>reloading thread
Where do you buy projectiles from? Its easy to find good deals on .224 projectiles, but 308 stuff seems to be priced pretty much the same everywhere... Cabelas runs sales pretty often, but that's only like 200 pieces at a time...
Where's the best place to buy cheap handgun bullets?
>>29415999
Black bullets international, the blue bullets, or maybe bayou bullets. They are all hard cast coated products. Xtreme bullets used to be cheap and may have sales from time to time. Berrys also can be had pretty cheap from time to time if you buy in bulk.
>>29416028
Cool man. I've just started thinking about getting into reloading and I'm saving up for a press. Any tips? I'm just gonna start with .45 and 9mm.
>>29414941
> LGS
> Cabela's
> Midwayusa
> Brownells
> Precision Delta
> X-treme Bullets
While I can get .224 bullets cheap enough form the LGS to not bother with anyone else, I've pretty much ran into the same issue with .308.
I've taken to looking for sales on 500+ count to keep the costs down, and buying even if I don't immediately need them. I like to reload supers for my 300BLK and I am always looking for deals on Speer TNTs. I will buy the Sierra Matchkings if they're the only ones available, but they're priced 60% more.
What's a decent single stage reloading press for small to medium volumes of milsurp ammo? Are there any press models I should avoid?
>>29418300
I use cheap the cheap Lee presses for depriming. My main press is a single stage RCBS Rock Chucker. I'll probably pick up a turret press at some point, but I need to find one I like.
For NATO ammo, get an RCBS primer pocket swager set to take care of the primer crimp. This can put some strain on the press, so I wouldn't trust my cheap presses to handle that task.
Fpr plinking
I go to sierra boolits in Sedalia Mo and buy seconds.
Or i buy military pulldowns, or remshit.
For nice rounds i buy from Graffs and Brownellz
>>29418300
Great press
Forester
Good press
Hornady
Rcbs
Lyman
Redding
It will get you buy press abd sometime they are gems but some times they are crap
Lee
>>29418491
>>29418560
Thanks
>>29416541
>Speer TNTs
I keep seeing these and the nosler custom comps as alternatives to the match king, but are they better than the hornady bthp match? Those go on sale at cabelas all the time it seems...
>>29418300
Lee Classic Cast.
>Lee
I know. I'm wary of them by experience, but they got this right. Just do some reading before you buy, I did and was not disappointed. I grew up on old Rockchuckers, when they were US made, and I'm glad I didn't go the RCBS route when I got rid of my shitty Lee turret press because I'd pay a lot more for an inferior press. Unless you want a Co-Ax I would not pay more for a single stage, unless it was some fancydancy benchrest tier press but I'm not an expert on those.
>>29414941
Rocky Mountain Reloading in Lewiston, ID. Great selection, fast service, bro tier customer support
>>29420329
I can never find the Hornady in the ~125gr weight I want, but the price is on par with the Sierra Matchkings when I see them online. In this case, I opt for the Matchkings because their longer ogive is better suited for 300BLK.
I buy the Speer TNTs as cheap bullets for plinking loads. Accuracy is pretty much the same as any I've shot. I do look at the Hornady A-max bullets every once and a while, but they're usually 110gr, so I haven't bothered with them yet.
>>29420329
All I know if you can buy 1000 of those nosler customs at sportsman's warehouse where I live for $199.99 and that's for 6.5 mm bullets in 140 grains. That's a decent cheap bullet for sure.
>>29424379
Fucking do it. That is about half price
>>29425384
I know, I was sitting there for like half an hour trying to figure out the catch.
Anyone here know where to find the followign brass without causing my butthole a substantial amount of pain:
6.5X47 Lapua
6.5 Creedmoor
everywhere seems to be out. I'm willing to pay more for the lapua 6.5X47 but the creed should be able to be had for under a dollar a round.
>>29414941
Jacketed bullets I usually buy from Powder Valley. Plated bullets from Berry's. Cast from MBC.
>>29415999
I like Berry's plated bullets.
>>29420329
>TNT
>alternative to the matchking
lel no.
