Beginner in Reloading - What to purchase?

[eric1115]

Never use a beam scale or a tumbler. Waste of money.

Have you ever seen brass that came out of a suppressed AR?

I'm not saying he needs one, I don't tumble my bolt gun brass, but categorically saying they're never useful just isn't correct.

 

[Bluefish]

You need a SINGLE stage press
Priming system
Dies and shell holders
Calipers
Bullet puller
Scale
Vibratory brass cleaner with media
Powder thrower
If loading bottle necked cases you need a brass trimmer and reamers.

Those are all requirements.

Dont waste money on a progressive or turret press they are a waste of precision.

This pretty well sums it up. I will add, I prime on my press for rifle loads even though I have a hand primer. So you don’t need a primer system right away. You also need some way to apply case lube. I like the pad style lube, but a lot use the spray style. I also use a cheap plastic Lee powder thrower (not the dial one). It just works. I have nicer more expensive rcbs, but use the Lee one more.

For trimmers I use the Lee cheap ones. I think they are $7 for the cutter and a little more for the mandrel. They are also handy for wildcats as they are mild steel and can be easily turned on a lathe to adjust length. It’s also nice to throw one in each die box so all the pertinent equipment is on one place.

I used cheap presses (Lee and rcbs) for a lot of years and recently upgraded to a bigger Redding press. It is nice as it gives more leverage, but it doesn’t make any better ammo. I also have a couple progressive presses for pistol and shotshell. Definitely worth it to have progressive in those applications (high volume and straight wall).

You can pay for an inexpensive loading setup within a few boxes of ammo.

 

[Bluefish]

Never use a beam scale or a tumbler. Waste of money.

Really? All I use is a beam scale and a tumbler for brass cleaning, both post range and for lube cleanup. Imho the cheap electronic scales I have used are junk. Yes good electronic ones work well, but they are not cheap. A good beam never needs batteries and if kept clean, nothing to break or go out of adjustment.

 

[270-300]

This pretty well sums it up. I will add, I prime on my press for rifle loads even though I have a hand primer. So you don’t need a primer system right away. You also need some way to apply case lube. I like the pad style lube, but a lot use the spray style. I also use a cheap plastic Lee powder thrower (not the dial one). It just works. I have nicer more expensive rcbs, but use the Lee one more.

For trimmers I use the Lee cheap ones. I think they are $7 for the cutter and a little more for the mandrel. They are also handy for wildcats as they are mild steel and can be easily turned on a lathe to adjust length. It’s also nice to throw one in each die box so all the pertinent equipment is on one place.

I used cheap presses (Lee and rcbs) for a lot of years and recently upgraded to a bigger Redding press. It is nice as it gives more leverage, but it doesn’t make any better ammo. I also have a couple progressive presses for pistol and shotshell. Definitely worth it to have progressive in those applications (high volume and straight wall).

You can pay for an inexpensive loading setup within a few boxes of ammo.

My hornady press came with an arm that goes in the ram to prime. Its as slow as a tick. Spending the $100 for the rcbs benchtop primer was well worth it once i was a couple years in.

I use dillon spray lube. Its lanolin and rubbing alcohol. I just throw the brass in a plastic bin and spray it down.

I also like the lee trimmers. I put them in my rcbs power station, have the reamers on the other spinners, and out the chuck in a golf ball for a handle.

 

[gerry35]

I was one that bought a RCBS kit in about 1990 and still use pretty much everything it came with. Redding makes a good kit too. You can upgrade a few things as you go along like the scale.

 

[Bluefish]

My hornady press came with an arm that goes in the ram to prime. Its as slow as a tick. Spending the $100 for the rcbs benchtop primer was well worth it once i was a couple years in.

Don’t disagree that press priming is slow, but when doing short runs ie 20-50 rifle rounds, that few min isn’t material. If doing lots of 223 or something else high volume, then yes it’s worth getting a priming station or a progressive press. Also a high volume trimmer.

If talking high volume, ie 100+ a week, then there are places to spend money to make reloading easier, but that’s not the question that was asked.

 

[S.Clancy]

I've primed 200 brass straight with a press. It's not that hard/bad

 

[270-300]

Don’t disagree that press priming is slow, but when doing short runs ie 20-50 rifle rounds, that few min isn’t material. If doing lots of 223 or something else high volume, then yes it’s worth getting a priming station or a progressive press. Also a high volume trimmer.

If talking high volume, ie 100+ a week, then there are places to spend money to make reloading easier, but that’s not the question that was asked.

Yes thats why i stated once i was a few years into it. In 2019 i would often load 500 or 600 rounds of 223 in an afternoon.

I no longer shoot 223


Now i do 20-40 rifle crartridges every few months.