Is it worth reloading shotshells????

[dahermit]

I have been reloading my 12ga trap loads. It comes out to just about the same price as the cheap loads from Wally World. SO I not saving anything doing it and I do buy some from time to time.

The cheap Walmart shot-shells usually are made with cost as a primary motivation, not quality as it pertains to good patterns. If one hand loads for Trap, one usually wants good patterns. Therefore, it would appeal to the hand loading Trap shooter to use AA Winchester hulls (or what ever is considered target quality these days), and test his loads on a patterning board, while hunters may want the gun to go bang and assume (or not care or even be aware), if that the load will pattern well. Another reason to hand load is that the cheap Walmart stuff seems always to have small shot size that may not be appropriate for the game being pursued (try finding some lead #2's for fox elimination...hand loading is the only solution for that). For any game, I would not use anything smaller than 6's...Years ago, while hunting with my father and brother, we jumped a rabbit and all of us fired at it. When cleaning the rabbit, I found that the 6's were just under the hide, the 5's I was using, and the 4's that my brother was using, had penetrated the rabbit completely, killing it. If it had been something with a tougher hide, the advantages should be obvious.

Also, relative to shot size, but not related to hand loading, I once shot a deer at about 10 yards with Number 4 shot (not #4 Buckshot), it fell (I thought it tripped because of the report of the shot),at the shot, but got back up and ran into the brush. Following where it went, it was laying about 20 yards into the brush from where it was shot, breathing its last. upon examination and autopsy upon skinning, the front upper-leg was broken, and the #4 shot had penetrated the chest cavity killing it. If a person wants shot size larger than 7-1/2 or 6, they are not likely to find any cheap shells with such at Walmart.
Note: Please do not bother chiding me for shooting that deer with #4's It was when I was a kid, long ago...I am seventy now, and have more restraint.

[BigD_in_FL]

I got my primers on a group bulk buy, otherwise, through my club, they are still less than $120/5000

As to reclaimed, your best bet is to ask your local gun clubs about it - many get their fields mined and the reclaimer gives the club 40% of the shot as payment