What is the most unpleasant part of reloading for you?
- Thread starter GB
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I've been handloading since the mid-'sixties. It's a hobby unto itself. I've enjoyed it all and learn something most everyday I participate, and that's most days at least for a little while. Those who handload to save money (not sure that's really possible) and see it as a chore miss out on a lot.
S&WIowegan
US Veteran
I got back into shooting in 1989 and also got into USPSA competition. Shooting USPSA back then demanded handloads to make major and run the guns properly. By 1992, I owned an early 650 and was cranking out large amounts of 38 Super and 40 S&W ammo. I enjoy handloading as a physical activity entirely opposite of my professional life. Very therapeutic.
The only task I really don't enjoy is swaging and/or reaming primer pockets of used military brass. I bought a box of 3000 9mm military brass a few years ago and then let it sit for a while. Finally, in 2016 I cleaned all the primer pockets and made 3500 rounds of 9mm 124 gr coated ammo and I'm still using it up.
I leave 9mm brass on the ground because I can buy used 9mm at gunshows for $20/1000 or less.
The only task I really don't enjoy is swaging and/or reaming primer pockets of used military brass. I bought a box of 3000 9mm military brass a few years ago and then let it sit for a while. Finally, in 2016 I cleaned all the primer pockets and made 3500 rounds of 9mm 124 gr coated ammo and I'm still using it up.
I leave 9mm brass on the ground because I can buy used 9mm at gunshows for $20/1000 or less.
DRAINSMITH
Member
I HATE case prep. Brass shavings everywhere. I'm that guy if I drop a primer on the ground I will take twenty minutes to find it. Even if I can't see it I know it's there and it will bother me. And the problem with case prep I can see the brass shavings. I hate it so much I pay my 13-year-old granddaughter $5.00 a pound to do it for me. And she probably does a better job than I do anyway.
Dieseltech56
Member
I've been reloading for about 10 years but I just started bullet casting about 6 months ago.
For reloading it's dumping the powder and weighing it. I use a powder measure for pistol but rifle I still trickle up. This seems to take me forever and since I added an electronic scale to the mix now I'm even more picky.
For bullet casting it is the lube process. I have thousands of bullets that are cast, sized and gas checked but not lubed. I am dip lubing right now because I don't have room on the bench for a lube sizer. So I dip lube, run them back though the sizer, then scrape the extra lube off the base of each individual bullet. This takes a ton of time. I should switch off to powder coating honestly
For reloading it's dumping the powder and weighing it. I use a powder measure for pistol but rifle I still trickle up. This seems to take me forever and since I added an electronic scale to the mix now I'm even more picky.
For bullet casting it is the lube process. I have thousands of bullets that are cast, sized and gas checked but not lubed. I am dip lubing right now because I don't have room on the bench for a lube sizer. So I dip lube, run them back though the sizer, then scrape the extra lube off the base of each individual bullet. This takes a ton of time. I should switch off to powder coating honestly
gman51
Member
Removing the old primers using a hand tool. Sometimes it is hard to find the hole.
DumpStick
US Veteran
Case trimming is the worst, followed closely by case trimming.
And, if that wasn't clear, I despise trimming cases. After 100 or so, I'm ready to forcefully stick a screwdriver in my ear, just to relieve the tedium.
And, if that wasn't clear, I despise trimming cases. After 100 or so, I'm ready to forcefully stick a screwdriver in my ear, just to relieve the tedium.
I suspect the majority of folks that find some aspect of reloading to be a "chore" or a "necessary evil" are to be found among those who load on progressive machines, and got into reloading simply to churn out basketfuls of ammunition in the shortest time possible. I still load on an old Lyman Spar-T and a couple of other single-stage presses, and even break out the old Lyman 310 sets and even older Ideal No.3, No.4, and No.10 tools, even an old Winchester loading tool. I cast mostly from single-cavity moulds, and I size and lube with a Lyman No.45 that is likely pushing 70 years old now. Reloading, to me, has never been about the production of hundreds upon hundreds of rounds in one sitting, but more about taking my time, getting to know each component on a personal level, and being intimately familiar with each and every cartridge I load.
