-700, 700+?

Mainly powder measuring, if I only shot 500 and in I'd probably throw everything always. The farther you go and the higher your expectations the more value there is in weighing to the kernel. I shoot a lot of 223 with thrown charges out of a Hornady powder measure that runs on my progressive, and around 700 you definitely notice the extra vertical dispersion start to show up, at 1000 it's very clear.

 

[BackofBeyond]

Chronograph: very useful to confirm velocities especially when learning. Because velocity correlates so closely with pressure for a give cartridge/bullet/powder combination, it really helps let you know where you're at. For the distances you're shooting, you can get away with a LOT of velocity variation, so don't get hung up on SD or ES.

Budget choice: Magnetospeed sporter
Compact, more costly choice: Magnetospeed V3
Favorite: Labradar

Don't suppose you have had a chance to play with, or know someone who has played with that new FX Outdoors chrono have you? Supposedly reads more consistent that a Labradar.

 

[Redmt]

Rockchucker is the standard and will never fail you.

Case prep station is a biggie.

Buy a stainless media tumbler first. Skip the dry media tumblers.

Digital scale is worth its weight in gold.

Buy good brass!! Hornady will get you shooting but is a waste of money long term.

Lapua is expensive to start but will far outlast cheap brass. In effect making it cheaper per shot.

High volume shooting requires a more extensive set of tools such as a annealer.

Splurge on a good chronograph. You need good data to have good reloads.

Welcome to the rabbit hole.

X 2 point for point. Great advice.

 

[Addicting]

I typically only tumble to get case sizing lube off, I could also wipe them with a towel but it's slower.

I’ve got an old pot for the stove. I put a bit of dawn and water in it and bring the water to a simmer and stir for a min or two.

Rinse with water and will lay it out on a sheet tray in the oven for 10 min at 300.

It has made my media last significantly longer and cut the polish time down.

That lube really kills dry media. Hence why if I were to do it over I would go with a wet tumbler from the start.

 

[Carl]

Don't suppose you have had a chance to play with, or know someone who has played with that new FX Outdoors chrono have you? Supposedly reads more consistent that a Labradar.

I haven't seen that, have had my head down with work recently. I'll have to check into it, but the Labradar has had a pretty good accuracy rep.

I’ve got an old pot for the stove. I put a bit of dawn and water in it and bring the water to a simmer and stir for a min or two.

Rinse with water and will lay it out on a sheet tray in the oven for 10 min at 300.

It has made my media last significantly longer and cut the polish time down.

That lube really kills dry media. Hence why if I were to do it over I would go with a wet tumbler from the start.

If I wanted to skip the tumbling step in large volume loading I'd dunk the brass in acetone. I spend ~ $20 on media per 10,000 rounds, I'm good with that. I don't want to wet clean for numerous reasons.

 

[TheJason]

Dies: I like the Redding micrometer seaters, but anything that will seat them straight will do. I also like bushing dies, as you can size the neck down just enough vs a standard die that will significantly oversize it, then bring it back up to the right size with an expander ball. You get straighter brass that has been worked less (less need to anneal) and grows less (less need to trim).

Preferred brand of die? I’ve always used RCBS/Redding full length dies with an expander ball. For the average shooter, is it worth spending $120 for a Wilson bushing die/decapper setup?

 

[antelopedundee]

If you're loading .243 class stuff you don't need a RockkChucker IMO. I would never buy those kit things, got stuff in thee you don't nee. I still use my old Bonanza beam scale from 50 years ago. You can get a small electronic balance/scale accurate to +/- .2 grains cheap enough. I cut the bottom off of one of those rubbing alcohol bottles [they appear to be non-electrostatic] and use a plastic spoon to hand weigh my charges. I de-prime using a separate die. I size without that expander ball. Being a rookie you're most likely to get a stuck case. It's a lot easier to remove without that expander. Later you can expand your necks separately or not at all. Buy quality dies, Redding or RCBS. You'll also need a trimmer. Set aside one new case as a dummy to use to re-set your trimmer if you do more than one size case. Also resizing wax is the way to go. Lots of things to consider. A decent caliper would be a plus also.
I like the K & M hand priming tool. Take something flat like a square of window glass or plastic and put it on the bench with something under one edge so that you can lift it. Stand your primed cases on it and then lift it up a tad. If any wobble it means that the primers are not seated deep enough. GOOD LUCK.

 

[Carl]

Preferred brand of die? I’ve always used RCBS/Redding full length dies with an expander ball. For the average shooter, is it worth spending $120 for a Wilson bushing die/decapper setup?

I go for Redding Type S FL sizing dies most of the time. I have a Harrell's FL bushing die for 6 Dasher, those are nice because you can get them with different base dimensions, normally not an option. They're only available in a few chamberings that are popular with competition shooters. Forrester offers a service where they will hone a FL die neck to your given diameter for a very cheap fee, another cool option. Haven't tried a Wilson but haven't heard anything bad. There have been some boutique options that have come available recently like Short Action Custom's dies, I haven't seen anything lacking in what I've got to spend the money to try one of those.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

Definitely started way too focused on doing everything perfect. Lots of annealing, some neck turning, over prepping/sorting brass.. Upgraded chargemaster with an autotrickler. Wish I woulda just bought a progressive right off the bat and burned out 223 or 6 br barrels with thrown powder charges rather than dicking around with a million meaningless tweaks on magnum hunting rifle ammo.

Case prep sucks, anything that saves time there is a good place to start IMO.