New To Reloading - Where to Splurge

[jreyna]

Howdy from Idaho.

I'd like to get into reloading for my .308 rifle and eventually a 300 wsm. From my gathering, those seem to be two enjoyable cartridges to load for.

I am not a high volume shooter. I tend to make a trip out to my local 500 yard range or the public lands once every month or two and at each session I don't go through more than 40 rounds or so. My primary goal for reloading is...

1. To learn a new, useful skill
2. To enjoy a productive hobby at home
3. Ring as much accuracy/performance out of my rifles as possible (I think I'll enjoy tinkering with different loads),

I will purchase a quality reloading setup, but before I put together my list, I'd like to hear from you what has been the piece of equipment that you may have been hesitant to spend as much money on, but were glad you did? And the inverse, which item do you wish you didn't spend as much on?

I plan on having a quality, single stage press, but what are areas to "treat myself" and get the greatest enjoyment/results out of my future reloading efforts? I'll never reload in a hurry, but if there are some good "time saving" pieces of equipment/suggestions I'd be interested in hearing those.

Thank you for your time and I appreciate the inbound education.

 

[wind gypsy]

As far as things that make the process suck less:
- Don't get any press that doesn't have an aftermarket case ejector system available like the ones inline fabrication makes
- Brass prep sucks, a trimmer that trims/deburs/chamfers in one step is the only way to go. Henderson seems to be the gold standard but i'm happy with my giraud bench trimmer. Forster makes 3-way trimmer heads as well if looking for a cheaper option.

Autotrickler is awful nice but a chargemaster supreme 1500 served me well too.

 

[InkedElkSlayer]

Get an electronic powder dispenser and scale. The traditional RCBS manual thrower and balance scale works, but I am VERY glad I went electronic 15+ years ago.
Get a good set of digital calipers and a gauge to measure ogive OAL.
I have the old school Forester Trimmers. I would like a top of the line one.

 

[keystone112]

Totally agree with the electronic scale.

Also, you won’t regret buying bulk power and primers.

 

[doverpack12]

Good calipers, good dies. Those two will save a bunch of headaches and don’t increase price that much.
Good hand primer

Forster bench rest seater is pretty affordable, I like full length bushing dies from Redding or Wilson, recently tried a Redding body die with Lee collet neck that were affordable.

I had an RCBS chargemaster Lite die after a few years and am back to balance scale and powder thrower so I would start non electronic until you think you want more production.

 

[Ucsdryder]

As far as things that make the process suck less:
- Don't get any press that doesn't have an aftermarket case ejector system available like the ones inline fabrication makes
- Brass prep sucks, a trimmer that trims/deburs/chamfers in one step is the only way to go. Henderson seems to be the gold standard but i'm happy with my giraud bench trimmer. Forster makes 3-way trimmer heads as well if looking for a cheaper option.

Autotrickler is awful nice but a chargemaster supreme 1500 served me well too.

Agreed with the brass prep and auto trickler. I have the Frankford arsenal brass prep station and the auto trickler. It’s made reloading much more enjoyable.

 

[Lawnboi]

In any order

-3 way trimmer, I have a giraud but would probably buy a henderson if I did it again.
-V4 autotrickler or anything else that runs on an A&D fx120.
-Amp annealer
-Quality dies that do everything in one pass
-Same lot barrels worth of components.
-Good measuring tools.

Really depends what you want to spend. Most of the above not only makes very consistent ammo but is faster, and causes less brass handling.

I also personally enjoy seating bullets on an arbor press. I don’t have one that measures, but just the difference in pressure by feel has caused me to track down and fix my process to produce better ammo.

 

[long hunter]

A good quality Manuel such as the one Hornady publishes would be a good start. I am a old school loader, one case at a time during prep, allows for good case inspections during prep. This is not a sprint it's more a marathon thing. Different strokes for different folks, I guess. And I load and shoot a lot, and a bunch of different cals.

