Man I'm having trouble...

[gh0stface]

I'm about a month into reloading/manufacturing ammo. My ammo works, and other than a few ftf, the my ammo might even be consider excellent ammo. My problem though, I have a lot problems making the ammo. e.g. I flared the 10mm casings to much; I didn't shape the .308 round enough to seat the bullet. I'm spending a lot time on reloading, but my production rate is horrible. I average about 50 bullets an hour, but I reject about 50% of the rounds because they don't meet specifications, so I only make 25 rounds per hour! Is this normal? Are my standards to high? I'm definitely saving money on the 10mm, but I starting to wonder if I should reload .308 because of the military surplus out there. I really didn't realize how much time reloading takes.

[wtkaiser]

Well, it takes more time to do it right, than just do it. Mike Venturino says there are reloaders (people who just wham things together just enough so they go bang when the trigger is pulled) and handloaders (folks who take this very seriously, weigh every charge, separate cases by weight, the whole 9 yards). So you only get out of it what you put into it. The flared 10mm should have been pretty obvious from the first bullet. If you can see it more than a little bit, it's too much.
The .308 comment, "..didn't shape .308 round enough to seat the bullet" puzzles me a tad. You should have run every case through the sizing die and that's where the .308 gets it's neck fixed if it has dings in it. Was it a lead bullet or jacketed? We would also need details about your reloading setup.
Yes, under ordinary condition, 25 rounds per hour is low. BUT there are reasons for it. Just tell us more and we'll fix it for you if we can.

[Steelplate45]

You are fighting the steep learning curve

which all reloaders have to go thru. Once you get the recipes down, rounds will crank out a lot faster.

Be careful to stay away from too light of loads, both in rifle and pistol. Some light rifle loads have been known to detonate. The danger with light pistol loads is, if you get a double charge, it will (in most cases) blow up the pistol.

If you are in a shooting club, you may meet some guys who are knowledgeable, and who might even come by to look at your setup. Some gun store guys are quite knowledgeable as well.

Be sure to get a gauge for each caliber you are loading. It will tell you pretty quickly if sizing is incorrect. Some pistol loaders just use the barrel from their pistol, and chamber check each round after loading.

A multi-stage press takes time to setup and will jam once in a while, but when you have it running well, you can build 400 rounds per hour or more.

When looking for a multi-stage, I would get a 4 stage press (mine's a Dillon, and prolly has 20,000 rounds thru it). The bigger presses, 5 stages and larger are a real pain once they jam.

I still buy rifle ammo in bulk at times, when the price is good, and I don't have time to load.

One benefit to reloading which requires a lot of study and patience is loading for accuracy. My match 1911 can put 5 rounds into a 1 inch group at 20 yards. My Rem 700 243 can group 1/4" at 100 yds. Both with my reloads.

So, don't be in a hurry. Just relax and enjoy the learning process. I'm sure you'll get some more good ideas from the collective following this thread.

[Latigo]

Just one FTF is reason to stop, back up and analyze what you're doing.

This was written a long time ago for reloading 7.5x55 Swiss rounds. The procedures are actually correct for a novice and any rifle round. Take a few minutes to read it. It may save a lot of questions and typing.

http://theswissriflesdotcommessageboard.yuku.com/topic/7465/Reloading-for-Beginners

[gh0stface]

I learnt through experience about the 10mm flare because those were my first 30 or so rounds that were bad. None of those rounds fit into the chamber of the pistol. I'm puzzled about the .308 because I trimmed the rounds to 2.005 and then reshape and removed the primers. Less than half the cases were able to seat the bullet properly. The bullets would just drop into the case and wouldn't seat. Do I have this operation backwards? Should I trim after resizing? Also on another note, I'm using a RCBS small base dies for the .308; will this feed through an semi-automatic? I been loading my ar-10 one shot at a time; I'm really worried about jamming and premature primer detonation. Is there that big of a difference between the NATO round's and commercial round's primer?
I do see a big difference from my hand loads of the 10mm compared to the commercial ammunition. My stuff is better.

[damndave]

Have you read a manual about the steps of reloading? You trim AFTER resizing the case. Are you full length resizing? If the bullet falls into the case, you are not sizing the neck at all.

you should always stop and analyze what is going wrong and fix it before proceeding. Do not fire anymore rounds until you figure out what you are doing.

[pdq_wizzard]

I learnt through experience about the 10mm flare because those were my first 30 or so rounds that were bad. None of those rounds fit into the chamber of the pistol. I'm puzzled about the .308 because I trimmed the rounds to 2.005 and then reshape and removed the primers. Less than half the cases were able to seat the bullet properly. The bullets would just drop into the case and wouldn't seat. Do I have this operation backwards? Should I trim after resizing? Also on another note, I'm using a RCBS small base dies for the .308; will this feed through an semi-automatic? I been loading my ar-10 one shot at a time; I'm really worried about jamming and premature primer detonation. Is there that big of a difference between the NATO round's and commercial round's primer?
I do see a big difference from my hand loads of the 10mm compared to the commercial ammunition. My stuff is better.

Most / all of the time this is caused by reading the setup of the die instructions wrong (most people turn the die out when they are learning), when you are using the sizing die you 1) run the ram all the way to the top with the shell holder in place 2) have the locking ring loose on the die 3) run the die all the way down until it touches the shell holder 4) raise the handle of the press then turn the die another 1/4 or so down (don't do this with carbide dies you can crack them) 5) lock the ring and you should never have to touch it again (in that press)

as for the adjustment on the top, that controls the decaping pin. You only need to adjust that so you pop the primer out.

I see you are in Rocklin, I have to make a trip to Sportsmans sometime tomorrow, if you need help PM me and I will try and help.

[problemchild]

Sit with someone and watch it done correctly. It helps to see all the details. Rifle and pistol are very different.

[grant22]

Here is a key that I learned the hard way.

If your finished products aren't 'fitting' in your case gauge, back all the way up to the resizing die and make sure it's adjusted correctly.

If it's not, then the round is doomed.

Once it's adjusted correctly, the case (forget the finished round for now) itself should meet the case gauge's spec.

[gh0stface]

I did screw up the order of operations. I trimmed before resizing. I just redid the out spec rounds; now all the cases are uniform size going into seating die. Much better results. Thanks guys. pdq_wizzard, I just might take you up on your offer.

[bruce381]

go slow and MASTER 1 type IE pistol before going to RIFLE they require a little bit diferent setup.