HAZMAT + Shipping: is handloading really cost effective?

[VetUSMC]

So, after doing nothing but read every sticky applicable to my needs in this thread section, I went on midwayUSA to see how much brass, powder, rounds, and primer would cost. I was shocked at the total once shipping and HAZMAT fees were applied:

1lb of Accurate Mag pro smokeless powder $21.49
Winchester pistol primer $29.99 (1000 count)
Starline brass 45ACP $181.99 (1000 count)
Rainier lead safe 45ACP $109.99 (1000 count)

Standard ground $31.08
HAZMAT $57
Powder shipping $9.99

Total shipping $98.07 (to 94066/San Bruno)

Total order for 1000 rounds of 45ACP hand load $441.53

Am I missing something? I can buy 1000 rounds of Blazer Brass between $380-$400 shipping included.

Any tips/suggestions would be appreciated.

[Jet Setter]

The trick is to buy in much bigger bulk to offset the HAZMAT or to buy locally to avoid the extra fees.

[Deadsouls]

You need larger order quantities. I recommend combining orders with friends.

[Jet Setter]

Perhaps join a reloading group so you can purchase in bulk and split the extra costs. That is usually a huge help in reducing expenses.

[Metal Fiend]

Looks like hazmat was charged twice.
I just ordered 3, 1lb jugs of powder, 1k primers, 100 .45, 150 308 & 100 .22 bullets from Natchezz and shipping + hazmat was $ 48.50.

I'll usually buy bulk bullets from Xtreme when they have the $5 flat rate shipping, I'm guessing the 1k bullet weight pushed your shipping rate up.

I've also found that Midway's shipping is usually a little high.

[liber]

HAZMAT $57

That's high for HAZMAT fees, most places are about $28 on the net, some are $20.

I've never bought HAZMAT product from Midway, so not sure why they are so high, but I would buy the powder and primers from elsewhere, those are the only products that require HAZMAT. Check Powder Valley, Recob's, Mid South Shooter's Supply, for a comparison.

[BAWunder]

Ordering small quantities of power online will rarely be cost effective. My last order was for 8#s of TightGroup and was $167 to my door. Just over $20/pound is acceptable to me.

Primers I generally buy locally and avoid the hazmat charge all together. Picked up 9K of them last weekend for $29.01/1000 (including tax).

Not sure I would buy brass. When I decided to get back into reloading I bought 4K rounds of Blazer/FC and after going through all those I now have 4K of once shot brass to use for reloading.

My bullets are 9mm so they are less expensive than your 45s. I generally use Xtreme 147s that go for around $88/1K.

If I were to buy new factory loads they are generally 25 cents a round. I figure I can reload for about 13ish cents a round.

As always, your mileage may vary.

[roc_my_tims]

Your statline brass purchase is a big problem for me. I could get 1k once fired 45 acp cases for $40-70 in the forum. I've learned for simi auto indoor plinking. Expensive cases like starline get lost or combined with others thus arent worth the price for me.

Id also buy primers and powder locally off the forum if possible. It saves taxes sometimes, shipping and hazmat and helps someone get rid of a powder there not using. Without high cost brass you should be loading 1k 45 acp at $200 max.

[pdoggeth]

The brass you can reuse again, so it's a little unfair to factor that cost in right away. Just make sure to scrounge for it all after you shoot it =) ). Also I find that I may come out with some surplus of popular pistol brass if I go to certain ranges. Personally, I have never purchased any 9mm, 40, or 45 brass ever -- just reused the brass I found from the range or that I fired from factory ammo/my own reloads.

Since the bullets are not hazmat, I would probably buy it from a different source that had cheaper shipping, like xtreme bullets or american reloading. When on sale you probably could get 1000 45 acp 230 gr for around 100$ including shipping.

Like what everyone else said, you'll have to buy in bulk on just primers and powder. My recent order from Cabelas had me buy about 10,000 primers, but the shipping was only $5 (promotional shipping -- it happens quite often) and the hazmat was 20$. That helps reduce the cost. I usually get my powder from powdervalley, but same dealy, get at least 8 lbs of powder to help reduce the cost of hazmat.

Or join a reloading club to split the costs =).

Also, just as a price comparison, my 45 ACP comes out to 15 cents a round using xtreme bullets, 9mm is about 11 cents, and 40 s&w is 13 cents a round. I could probably shave off 1 or 2 cents if I found better powder deals, but powder is scarce these days.

[CSACANNONEER]

Simply buy hazmat items locally or buy more. I have ordered 64lbs of powder at one shot. I normally buy primers when I see them very cheap at gun shows or in classifieds.

Comparing high quality handloads with commercial cheap ammo isn't a fair comparison. Buying Starline brass is a large investment. Instead of new, top of the line brass, you could use used brass and save well over $100.

[rmelton]

midway drop ships powder from manufacturer - Ships separately,
that is another haz-mat fee along with the primer haz-mat, 2 haz-mat fees

[dsltech]

using the same set up to make 1k rounds i went to xtremebullets.com.

1000 primed reprocessed .45 brass $136
1000 copper plated round nose .45 $119.06
flat $5 shipping for a total of $260.06

as for powder i usually contact doug fetterly. he is a local cal gunner who sells powders and primers. lives in petaluma but does gun shows all the time. he will be at the san jose gun show this weekend.

http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=902815

as all have mentioned you need to buy in bulk to save the most. buying 8lb bottles of powder cost way less than 1lb bottles. and finally, you wont save more money by reloading. you will just shoot more for the same amount of money you would have spent.

[VetUSMC]

Thank you everyone for your responses. I guess the initial steps I will take is to:

1. Actually shoot all of my Blazer Brass. I have 1000rds.
a. The only range near and easily accessible to me is Jackson Arms located in South San Francisco.
b. I will need to check their policies on collecting brass at their indoor range.

2. Once brass has been collected, find where I can purchase primers and/or powder locally.

2a. And/or find a reloading club in the Bay Area.

3. Evaluate if reloading my own brass is worth it for me.

I only have one gun, my 1911 for SD/HD and range time (accuracy, malfunctions and drill sustainment).
I don't shoot competitively but I would love to get into it once I graduate (2 more years). So realistically, I may only shoot between 200-400 rounds per month while still in school.

One question - I remember when I was in the Corps, we collected brass every time we went out. I remember reading that we should only re-use brass once. However, I am almost positive that we re-used our brass more than once. Not 100% positive so if you are/were former military or LE please correct me. How many times do you guys re-use your brass?

[kcheung2]

I'm not LE or mil but the government does sell spent brass in those surplus sales so I suspect that's why you guys were collecting it.

Brass can be reused many times, and especially pistol brass. Most of my brass I bought in this marketplace as once-fired, the only time I had to buy new brass was for rare rifle cartridges such as .303, etc. .45 is a relatively light pressure and case attrition is usually from being lost rather than the metal being worn.

With rifle cases, I've gotten 4+ reloads (plus original firing) before the necks gave out.

And yeah, if you're buying in small amounts then it's best to go local. Even with higher prices, it's still better than shipping+hazmat. As an approximate baseline, 1lb of powder is good for approx 1000 rds of .45, +- a few hundred depending on your powder & how stout you want to load.

[trackcage]

Some people reuse it 15 or 20 times. Not saying that's appropriate either, but certainly only once is a bit risk adverse