Reloading thread
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>Loading some 250gr .45acp edition.
So what's everyone up to today?
Also, why does /k/ reload? For money? Matching ammo to your guns? Because you can?
>>30526041
I was about to load up some 125 gr cast lead 9mm. I reload for money mostly. I don't save too much with 9mm but I appreciate the savings on .45 and .38 special. It's also nice to know that every cartridge loaded in my gun was inspected several times before it got there and that I witnessed its creation. And I've noticed that I am less affected during panics because I reload.
>>30526177
>I reload for money mostly.
Same, I mostly focus on .45colt and .357, 9mm is a waste of my powder.
>And I've noticed that I am less affected during panics because I reload.
I was the opposite, I tried getting into reloading during the last panic and couldn't find powder anywhere
It's really cool to know exactly how my ammo is made though. And I can do goofy shit with my ammo.
Reloading is fun and relaxing.
>>30526041
Hornady Lock-N-Load or Dillon XL650?
>>30526260
Agreed, shitposting on /k/ with a beer in one hand and a hand primer in the other is bliss.
>>30526041
I reload because it's fun for me and because otherwise I would never go shooting. I like to shoot minimum 200 rounds every range trip, I'm not paying retail for that amount of ammo.
>>30526481
>I like to shoot minimum 200 rounds every range trip
That's it? What calibers?
>>30526041
I reload because...
> some ammo is not available, or available in the wrong bullet weight, or in limited quantities
> my reloaded ammo is cheaper
> my reloaded ammo shoots better than anything I've ever bought
> my reloaded ammo looks better than anything I've ever bought
> I enjoy tweaking the powder load and bullet types to get the best performance for my rifles
>>30526808
>tfw when you have bought a thousand of a bullet because you like the way it looks, even though it preforms slightly worse.
I don't care that a round nose gives slightly better performance, I like 45 colt with flat nose lead bullets.
>>30526250
That is true with powder. After Sandy Vag, I just had to get what the store had and find load data for it. But then I got an 8 pound jug Bullseye and I'm still getting through that.
I also like making crazy loads. Despite having a ruger blackhawk I haven't made any super hot loads, but I have done really light .45s for my glock 21. It recoils less than a 9mm and is quite fun.
Waiting for my 125gr speer tnt 30cal projectiles to get here so I can actually shoot my 300blk pistol... Factory ammo is so damn expensive...
>>30526827
>I like 45 colt with flat nose lead bullets.
That's the best round for .45 colt though?
>>30526850
I load stupid hot bear loads for my Blackhawk all the time, and black powder .45 colt for my 1858 remington with conversion cylinder.
I'm actually using some 250gr lasercast .452 flat points for my .45acp loads right this moment. They're loaded with 4.6gr of unique.
>>30526855
You see the website that sells high explosive Incendiary rounds for .300blk?
>Boom, done
Can't wait to see how these preform in my 1911
Looking into starting reloading. I'm a calicuck, so no more economical online ammo purchases and ammo can be ridiculously overpriced here. Also, reloading seems like an activity that would satisfy my autism in terms of loading exactly what I want.
I know noobs should start with a single stage press. Could you guys recommend some decent equipment to start out with or at least lead me into the right direction with some reading material and/or videos that'll teach me to git gud.
Thank you /k/omrades
>>30527642
You don't NEED to start out on a single stage, it's just cheaper and there are less things going on at once. If you have derp pockets and are competent you can get a progressive right away.
I'd suggest an RCBS kit like the Explorer, it has everything you need aside from components and dies.
>>30527757
>>30527642
I actually prefer single stage to progressive. I have loaded somewhere in excess of 40k rounds on my RCBS rockchucker with no really maintenance besides the occasional oiling with 90 weight gear oil.
It's a great piece of equipment, and suits my needs very nicely.
>>30527807
>RCBS rockchucker
Those will out last civilization, of course you don't need to do anything but oil it.
>>30527881
Fantastic isn't it?
RCBS also has fantastic customer service. I got my case trimmer from them, and after a few years of use it was not designed for (aka hooking it up to a electric drill to trim my cases faster) it began to shit itself a bit.
I sent an email to RCBS, telling them it was having trouble because of the way I used it. They gave my a tracking number for the new one they had sent the same day, and asked if there were any other of their products I'd had trouble with. I told them that one of my shellholders was rusting, and they sent me two replacements.
Just a great company, good products.
>>30527966
Hot damn
>MFW RCBS is just that awesome
I like Hornady dies a little more but RCBS is my favorite for everything else.