As far as producing consistent accuracy I'd rank bullets like this:
>Sierra (either SMK or TMK)
>Berger
>Barnes Matchburners
>Hornady Traditional Match
>Hornady A-Max
>Nosler Custom Comp
>Hornady V-Max
And as far as BC it goes TMK-Berger-Amax-SMK-Matchburner-TradMatch-Vmax boattail-Custom Comp-Vmax flatbase
No idea why the Custom Comps are so fucking bad on BC. They're accurate enough to be worth buying if you're staying inside 500m, but the Barnes Matchburners are even cheaper, slightly more accurate, and have a much better BC. Lapua Scenars are in the same boat--bad BC, very consistent shape and weight so they're very accurate.
>>29426524
Graf's has Hornady 6.5CM brass.
Your butt will be in pain looking at anybody's 6.5x47 brass.
>>29426614
I understand I'll be paying more than $1.20 for 6.5X47, just looking at it I suspect it can perform SLIGHTLY better than the Creedmoor.
Also I think Grafs is out of brass right now that is at all cheap.
>>29426655
The differences between 6.5CM and 6.5x47 are very minimal. The x47 can be run at a higher pressure (beyond book max) through a properly built boltgun with a bushing'd firing pin, but if you're gonna go through all that hassle that's what 6.5x284 is for.
6.5CM works beautifully in semi's. x47 doesn't. Both do about the same through factory boltguns.
>>29426677
Why doesn't ×47 work well in semi's?
>>29426805
Weird rim shape that technically fits a .308 bolt head but is a little too thin to work 100% right, and a propensity to perforate primers at its max loads (the reason why you bushing the firing pin on bolt guns, something you can't do in any of the .308&co semi's). It also benefits the most (of the 6.5's) from very tight necks and shoulders, making it a choice between a gun that feeds reliably and a gun that's close to optimal accuracy.
It DOES work, just not as well as 6.5CM.
>>29415999
I get mine from rmr bullets. They're pretty cheap and good quality.
>>29427016
So basically if a gun were designed specifically to run the 6.5x47 then it would be fine? I know this is hypothetical, I'm just curious.
>>29427094
Probably?
>>29427094
Not that anon, but yes.
The cost would be up there, and kind of silly, especially since if you want quality brass, just pick up Norma 6.5 creedmoor cases.
Alrighty , last thread some guy asked how much they could save by reloading 6.5x55 and I actually did math.
>.23 per bullet
>like .20
>.03 per primer
You can get lower or higher depending on deals and such , but yeah ... You can get match grade 6.5 ammo for less than the cheapest m80 ball available
>>29427154
.20 dollars on powder , pay no mind I'm just retarded
>>29427202
>20 cents on powder
wut
>Hodgdon lists loads ranging from 36.0gr (Varget) to 51.5gr (H1000) as max load
Varget is ~$180 for 8lbs. 8lbs is 56,000gr. That's 0.3 cents per grain, or 11 cents for a max charge. H1000 is also ~$180 for 8lbs, or 15.5 cents for a max charge.
Unless you're either way overpaying for powder (buying 1lb cans online one at a time) or using some hellaciously expensive powder at beyond-book-max it should be way cheaper than that.
>>29414941
always keep an eye out on armslist for the occasional deal. I found an entire lot of reloading stuff, description and pictures were extremely vague but I jumped on it for $1,000. over 7,000 150gr 308 bullets, 7,000 110gr 308, and another 8,000+ assorted rifle and pistol fmj bullets. 10,000+ pieces of new rifle brass, buckets of pistol brass, 40+ pounds of powder, several presses, bullet molds, you name it. Kept some shit, sold the rest. made my money back plus another $4,000.
>>29427264
Ok let's rework this with non-retarded math.
>bullet
Nosler Custom Competition 140gr. 22.3 cents per, shipped
>powder
Varget, 35.8gr accuracy node assumption (36.0gr max book load). 11 cents per, shipped (includes hazmat fee).
>primer
Federal Gold Medal Match large rifle, 3.2 cents per, shipped (includes hazmat fee)
Not including brass (due to it being reusable) that takes you to 36.5 cents per round. Or less than you can find M855 clones.
>>29426604
>>29420329
(my experiences are limited to the .223)
SMKs are notoriously bad on base to ogive. You have to sort them, but they are also extreamly consistent on target within most people's abilities. They are very accommodating on load variances. Hornady match BTHP have actually given me the best groups out to 300 yards, and past that Amaxes are my best bullet.
