Is it worth it to start reloading?

[jwest]

I would like some input as to whether I should start reloading. I am now in between Colorado and Ca. and find myself shooting more than ever now that I have a free state collection as well as my Ca. collection. In Co. I live about 30 min from forest land and shoot there at least one or two times a week. Here is my dilema, I am outshooting my ammo supply and can barely afford to replace it. I do a lot of volume shooting and training so cheap ammo is fine by me. So would it be a wise investment to reload for the sole purpose of saving money? I don't need to make high performance ammo, just cheap bulk ammo mostly. So I guess my real question is, how much are you guys saving by reloading vs factory ammo? Thanks.

Up to you man.

Can you use lead casted bullets? If so, you can probably save yourself a ton of money. Even if you shoot the most expensive bullets (pure Cu) - you can save reloading.

Are you a trap/skeet shooter? You will break even even buying a Dillon SL 900 at ~ 3K rounds.

[joelogic]

Really? Whats the cost break down on birdshot rounds? I always thought it would be tough to beat Walmart. $4.87 for a box of federal 7 1/2's.

Then again it would probably take me 3 years to shoot that much only shooting 3 gun.

Are you a trap/skeet shooter? You will break even even buying a Dillon SL 900 at ~ 3K rounds.

[Munk]

It's a fun hobby, especially if you want to be meticulous (singlestage), or if you like awesome machines (Auto-Index), or if you just like the satisfaction of doing things your own custom way. (I load my .30-30's longer than spec, just shy of being forced into the lands/grooves, and they're amazing)

It can also be a massive money saver. not just for plinking, but for quality ammo. A box of 20 hunting rounds in .30-06 might run you 40$ to 60$ brand new. But if you reload your own brass, it'll cost you less than 15$ in materials (20x hornady bullets at 26 $ per 100, 900 grains of powder at 22$ per pound [7000 grains are in a pound], and 20 primers at 3.5cents per.)

Rifle, magnum pistol, and wildcat rounds see the biggest of savings. Cheap ammo like 9mm can still show a significant savings if you lowball your components and buy in bulk. (bulk applies to all ammo types for bigger savings)

[yoitsbruce]

your gonna shoot more, your groups are tight, your gonna buy more guns, range time is about 2-4+ hours. there's over 20 types of gun powder, 4+ different bullet wieghts for each calibur to try out different recipes and you will have no time for tv commercials

[wc12]

It's a "money saving hobby" that compliments your shooting hobby. It's a win-win situation if you want a second hobby.

[Cowboy T]

I shoot most of the common calibers, alot of .45 acp, 9mm, 5.56, 7.62x39, 7.62 Nato, and 10mm. The 10mm of course being the one that really breaks the bank with factory ammo.

In that case, you'll save lots of money especially with .45 ACP, 7.62 NATO, and 10mm. You will also save money/round with 9mm eventually; it'll just take a bit longer to break even. The others, well, as long as the Russian ammo is as cheap as it is, just buy it for now. But if another AB 962-like law comes around, I'd still have some brass handy.

With .45 ACP, watch out for primer size issues. The SAAMI standard is to use large pistol primers, but some mfr's (Federal, Blazer, Fiocchi) are using small pistol primers for their "lead-free", so-called "non-toxic" rounds. So, be sure to sort by primer pocket size.

[Fyathyrio]

Shooting is an activity. Fun, but you go, shoot, return, then clean and store the guns...repeat when possible. Reloading turns it into an enjoyable hobby. The tools are cool, the zen time in the garage is priceless, the satisfaction when shooting your own is awesome, and while you likely won't save money, you will end up with more ammo for the same investment.

[popeye4]

Shooting is an activity. Fun, but you go, shoot, return, then clean and store the guns...repeat when possible. Reloading turns it into an enjoyable hobby. The tools are cool, the zen time in the garage is priceless, the satisfaction when shooting your own is awesome, and while you likely won't save money, you will end up with more ammo for the same investment.

Bingo, especially the last statement. You might make ammo for a lower unit cost, but you'll just make more so you won't really "save" anything. Handloading will become a hobby unto itself!

[jak77]

Everyone has pretty much summed it up, its worth it.

[SKSer]

It is worth it if you find yourself enjoying it,

I save about 50% on common calibers like .223
but i save about 90% on the more expensive stuff like 45 Long Colt
I also load for .308 and I can load match grade ammo for cheaper then the cheapest .308 you can find
I also load 7.62x39, but that is only worth it if you cast your own bullets otherwise it ends up costing more then wolf or tula.
I wish wolf offered just .310 123 grainers for 8 or 10 bucks per hundred

as far as the "your time is worth money" I think the statement is rediculous.

I could see if you worked 24 hours a day, but if you use that concept, then everything you do costs money.

If you make $25/hr then watching a movie costs you $50, watching a hour long tv show costs you 25 bucks. Dinner is now 35-70 bucks a night depending on what your cooking. Calguns must cost most of us $50-75 a day.
h*ll it even costs you $2.08 cents to lay the boots to the wife.

[EmmaGoldman]

h*ll it even costs you $2.08 cents to lay the boots to the wife.

Where's that number come from? Is it $1.04 a round for the one she puts in your chest and the one she puts in your head? Or is it $0.52 a round and she's also putting two more in your junk?

[MaHoTex]

Reloading doesn't save you much money unless you shoot odd/expensive calibers. What reloading does, is make it so you can shoot accurate, quality ammo for the same price as shooting the cheap stuff.

If you want to reload to save money, I think you will find out soon enough that it isn't really the case.

I load match 308 ammo for the same price as buying blasting ammo.

I do not understand why people say this, in my case it just is not true. I save 50% or more on ammo by reloading.

[joelogic]

Its pretty hard to beat $240 delivered for a case of Wolf .223 or x39. Or even just buying reloads from a gun show.

Not bulk pricing for .223 componets.
$.10 bullet
$.03 primer
$.08 powder

[Cowboy T]

I wouldn't buy someone else's reloads, but I would happily buy the Wolf/TulAmmo .223 or x39. Even better, the Russian .223 steel case is now Boxer primed and will withstand a few reloads! x39 is still Berdan, though.... :-(

[SKSer]

Where's that number come from? Is it $1.04 a round for the one she puts in your chest and the one she puts in your head? Or is it $0.52 a round and she's also putting two more in your junk?

I think you miss understood, "lay the boots" means to "do it".