how many rounds to justify reloading

chunk

Well-Known Member
Hi.
i shoot .222 at the minute, and at £16-20 for 20 bullets, i was wondering how many bullets do i need to be shooting in a year to justify getting reloading kit.
last year i used around 200 bullets. this year so far i've used around 100. i've kept my brass from day 1, jusrt incase.
i know if i was reloading i'd probably shoot more, as it would save me a few squid.
 
Not how many rounds a year you fire but for how many years you expect to be shooting.
I started re-loading in 1961 when I got my first stalking rifle and am still using the RCBS Rockchucker press I bought then.
I am 78 now and partially sighted but at our last stalkers shoot in August I was joint first with 119/120 with my re-loaded bullets out of my .308 Sako.
It a lifetimes pastime and can be compared with catching many fish with flies you have tied yourself.

HWH.
 
Hi Chunk, you could not justify reloading when only using 200 cartridges a year :)
What you would do, should you take up reloading, is find that your usage would increas to around thee or four times that amount :D
Reloading is not neccessarily for the financial benefit of shooting, it is to give you another hobby :D and allow you to shoot without counting the rounds down range :)
For instance, if you shoot a fox with a commercial cartridge you have the satisfaction of knowing you are a good shot.
If you use one of your own reloaded cartridges you get that same feeling of satisfaction ten fold :D
 
I have to agree with everyyhing Stag and EMcC have said.

I did the sums for my rifle at £2 cartridge and even buying much of the reloading kit second hand I was looking at 3-4 years assuming shooting up to 200 cartridges a year so you would be looking 8-10 years.

If money is the issue and Privy Partisan is available and shoots well in your rifle then there would be no gain in reloading even if someone gave you the kit.
 
i'll be honest with you's, money isn't really the problem (at this minute), as i'm using so few. the main problem that i have is with getting used to centrefire rifles. i want to feel comfortable using the rifle i have, before i go on to getting dsc1 and then something bigger.
i would really like to be shooting around 20 rounds per week (similar to what i put through my 22lr) until i'm 100% used to it.

the rifle i have is a hw66 weihrauch. at 100yrds i can easily have 3 rounds in a 2p, my mate can put 5 in 5p. using winchester 5ogr psp. so i know its not the gun.
i'll join a club with my 22lr and .222, and after a month or 2 mite know better figures
 
Knowing what I know now, I would reload if I shot only 40 cartridges a year. Handloading and interior ballistics is one of the most intriguing aspects of shooting. You can learn to consistently put a bullet darned near exactly where you wish faster than you can learn with any certainty, the exact chain of events that got it there. JMHO of course.~Muir

(PS: 222 is an easy one to load for. A Lee Classic Loader does mine. 5 shots inside a half inch pretty consistently)
 
I agree. Reloading is a fascinating pastime, you will fire hundreds of rounds in search of the optimum performance and probably take some time for the kit to repay itself. The potential performance from your reloads far exceeds factory rounds and if you live in a remote area away from a large ammunition stockist it is considerably more convenient to make up rounds to your specific needs.
 
Many people's first motivation to start reloading is financial. However if you are anything like me ( and many others), it will cost you the same or even extra BUT you'll shoot a whole lot more and the ammo has the potential to be more accurate. More trigger time can only help your shooting too.
Reloading is a hobby in itself, if you enjoy it and the challenges it brings, go for it. If you don't have the time or patience and like to cut corners stick with factory ammo.
 
The only justification needed is because you wish to hand load.

You may not save money but you will learn a lot.

You may and probably should find better precision on target. This will depend upon a few things like yours and your rifle actual capability and how well you do the hand loading. One does not have to dive in the deep end and can set up quite reasonably.
 
i followed the advise muir gave i baught a classic loader i think it was around $16 at the time it comes in a small case and you only need a few other essentials and your up and running that way if you dont like it you havnt wasted a fortune but it is addictive .and later if you enjoy buy a press ,i still use my classic loader out on the range but have got a press now loading for other calibres for me it wasnt about saving cost just about getting all my rounds consistant as the factory stuff i was getting looked like they had been dropped from a great height none of them looked the same,atb wayne
 
Re-loading can be a very satisfying hobby but don't think for one minute that it's going to save you money :D It's highly addictive and it won't be long before you decide to trade in your LEE starter kit for RCBS and then you'll want Lapua brass, sonic case cleaner, digital scales... the list is endless. And that's before you decide to convert the spare bedroom into a re-loading room. Before you know it you'll have a dozen half empty tubs of powder and more used brass than the Philharmonic.
When I first got into C/F rifles I swore I'd never become obsessed with accuracy :oops:
 
I think one of the main reasons to reload is security and continuity of supply, though it looks like you are not having problems with that at present.