Nosler CC keep base to ogive about the same as Hornady, maybe a little worse. Berger is as good or better than Hornady. Nothing touches Lapua for consistency of base to Ogive.
who makes the best 6.5mm bullets for long range? preferably someone who is more or less well known and not some tiny operation (looking at companies like lapua, hornady, berger, etc...)
>>29427462
For full-blown commercial production, Nosler's new Accubond LR 142 has the best BC and is pretty consistent.
Other than that you'd have to go to one of the semi-custom but well known bullet makers like JLC/Swampworks.
>>29427439
Agreed on the SMK's. I sort my 77's but don't bother with my 52's and 69's, wind blows my groups with those more frequently than an unexplained flyer. I have had good luck with the Hornady 75gr trad. match bullets, but for whatever reason I have to have pretty mild loads (a full grain under book max) to get good results. My 77gr TMK's do best at a tenth of a grain over book max for some reason, and I shoot slightly smaller groups with them at all distances.
Agreed nobody touches Lapua for consistency, but they're both obnoxiously expensive and have a pretty bad BC, meaning I find it easier to shoot other bullets well.
I've not tried Custom Comps in .223 yet, but have had ABYSMAL luck with them in .308 and .300wm. Bought a couple thousand 175's for cheap and am using them up loading subsonic .300blk with them, I was getting worse accuracy than I was with M80 pulls. Didn't seem to matter where I was in my ladder loads, or seating depth, they just shot like ass through both of my target rifles. Maybe I got a bad batch, maybe my rifles just didn't like them. I dunno. Both guns are 1/4MOA capable full-custom guns.
Haven't tried the lighter .224" Amaxes, but my precision .223 is an AR and was very disappointed to find out the 75gr Amax can't be loaded even close to mag length. I'm not gonna bother single-loading an AR, so I've got most of a box of 75gr Amax's sitting on a shelf unused.
>with .223 my best groups out to 300m are with 52gr flat-base custom bullets, which are actually cheaper than SMK's
>>29427339
Honestly , I was hoping somebody would break it down better than I could. I admit , I'm not great at math and I'm happy that people are willing to look into things themselves
I buy bergers for my .308 m1a load.
Hornady for my hunting load.
If I go with a 6.5 I would probably shoot a .260 loaded with bergers.
Bergers like to touch the lands.
>>29427647
What are some good custom bullet manufacturers if I was willing to pay full retard amounts?
>>29428579
Specifically I'm looking for bullets with ultra low form factors and high sectional density (basically meaning high G7 BC).
Is there something with digital scales that you cant trickle into them? If I remove the pan and trickle theres no problem but trickling with the pan on it, there no reading
I want my shotgun to perform like a rifle. How do I take a target load and remake it into a slug.
What dram would I need. Can I up the dram.
Can a wad be considered a sabotage
Is a 1 Oz slug susceptible to wind and energy loss as bad as say a .30-06
>>29428897
> crap scale?
The microprocessor polls the strain gauge several times a second to check for resistance (weight) changes. If it doesn't change enough, the micro will assume the value is the same and won't bother updating the display. You may not see a change until you load several tenths of a grain difference. You can sometimes mitigate this by trickling a little, then gently touching/tapping the scale to force it to update.
>>29429136
Yes, no, yes, it depends, yep, and probably.
Ok here's what you do, get some of the biggest slugs you can find. 1.5Oz will work but 2Oz will be best.
Then use a fast burning pistol powder like bullseye or red dot because it will impart more energy into the slug than anything else. You want this because it will help overcome wind and energy loss. Also, if you can get bullet-shaped slugs, those will be more aerodynamic than more cylindrical shaped ones. You'll want to create a handful of test rounds for a set of charges. To be safe, start at 35 grains and work your way up to 40. I've loaded hotter and you can too if you take your time and find some good stiff wads.
>>29426524
No one . has 6.5x 47
Grafs for the 6.5. Some times midway some times brownells.
Buy all the 140gn bullets you can find. With PRS season starting it is going to get hard to find.
>>29427439
Shit... I set my oal by splitting a neck and pushing in a single smk then setting back 0.003... I should probably have measured a bunch of them...
