Newbie

[Guest yogi01]

I am reloading retarded but I am interested in getting started and I am looking for someone in the Jackson TN area that may be available to help out a beginner. I live at Parkerscrossroads but I can travel, so if you are close to me and are willing to share some knowledge please let me know.

Anyone else that is interested in giving some tips or help also feel free to do so. I have just started looking at reloading stuff and I am not sure where to start. I am going to buy a reloading book tomorrow as suggested in the pinned topics. Thanks in advance.

[Guest TnValleyBulletman]

I am in Decatur county and I would be glad to help you anyway I can. I'll PM you my cell number.

[Rightwinger]

Welcome Yogi! Post up the calibers your going to want to load for and the rest will follow.

[Guest yogi01]

I purchased a 7 th edition Hornady reloading hand book and a RCBS Rock chucker press today. I plan to reload .45 acp .44 spl .44 mag 9 mm .38 spl .38 super 10 mm .357 mag and .223. So I am going to start reading so where is the best place to buy dies? And brass?

[Guest nj.piney]

welcome

[Rightwinger]

Midway (midwayusa.com) has good deals on brass at times. You can also find it at Starline and a ton of other online brass dealers with a simple search. We even have a member here from North Carolina who sells brass!

Dies, same place, Midway, Graff & Sons, or put up a want to buy post here on the site and see who's been saving them up.

[LngRngShtr]

Yogi,.. heres some ideas for your setup..

Above all I am a strong advocate of a Reloading Notebook or Notebooks ( caliber specific ) do not rely on your memory when you get back from the range with that "Awesome" loading... details lots of details crimp settings,OAL etc.

Scale: a good beam type scale doesn't require electricity and is dead accurate RCBS Dillon or Ohaus are good brands

Primer flip tray : Dillon Precision best tray I have ever used Aluminum and large enough to get a good swirl going..

Kinetic bullet puller : hammer looking device,.this is one of those tools thats "either or" you either have used one or you will use one

Powder measure : I use a Lyman #55 for single stage reloading nice if you can find one... RCBS Uniflow,Hornady makes one also

then theres the wonderful world of progressive presses,... I use an older Dillon RL450 with some upgrades for most of my pistol and rifle ammo,

.44Spl/.44Mag and .38Spl..357Mag can be loaded on same dies without adjustment if you make spacer washers so save some $ on dies

For Semi Auto cals. I use a separate taper crimp die after the seating die I also taper crimp my revolver ammo,some folks insist on roll crimping to prevent heads shaking out and jamming the revolvers..

When you get set up try this; load a round with a proper roll crimp and one with a taper crimp ..pull them with your new kinetic bullet puller ( see told you you would need one ) and see how many strikes it takes to pull each type..then decide which crimp for your revolver rounds..

.223 will require some added accessories a case trimmer and case lube, run an unlubed case into a resizing die and you will be unhappy

A case Tumbler,.. removes dirt and grit from range brass and powder residue from the casings leading to smoother reloading and longer case/die life polished brass is slippery use this to your advantage

FLITZ is a good way to polish insides of dies,.. a bore mop of proper size and a drill ... few seconds and boom good as new...

on a progressive press a small light to look into the powder charge station to doublecheck for proper powder charge is a good idea...

Welcome to your new addiction...

John

[Grunt67]

Good advice, John. I use a separate factory crimp die. Would recommend it

for semi auto.

I still use a single stage press, Ohaus scale, check charges from the measure

every 10 rds. or less. Takes a while longer, but feel more confident with

this setup. Been doing it old school, off & on for 40+ yrs. Never had an issue.

[glockster157]

PM sent....I am in that area a lot. I will have a little free time

[Guest yogi01]

Thanks for all the replies looks like there is alot to learn here. Does anyone know of a shop that sells reloading supplies? I will order off the net but I also like to go to a shop. Anywhere from Memphis to Nashville I travel I40 alot.

[Jonnin]

I would start with the .45 acp. Its easy to do that one, and its expensive enough to see some returns on your efforts right away.

