The best "deal" I've ever gotten

[tntnixon]

A few days ago, I was talking to my sister-in-law's boyfriend about wanting to learn how to re-load. He told me he had never done it but had thought about doing it years ago.

Well, we all go to dinner tonight and he told me he had something for me out in the car. After dinner, we go to the car and he has a full RCBS Rock Chucker Kit out there and told me I could have it. Seems, he got it about 30 years ago and never even took it out of the box and it is in perfect condition. I tell you, Joe is a hell of a guy.

So now I have a few questions: 1)What manual should I get? 2)What brand dies should I use? 3)What should I do to give Joe a big ol' thank you (I know he has a Ruger Sp101 in .327 Federal mag but I don't know if this is re-loadable for him)?

Any input would be appreciated.

[Guest 70below]

a case of his favorite beer may go a long way until you get your skills up.

I recommend you pick up the reloading guide that is made by the company that carries the most components that you plan to use (ie. Hodgdon if you use a lot of their powders or Speer if you use a lot of their projectiles). I've also heard that "The ABS's of Reloading" is a good reference for new and experienced reloaders. I use Lee Dies because they're inexpensive and work as good as anything that I've tried. Some people swear by RCBS or others, I've not been sold on it. Get Carbide dies though, its just so much easier than lubing all your cases.

[glockster157]

I would get a Lyman Manual as it is more universal and also covers hard cast bullets as well. It is larger and has clear instructions also. My second choice would be Lee's. As to dies, I like RCBS but Lee is a great value and I cannot argue against them. I use a lot of them myself by I also have RCBS in most calibers. I am not a drinker so I don't recommend alcohol, but buying a set of 327 federal dies and keeping him in ammo for a while might be nice. Not sure what you meant by "not reloadable" but the 327 is quite loadable.

[Raoul]

a case of his favorite beer may go a long way until you get your skills up.

I recommend you pick up the reloading guide that is made by the company that carries the most components that you plan to use (ie. Hodgdon if you use a lot of their powders or Speer if you use a lot of their projectiles). I've also heard that "The ABS's of Reloading" is a good reference for new and experienced reloaders. I use Lee Dies because they're inexpensive and work as good as anything that I've tried. Some people swear by RCBS or others, I've not been sold on it. Get Carbide dies though, its just so much easier than lubing all your cases.

+1 on the carbide dies.

[tntnixon]

Not sure what you meant by "not reloadable" but the 327 is quite loadable.

What I meant is that I haven't seen any dies, projectiles, or brass online for this caliber. I just wasn't sure if the supplies existed.

[gregintenn]

Carbide sizing die is a must for straightwalled cases. Bottleneck cases, like high powered rifle cases, need to be lubed, so steel sizing dies are fine for them. Lee dies are the cheapest, and I like them better than RCBS dies for two reasons; they come with a shellholder, and you don't need an allen wrench to loosen a set screw to adjust them. There are many good reloading manuals out there. The more you have, the better. There are 327 dies available. they should aldo reload 32 short, long, and H&R Magnum cases if I'm not mistaken.

[xd shooter]

+1 on the Lyman manual. I like the info in it. Also I think most if not all powder manufacturers have a PDF on their websites, or can order a manual from them.

Dies I like Lee for the the pistol rounds, but I like RCBS for the bottlenecks.

If you ever have a stuck case, the RCBS only has a sizing ball & the Lee sizer is much longer (Sizer meaning the part that goes through the mouth of the case).

The shorter sizer gives you more room to work.

What all calibers are you wanting to load??

Also Glockster157 gives good reloading info.

Not saying the others don't but I like his advice.

[USMCJG]

I have Lyman, Hornady, Sierra, and Nosler reloading manuals and think the Lyman manual is the best for people starting out. It has a wide range of different bullets from various manufacturers, and is a little more instructional than the others.

As for dies, I have several different brands and all work well. For value, it's hard to beat the Lees or the Hornadys. The price is right on the Lees and they come with a shellholder. Hornady gives you a mail in coupon for 100 free bullets if you buy a set of their New Dimension dies, you have to pay shipping though(about $7 I think). With the free bullet offer, the Hornady dies end up being a really good deal. I'm not a big fan of RCBS now that they have started making the Rockchucker in China, and the whole military surplus fiasco from their parent company ATK. They still make good reloading products though.

[tntnixon]

What all calibers are you wanting to load??