Getting into reloading 300 blackout, anyone have experience with that cartridge?
>>29429970
Fuck, really? No 6.5×47 anywhere?
>>29430242
yes
>>29416095
>Any tips?
its easy, don't be intimidated, follow instructions carefully, you'll be fine and save money.
>>29430365
Cool.
I'm new to reloading but a friend of mine has been doing it for a while now but he's new to rifle cartridges, so we are both learning as we go along.
Primarily my biggest problem is the forming dies, what to get specifically. I learned that the Lee die set suck for forming the .223 brass down to proper SAMI spec. I'm going to be using a Sheridian gauge to check the brass and I've been using one to check for .223 on his press but we are coming up with the shoulder too high and according to the case gauge, its a no go.
Any suggestions on what to get in forming the new 300 blackout cases from .223 cases?
Secondly is load data, I bought the Lyman AR book, and it has some load data but not a whole lot in regards to different powders, primers, bullet weights and from different manufacturers. I saw some booklets at Cabella's that look like these were home made books on load data, are these trusted or what?
>>29430532
>Lee die set suck for forming the .223
who told you that? Lee makes their dies to the same specs as everyone else. brass is easy to form. I don't get it.
>>29430532
>Secondly is load data
go to a sports store that sells reloading stuff, they usually have multiple books that you can leaf through to check out, take pictures of the relevant pages. that's what I do.
>>29430558
I have been reading that form both the 300blacktalk forum as well as AR15 forum. Now I haven't gotten a straight answer from RCBS, Dillion, and Lee, but is the problem others have faced is due to the fact they were using a regular sizing die and not a small base sizing die?
>>29430532
lube the cases....
hornady spray lube in 2 light passes is all you need.
if you start seeing dented shoulders you have over lubed the dies and brass.
de crimp all 556/223 and i deprime using a lee universal or Franklin tool.
or else you will fuck your pins on the die.
300blk is easy to reload, very similar to pistol because of the shoulder setup/
>>29430567
Unfortunately Cabellas is the only place that has any reloading stuff and they have everything wrapped, no leafing through stuff. Besides I would much rather have a hard copy to read from than my phone or computer monitor.
>>29430605
I got the Franklin deprime too already and it makes quick work of most brass but some get stuck on the pin due to a small flash hole. I made a major brass score so we will upgrade to the Franklin rotary tumbler to clean up that old brass and an actual decapping die in a separate press to deprime the cases. My question for this is it possiple to swage the cases before tumbling or is it better after the cases have been cleaned?
why is it so hard to find a US store that exports projies?
>>29430626
in that case check to make sure the book you buy has the powder you use or at least have available to you. books do not have all powders or bullets listed.
>>29428579
>>29428668
JLK is who I'd recommend. Their 6.5mm 140gr bullet has a G1 BC of .630. Matrix Ballistics has some interesting looking designs and advertises a G1 BC of .685 with their 160gr bullet, but that's heavy enough you'd be limited to your extremely high velocity calibers like 6.5-284 and .26 Nosler.
>>29430532
The Lee die may not meet someone's specs, but it works just fine in my build. Your high shoulder problem sounds like the die isn't meeting the shell plate.
For load data, http://www.hodgdonreloading.com/ is a good starting point.
>>29430870
>books do not have all powders or bullets listed.
Yeah, I learned that already. I was wondering what other books other anons use to get their recipes from. I mentioned that booklet on .223 earlier but before I order one for 300 blackout I would like to know if anyone use it themselves.
>>29430558
Lee dicked up bigtime on their .300blk dies, and refuses to fix it. The die bodies are too long and the shoulder's too far forward. It's actually about 3 thou beyond SAAMI max, and some people with quality chambers can't even chamber the rounds.
>>29430532
RCBS black-box (AR series) dies are good to go.
I don't bother forming my own, if you're already on 300blktalk buy some extra crispy brass from one of the handful of guys on the forum. Usually runs about ten cents per. Last 1000 I got from jdne5b. He still has an ad up.
For load data I use the Hodgdon/IMR site since I use H110 for supers and IMR4227 for subs. Subs are easy--start at what you *know* to be supersonic and work down til you get through 10 rounds with no supersonic crack (if you don't have a chronograph), then tinker with your system till you get LRBHO and aren't smashing your cases flat against the brass deflector.