Some of the dumb stuff I did that maybe you wont if I tell you about it:

1) the how to put the dies in the press instructions are often not easy to understand at first. My first .45, the bullet was flush to the case mouth because I followed the instructions sort of blindly, pulled the handle, and crammed it on down. Put the bullet seating die in very shallow, seat and measure, move it down, seat and measure, until the bullet is the correct depth.

2) If you forget to put a primer in, the powder goes everywhere and stuff.

3) if you forget to lube up certain cases, like the 223, it gets stuck in the die. After 3 days of trying to get it out, I just bought another die -- lesson learned.

4) if you get a piece of junk in the primer seating area, it dents your primers as they go in. This is the most scared I have been to date of the process. Keep the primer seating thingy clean!

5) never force anything. A few brass cases are berdain(spelling?) primed, which means they have 2-3 off center holes instead of one in the middle. Force it, and you will bend up your die, the die cannot punch thru the solid brass where there is no hole... there are tools for this but I just toss those cases. Forcing anything around explosives is a bad plan, and besides, soft brass/copper/lead bend up when forced. The sizing die may take some force, but you shouldnt have to stand on the press arm or use your whole body weight, a good 20-30 pounds is top end on a tough rifle resize die. More than that, something is wrong (lube? steel? primer type? big dent? etc?).

6) your bench needs to be sturdy. I got a cheap plastic work table and it flexes on the 223 loads, I am going to have to replace it with something later (I even put a board on it to stiffen it, and it still flexes some).

7) you want some cabinets/shelves to organize the stuff. I have been at it less than a year and I have boxes of brass, bullets, primers, powder kegs, dies, press stuff (large/small primer thingys, and other such parts), cleaning stuff, lube, .... it really takes up space.

8) I have a box for bad ammo to go into. Seated too deep, forgot the primer, bent up, wrong case (hehe... I loaded a couple of 9mm into 380 and mak cases, oops). Stuff happens, at least once a month I make a totally unusable round and the bullet puller isnt always the answer. I toss them in the dangerous ammo box at the range when it gets fullish.

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Lee makes a good auto powder device as well. So far I have had good luck with lee equipment (steel press, avoid the aluminum one). Their dies have some basic load data, and most powder manufacturers and bullet makers have free online manuals too. The lee auto primer or hand primer tools also flip them by shaking. The auto one mounts to the press, but I hated that setup and just pick it up, click in a primer, and put it back down. Its the one tool of theirs that could be better.

Calipers are a must have item that I didnt see listed. A strong magnet makes removal of steel cases much faster (get one out of an old hard drive? Mine can pull a steel case out of a pile from 5 or so inches away). A jeweler's loupe (ok ok I cant spell) lets you inspect cases for cracks, if you can see it but are unsure if its a crack or just a scratch take a closer look.

223 needs a case trimmer (said above). I discard any case that is not trimmed -- this way, they are all exactly the same length after trimming. I use the cheap one that you stick in a drill, good enough. There are pricy ones that have their own motor and all.

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When I start a new caliber, I weigh out cases first (clean cases!). I find 5 that are exactly the same. I do the same for the bullet (slug). Run them thru the press until they have powder in them. Re-weigh to ensure that all 5 are very, very close (consistent powder charge that matches your load data!). I then seat the bullets and verify all 5 with calipers. If they all weigh very close to the same, and seat to the same depth, I test fire these 5 rounds. If they work well in my gun, I proceed to make that load in bulk.

I am no expert so I will stop there. Just stuff I have picked up on as I am learning.

[Guest canebreaker]

The only place in Memphis with reloading supplies is Bass pro shop. Southaven, MS has Sportsman's warehouse, better prices and better stock. If you travel I-40, check out The Reloader's Bench, north side of the Mt. Juliet exit. While your there, drive south on hwy 171 to Stones river gun range. They sale once fired/ cleaned brass at a good price. They are open, fri and sat. 10 am to 6 pm, sun 1 pm to 6 pm.

I have a Lee single stage press, reload .38 spl, 357, 380 auto, 9m and 30 carbine. Want to make a trip to Southaven, send me a pm.

[Guest yogi01]

I have all the stuff I think I need to start with the .45 acp. Now I have to get it all set up on my bench and see what I can do.