Single stage press would be pretty cheap and precise.

I think cast lead bullets can be very economical if you learn to make them yourself, as well as being very easy on the gun and bore.
Negatives is they are limp dick as fuck and drop like stone + gotta watch for bore leading it can be dangerous to fire fmj through a leaded bore

>>29847410
If you are hoping to use surplus 8mm brass you might be in trouble. I don't know any surplus 8mm that isn't berdan primed which is not worth reloading even if you somehow find berdan primers.

>>29847453
I wouldn't even bother with home casted lead rounds for 8mm mauser. He really shouldn't cheap out on components if he cares about the gun itself.

OP, are you reloading surplus or new boxer primed ammo? You may want to figure out whether reloading berdan or converting it is worth the effort. Berdan primers have a few more careful steps, but they aren't too difficult to reload.

>>29847485

there's literally nothing wrong with cast lead bullets. they are way easier on the gun and will never wear the bore out.

>>29847501
Hard cast is not easy to make. He might as well just buy bulk .324 rounds and load it to the actual specifications of 8mm mauser instead of loading anemic rounds into a mauser.

>>29847410
Lee Loader.

Hard-cast bullets require an investment in time and tools. You might crunch the numbers and find out you'd be money ahead by just buying bullets on sale at Midway.

>>29847410
Depends how you rate your time. If it doesn't matter, buy a used Lee single stage press. If it matters, buy a Lee progressive press (you can get them on eBay for like $200).
Dies would be like $30-40.

Powder (I spend $20 for 1 lbs at Cabela's.
Brass: No idea for 8mm, I don't reload for it.
Primers: 1K for like $20-24 depending.
Case lube kit: like another $20
Slugs: depends if you cast or not honestly. If you're casting, You'll need to get casting molds and shit. If not you can probs get like 1K for $40-50.
Scale: $10
Forgetting something I'm sure, but....
All and all if you go progressive press route it's like $300 or single stage in the $200's.

>>29847501
This. As long as the bullets are hard enough to handle the pressure and velocity, or are gas checked. This can be easily done by adding tin and/or antimony to the solution, and by water quenching.
Powder coating is probably necessary as well.

>>29847524
It's VERY easy, just a little time consuming, as are all things reloading.

>>29847524
>hard cast is not easy to make

Literally just alloy control and how you drop them.

AKA, easy as shit freindo. Throw some gas checks on and you are ready to roll.

But, if you are just getting into reloading, you absolutely should just buy cheap jacketed bullets.

>>29847555
I've wondered about this; can powder coated bullets handle higher, rifle level velocities? I never see them marketed beyond pistol velocities.

OP here, do i NEED a press to reload ammo? I'll probably only shoot a hundred or two rounds this summer, and won't have the rifle afterwards since I live in a dorm

>>29847659
Yes, with some caveats.

The limiting factor is leading. Lead buildup in the rifling is detrimental to accuracy and a pain to scrub out, and it indicates that the lead is rubbing off or the boolit is being vaporized slightly.
I've read from multiple places that there's a 2400 fps limit before severe leading occurs. However, I've also read about people pushing them higher.
I don't have a chronograph yet, otherwise I'd know for sure, but I suspect that a sufficiently hard and well powder coated bullet could push 3000fps even without a gas check.
But the burn rate of a powder also can affect leading; faster burning powders will be more likely to cause it.
I've pushed powder coated, not-too-hard .309-sized boolits in 7.62x39 up to an estimated 2300fps with good accuracy and no leading, but the same boolit at an estimated 2700fps in 7.62x54mmR caused some leading and wild inaccuracy.
So I'd need to up the hardness and consider a second coat.

>>29847833
>OP here, do i NEED a press to reload ammo?
lol, do you NEED a gun in order to shoot bullets? I suppose you could get one of those little dedicated caliber lee hand-press things, but that seems like a pain in the ass and waste of money for a couple hundred rounds.

>I'll probably only shoot a hundred or two rounds this summer, and won't have the rifle afterwards
Then you really don't have much of a reason to reload, although you would eventually save in the long run when you decide to continue shooting. It'll probably cost you more to get set up and reload a couple hundred 8mm then just buy them.

>>29847833

Just buy 10 boxes of ppu

>>29847833
Protip: reloading isn't cheaper if you have a real job.

>Inb4 retirees and NEETs telling me they reload for .004 cents.

>>29847998

You either don't understand the meaning of the word hobby, or this is bait.

Either way, I want the underage to go.

>>29848168
>Everything he said was true, better call him underage!

>>29847410
Reloading is a rabbit hole

DESU if you want the cheapest 8mm mauser ammo just go ahead and buy that romanian steel case stuff.

The bullets will be expansive, brass will be hard to find and the setup is expansive as well. Not to mention the inherit danger in reloading.

Reloading is more about making better ammo for your needs. If you are a F class shooter going for that extra edge. You are not really going to see a return on investment unless you shoot thousands of rounds a year.

>>29847998
>$1.55/rnd for 8x50 Lebel
>$0.55/rnd reloaded
That's just one caliber and I save $1 dollar a round.

>>29848203

c'mon man. You're better than this.

Try harder with your bait. Read a book. Just, do better.

I believe in you.

Lee hand press

>>29847998
>every round of milsurp I pump out saves between 25 cents and a dollar
>durr you're not saving money
Try shooting something that isn't an AR or ak.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLN5xsZlaaE
>HILLS
>VALLEYS
> HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS
>HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS HILLS AND VALLEYS

>>29848249
Wow I'm sure the 10rd/$10 you shoot yearly out of your relic is so worth it. Can't you just take overtime?

>>29848513
>Shooting things that aren't AR-15s
Why? They're all antiquated garbage until LSAT goes live.

>>29848754
>$10/10 rounds
>a year

Oh shit nigger are you retarded ?

>>29848754
0/10 troll

Ok did anyone else notice that there was an abundance of 8mm Mauser rounds (198gr FMJ) online like 3 weeks ago and now they've completely disappeared? Does this happen a lot?

wheres does /k/ get their brass?

been buying my brass from brassbomber but i want to get in on them GOVsurplus liquidation sales but can't be bothered dealing with a EUC and the wait time. besides ever try to swage 300+lbs of brass? i cant imagine doing it do a lot of 5k lbs

>>29849572
Usually just collect brass after shooting on private property with friends. No one reloads, so it'll just get pitched anyway.

I'm going to invest in a reloading bench sometime in the near future, considering that 7.5x55 is hard to find in my area, and has been near impossible to find online for awhile.

I learned to reload over 30 years ago with a lee loader and a hornady loading manual. It is very slow, but it allows you to be very careful. The 8mm does not seem to be in production anymore, but I think I still have mine somewhere.