Cost to reload .45 ACP....

[cracker57]

Many of us stocked up years ago, prices posted are what we paid so thats Our Costs.

so what will it cost when those old supplies are all gone, or if you were starting from scratch.
my cost for a gun years ago was cheaper than today, so if someone asked you what does a M&P 40 compact cost would you tell them a price from 10 yrs ago or what they cost TODAY?
went to a car show yesterday, it was interesting to see 1966 GTOs cost 3,000 bucks new for a rag top in 1966, today a 66 would cost over 10x that.
Maybe the OP should have asked what does it cost to reload a 45 today if I need to buy everything TODAY?
How about I buy your rounds for what it cost at your yesterday prices, what would it cost you to replace them?

 

[Empe]

OP asks how much it cost and everyone tells him how much it used to cost.
how much is gas where you live?
it used to be about 2.99 a gallon of course its more now.
if you want to know how much it cost, one need to look up how much are the bullets one wants to use TODAY. how much are primers TODAY, which powder do you want to use and how much does it cost TODAY, brass cost how much TODAY, add shipping,hasmat add them all up and bingo you have your answer.
its just like the old story problems in math class, Jack wants to reload if primers cost x amount and powder is x amount and brass cost x amount with primers costing x amout how much will it cost jack to reload a round.

Yes....thank you . I am interested in what it costs at todays prices NOT prices from several years ago .
Doing some quick math and using my own brass it appears like I should be able to reload .45 ACP for about .25 cents per round ,I just wanted to find out from those who are actually reloading.

 

[CH4]

I’ve never done the math, because a huge factor in the equation is the entertainment value, which includes the endless quest for components. Those things are a little more difficult to quantify.

 

[stansdds]

I find most of us don't save money by reloading, we just get to pull the trigger a whole lot more than those that don't.

That has certainly been my experience!

I never counted the cost of the press, dies, powder scale, etc. as those were pretty much a once in a lifetime expenditure. Brass in 45 ACP lasts a long time due to it being a low pressure cartridge. Primers and powder are pricey these days. As for bullets, the cheapest would be cast lead, followed by powder coated lead, then plated, and jacketed bullets are the most expensive. Unless the barrel has some issues, cast lead usually works great and I have not experienced excessive lead build up across several M1911's.

 

[tops]

Recheck that Academy ad, it’s for 50 rounds which is 60 cents per round.

I did and the picture states qty:100 and the price $29.99 states the cost $0.30 each. Larry

 

[LoboGunLeather]

OP asks how much it cost and everyone tells him how much it used to cost.
how much is gas where you live?
it used to be about 2.99 a gallon of course its more now.
if you want to know how much it cost, one need to look up how much are the bullets one wants to use TODAY. how much are primers TODAY, which powder do you want to use and how much does it cost TODAY, brass cost how much TODAY, add shipping,hasmat add them all up and bingo you have your answer.
its just like the old story problems in math class, Jack wants to reload if primers cost x amount and powder is x amount and brass cost x amount with primers costing x amout how much will it cost jack to reload a round.

As I mentioned earlier, I made a point of stocking up after the last cycle of shortages. Stop by the sporting goods stores once in a while, pick up a thousand primers and/or a pound of powder when they were available at reasonable costs.

Consequently, I went into the current panic times with about 20,000 primers and 25 lbs. of powder. I also have about 300 lbs. of old wheel weights that I salvaged 30 years ago.

So, in my earlier post I was stating what it costs me TODAY, not what it will cost someone who chose to wait until supplies were minimal and prices were outrageous.

The days of GI surplus powders at $2 or $3 per pound and primers at $6.95 per thousand were about 50 years ago. We'll have to wait and see what the future brings.

 

[LostintheOzone]

I have primers that cost 0.04, powder that cost $20/lb and zero FMJ bullets that were about 0.14/ea. so that works out to be about 0.19/rd. I have no idea what it would cost today if I had to buy components. Probably more, a lot more. I'll guess about 0.25/rd. so you're in the ballpark.

Rule of thumb #1. It will take an average pistol shooter (200 rds/mo) a year to start realizing any financial advantage after you buy the cheap gear. If you shoot less than 200 rds/mo you'll be doing it because you just like to pull levers.

