Single stage time per round for handgun?

[Jasonaspears]

I don't have my notes in front of me, but if I remember correctly my last run went something like this, with .45 ACP, a Lee single stage kit, (edit) primed on press with primer feed kit, Lee powder measure, cheap digital scale, RCBS powder trickler, wet tumbling with steel media (Harbor Freight dual tumbler, 2lbs at a time, so about 160 per run, which I ran anywhere from 2-4 hours, 20 minutes in a low oven to dry, and left overnight to be sure):

Sorting: Done as I go so not counted
Deprime: 440/hr
All cleaning related (load tumblers, separate, rinse, dry): 160 per 15 minutes
Resize: 440/hr
Prime: ~200/hr
Charge: about 100 per half hour
Seat: ~200/hr
Crimp: ~200/hr

Now keep in mind a couple caveats:
1 - This was my first time actually loading a large batch (my first load was of 100 x 7.62x54r). I'm a newbie at this!
2 - I was weighing every charge to .1 gr precision
3 - The times are from memory, I was actually taking notes on all this so I had a better idea for myself what kind of times it was taking.

It definitely makes me want to move on to a progressive press already, though.

A hand primer like the RCBS will greatly increase your priming rate. I can prime about 1000 in 45 minutes give or take a few.

[five.five-six]

pffth... you don't have a job

Correct, I have 2 jobs and a business. I want to retire from 1 or 2 of those.

[JagerDog]

I've found that with a single stage press, I get a little better than 1 minute per round for revolver (e.g. 38 special).

For 100 rounds,

Resize and deprime: 15 minutes
Prime: 15 minutes
Expand and charge: 25 minutes
Seat bullets: 20 minutes
Crimp: 10 minutes

Am I a slowpoke or is that about right?

Not bad.

Reading through, a good powder measure will help you pick up some time. As will larger batching. I've usually got 500-1000 sized, belled and primed at any one time. I can charged/seat/crimp 500 pretty easy in an evening.

I went to a turret (Redding) just because I got tired of swapping dies. Seems there's always a couple rounds you need to go back and do something to as well.

If your needed volume is high and your time short, progressive can be the answer. I've been reloading for 40 years and haven't felt the need on metallics, but I load most shotshell on progressives. I shoot a lot more shotshells.

The engaged experience will make for a better transition if you should feel the need to go progressive in the future.

[bhartin]

A hand primer like the RCBS will greatly increase your priming rate. I can prime about 1000 in 45 minutes give or take a few.

Actually, I have the Lee hand primer, which I used on the rifle brass. However the primer pockets on my Aguila brass (once-fired, collected from my own new use) seems to have particularly tight primer pockets. Enough so that (a) it made me really nervous given the amount of force needed and (b) got damned tired after a few cases.

The biggest speed up for me will be in charging. Now that I got some of my first test loads done, and have a powder that meters well for me (Titegroup) I should be able to throw powder directly and just double-check every few throws.

Also, I have a few hundred Winchester brass to use as well, which will hopefully prime more easily.

[Jasonaspears]

Actually, I have the Lee hand primer, which I used on the rifle brass. However the primer pockets on my Aguila brass (once-fired, collected from my own new use) seems to have particularly tight primer pockets. Enough so that (a) it made me really nervous given the amount of force needed and (b) got damned tired after a few cases.

The biggest speed up for me will be in charging. Now that I got some of my first test loads done, and have a powder that meters well for me (Titegroup) I should be able to throw powder directly and just double-check every few throws.

Also, I have a few hundred Winchester brass to use as well, which will hopefully prime more easily.

Were those Aguilar crimped by chance?

[stilly]

You must not shoot competition. The wheel gunners were so slow they formed their organization, called ICORE, and broke away from USPSA and Steel Challenge. Here is one of their slowest guys,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLk1v5bSFPw

and one of their matches

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEUpdhk6uKY

And more than 95% of the slow revolver shooters load on a Dillon.

Yeah yeah yeah...

I should have known that someone would pull a 10+ year old clip out of the archives of ONE guy that practiced a lot and was exceptionally skilled at what he did. Because EVERYONE shoots like that... That must be the new norm now that 4G is here...

It is the power of the internet! Now we must all load fast and shoot fast to be one of Jerry's kids...

In all honesty though, I would have been disappointed if someone did NOT take that shot so kudos for you.

Not everyone is superman with a revolver. Ask the police. That is why they no longer issue revolvers as duty weapons. (at least not RPD or RSO). Following events back around 1986 and later it was deemed that revolvers were slow to reload and outgunned by automatics. Thus the move to autos. So naturally what is good for the police is good for me and what seems to be a norm for many folks. I can empty a mag and load a new one just to empty that too much faster with an auto then I can with a revolver and speed loaders. That translates to burning through more ammo at the range for me and other people that I have taken to the range, and other people that I have noticed at the range. Autos are just naturally faster... And there is an exception to every rule...

[jonzer77]

Yeah yeah yeah...



I should have known that someone would pull a 10+ year old clip out of the archives of ONE guy that practiced a lot and was exceptionally skilled at what he did. Because EVERYONE shoots like that... That must be the new norm now that 4G is here...



It is the power of the internet! Now we must all load fast and shoot fast to be one of Jerry's kids...



In all honesty though, I would have been disappointed if someone did NOT take that shot so kudos for you.