 

[sndmn11]

Something like this (I have this one)

Hornady Auto Charge Pro Digital Powder Scale Dispenser

The Hornady Auto Charge Pro provides precise, customizable powder dispensing in an easy-to-use, space-saving unit. Precise to within 0.1 grain, the Auto...

www.midwayusa.com

This makes adjusting depth very easy and is a one time purchase.

Frankford Arsenal Universal Bullet Seater Die

The Universal Bullet Seating Die works with .224 to .338 caliber bullets. Featuring a cutout window die body, the Universal Bullet Seating Die holds the...

www.midwayusa.com

This makes the task go fast

Frankford Arsenal Platinum Series Case Prep Trim Center

The Frankford Arsenal Platinum Series Case Prep and Trim Center offers 4 work stations to quickly and easily prepare brass for reloading. The permanent...

www.midwayusa.com

 

[menhaden_man]

Forster co-ax!

 

[Harvey_NW]

I'm kind of a cheap ass so I'm always looking for the best value, RCBS Chargemaster and Burstfire 2 in 1 case prep station and annealing machine are my favorite additions. I wish I would have spent the money on Mitutoyo calipers from the beginning. I also like my Sinclair comparator body and SS inserts, but the Hornady headspace kit does just fine.

 

[eaglemountainman]

I'll go against the grain here. I prefer my old Uniflow powder measure and 10/10 beam scale for speed (once set up), accuracy and neatness, to an electronic
trickler/scale.

As far as equipment recommendations, I've been very happy with the Frankford Arsenal wet tumbler, as well as their depth adjustable hand primer. The Hornady OAL Gauge, Headspace Gauge kit and Head to Ogive gauge kit, make life easy.

 

[N2TRKYS]

I would quit reloading if I had to go back to the slow and inconsistent beam scale.

My Chargemaster 1500 combo was a great purchase for me. A case prep center is very handy.

I use a RCBS Rock Chucker Supreme and wouldn’t change anything about it.

I bought a Frankfort Arsenal wet tumbler with the steel pins. Although it cleans the brass very well, drying wet brass sucks. I don’t even clean my brass any more and haven’t had any accuracy problems with doing so. So, I saved several steps from not cleaning brass. Win, win.

 

[NRA4LIFE]

Although you may not need it right away, I wish I had spent more on a higher quality case trimmer. My Hornady is just so-so

 

[wildcat33]

Couple things that are essential in my kit: hornady comparator for headspace and cbto, and OAL gauge with correct modified case to find the lands easily.

Also the RCBS collet bullet puller is very useful

Not really a splurge but handy tools that don’t come in a standard reloading kit

 

[Mike D Texas]

It all depends if you want to spend it now or spend it later. I took the much more expensive route and bought middle
of the road stuff only to upgrade incrementally down the road and sell the middle of the road stuff at a loss.

* Forster Co-Ax press
* Micron bushing sizing dies
* Arbor press
* Wilson In-line seating dies
* AMP annealer
* Autotrickler V4
* Henderson trimmer
* SAC headspace and shoulder bump comparators
* SAC neck sizing bushings
* 21st century expander mandrels


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[Dos XX]

LabRadar.

 

[Lunchbox37]

Having just started on a Hornady LnL classic here’s the order I’ve upgraded to in the last couple of months:

1) MEC Marksman press
2) Hornady Auto Charge Pro (best upgrade)
3) Little Crow Gunworks v2 trimmer
4) Frankfort Arsenal case prep station
5) AGS annealer

I was trying to balance a cost conscious mindset with quality “tools”. Oh and for case prep I use the FART and Frankfort arsenal case dryer, super easy brass cleaning process. Sprang for Redding Master hunter die sets and a nice expander mandrel setup.

 

[WeiserBucks]

I'd start with the most basic equipment possible, after getting the hang of things you can decide what you want to upgrade and what is working just fine for you. No reason to run out and spend a ton if you're just starting out and not doing alot of volume.

If you find any patience on sale, buy it. Most new loaders don't have enough patience for the process and it leads to shortcuts and mistakes.

 

[Rob5589]

Good dies, accurate scale, good components, loaded as precisely as possible. You don't have to spend thousands to attain that level. Start shooting benchrest or f class then you can get crazy.