>>30527757
>>30527757
Thanks for the advice. I'm not a poorfag, so I would prefer to cry once with equipment purchases. I gotta hop onto youtube and wach some videos on reloading. I plan on reloading mostly for my coming .300blk pistol and .308 for money saving.
>>30528122
Let us know what you learn!
>>30526041
Now that the .45 is out of the way I'm gonna reload some .38spl
>158gr Rainier Ballistics hollow points
>Once fired range brass
>4.5gr Unique
>>30527611
That looks like a crazy crimp for a round that head spaces off the case neck...
>>30528880
I played around with a couple with spent primers, it seemed to always lock up properly and the firing pin made good contact each time.
We will see how it goes.
>>30526968
which one?
>>30529074
why the aggressive crimp? the load is pretty normal, are you firing it out of a subcompact or somethkng?
>>30529526
Bullets are meant for a .45colt, they have a massive cannelure. See >>30526250
>>305295526
Got it. does anyone sell hollowbase .45s?
in your opinion how hard would it be to mod a mould for that? will probably have to make something weird with a .45 70 mould to find bullets for reasonable prices in my .455 bulldog. Luckily Buffalo arms sells okayish value casings
I reload for precision.
Has anyone ever used a rebated boat tail?
>>30528769
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irC3NuIKDm4
Found grandpa hickok's reloading 101 video. Pretty informative and his voice and old man jokes are soothing. If there are any other total realoading noobs out there, then I recommend this video.
>>30528122
A single stage can be worth having even if you have a progressive too. Especially if you load multiple calibers. The progressives need special shellplates for different cartridges, and are annoying to change over (less if you get separate toolheads, but that adds to the cost).
Lots of times I want to just deprime a bunch of shells (cuz they need washing), use a bullet puller, or load small batches in several calibers for experimentation. A single stage is much better for that sort of thing.
Have a Dillon 550B and a Lee Classic Cast (which is a terrific press for the money).
>>30530096
It looks so damn slow, but you realize that it doesn't take that long to make enough to shoot for a day
Any tips on reloading 7.5x55? My Swiss Miss is getting hungry.
>>30530527
Depends, It takes me an hour and change to work up a couple boxes of .45colt/acp or .38/.357, that's not enough for a day at the range at all. if you only shoot once a week it's fine, just reload on weekends, but if you shoot 2-3+ times a week you really can't just run a single stage. I really need an ammo plant or some motorized progressive.
>>30529338
Fuck, hold on, I think it's smammo
>>30530895
they sell motors and it's pretty easy to hook one up yourself, the problem is that if so etching goes sideways the motor will just keep trucking and build up stupid amounts of force and either break the press or require a shit ton of time in jammong.
you could probably right up a sensor to detect when somethings off or you could shell out like 2000 bucks for a fancy computer controlled motor
>>30530920
That would be cool. I wonder what the best press to motorize would be.
>>30529338
smammo.com is the site. They have regular and HE Incendiary, and subsonic tracers.
>>30531061
Ever buy from them?
>>30531073
No, but I'm thinking about ordering some 5.56 and trying it out while waiting for the rest of my 300 blk parts.
Reminder that reloading/handloading will be illegal without a FFL if Shillary wins.
Citation needed you say? just look at the new Commiefornia laws and extrapolate from there
>>30531091
I emailed the guy in preparation of ordering some explosive .45acp from him (How fucking awesome is that), he responded same day and was very polite.
>>30526041
I reload because
> Money
> Eurocuck range doesn't allow FMJs (also have to cast my own bullets)
> It's a way to circumvent stupid laws about ammo storage
> Usually shoot rare/special snowflake guns that I don't want to wear out with full manufacturer loads
I want to reload but I live in an apartment and have nowhere to do it.
Also, I don't know how my landlord would feel if she knew I would be storing jugs of gunpowder in my closet or something. At least if I did something catastrophically stupid in a house basement it would be only me that went kablooie.
>>30530626
same
I'd also love to load up some AP from pulled .30-06 projectiles
>>30531097
so you have no evidence and are just scare mongering?
Recommendations for a scale? Perhaps even an automatic dispenser if those are nearly as accurate.
Quick question: I got some bulk rifle powder in a big ass canister. Is it OK to store it in a bunch of smaller 1kg white HDPE bottles, the kind liquid malt extract comes in? They've been thoroughly rinsed and dried out, and I'll store them in a dark place, so them being transcluent shouldn't be an issue.
>>30526334
I was deciding between these two, eventually went with the LNL AP, Natchez shooters supplies has it pretty cheap ($389) and switching from 9mm to 5.56 seems quick and cheap (a $28 shellplate and a set of bushings).