Rule of thumb #2. Commercial pistol ammo generally costs 2x more than reloaded ammo. Rifle ammo is different.

 

[venomballistics]

there's no honest answer.
are we loading out of a stockpile accumulated in the late 1900's when powder was $15 a pound and primers practically came as cereal box prizes?.
New brass, once fired, or range brass?
Cast or jacketed?

 

[AJ]

I cast my own slugs with scrap lead that I have accumulated or was given over the years at virtually no cost.

My cases came mostly when we had our own ranges in the Corps. Just took what I wanted/needed. Have about 100 pounds of cases at no cost.

Powder was bought at $25.00 a pound. Using Bullseye at 3.5 grains per shot it works out to $0.0105 per shot.

A friend and I bought 80K of primers from an Estate Sale before the prices went nuts. We paid $10.00 per thousand (or $0.01 a primer).

Got lucky and accumulated what I have before the insanity.

 

[jag22]

tops, my bad. I was looking at loaded ammo, not bullets. I really shouldn't be allowed to post after sunset.
The reality is cost will go up and down over time. If it helps to vent online, great, but it is just a hobby for most of us so if you can't afford it wait for better times. It's been rough for about two and a half years now, yes it's getting better but not where we would like it to be. Any guess about where it will settle is just that. a guess.

 

[BE Mike]

With todays sky high primer prices and if you use commercial coated bullets, you still should be able to load for around 24 cents per round. Full metal jacketed bullets are much more costly and are unnecessary for almost all of my shooting. Cast bullets cost less than coated, but are zvery smokey and I don't like them for indoor ranges for that reason.

 

[Skeet 028]

Brass was 2 cents..primers are about 8 cents if you hunt for them...Powder at 30 a pound(7000divided by 3.5=2000)..or 1.5 cents...bullets approx 10 cents...or approx 21.5 cents per rd. or 13 dollars a box. Still not bad prices at the end of things and the cases will easily last 10 loads. Happily I have beaucoup powders I paid as little as free for...and as much as 10 dollars lb while my cast bullets cost as little as 1/2 a cent each. I still have 8000 Alcan LPPs that cost 5 dollars per 1000. But while we're at it let's add a penny a round for the cost of purchasing the tooling... So I figure my max cost per box at present prices as about 13.50 a box. Old stock components would add up to about 2-2.50 a box...but the rub is you can't replace components at the old prices

 

[Cdog]

I have no idea. Years ago I went into handloading to feed two oddball calibers in my area. The was no interwebs to chase down ammo.

I bought a used Rockchucker with a few accessories.(The best of which was pile of old manuals)

I had a Midsouth Shooters Supply catalog and a rotary phone. I was soon turning out .257 Roberts and .41 Rem Mag ammo that was tailored to my wants, when I wanted it.

.38 Special is likely the only handgun caliber I've load more of than .45 ACP.

Will you save money? I don't know. Can you save money vs factory loads? A definite yes. The best part of handloading is loading your load. It's a load that you shoot well.

I strive for one hole groups. No I don't get them nearly as often as I did at an earlier time in my life, but I love trying.

I can say that when I shot on an almost daily basis I likely saved a pile of money. I took all that saved money and bought more stuff though.

Many of us are scroungers. We are always on the lookout for something we can use. I love to trade stuff too. I've trade old scopes, holsters, etc for loading supplies.

My experience, the more I shoot the more I save vs factory. By the time I factor in all the hardware that I've bought over the years, my savings have dwindled.

I can't put a price on the satisfaction and sense of accomplishment generated by putting together a .308 Winchester load that will consistently put 5 rounds through one ragged hole at 100 yards. Seeing your wife burn through 300 rounds of .38 Special. To watch your 11 year old granddaughter take her first buck with a 2650 fps .243 Win load PaPa put together for her.

Sorry for the drifting.

At today's prices, round figures come in at about .$38 each for jacketed. I'm using $25/100 projectiles. $100/K primers. $.03 for 5.gr each at .$40/lb powders.

Sounds terrible.

