Thinking about reloading

PackingDDS · June 9, 2006, 11:04 PM

My wife, father-in-law, and I are all very fond of the .45. We can burn through 250 to 500 rounds in an afternoon. I am considering reloading, but haven't yet taken the plunge. Is it really economical? I would be starting with the .45 and possibly expanding. I enjoy being meticulous, so that part of it actually sounds fun. I'm just concerned that its really not going to be cheaper. My father-in-law is retired, so he has plenty of time on his hands to reload. What owuld be the savings compared to buying in bulk? Excluding buying the startup equipment. I've tried to calculuate, but with no knowledge of volume my numbers don't make sense. Thanks for the info. Also, does anyone load 28 or 410. I love shooting the sub guages, but the ammo is pretty expensive. Thanks for any advice.

skeeter1 · June 9, 2006, 11:37 PM

I've done 12-gauges, and now I'm doing .38 Spl. at the kitchen table with a Lee hand press. It might not be the most efficient thing in the world, but it works well and was cheap. Be prepared to ruin a few cases until you get the measurements right, but it's rather fun. I like the carbide (no lube) dies, BTW.

LAH · June 10, 2006, 12:18 PM

.015 Primer
.015 Powder
.050 Once Fired Case
.080 FMJ Bullet
OR
.025 Cast Bullet

General figures......Hope this helps..........Creeker

Barr · June 14, 2006, 10:18 AM

I load .45 Auto for roughly 8 dollars per box of 100 rounds. Carbide dies are the way to go. I use a cheaper Lee progressive loader to load mine and it will take just over an hour to load 100 shells. It does not that much time to actually load the shells but it will take a good 20 mins to get setup on the press. You have to fill primers, fill powder hopper, measure the powder dispensed, check crimp to be sure it is firm enough, and check the bullet seat depth.

rwilson452 · June 14, 2006, 10:13 PM

For .45ACP I have found I spend just as much but I get a lot more bangs for my bucks. I started with a used Lee turret press. I was loading 200 Gr LSWC bullets and accquired brass. ( at the time I was a short drive from Camp Pendelton and got brass by the 5 gal bucket full and shared with friends.) I amortized the cost of equipment in less than 2000 rounds. Do you get your ammo cheaper? yes! do you spend less? perhaps not.

amamnn · June 15, 2006, 04:41 PM

If you are only loading for one caliber then it's probably not going to save you money if you are shooting the cheapest ammo you can find from "Cheaper Than Dirt" or an internet site like that. The shotgun loads will require a separate press and components. The only thing common to them and the pistol might be the powder.
Your up front costs will be maybe about what you'd pay for a case of ammo. I'm not sure about the shotgun ammo--that's not a bore I shoot.

June 9, 2006, 11:04 PM	#1
PackingDDS Member Join Date: January 29, 2006 Posts: 38	Thinking about reloading My wife, father-in-law, and I are all very fond of the .45. We can burn through 250 to 500 rounds in an afternoon. I am considering reloading, but haven't yet taken the plunge. Is it really economical? I would be starting with the .45 and possibly expanding. I enjoy being meticulous, so that part of it actually sounds fun. I'm just concerned that its really not going to be cheaper. My father-in-law is retired, so he has plenty of time on his hands to reload. What owuld be the savings compared to buying in bulk? Excluding buying the startup equipment. I've tried to calculuate, but with no knowledge of volume my numbers don't make sense. Thanks for the info. Also, does anyone load 28 or 410. I love shooting the sub guages, but the ammo is pretty expensive. Thanks for any advice.

June 9, 2006, 11:37 PM	#2
skeeter1 Senior Member Join Date: April 11, 2006 Location: Northeast Ohio Posts: 3,403	Reloading is fun I've done 12-gauges, and now I'm doing .38 Spl. at the kitchen table with a Lee hand press. It might not be the most efficient thing in the world, but it works well and was cheap. Be prepared to ruin a few cases until you get the measurements right, but it's rather fun. I like the carbide (no lube) dies, BTW.

June 10, 2006, 12:18 PM	#3
LAH Senior Member Join Date: March 22, 2002 Location: In The Hardwoods Posts: 1,188	45 ACP Loads .015 Primer .015 Powder .050 Once Fired Case .080 FMJ Bullet OR .025 Cast Bullet General figures......Hope this helps..........Creeker

June 14, 2006, 10:13 PM	#5
rwilson452 Senior Member Join Date: June 10, 2004 Location: Tioga co. PA Posts: 2,647	Cheaper? For .45ACP I have found I spend just as much but I get a lot more bangs for my bucks. I started with a used Lee turret press. I was loading 200 Gr LSWC bullets and accquired brass. ( at the time I was a short drive from Camp Pendelton and got brass by the 5 gal bucket full and shared with friends.) I amortized the cost of equipment in less than 2000 rounds. Do you get your ammo cheaper? yes! do you spend less? perhaps not.

June 15, 2006, 04:41 PM	#6
amamnn Senior Member Join Date: May 13, 2006 Location: WA, the left armpit of the USA Posts: 1,323	reloading bottom lline If you are only loading for one caliber then it's probably not going to save you money if you are shooting the cheapest ammo you can find from "Cheaper Than Dirt" or an internet site like that. The shotgun loads will require a separate press and components. The only thing common to them and the pistol might be the powder. Your up front costs will be maybe about what you'd pay for a case of ammo. I'm not sure about the shotgun ammo--that's not a bore I shoot. __________________ "If the enemy is in range, so are you." - Infantry Journal

June 14, 2006, 10:18 AM	#4
Barr Senior Member Join Date: January 5, 2006 Location: Upstate SC Posts: 286	I load .45 Auto for roughly 8 dollars per box of 100 rounds. Carbide dies are the way to go. I use a cheaper Lee progressive loader to load mine and it will take just over an hour to load 100 shells. It does not that much time to actually load the shells but it will take a good 20 mins to get setup on the press. You have to fill primers, fill powder hopper, measure the powder dispensed, check crimp to be sure it is firm enough, and check the bullet seat depth.