How complicated do you have to make reloading?

[Desert Dan]

Hey everyone.
I'm almost done assembling the parts for a rifle reloading setup - 6.5 PRC and .243 to start with and maybe some pistol and .223 down the road. I've read a ton about different loads and velocities and it's clear you can get really really detailed and specific depending on your reloading goals. For me it's pretty simple. I just want to experiment with different powders bullets and loads until I can find a consistent recipe for my rifle and also for the fun of working up my own loads and not being dependent on only factory loads. Realistically I don't need .5 MOA accuracy, only the 1 MOA or so consistency out to about 500 yards. Is this something I should be able to achieve without endlessly experimenting or am I in it for the long haul? Thanks!

 

[Elkhntr08]

Welcome to the insanity. We all start out reloading to save money, have a more customized load or whatever reason suits you. Then once you step over the edge, it’s all down hill.
You’ll find a good load, then you’ll figure you can make it just a little better. Play with the powder, adjust the seating depth, it goes on and on.
Best advice, just roll with it. It’s fun!

 

[Salmon River Solutions]

I enjoy spending time working up a handload. Sometimes I just don't have the time to be very tedious.

In the past, when in a rush, I will just take a VLD style bullet and push it .01" into the lands and then I don't have to play with seating depths. I'll take a mid range powder charge for the bullet/powder combo and I'll load however many rounds I (or they for friends/family) need for the quick turnaround. In the 4 instances I've done this with the VLD's all have shot under .75MOA. Thats without doing any grain increments, without segregating brass, and without playing with seating depth.

You get out what you put in.

Good luck.

 

[klappercody]

Case prep, case prep, case prep, that's where I spend most of my time reloading! I wish I wasn't so picky sometimes.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

 

[Desert Dan]

I enjoy spending time working up a handload. Sometimes I just don't have the time to be very tedious.

In the past, when in a rush, I will just take a VLD style bullet and push it .01" into the lands and then I don't have to play with seating depths. I'll take a mid range powder charge for the bullet/powder combo and I'll load however many rounds I (or they for friends/family) need for the quick turnaround. In the 4 instances I've done this with the VLD's all have shot under .75MOA. Thats without doing any grain increments, without segregating brass, and without playing with seating depth.

You get out what you put in.

Good luck.

Good to know. At least starting out that is similar to what I want. And I'm sure that, like Elkhntr said, I'll find something that works well and not be able to leave it alone. Hopefully that will be out of choice rather than necessity just to get the rifle to shoot what I want it to. Ideally I'll be able to find a combo with a hunting bullet that matches the accuracy of the 147 ELDM to use as a go-to while I continue to work up some other option.

 

[260madman]

Tumble/clean
Size: trim if needed
Prime
Charge
Seat bullet

I’ll start .030” off the lands or mag length, which ever is shorter (some factory throats are excessively long=Remington). This usually will yield 1 MOA groups and then I’ll play with seating depth from there. All this is done after finding max pressure.

 

[BRTreedogs]

It really depends on the rifle and luck.
I've had a couple rifles the 2nd load just hammered.
I have another I spent days and days trying different things and nothing worked.
I ve had pretty good luck using the Berger twist rate calculator and whatever it says is the most stable shooting well.
It can be a really time consuming rabbit whole.
And I dont believe it's cheaper I'd you count the equipment in the cost.
Good luck.

 

[rickjames80]

Tumble/clean
Size: trim if needed
Prime
Charge
Seat bullet

This is where I started. Keep it simple at first and have fun. As you progress you will get more in depth. Its actually a pretty simple process. Just follow the rules and you will do fine. I am no expert, but I have been able to get my guns to shoot better than MOA, and they wouldn't do that with factory ammo.

 

[montanafisherman25]

Keep it simple like rickjames80 and 260madman said. Seating depth is where you can really easily fine tune accuracy. Get a set of comparators that mount to your caliper would be my advice. Hornady makes a good affordable set. They measure at the ogive and give you much better consistency with your measurements. It will be a different length than what SAAMI overall cartridge length specs are from the book so be careful in that regard.

 

[JP100]

You can make it as hard and complicated as you want, or you can make it simple.
I load(on and off) for close to 10 rifles, all shoot under an inch and most half MOA. All factory rifles.

Never used a case tumbler, never turned necks, dont have COAL gauge, hardly ever trimmed brass.

All you need is
Loading Manual
Press
Dies
Scales(I only have a balance scale)
Caliper

and thats it, I measure all seating depths off the lands with a cleaning rod to start with, then work backward from there, or you can make a dummy case.

Dont worry about how much 'jump' you have, just worry about what works.,

Stick to the basics, I only ever use ADI powders, and more or less only use Hornady bullets, both are cheap and readily available and work.

Seating depth from my experience is usually the biggest factor for accuracy, then powder(thats from what I have seen).

The key is when you find a load that works, change NOTHING haha, its always easy to try and 'make it better', usually doesnt work

 

[Desert Dan]

Thanks for the input everyone. Looking forward to getting started.

 

[NBChance]

Start simple. Learn as you go. Grow your tool set as you advance. Reloading is a hobby for me and it is so much fun to dial in a tight shooting load, with components that efficiently take the critter I am after.

 

[NBChance]

Above all, stay safe and sane. Use multiple sources of compare for your load data and always work up from the lower or middle range of listed powder weights. Don't just trust what you read on various forums without cross checking with other reliable published data.

 

[Newtosavage]

I started reloading probably like a lot of folks - with the original Lee Loader hand loader. Yup, pounding brass with a plastic mallet and popping primers with their sucky priming tool. But it worked. I had fun and I produced some damn accurate .308 loads with that dumb thing.

I still keep it very simple, with just one small Lee press, a few Lee dies, scale, Lee powder measure and a few other bits and pieces. I could easily put all my reloading gear in a small fishing tacklebox if I wanted.

As someone said - welcome to the insanity. You can chase your tail as often and as long as you please with this hobby. I thought it might be a way to save some money, and it could be, but instead of saving 3x as much, I just shoot 3x as much and spend the same amount. LOL But that's good because it means I get 3x as much practice and have 3x as much confidence and satisfaction when I hunt.

Enjoy the ride!

 

[4ester]

Not that complicated until you start chasing that rabbit down his hole.......Accuracy

 

[thinhorn_AK]

It’s been pretty addicting to me, I picked up a rock chiller supreme kit off a friend who was leaving town, now I’m loading for like 10 different cartridges. In fact I just got back from picking up some supplies this eveining.

 

[Unknown Munitions]

Consistent powder charge and neck tension. Consistent powder charge requires investment in a quality measuring method. Until you can eliminate powder charge variance as a possibility of undesirable ES and SD you will always question some other part of your process. After powder charge is eliminated, consistent neck tension takes process and experience. If these 2 variables can be nearly perfect with quality brass, you'll find no need to obsess over the little things that shooting practice can improve. Good luck!