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Old 10-02-2018, 03:46 PM
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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Default Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp

.45 is the only caliber I keep track of. When I started on the acp, I kept records. I can't find my records for the first 73 boxes I loaded, but on 10-7-81, I loaded my 74th box. The load today, was my standard 200gr cast swc over 5.0 of 231. Prior to this week, I had not loaded for about 13 months. I have not been shooting a lot and was shooting 9mm when I did.

I am sure the first one I ever loaded, was a cast swc and possibly 700-X or Red Dot. I also used Unique for a time and possibly Bullseye. I went to a garage sale of a couple who was getting divorced and got a keg of 700-X for 4 dollars. I loaded a lot till that keg was empty.

The first round would have been fired in a surplus 1911 I found at a gunshow. Soon thereafter, I got a 70 Series Gold Cup and I would guess 95% or more of what I have loaded was fired in that gun. I shot my renewal ccw qualification with it yesterday. I also have a Colt Commander and Ruger 1911 and have shot those both a great deal. I shot some in a Blackhawk convertible, but preferred firing the .45 Colt round.

I have loaded a few fmj's, but 99% have been cast swc's with a few rn's thrown in. The vast majority have been using 231 and WW primers. I have shot many brands of primers, but my LGS only stocks WW and I have several thousand on hand. The great primer shortage back in the 80's kind of snuck up on me, but I was never without. Jeff Cooper wrote in Guns & Ammo, that if the economy crashed, primers could be used for currency. Since then, there have always been plenty on hand. I mark the boxes as to what year I bought them. I also have the WW codes for year of production and use the oldest primers first.

For a time, I cast my own bullets, but gave that up when we moved. I have bought bullets from my LGS for years or at a gunshow if I found a bargain. I have now switched to SnS coated swc's. Last year, I finally got rid of a lot of lead I had been keeping. I gave it to a friend under the condition, he would give me half of it back in cast bullets. I am shooting up those before I get back to the SnS bullets.

I have always loaded used brass and prefer the GI. IMI also makes good brass and our military uses a lot of it. I tumble it after shooting and it always shines up nicely. I shoot outside and loose about 10% each time. I pick up brass if I see it and bring it home. If I spot a bargain at a show, I will buy it and clean it up. The last brass I bought was once fired IMI Match.

There was a gap when I wasn't loading as we moved to a new house and it took me some time to get a room and bench installed. I was probably out for a couple of years. After the move, a Dillon 550 was added to the bench next to my old RCBS Jr and things really sped up. I learned a great deal with the old press and am thankful for the experience. The Dillon is using the RCBS dies I use to use on the press.

I know some of you competitive shooters probably shoot 25k in a year, but I am just doing this for recreation. I have always found reloading to be relaxing. I had 2 high stress jobs and reloading was great therapy.

I doubt I will load another 25k, but I am looking forward to some day shooting the box marked #500. Right now, I am shooting rounds I loaded about a year ago. In fact, it has been 13 months since I loaded prior to this week. I try to keep 1k loaded rounds on hand.

Last edited by max; 10-02-2018 at 06:01 PM.
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Old 10-02-2018, 04:05 PM
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colt_saa colt_saa is offline
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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Congratulations

I to have loaded tons of the 45ACP

Mostly the H&G #68 which I purchased at first and later cast

I started with 700X as well, then transitioned into Unique and currently load that round with 231 and Winchester primers

I look forward to your 50,000 round announcement in the not to distant future
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Old 10-02-2018, 04:10 PM
Andy Lowry Andy Lowry is offline
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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You made me check the spreadsheet. I'm currently at 9691 45ACP, and started in August 2008. Clearly, I need to stop wasting so much time with .38, .357, and .32 Long. Off to the press I go!
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Old 10-02-2018, 05:01 PM
iouri iouri is offline
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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That's over 700 lbs of lead down the range
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Old 10-02-2018, 05:47 PM
Wee Hooker Wee Hooker is offline
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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Wow, I find it interesting that you would keep records of every box loaded for all those years.
Don't get me wrong, I keep records of favorite recipes and testing results for load development but that is just to keep me from reinventing the wheel. I would never think to keep a running count just for the sake of it. ( I.m not sure I would like that number if I knew anyway:-)

As for components, I'm also a big fan of cast, coated or plated 200gr SWC bullets . Mostly over 5.0 gr W231 or 4.1 gr Clays. I'd say 90% of what I've loaded over the years was just that. The other 10% would be powder/bullet substitutions made when experimenting and/or components got scarce some years back. ( One of my longer experiments being with 200gr cast RNFP 45LC bullets when developing a "do all" load to feed my 625's and 1911's.)

