Help me get into reloading

[RIDE-RED 350r]

Hello.
I am considering getting into reloading for the first time. I am not interested in turning out massive amounts of rounds per hour. Just a means of shooting a little cheaper and a fun hobby to while away a few rainy day hours. I plan to reload my brass as many times as reasonably possible.

I am looking at some of the complete start-up kits offered by Hornady, RCBS and Lee Precision.

What I am seeking the wisdom of my fellow S&W Forum members on is separating the "must have" items from the "nice to have" items when it comes to getting started at this most intriguing hobby.

I know that sometimes a little truth is lost in advertising so my question is: Does the Hornady startup kit really have everything I will need other than dies? I noticed so far that the Hornady kit is about on par with the RCBS kit. But the Lee Precision kit is much cheaper. I suspect a little "get what you pay for" here.

Can any of you make a recommendation??

As I said, I have zero experience in this, but am very hands on and mechanically inclined. I have a caliper and know how to use it. When looking through sporting goods catalogs and firearms/accessory sites I see a plethora of goodies that I'm not sure are on the "must have" list.

Looking for any and all guidance/recommendations on this topic. Links to any particular products would be helpful as well if it's not against forum rules.

Thanks very much.

 

[olskool]

i have always liked rcbs stuff! lee is cheap but it does work good. most of the start up kits has what u need to get started. you can also get good used stuff on ebay, just compare it to new prices to see if u are getting a good deal or not. look on midway.com they are good people to deal with. if i can help with a question let me know i have 40+ years exp. i will help with anything i can.

 

[arjay]

A press,carbide dies ( for straight walled cartridges ),a scale,a powder measure,a couple reloading manuals,a hand held priming tool,a powder trickler and a good solid bench should cover it.You can always add more stuff as you go along.

 

[Jungle George]

I got the Lee Turret kit and love it. I always use it in single stage mode because I'm in no hurry and I like to focus on uniformity. The real advantage is that it takes less that 2 seconds to switch dies and less than 30 seconds to switch calibers.

I have never had any issues with quality and Lee has excellent customer service. It really is an excellent value.

 

[RIDE-RED 350r]

I was just looking at Midway.com (Thanks for that tip Olskool) and the RCBS Rock Chucker Supreme Master kit looks like a nice way to get started. I like how it is upgradeable to a progressive loader if I feel the need in the future. $288, that seems pretty fair for everything.

Is a brass tumbler a "must have" item? I'm guessing yes if I want to have consistent performance..

Also, I have been advised by some that a case trimmer and bullet puller would be very good to have. I guess the case trimmer for a guy like me who will reload brass multiple times would be smart. But what is the purpose of the bullet puller???

Sorry if these are dumb questions.

 

[Titegroups]

A brass tumbler is pretty much a must have, but if you cant afford one there are ways to do without. If you're shooting handgun a case trimmer isnt really needed, the bullet puller isnt either, its used to disassemble your mistakes. With a Lee turret press you can use it as a single stage but you probably wont want too. Dont let the price fool you, you get a lot more for your money with Lee equipment, you cant say that about many things in the world anymore. I own 2 and have loaded tens of thousands of rounds on them.

 

[arjay]

I've never used my case trimmer on pistol brass.You will need one for bottleneck cartridges though.A tumbler is nice for making pretty cartridges,but isn't a must have.A bullet puller can be put off til you need it and you will lol.

 

[Trooperdan]

First of all, you won't be saving any money! You WILL be shooting more for the same money though! And, reloading can be nearly as much fun as shooting!

 

[RIDE-RED 350r]

Thanks very much for the helpful replies fellas! That is exactly what I'm looking for. I will look into the Lee gear. That's 2 posters who have had nothing but good to say about them thus far.

Trooperdan: The thought I may actually shoot more has crossed my mind. But PLEASE, don't tell my wife that!! LOL!

 

[DEG]

If this is the Lee kit you are looking at I would pass. It's the one I started with and if I had it to do over again would have started with a little better quality.