However, I have found that just when I've got ammo and zeroed the rifle with it the next time I go to buy more the dealer is sucking his teeth and saying "oh, we can't get that stuff anymore but I've a few boxes of this other stuff..." and so it goes on. I shoot a 308 so it is about as common as muck as you get.

In Northern Ireland the firearms people are not interested in how many unloaded bullets you have so you can stock up on them, for example if you can get a certain bullet then buy 400 of them and that will keep you going 2 years. They will also let you keep a reasonable amount of powder and primers and so you don't need to run around the country trying to find a stock of a certain ammo type that your rifle is zeroed with because half an hour at the reloading bench will knock you up another box of ammo that is exactly the same as the last box.

So, my vote goes to reloading not just because it is interesting and increases your knowledge and gives you greater involvement in the physics of rifle shooting but also because it allows you to shoot the same ammo without depending on what the dealer has in stock and without having to listen to "I'm getting a delivery next Monday so if you come on Tuesday I might have some then."
 
Re-loading can be a very satisfying hobby but don't think for one minute that it's going to save you money :D It's highly addictive and it won't be long before you decide to trade in your LEE starter kit for RCBS and then you'll want Lapua brass, sonic case cleaner, digital scales... the list is endless. And that's before you decide to convert the spare bedroom into a re-loading room. Before you know it you'll have a dozen half empty tubs of powder and more used brass than the Philharmonic.
When I first got into C/F rifles I swore I'd never become obsessed with accuracy :oops:


Huh there must be something wrong with me as I never went that route and still use Lee equipment. I do use a RCBS Rock Chucker press although there is Lee Turret press from my pistol shooting days. The Rock Chucker was brought from the widow of our club secretary along with the Lyman universal trimmer. For most quick trimming I still use the Lee strimmer and stud. Over the decades have collected a lot of different cartridges to load for so have, sorry had :evil:, many thousands of empty brass cases. As I have never had a spare bedroom my loading has always, until we got the mobile home here, been done in the front room.

As others have pointed out case cleaning on a small scale is easily achieved in a number of ways without the need for a case cleaner.

Good used equipment is always worth keeping an eye open for ;).
 
Caorach has a good point about consistent supplies of ammo being one of the benefits of reloading. I take it a step further as I'm not worried about stocking dealers running out, I worry about silly legislation. Accordingly I keep primers and powders in quantities that would have your local police kicking in my front door were I your neighbor. I also spent half of my life learning all I could about high performance cast bullet shooting and accumulating 100+ bullet molds in all different calibers and styles. Here, the back door attack on the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution (Right to keep and bear Arms.) will come from regulating or banning or taxing components.(sound familiar?) If they pull the plug on reloaders, I'll remain shooting for many years.~Muir
 
Stags comparison of tying your own flies is about spot on i recon.....

Im also pleased to hear that many others are addicted to reloading,after 20+ years i sometimes find my self LOOKING for somthing new to buy:oops:, money most certainly come into it once the bug has bitten....
 
You dont have to buy ALL the gear.
I shoot less than 200 a year and reload and do it for a lot less than factory prices INCLUDING the outlay on reloading gear. The Lee Loader is all you need, few bits and bobs, you own once fired brass etc etc. less than £150 outlay gave me enough raw materials and hardware to load 300+ rounds.

Its fun and I do like they idea of trying new bullets and loads but once you have one you like that works then there is nothing to stop you just sticking with that.
After all unless you were constantly changing brand and factory loads looking for something better then why would you need to do the same with relaods.
 
hi,i think reloads are the way to go ,i don't reload yet but are looking into it as ever time i seem to go to buy bullet that i have scoped my rifle to they haven't go any or it's a different sized bullet:mad:
 
I reload because It enables me to make something that the factory does not always offer.

Think a 150 grain bullet in 270 Winchester at 2,700fps or the Privi GROM bullet loaded into 280 Remington.
 
I won a box of 125gr Sierra Pro-hunter heads/projectiles at a stalkers shoot earlier this year, a type I had never previously used.
On Aug.15th I worked up this load for them and at the shoot on Aug.21st was joint first with 119/120 .

To cleanly kill some creature or win a competition with your own product is very pleasurable.
Bullets can be loaded for special purposes or quarry species and tailor-made to suit the quirks of your individual firearm.
If I was not a partially-sighted geriatric how small could this group have been, it is hard to get lucky with 5 shots !
HWH.
P1070007.jpg
 
Back
Top