>>30526041
For money. Ammo is getting seriously expensive in Yurop, even if you use FMJ bullets, you save over 50% off 9mm and 5.56, and close to 70% off .40, .45 and full power rifle cartridges.
>>30529552
>>30526041
>>30526250
>Range Update
Shit is hot, too hot. Need to back off a few tenths of a grain on the powder.
>>30536079
Do you think the crimp had anything to do with it?
>>30536095
No, just too much powder, the crimp looks bad but it's not that deep.
The .38spl did great btw
Probably a snowflake here, but I do load my own 12Ga. slugs.
>>30536311
wow, forgot pic.
>>30536329
>My shotgun, a Benelli M4 Super 90, was slung over my back and loaded for vamp with hand-packed silver fléchette rounds.
>>30536329
>>30536311
Process?
>>30526041
I like the act of reloading, slightly more than I like shooting said ammo. It's a fun sickness!
I wanna get a krag but obviously ammo is a fucked up situation
how cheap is it to get into reloading?
>>30536741
>placing silver in ur shotgun shells
>hunting vamps
>>30537045
What else do you shoot? If the only thing you are going to be reloading for is a Krag it's going to be maybe 250 at most for a basic startup single stage press and the accoutrements.
>>30526041
just been catching up on reloading some 500 smith and casting/coating a bunch of bullets. Bullet cost is about a penny a piece. I use gas checks for bullets intended for true magnum loads. those add another 5 cents a piece. I can load moderate unique loads for 6.5 cents a round and true magnum loads for 19 cents a round. This is cheaper than steel case 9mm luger. Factory ammo costs $2.50-$3 a round. I save a fucking metric shit ton. Average jacketed bullet costs 70-80 cents a piece. so casting and powder coating is a real big money saver. I have not yet gone out and tested magnum loads with vs without gas checks, they probably aren't needed anyways but I went ahead and bought a thousand when I first bought all my shit for the caliber... just in case.
I can load light 500 S&W magnum loads for less than most people pay for "cheap" 22lr.
>>30538046
So how often do you go squirrel hunting with your plinker rounds?
>>30538207
They aren't really enough for the formidable North American Gray Squirrel. I usually only go after chipmunks for humane kills.
Cheap bastard here, i have a scale and i was trickling up to an exact charge, but even with just the powder measure that was in the lee kit my 30-06 is shooting under 2moa if i do my part. Plenty accurate for me and the deer dont seem to notice.
Projectiles came a day early.... H110 is a really damn fine powder... Stuff goes everywhere...
Pls respond.
>>30534736
>>30540408
What are you watching there bud??
>>30540408
What's the torch for?
What book are you using for 300blk data?
>>30544623
Yes, but keep it in a cool dry dark place. Ammo can with dehumidifier packets.
>>30544626
housos, australian comedy about a bunch of bogans (aka rednecks) in housing commissions (aka section 8 housing)
it's funny and on netflix
>>30526041
Living in Commiefornia
I want to starting loading up a stockpile of .223. Where can I find a good recepie that's a nice blend of effectiveness for combat and cost?
>>30544728
Use it to anneal my 308 brass. I'm just loading off the hodgdon website for the speer 130s. The spread is only 1.1 grain so there aren't too many load to work up...
>>30545243
Whats the benefit of annealing?
Do you have a 300blk load for Hornady 150 gr FMJ?
First time reloader, decided to get into it to make 303 british for my enfield. Still super nervous to shoot
>>30547683
Was it a conservative load? You should be fine if you didn't max out the load
>>30536920
Not that guy but
>step 1: squire slug mold
>step 2: purchase bulk birdshot
>step 3:melt down birdshot and cast slug
You get the idea.The amount of lead slugs burn up vs the price of slugs makes it a bit more worthehile vs buying lead just for slugs.I used to have an info graphic from a guy that made his own slug mold.
>>30537113
More importantly
>silver flechette
What an expensive way to get yourself killed by the guybyou just bedazzled
>>30549261
>buying expensive ass birdshot just to melt it down
What the fuck? Just buy bulk lead, it is less than a dollar a pound. Or go to castboolits and see how those fellas are scrounging it now.
>>30538046
Hows the brass life?
Those rounds look fantastic BTW
>>30547683
I remember my first time loading. It was 300blk, I fired from hip keeping it away from my face. Just like when I build a new AR
>>30548972
Yeah i did 40 grains of 3031 with a sierra 150 grain soft point. Im just being a pussy
>>30544750
If you want to skip the packets you can buy silica cat litter for maximum dehumidifying action. Just toss it in some panty hose or a container with holes in it.