Not everyone is superman with a revolver. Ask the police. That is why they no longer issue revolvers as duty weapons. (at least not RPD or RSO). Following events back around 1986 and later it was deemed that revolvers were slow to reload and outgunned by automatics. Thus the move to autos. So naturally what is good for the police is good for me and what seems to be a norm for many folks. I can empty a mag and load a new one just to empty that too much faster with an auto then I can with a revolver and speed loaders. That translates to burning through more ammo at the range for me and other people that I have taken to the range, and other people that I have noticed at the range. Autos are just naturally faster... And there is an exception to every rule...

So you don't shoot competitively I take it. There are several people I know that shoot revolvers fast at the events I go to. To say that 38 special is meant to he shot slow is laughable at best

I have to say, you sure bring the lulz with your wacky posts.

[mycrstuff]

A few weeks ago I timed myself on my single stage. I averaged 500 pulls of the handle an hour. There are three separate dies that a pistol round must go through. Each one must be pulled separately on a single stage. This is were a progressive saves you time.

[brettkeating]

Ok.

I got a little miffed at some of the assumption made about me, but I'm over it now. I vented, but deleted the post I originally wrote.

It was a very interesting discussion overall. Thanks for all your input.

[knucklehead0202]

A "competitive pistol shooter" will still be a dead man against most any rifle shooter so who is impressed? not me for sure. auto or revolver, I like both. load on a progressive or single-stage? both work. If you're in a hurry because you THINK your time is worth so much, it won't be if something goes wrong and you blow your gun and yourself up. When it comes to potentially dangerous things, I just don't rush, that's all. And to me, this is a hobby, not a competition, although some people can't help but try to be better than everybody else, only a few people might be impressed, other douchebags probably. Not using the most high-end piece of equipment doesn't make you cheap, an idiot, or not competitive, it just makes you not a douchebag. Congratulations to all the non-douches out there! If you think you're better because you spent more than me on reloading equipment, you're not, for the plain and simple reason that you think you are.

[Jasonaspears]

A "competitive pistol shooter" will still be a dead man against most any rifle shooter so who is impressed? not me for sure. auto or revolver, I like both. load on a progressive or single-stage? both work. If you're in a hurry because you THINK your time is worth so much, it won't be if something goes wrong and you blow your gun and yourself up. When it comes to potentially dangerous things, I just don't rush, that's all. And to me, this is a hobby, not a competition, although some people can't help but try to be better than everybody else, only a few people might be impressed, other douchebags probably. Not using the most high-end piece of equipment doesn't make you cheap, an idiot, or not competitive, it just makes you not a douchebag. Congratulations to all the non-douches out there! If you think you're better because you spent more than me on reloading equipment, you're not, for the plain and simple reason that you think you are.

Feels like you had an axe to grind here.

[knucklehead0202]

Not really, just tired of hearing people talk about how much better they are than everyone else, like being in a friggin' locker room. Some folks just never grow out of high school I guess.

[drdarrin@sbcglobal.net]

Not really, just tired of hearing people talk about how much better they are than everyone else, like being in a friggin' locker room. Some folks just never grow out of high school I guess.

Well said sir, well said.

It would be so much better if we could stick to the subject (to which I must admit, I am sometimes at fault as well), and forget the petty bickering.

[not-fishing]

One minute per round? I can't even fathom spending 1000 minutes to load that much.

My 650 will run 1000 rounds in about 2 hours in total including prep.

Some of us reloaders are to poor for the mighty Dillons.

Rifles, single stage baby!

Those of us with a few more shekels like me might also buy a manual turret press.



For case prep and pistols I do pretty good with my manual turret press.

My rifle case prep is decap stage then form stage on turret, prime by hand, charge in tray and single stage bullet set. and I'm changing loads to match each specific rifle and rifle caliber (in 30.06 one for Garand, one for 1903 & 1903A3)

For my RCBS manual turret and the pistol it decap stage one, form stage two, bell stage three,--- hand prime ---, powder drop in tray, then bullet seat stage 4 and crimp stage 5.

I have a bullet dispensing die (another stage) that I'm hoping to use in the future but I'm not there yet.

I loaded 200 rounds of SWC .45 acp, 6.0 grains of green dot in a little over half an hour taking my time. A couple of days ago I loaded 150 rounds of RN 45 acp with the same charge. Of course the brass had been decapped, shaped, belled, primed earlier.

Dillons are nice but I change between SWC and RN in both 45 and 38 along with reloading for .380, 9mm, 38 cal, .357, 40 cal, 44 cal and 45cal I''d be screwing around with a Dillon a lot.

With the manual turret I change bullets or calibers in about 3-5 minutes and with the batch drop I change charge amounts in about the same time (because I drop & measure many times - to make sure). Bullet and powder availability means I'm constantly changing powder, loads and bullets.

Reloading for my two boys and I is about 5,000 rounds per year in rifle / pistol.

I'm not sure a Dillon 650 would be of much help, now if I could get two - 650's that would take care of 75% of my reloading.

[opos]

Real old man here...been loading for a long time...nothing but single stage for everything..it's a hobby for me and slow and easy is better...that's how I relax with everything. I "batch" things...some time when I'm not busy I might deprime and tumble a bunch of brass and set it aside...then another time I'll size and prime with the old Lee Autoprime (old style with the round tray) and set them aside...then when I feel like it go ahead and load up 50 or 100 rounds...and like that...I've never "fallen behind".

Don't load any of the "black weapon" rounds so no need to mass produce thousands of rounds...My range time has no upper or lower limit...if I run out of ammo I go home...If I get tired before I run out...I go home. For me it's just an enjoyable pass time and there is no pressure to accomplish anything special except to shoot well, shoot safe and keep all my digits (which I have for many years).