FWIW, Now I stock 3+ years of reserve components for each caliber I shoot. (Even .22) They don't go bad ( when stored with care) and I'm not getting caught in that panic ever again!
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Old 10-02-2018, 05:47 PM
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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I never bothered to keep track of the number of rounds loaded, but this summer I finished off my first 8# jug of Bullseye.
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Old 10-02-2018, 05:59 PM
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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Thank you for doing the math. I was trying to figure out the grain to pound conversion, but gave up.


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That's over 700 lbs of lead down the range
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Old 10-02-2018, 06:12 PM
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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I think you miscounted. Start over.
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Old 10-02-2018, 07:11 PM
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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Pounds to grains is easy, 7000 grains in one pound.

I smile when I see there are a few others that enjoy keeping records. I have a blast keeping very detailed records with my handloading, I only wish I had started keeping records MUCH earlier. I only have the numbers logged and added up for the last 6-7 years.

As for .45, I haven't loaded 25,000 yet. However I did burn through a full 8-pounder of Promo under plated 230's and the math said it was somewhere beyond 12,000 rounds. That was my -ONE- go-round with Promo, I got that in the 2008 Brackolypse and I won't buy more of it.

I bought a house and moved about 6 months ago but only "broke ground" on my cave in early August. Since then... I have been having a wonderful time playing catch-up. My log went from 0 loaded in 2018 to 4,200rds loaded as of today.

Because I have a mild sickness (some of you also have it) I had always kept my EMPTY primer boxes. (Also like some of you, I dunno WHY...) Well, when I moved, I finally threw away many of those empty primer boxes. I quit counting after 60 of them. So... empties that had held 60,000 primers. What was I thinking?!?!
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Old 10-02-2018, 07:32 PM
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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I keep a tally sheet of primers on my shelf. Being that 90% of my SPP loads have been 40 S&W for my M&P 40, I've gone through over 50,000 rounds with this one gun not including the 9mm I've been shooting with it. A rough estimate of $0.06/round for lead, powder and primers says I shot $3,000 in reloading components with this $420 gun so it owes me nothing.

The good thing is that it looks and shoots nearly new. I keep it in it's original plastic box (I don't carry it around in a holster) and other than smoothing out the trigger pull from all that shooting, it acts like it's got a long life still ahead of it.

I was keeping my empty primer boxes until I got to over 30. Then I figured, it's easier to tape a sheet of paper on the shelf and count that way rather than waste more room for something I have no use for.
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Old 10-02-2018, 07:51 PM
TjB101 TjB101 is offline
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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Default Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp

Holy chit... that’s a lot ‘o bullets.
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Old 10-02-2018, 08:25 PM
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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Grats on your silver anniversary!

I've only fired 10,146 45ACP reloads myself, and atm only have 25 left in "inventory. So my S&W 1911 and I are mere newlyweds compared to you and yours.

Some record keeping just seems necessary, right ?
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Old 10-02-2018, 10:44 PM
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Well done! I have lost count of the number of 45acp over 40y of reloading but it is well over 70k, mostly cast lswc. With more than 350k rds reloaded over the years, I no longer find it recreational but necessary evil so I can shoot. I do still enjoy casting my own bullets & powder coating just makes it better.
Yep, primers; stack em deep, you can always scrounge for lead to make bullets & so many powder choices, you can always find something, but primers, gotta have em.
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Old 10-03-2018, 12:45 AM
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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That is a lot of rounds for someone that does not do matches.......
but with all those pistols, I can see why you keep loading ammo
just to keep having fun.

I don't count rounds any more but I do toss the primer boxes and spent primers in a cardboard box under the reloading table and did notice that it was really heavy when full and time to take out to the garbage can.

At my age I'm just happy to still be able to load ammo and go
out and shoot, I don't need more paper work floating around the house, its a mess now............

Well done.
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Old 10-03-2018, 10:41 AM
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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I have always kept records of the different loads as I developed favorite loads, but never how many loads. Having loaded for well over a dozen different calibers, but the majority 38, 45, and now 9mm I'm not sure I want to know just how many thousands I have loaded over the past 35+ years.
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Old 10-03-2018, 11:06 AM
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Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp Just Loaded my 25,000th Round of .45acp  
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I too keep track of the number of rounds I have loaded. for metallic anyway. 45 Auto has always been my go to shooting handgun. I am at approx 40,000 45s since way back when. Big Uncle provided me with lots of "free" 45 ammo many years ago. The one I have loaded the least in all these years has been 357. About 1500. My load currently for the 45 is that same #69 H&G and 5.4 gr of 231. Many years ago I loaded Win 230. And I just found a can I had stashed for some reason. I bought another can at the last gun show for 3 bucks. Hope to see you get to that 50,000 plateau too.
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Old 10-03-2018, 05:40 PM
Forrest r Forrest r is offline
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25,000 - 500 ='s 24,500
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