I want to get started in reloading. What to get?

[Scott Notaeh]

Just how cheap are you really?

Thanks to everyone for the book recommendations. Just got back from the library and I picked up:
Metallic Cartridge Reloading 3rd edition
The ABCs of reloading 9th edition
The Complete Reloading Guide
Lyman Reloading Handbook 46th edition

These should keep me busy for a bit.

[Pat Cannon]

Just how cheap are you really?

Thanks to everyone for the book recommendations. Just got back from the library and I picked up:
Metallic Cartridge Reloading 3rd edition
The ABCs of reloading 9th edition
The Complete Reloading Guide
Lyman Reloading Handbook 46th edition

The public library is a great achievement of civilization, for sure.

[Scott Notaeh]

Due to your relatively low volume of ammo that you want to reload (much like me...) you would be well served with a Lyman 6 station turret press. I have said it before and I will say it again - raw rookies getting a Dillon is asking for trouble, because you have not learned the basics of reloading before you start cranking out 100's of rounds per hour.

For 9mm make sure to get a carbide resize die (Lee is cheapest) because lubing cases is a PITA. For 5.56 amd 7.62 you have no choice , and will have to lube cases even if you have carbide dies. Get a Lee Perfect Powder measure, and a Lee Autoprime system (Both cheap). You will need a good beam balance (Like a Redding 505), and ABOVE ALL, avoid cheap electronic balaces like a bad case of the clap!!! There's nothing under $200 that works accurately, and if it's a powder scale instead of a jewler's scale, it's crap.

You will need a digital caliper ($25) and a blue or green plastic RCBS bullet puller, and neither of these are options!! Buy them or don't get into reloading at all!!!

You will also need a case mouth reamer, and getting a Lee Factory crimp die for the 9mm is almost a must.

Last but not least, get yourself at least ONE (and better two) reloading manuals, preferably Speer #14 and Hornady #8. Restrain yourself from setting up your stuff unitl you have read the WHOLE, ENTIRE, EVERY LAST EFFEN PAGE of the reloading instructions in the manual!!! This is where most new reloaders screw up, and a visit to the ER is about the same as a $3k Wilson Combat Nighthawk custom 1911. It's a real downer when you could have had a gun like that, and instead have to spend it on medical bills and wind up looking like me!! Reloading is no joke, and with .223 and 7.62x51 you are making up stuff that will generate 55,000 PSI of pressure, and if that genie gets out of the bottle and comes back at you, you will be in deep doo-doo.

Go see John-Boy (his name is actually John Walton, for real!), buy the manuals, and NOTHING ELSE, go home and read them, anf then come back and start buying stuff.

Thanks! While I work at going through these library books, I will order the Speer #14 and Hornady #8 manuals and read those next. After that I will do some shopping.

[Seismic Sam]

Dayum!! A rookie who's going to do it right!! One other suggestion, which you can do at your leisure, but it's still worthwhile. Go through both manuals and read the text description of every cartridge in the manual. While you may never reload the 7mm Remington Magnum or the 30-40 Krag or all the rest of the rounds, the text writeups of the cartridge provide a very informative background of how the cartridges that are around today were developed, and why they were developed based on older designs. It's secondary information, but little bits and pieces of it will help you in reloading other calibers in the future. Don't waste your time reading the actual load data for rounds you will never shoot. As an example, you will find if you read enough that BL-(C)2 was THE powder that was originally developed for the T-65 cartridge, later to be called the 7.62x51 or .308 Winchester.

Also note that with those two manuals, you will be told what the most accurate powder may be, as well as the most accurate charge weight. This is incredibly valuable, because buying 3 or four powders to try out is an incredibly expensive way of developing a load, by the time you do ranges of all four powders and have to get bullets and primers for all those loads, you will have spent a lot of money.

[Scott Notaeh]

I started a list of the suggested items for my needs. I have a couple calipers that will work.


LY7040781 T-MAG II TURRET RELOADING PRESS $154.95
LEE90963 LEE 4 DIE SET 9MM CARBIDE $34.99
PC390548 SHELL HOLDER #8 $ 3.49
LEE90783 LEE REPLACEMENT DECAPPER $ 1.99
RB02000 RED MOD-2 MASTER SCALE $71.49
LEE90058 LEE PERFECT POWDER MEASURE $19.49
LEE90230 LEE AUTO PRIME $15.99
LEE90023 LEE SHELL HOLDER #19 AP $ 1.99
LY7777789 VLD CHAMFER/ REAMER $ 9.87
RB07600 IMPERIAL SIZEING DIE WAX CAN 2OZ $ 6.99
RC09415 POWR' PULL BULLET PULLER $13.99
Totals: 28.2 Lbs. $337.22

[DeanC]

LY7040781 T-MAG II TURRET RELOADING PRESS

Sam and I approve!

[engnerdan]

A #19 shell holder should come with the Lee set (assuming it is the same one I bought last weekend). I think all Lee dies sets have shell holders with them.

-Dan

[DeanC]

A #19 shell holder should come with the Lee set (assuming it is the same one I bought last weekend). I think all Lee dies sets have shell holders with them.

-Dan

Yeah, they include it.

Not sure that you'll need the spare decapping pins right away either. Wait until you break one then you have an excuse to go visit "the oracle".

[DeanC]

I like your scale. The Lyman PRO 505 is pretty much the same thing, but $20 less.

Never used that powder measure, but have heard a number of complaints.

[jgalt]

Never used that powder measure, but have heard a number of complaints.

Any recommendations?

[JJ]

You mentioned loading 5.56/223. If you are going to be loading any once fired 5.56 you will need to invest in a primer pocket swaging tool. RCBS makes one http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?p ... ber=447022

But from the guys that I know that have used one, the Dillon is supposed to be head and shoulders above the RCBS. http://www.dillonprecision.com/content/ ... _Swage_600

[DeanC]

Never used that powder measure, but have heard a number of complaints.

Any recommendations?

I have only used 2 different ones so I don't have very deep knowledge or strong opinions: The Lyman 55 and the CH Pushbutton.

The CH wasn't mine, but my guru who owned need a big ole box full of bushings to get it to throw the right charge. A pain for sure, but real consistent once you got it dialed in.

My Lyman is very consistent, but takes a little fussing with the dials to get it going. I don't think that is out of the ordinary.

What I do know is it's real nice when you can get your press set up to bell the case mouth and throw a powder charge in the same operation. John sold me the parts to make my Lyman 55 do that. It's also easily convertible back to regular mode for rifle cases.

[Scott Notaeh]

A #19 shell holder should come with the Lee set (assuming it is the same one I bought last weekend). I think all Lee dies sets have shell holders with them.

-Dan

You are right and I did not notice that. Might take that off. The #8 that I listed is actually a Hornady one cause I read some reviews that said the Lee one is a bit loose cause it can be used for more cartridges. Don't know if I should really worry.

The #19 is a Lee one for the hand primer press. I think I need this one.

[LarryFlew]

-Dan[/quote]


The #19 is a Lee one for the hand primer press. I think I need this one.[/quote]

For some reason when lee made the primer they didn't use their regular #19 shell holder in the design so yes you do need the one specific to the auto prime.

[Pat Cannon]

I've been loading .38 & .357 for three years and I haven't broken a decapping pin; on the Lee die if you overload it, it pushes up into the die instead of breaking.

I also have not used the chamfer/reamer. For 9mm I'm pretty sure you won't either.

Same with sizing wax.