Which reloading manual should I buy?

[Rule3]

Which manual should I buy?

 

[Rule3]

Which manual should I buy?

 

[Joni_Lynn]

My suggestion is have as many as you can find that have useful data and info.
I use the Hornady & Sierra a good bit as well as AA and a few others.

 

[Paul5388]

OCD,

I have the new Lyman 49th Edition and I like it better than any of the newer manuals, including Speer. It actually has more usable information that most of the others, since it has cast bullet data (not swaged) for bullets pretty commonly bought and loaded.

 

[johngalt]

I have a Lee 2nd, Lyman 43rd, Speer #6, Speer #8, Sierra 1st, Speer #14, Hornady 7th. The Hornady is my favorite. The only negative I have is the ballistic tables are online instead of being in the manual.

One nice thing about the Hornady manual is it has service rifle data for AR-15 and M1 Garand. The other manuals just have .223 and .30-06 data, and some of the .30-06 data is too hot for an M1.

 

[pownal55]

the more, the better. remember each manual likes to promote their own bullets.

 

[Bruce51]

Buy every manual you can afford. New ones, old ones you can never have too much information. Speer is usually my first go to manual. If you want a true reloads manual with much insight from an old hand then you need Ken Waters Pet Loads. Every manual,factory load data sheet or manufactures website data is going to help you become a better reloader. Bruce

 

[Alk8944]

Originally posted by Bruce Lee M:
Buy every manual you can afford. New ones, old ones you can never have too much information. Speer is usually my first go to manual. If you want a true reloads manual with much insight from an old hand then you need Ken Waters Pet Loads. Every manual,factory load data sheet or manufactures website data is going to help you become a better reloader. Bruce

Absolutely the correct answer.

 

[buck460XVR]

Originally posted by Alk8944:

Originally posted by Bruce Lee M:
Buy every manual you can afford. New ones, old ones you can never have too much information. Speer is usually my first go to manual. If you want a true reloads manual with much insight from an old hand then you need Ken Waters Pet Loads. Every manual,factory load data sheet or manufactures website data is going to help you become a better reloader. Bruce

Absolutely the correct answer.

I agree.

I have all three of the manuals listed, plus pages and pages of loads I've printed from powder manufacturers websites and reloading forums. When you see a pattern or a lot of repetition, you know it's a good place to start. Maybe I'm anal, but I like to stick to loads that can be verified in at least three places and then go from there.

 

[n4zov]

Sierra followed by Hornady.

 

[primersp]

i have a lyman for cast bullet ,i like hornady
because theirs tests with rifles and hanguns
show only speed and max speed what we are abble to compare with chrono.
is somebody use a computer program for loading?
i have loadtech but i think than out of business now.
regards

 

[dennis40x]

I’d start with one manual at the beginning. As your learning curve progresses then branch out. The current Lyman 49th edition manual published in 2008 is a good staring point. Lyman provides information on cast and jacketed bullets. Their tables in relationship to jacked bullets denote various manufactures as opposed to one brand name.

 

[Rule3]

Hornady is out in front 2 to 1 at this point. Does their manual list other bullets besides their own brand?

 

[Joni_Lynn]

No, Hornady, Sierra, Nosler and most of the ones from bullet manufacturers will only list their own product.

 

[Paul5388]

The use of different brands of bullets plus the extensive cast bullet data is part of what makes the Lyman manual very attractive.

Out of Speer, Lee, Sierra, Hornady and Lyman manuals, the three Hornadys I have are the ones I'm least likely to use.

 

[Rule3]

Think I will try the Lyman