Those little single caliber booklets can be trusted, though some of them have old load data because they don't get updated regularly. .300blk is new enough that if you find one it's current.
>>29430663
For .300blk it doesn't really matter. I don't even clean primer pockets any more, range brass goes in the tumbler unsized/un-deprimed.
>>29430695
ITAR.
>>29430982
I already got Hodgedon's page bookmarked and its a good starting point but they only list their powders and certain bullets. So far I'm only looking at 147 to 150 grain FMJBT for the time being but the goal is to do the full gambit of rounds from 110 grain all the way up to 220 grain cast bullets.
>>29430920
The problem I have with their bullets is their (if my math is correct) extremely poor form factors.
>>29431011
>Lee dicked up bigtime
Ah Ha! So that's why you can find their dies dirt cheap and why some people had the problems I was talking about.
>RCBS black-box
Ok, thanks for the tip, my buddy runs with Dillon since their sizing ball is carbide. I wonder if its possible to swap the RCBS sizing ball with Dillion's carbide ball.
I scored about 2, 5 gallon buckets full of .223 brass from the local police range dirt cheap so for the time being I'm set on brass.
Thanks for the tip on the booklet, I'll have to order one then.
>>29431095
JLK is world famous for his accuracy. There are marginally higher BC bullets out there, but none that will shoot as tight a group. If you're after pure BC, check out Cutting Edge Bullets. They're hellaciously expensive and probably overinflate their BC claims, but they're there.
>>29431145
Dillon dies are universally good (and if they're not, they fix/replace them free). I don't have any Dillon dies myself (run a Hornady LnL AP) but I highly doubt that RCBS and Dillon have compatible spindles.
ima leave dis here
>>29431095
Also your math is at least partially wrong.
Sectional density is determined not by length. It's weight in grains divided by 7000, the results then divided by the squared diameter of the bullet. All else being equal, all (for example) 6.5mm 140gr bullets will have the same SD.
>so why don't they?
Core composition (purer lead cores=higher SD) and jacket thickness (thinner jacket=thicker core, which is denser) effect it somewhat.
JLK bullets use the same jackets as Berger and Hornady, and are considered the best jackets in the industry. They also use a very close to pure lead core.
>>29431263
i have reloaded some polymer coated bullets, they actually work really good for pistol ammo. they are super cheap compared to jacketed bullets or copper plated bullets and dont foul up your barrel with lead like cast bullets.
>>29431260
Well, one can dream right?
My friend has been having issues with his .223 sizing die, the case shoulder is very slightly too high and in my Sheridan gauge the case is a definite no go. When he brings the die all the way down to the point where the ram is pushing the die back up, only then is it very slightly passable. That is when I thought about going with a small base sizing die. I can't remember is Dillon makes those or not but we will have to check their website or contact Dillon with the problem.
>>29431313
I wasn't talking about sectional density, i was talking about form factor.
However I think I was talking about the wrong bullets (I believe I was thinking the matrixes)
>>29429636
>>29431328
Generally shouldn't one should use a gas check when using cast bullets?
What's the best .310 bullets for an AK?
>>29414941
search on Ammoseek.com
access to search through hundreds of online retailers.
you can find unloaded bullets as well as loaded ammo. it's searchable by caliber, brand, bullet grains, bullet type, etc.
>>29435765
depends how fast you are pushing them.
Are neck sizing dies worth it for bolt guns? How many firings do you get before you need to FL size again?
>>29436923
Worth it for bolts for accuracy alone.
You really dont ever need to full length again, but you may need to trim the neck.
>>29436923
For some rounds neck sizing is a necessity (.303 Brit or 6.5 Jap). I have not needed to full length resize anything I neck size yet but I shoot milsurps and the chambers tend to be forgiving.
How about flash hole deburring tools?
>>29437225
If you like to shoot match grade ammor, sure. Its a cheap tool.
I primer pocket uniform, flash hole debur, neck size, chamfer, and load.
Average 5 shot groups with 165 ssts are .7 moa out of my tikka, and i get special groups smaller... and thats using imr4064 which is rough to meter.