My current caliber lineup is 30-06, .357 Mag., .38 Sp., .40 S&W, .223(5.56), and 7.62x39 (I don't see much reason to reload 7.62 because I have a ton and I can't see a reason to pay more to re-load than I can buy the cheap mil. surplus stuff for, but I'm willing to be enlightened).

[towerclimber37]

Enlightenment: Believe it or not, once you get the dies, the cost of making the rounds MORE than makes it worth the reloading.

case in point, the 30-06 rounds that I reload? I reload them for about .48 a round.

On the open market they would sell for about 1.20

My .308? I wait for sales and pick up bullets. I can make them for about .35 a round.

but...you can figure up how much it'll save you, if you use this : http://www.handloads.com/calc/loadingCosts.asp

[tntnixon]

Well I got some dies, Lee .40 Carbide set and the Lyman .38/.357 carbide set (Reloader's Bench didn't have a Lee set that did both .38 sp and .357 mag). The guys at Reloaders bench were awesome!!!

After starting to read more about .40 S&W, I'm getting a little nervous. This is the round I shoot the most and I mostly shoot it from my Glock 27 (I also have a M&P .40). This whole "unsupported chamber" thing is making me more than a little paranoid.

I guess my question is should I

a) abandon the idea of re-loading .40

segregate the loads I fire through my M&P from my Glock

c) say "the hell with it" and just keep my loads at the low end

d)buy an aftermarket barrel for my Glock or

e)trade my Glock for something that has a lower rate of KB's (not likely to happen since this is my favorite carry weapon)

[McAllyn]

You won't have any problems loading and reloading your 40's with the factory configured Glock. The only thing I've ever run into would be some belling at the bottom of the case that a resizing die can't get to. This only happens when I put "Glocked" brass in my Brazo that has a super tight chamber. Redding makes a die called the GRx push through resizing die to correct this issue. (Midway carries it.)

You'll never notice this phenomenon shooting reloads from your Glock, and I very much doubt you'll ever see it effect your M&P either. It's typically seen as an issue on custom built chambers that are built to such close tolerances that anything less than perfect is unacceptable.

Mac

EDIT: Low end or high end shouldn't matter. KB's are typically only common from high-end+++ loads that usually exceed SAAMI spec. Use jacketed bullets, load up according to a manual, and shoot till the barrel wears out. Get a new barrel. Repeat.

Edited May 28, 2010 by McAllyn
Clarify KB

[glockster157]

Something I have been doing is taking the crimping stem and sleeve out of my Lee Carbide factory sizing die and pushing the 40SW cases completely thru the die with stem from a Lee bullet sizer kit. Sounds complicated but it is really easy. As a matter of interest, I got the idea from Lee as they are promoting a kit that does this. Found a PDF on the kit, it is hard to find on there website.

http://www.leeprecision.com/cgi-data/instruct/1855.pdf

Edited May 28, 2010 by glockster157

[DavidM]

I'll admit that I skimmed across all these replies, so if I am repeating, look over me. For reloading manulas and dies, check Ebay. I bought a manual the other day for pennies on the dollar. You just have to be careful to no buy an older manual, as the newer calibers and newer powders wont be in there. I load a lot with IMR powders as well as the old Hercules, so I was covered. I have also found some decent buys on dies there, too. Look around online before jumping onto Ebay thinking it is always cheapest. I have seen PLENTY of stuff there that is much higher than new prices. My two cents.

[Guest Ae-35]

You're re-loading for practice , right? Not SD, never!! The Glock shoots factory loads without problems right? So the unsupported chamber should be a non-issue . One, get a chrony!!! Reloading without one, it's like driving a car without a speedometer. You don't really know what your loads are. Two, low to med. vel. loads will be great for practice, three, to get the most value out of reloading you got to use lead bullets, so you need a replacement barrel for the Glock anyway.I assume you're not going to cast your own bullets yet. Make sure you buy Hard cast bullets, you will still have to address "leading", if you stay on the low to med. vel. side leading will be less of an issue. Since both guns head-space on the case mouth, and every barrel is slightly different, you will have to find a compromise case length and crimp . Which, crimp pressure will have to be addressed, as you go up in vel. it will be more of a factor, to prevent " set-back" , which as you know can effect feeding and will greatly effect pressure. Lots of things to play with, that's one of the many joys of " rolling your own". Good Luck.

[Guest gts]

a case of his favorite beer may go a long way until you get your skills up.

+1