I can honestly say, there is not a single operation that I find onerous or unpleasant. When I am at my bench, I am in my own little world and thoroughly enjoy every minute of it.
I can honestly say, there is not a single operation that I find onerous or unpleasant. When I am at my bench, I am in my own little world and thoroughly enjoy every minute of it.
Spokes
Member
Trimming 223/556X45 cases to load and shoot in my AR15...
4barrel
Member
Case/media separation. I really need to get one of those doohickeys that shakes it all out.
A close second is my current Lee FCD in .45 ACP -- it drags all hell on any case that isn't a Remington - Peters (RP) headstamp. Well, it doesn't drag that badly, but the little jarring bumps are annoying and gradually wear on my shoulder. My other 3 FCDs are perfectly smooth, which is weird.
So I think I might be helping myself to a new .45 taper crimp die (no FCD). Or a Redding or RCBS. Or since my birthday is advancing on me, maybe a Hornady Custom Grade New Dimension taper crimp die. Or the whole damn set.
A close second is my current Lee FCD in .45 ACP -- it drags all hell on any case that isn't a Remington - Peters (RP) headstamp. Well, it doesn't drag that badly, but the little jarring bumps are annoying and gradually wear on my shoulder. My other 3 FCDs are perfectly smooth, which is weird.
So I think I might be helping myself to a new .45 taper crimp die (no FCD). Or a Redding or RCBS. Or since my birthday is advancing on me, maybe a Hornady Custom Grade New Dimension taper crimp die. Or the whole damn set.
LoboGunLeather
US Veteran
46 years reloading and 45 years casting bullets. I have to say that ammo production is probably the most enjoyable part of the whole shooting thing for me. Learned a lot about metallurgy, ballistics, and other aspects of firearms usage than I could possibly have done any other way. Still spend an evening now and then re-reading older manuals and reviewing years of loading notes.
Like many others I have gone over to commercially cast bullets for most handgun calibers and uses. Most of my casting now is for obsolete calibers and antique firearms for which handloading is the only feasible option. I still enjoy it all.
Like many others I have gone over to commercially cast bullets for most handgun calibers and uses. Most of my casting now is for obsolete calibers and antique firearms for which handloading is the only feasible option. I still enjoy it all.
Mining bullets from the berm was bad, but melting the bullets down to pour ingots has got to be the worst. My little mind enjoys sizing and lubing bullets -- one of the simple joys in life.
Removing stuck cases from bottle neck sizing dies is the worst thing I really hate. The rest of the reloading steps aren't too bad. I have a small primer and large primer press to reduce change-over misery.
Removing stuck cases from bottle neck sizing dies is the worst thing I really hate. The rest of the reloading steps aren't too bad. I have a small primer and large primer press to reduce change-over misery.
Benchrest1
Member
This one is easy for me. Picking up the 200 or more pieces of brass after shooting my 1911.
hdwhit
Member
Removing the crimp from military or foreign-military-sold-as-civilian brass.
Everything else is actually relaxing for me.
Everything else is actually relaxing for me.
hdwhit
Member
The answer is simple, don't get cases stuck in the dies.
RCBS resizing lubricant and pad, Lee "toothpaste tube" lubricant, Imperial sizing wax or Hornady Unique. Never stuck a case in 40+ years of reloading although I did once get the neck inadequately lubricated using the Lee lubricant and tore the neck off a case.
Besides, the part about Hornady Unique I really like is that since it is mostly beef tallow, I could always use it in an emergency to fry a potato knowing would come out tasting like McDonald's french fries used to taste back in the 1970's.
Running my cast bullets through the sizing die. Just brain numbing.
Stu
Stu