Have you grocery shopped lately $$$

 

[Racer X]

Once you obtain the brass it's good for at least 10 times fired. Starline current cost is $203.50 per thousand, or .02 cents a round. Powder cost is so low it's not worth figuring. So for brass and bullets figure 2 cents. At 45 ACP velocities lead is good, very good. Lots of online sellers that have been around for years selling great bullets, figure $110 per thousand shipped. If you cast your own the price drops down to a couple of cents. But figure you don't want to cast then figure 11 cents a round. Now up to 11 or 12 cents a round. Now the elephant in the room. can you find primers? Absolute worse case figure $130 per thousand or 13 cents each. Total is 25 cents a round or $12.50 a box of 50. Price has gone up drastically (like everything else) in 3 years but can you find a box of quality 45 acp for $12.50? Plus there is the satisfaction of making your own plus it's a fun hobby. Tooling is a one time cost but if you ever decide to quit you can sell and probably not even take a loss.

Starline would be 20.35 cents a casing, you are off by a factor of 100 (aka 2 digits)

 

[Greyman50]

But what are you going to replace it with? I think primers have bottomed out.

Buying today's primers, powder and lead, I'm at .17/round. Buying a FMJ bullet adds .11. So still a great bargain, even with current component costs.

Well, you have no idea how much components I have on hand as many of us have. I posted I just bought 1000 sm. mag pistol primers for $89.99 thats going in the back of the stash. Maybe in 3-4 years if I’m still shooting and reloading primer cost will be what I paid. Doubt I’ll ever run out of lead for casting, son and grandson know all about it.
Having parents that lived through the great depression we were taught to “ stock up”. By chance you are much younger than us “ old guys” suggest you start stashing components too, won’t hurt.

 

[gwpercle]

In the long run you don't save much money ... you just shoot more .

" Look at all the money I'm saving us ! " is the lie we tell our wives so they let us buy more reloading stuff ... it is a cool hobby !
Gary

 

[kamloops67]

Everyone that is boasting of their stash and saying it cost you a couple Pennies a shot , good for you but you aren’t really answering OP’s question
I’m sure he’d rather know what it costs for someone to load at todays prices
I can’t give you a precise answer but I just did a batch of 44 mag for $0.44/round after taxes
So 45 auto using a little less powder and slightly less expensive bullets would be a few cents less about $0.41
I saw a 50 rnd box of federal 240 gr 44 mag priced at $85 ! And a box of 45 auto for $55
I couldn’t shoot if I didn’t reload
Also , I am Canadian so this might not apply to you at all, except that you guys used to have everything cheaper than we could get them
Seems pretty equal these days , price wise

 

[Skeet 028]

Everyone that is boasting of their stash and saying it cost you a couple Pennies a shot , good for you but you aren’t really answering OP’s question
I’m sure he’d rather know what it costs for someone to load at todays prices
I can’t give you a precise answer but I just did a batch of 44 mag for $0.44/round after taxes
So 45 auto using a little less powder and slightly less expensive bullets would be a few cents less about $0.41
I saw a 50 rnd box of federal 240 gr 44 mag priced at $85 ! And a box of 45 auto for $55
I couldn’t shoot if I didn’t reload
Also , I am Canadian so this might not apply to you at all, except that you guys used to have everything cheaper than we could get them
Seems pretty equal these days , price wise

Still a good saving over retail. Now to the question...are reloading supplies in good stock in Canada??

 

[kamloops67]

Still a good saving over retail. Now to the question...are reloading supplies in good stock in Canada??

Not really , I’ve been finding pistol powder but primers are scarce and projectiles are sparse on the shelf
My lgs is limiting each sale to 500 primers unless you want to buy magnum primers , he has lots of those so I bought a brick
I have a pretty good stash but buy supplies when I find them , try to maintain the stock
I’ve not been able to find any 44 special brass in stores or online either , aside from a couple small private deals

 

[4barrel]

Lead is $1.50 per pound==Primers off brand=$120 per 1000=Powder=$35-$70 per pound=45 ACP brass will last maybe 50 reloads at midrange loads. Good gun to shoot it $2500 and you got to have more than one. Personally I am reloading 45acp target loads for about $8.00 per 100 with everything paid for because I saw this coming years ago. I only have about $70.000 invested