by bucktail on Thu May 06, 2010 9:00 pm
I'd get a balance style scale as well, and at some point, you'll likely need a bullet puller, but you can put that off until you need it. I don't like lee dies either; I have mostly RCBS, but am giving Redding a try as well. From the practical standpoint, you seem to be pretty much on track, aside from the hobby, and ammo tailoring that others have already pointed out. If I was only doing it for 9mm, I probably wouldn't have gotten into reloading. Like you say, it takes a long time to pay yourself back, and unless you want to make something like light recoiling rounds, or something else that you can't easily buy off the shelf. Making ammo that is tailored to your gun isn't that important here, because a handgun has limits on it's accuracy, and even if it didn't, it has a limited range, and most people can't shoot handguns well enough to see the advantage of sub MOA handgun ammo/gun combination.
For rifles, the case for reloading becomes more compelling. I haven't done the math, and I'm not about to, but I think that the pay back period is a lot shorter here, especially for premium hunting ammo. It isn't uncommon to see it marked $60 for a box of 20. If you want run a Weatherby head stamp, reloading is almost mandatory. With a little coaching and a steady rest, most people are capable of shooting sub moa with scoped rifles without too much practice, so tailoring ammunition to the rifle can be taken advantage of by most all shooters. Once your set up for rifle, you just need some dies, powder, and bullets, and your good to go for handgun.