The press was OK and the hand primer worked great and I still use both on occasion. The scales are the about the cheapest scales you can buy though probably accurate enough. The worst part was the powder measure. It was absolute junk.

I've had great luck with Lee dies, but they will not be included with the kit. You will also need a dial caliper to measure overall length.

 

[HAWKEYE10]

I have a Lyman turret press and load hand gun ammo and one rifle ammo the .223. It wouldn't be good for bigger rifle cartridges. If you are loading for handguns I recommend the Lyman Handgun Reloading manual. Get a manual and start reading and then ask questions here on things you don't understand. These guys helped me a lot with my questions on rifle reloading. I just started rifle reloading about two months ago but I have been loading handgun ammo for about 40 years. Don

 

[tappedandtagged]

I just got into it a month ago. Mt list was as follows:
Lee Breech Lock Kit (on sale for $105 at midway)
Dial calipers from Harbor Frieght- $18
Vibratory tumbler from Harbor Frieght- $55
Loading block- $8 from local shop
Rcbs bullet puller-$22 from local shop
Lyman Loading Manual- $25 from Gander Mnt
Dies for the above calibers ($30 each for the Lee carbide)
Lizard litter corn cob for tumbling ($7 from Tractor Supply)
I added componets- bullets from Missouri Bullet Company, powder and primers from Gander. By my estimate by time I load the 500 bullets for my 44 mag and 500 for my 357 mag, my equipment will have paid for itself 1 1/2 times.

 

[sarge1967]

This kit is a good way to get started. I use Hornady stuff and like it a lot.
There is a rebate with Hornady now. You get 500 free bullets with this kit. 100 free per set of dies.

Lock-N-Load Classic Single Stage Press Kit

RCBS is good as well. I would steer clear of Lee though.

 

[arjay]

Lee makes good pistol dies.My only other experience with them was a couple of lee load alls for shotshells which I quickly replaced with a mec 650.They ended up in a dumpster.Spend a little more and buy quality.That mec and my rcbs equipment are 35 yrs old now and still going strong.

 

[RIDE-RED 350r]

I do plan to do some rifle reloading as well. Mainly .270 and 30-06. But the lions share will be pistol reloading as that is what I tend to shoot more of... .357, 38spl, 45acp and 44mag.

I was also looking at that Hornady Lock n Load kit.

 

[rromeo]

I just bought the Lee Classic Turret kit. $232 shipped+ $32 for a set of .38/357 dies, and I am loading ammo. I am a newbie, but the purchase has made me happy so far. There is also the Lee Deluxe Turret press, but it's actually a lesser product than the Classic press.

 

[sarge1967]

I do plan to do some rifle reloading as well. Mainly .270 and 30-06. But the lions share will be pistol reloading as that is what I tend to shoot more of... .357, 38spl, 45acp and 44mag.

I was also looking at that Hornady Lock n Load kit.

It is good quality equipment. If you are looking to reload rifle calibers you will need a case trimmer. So plan for that as well.
I have the Hornady one and it does a good job.

 

[Titegroups]

The first question that should have been asked is how much reloading do you plan on or forsee doing, then go from there. If you shoot just a couple hundered rds a month a single stage will do the trick, a couple hundered rounds a week a turret should be the min. more than a couple hundred a week a progressive is in order. Rifle reloading is a bit of a different animal depending on how far you go with it compared to handgun reloading. I would suggest starting with the 357 and go from there. Buy some reloading books to start with and watch some youtube videos.

 

[Maddog 521]

Twenty eight years ago an old fellow told me " buy a turret press". I took his advice and bought a Lee three hole turret press. I am still using it and I am really happy I took his advice. I was not looking for speed, just quality reloads. My Lee has done just fine.

 

[enfield]

I bought the Rockchucker kit 30 years ago and have no regrets. Yes, you'll need to add a tumbler and a bullet puller, not to mention a stuck case remover. The puller is to correct mistakes.