>>30549307
>expensive ass birdshot
Where do you live? That process is completely reusing the components of the birdshot, not just buying it for lead. In the long run yeah buy ingots when you find a good shipping price.
Anyway, if someone would like to try saboting fishing weights let me know how that turns out
>>30526041
>whats everyone up to today?
Spending assloads of money at a gun show, and hopefully making most of it back.
I reload for lots of different reasons. Super cheap plinking ammo (9cpr 9mm, 14cpr 5.56 and .45acp), custom tailored hunting/match ammo (3400fps 130gr .300wm, among others, and because I collect rifles in rare/obscure/obsolete calibers.
>pic related
>bought a $2500 rifle, a $4800 rifle, $500 worth of obsolete ammo (still less than 200rds), and a $400 original receiver sight. Then sold a rifle for $5150 and a bag of .25-35 brass
>>30526260
>fun and relaxing
Until you get into fragile/expensive brass (38-40, 44-40), nonstandard primer pockets (small primer .45acp, large primer 6.5gren), or brass cases that are berdan primed (herters, some south african 5.56, RWS 7x57, others). Then it can be rather frustrating.
>>30526855
>live within a reasonable drive of Hornady
>buy blem 110gr vmax by the pound
I literally cant load 135gr cast lead for what I get them for, and they're an accurate, well performing hunting bullet at .300blk velocities.
>loaded my .300wm with them once, they wouldnt hold together
>>30528023
Imo Hornady dies are the best until you get into the several hundred dollar Forster micrometer dies or Redding bushing dies. I've had quite a few issues with RCBS decapping pins and feel their resizing dies are a bit generous, even on neck sizers.
But yeah, their CS is industry best. They custom reamed a set of 4 dies for me after complaining about a 2 die neck sizing set being a bit loose, for free, and after complaining about a bad batch of decapping pins (they were supposed to be carbide but were bending on first use on non crimped primers) they sent me 500 pins for free overnight air.
>>30529644
Yes, Ive shot some of the Lapua RBT. I prefer my SMKs, but cant really articulate why other than they feel better.
>>30534736
Why do you want to subdivide your powder?
Also, i wouldnt trust anything that didnt start as a powder container
>>30537045
Good luck finding brass or loaded ammo to start with.
Literally just spent almost $200 on 120 loaded rounds and feel like that was the steal of the century.
>>30549924
Because the original container is massive (and didn't start as a powder container either).
I received the powder from a retailer as a part of payment for an AR he bought off me, he basically just poured me half of a jerry can of it.
Things are looking up
>>30550025
And up
From such humble beginnings
>>30527611
>all those different headstamps
>>30550327
>high volume, low pressure round
Unless you're a good enough shot to be nationally competitive the accuracy loss from the minor variations in case capacity will be entirely unnoticeable.
>tfw mixing headstamps on everything but .22tcm and nuclear .44mag/9mm major/.300wm
Though theres a 7 grains of 7828ssc difference in case capacity between winchester and prvi .300wm.
I do not recommend prvi brass in .300wm unless you're after a kitten load with 150s
https://youtu.be/1PKzFZYLESo
surprised this has not been posted.
Stupid question. Can you reload shotgun shells?
>>30550453
Most of them, yes
>>30550453
Yup. Needs a shot shell loader instead of a press. It's hard to make cheaper #8 shells than Walmart has, but you can make most other loads well below cost. Just be careful not to double charge your loads with powder.
>>30550453
Yes and it allows you to get pretty creative with what's inside. There are thousands of youtube videos with stupid weird shit getting shot out of a 12 gauge.
In more practical terms, you can make your own frangible slugs for breaching doors or solid slugs for killing larger game.
>>30550667
>not double charging loads
Sage advise no matter what you are reloading unless you want your gun to turn into a hand grenade. Weigh the rounds on an accurate scale to see if anything is amiss. Also, don't mix up pistol powder with rifle powder or your gun could grenade as well.
>>30550825
It's much easier in my experience to double charge shotshells than it is to double charge pistol or rifle cases. But you're right, it always pays to be careful
>>30550825
>Weigh the rounds on an accurate scale to see if anything is amiss.
Useless. The variance between case and bullet weights is usually several times greater than the powder load itself.
Just get a powder cop or RCBS lockout die if you're reloading on a progressive / turret, or just visually inspect your brass if you're not.
>>30549985
I have a lot of questions but the main one is where the hell did he get a jerry can full of powder?
>>30534736
there should be no problem doing so, maybe put in an oxygen adsorption packet or something.
If you were very worried over shelf life I'd use glass canning jars as plastic is somewhat permeable over time
