Over the years I have built up my reloading gear and my habit. After I feel comfortable loading a caliber and have developed reasonably accurate ammunition I move onto another caliber (this usually coincides with the purchase of a new rifle).

It is amazing that an activity that was just supposed to help me keep my shooting habit affordable has now become a hobby unto itself. I have discovered that I really like to reload. Reloading takes my mind off of everything, because it requires focused concentration on the task at hand.

The basic equipment requirements for reloading are:

1. A reloading press;
2. Dies and shell holders in the calibers you intend to reload;
3. A device to install primers in the cases and a;
4. Powder scale;
5. Caliper.

One way you can really cut costs on your initial equipment setup is to watch for swap meets, gun shows, and or bulletin boards at your local range. Often enough you will find excellent second-hand equipment that someone is willing to part with for a very reasonable price. They are most likely selling because they are trying to pay back their household some of the cost of purchasing a whole new reloading setup or upgrade. Reloading gear is usually a very high quality and will last long past your lifetime if taken care of properly.

The .303 British reloading dies I used in this article I picked up for about $5 at a range sponsored swap meet. I have at times purchased thousands of dollars of gear for pennies on the dollar.

I really love "shooting equipment" swap meets!

I decided to make safety the first section of the article to emphasize its importance in reloading.

There are certain pieces of equipment you really should not scrimp on - first and foremost being the powder scale. Since you are measuring gun powder you should take care to purchase the best scale your budget can afford. Anything involved with handling powder should be in good and serviceable condition. The very last thing you want to do (and very well could be the last thing you do) is incorrectly measure powder and place too little or too much powder in the cartridges you are reloading. Too little powder or no powder at all could cause a bullet to become lodged dangerously in the barrel of the firearm. If unnoticed  the outcome could be catastrophic. If you place too much powder you may blow up the receiver and barrel injuring or or killing yourself or bystanders.

The Lee Challenger press is the press I used for this article. This quality yet budget priced press is an exceptional bargain at around $30.00. You can get better - but it is really not necessary for a starter setup. 

Why do you have to resize? Simply put - when you shoot or discharge a cartridge the brass expands. To prepare the case for reloading you need to 1) resize the brass, 2) decap the primer, 3) clean the brass case (this is optional - but recommended ) 4) and prime the case.

The first step of reloading is to set up your reloading press to resize your brass and "decap" the spent primer from the fired brass (if you are resizing fired brass). For the sake of this article we are going to use fired brass. You set up your press by installing the correct size shell holder and resizing/decapping die.

Lock down the collet on the die so it does not come loose. On RCBS dies you tighten a hex screw as shown in figure 4. I discovered that it is easy to strip out the hex screws and mar the collets. It is a good idea to have some extras on hand. You can pick up a pack of five collets for around $5.

Rule of thumb: After you shoot cartridges you save the empty brass. Key word here - BRASS.  Some commercial ammo does not have brass cases and are made of either aluminum or steel. Neither metals hold up very well to multiple discharges and resizing like brass cases do.

Simply put - do not save surplus or steel cases.

Most surplus military ammunition cases have berdan style primers. The main problem with berdan primers are that they are difficult to find and the tools are a bit pricey.

Note: Old Western Scrounger has berdan primers - but $$$!!!

On the other hand - boxer style primers are very available and the tools used with boxer primers are considerably less in cost. Most primers and primer tools available for sale in the U.S. today are of the boxer style.

After I am finished oiling/lubing the cases - I roll them over the towel with my hand. This evenly distributes the oil over the case and removes any excess. Excess oil/lubricant on the case can actually damage the case while inside of the resizing/decapping die causing dents in the case.

You may be asking, why all the lubing? Well, just try to resize and decap a case without lubrication of some sort. It is very difficult and can actually damage the case, the die, or other equipment such as your press. Mostly if you do not lubricate it just makes the whole process more difficult than it needs to be.

Note: If you want to learn more about lubing and case sizing read Cartridge Case Sizing, Stretching, Trimming & Lubing.

Most reloaders overlook a very important step to reloading. After reloading hundreds of rounds you get lead, copper, and/or oil buildup inside the dies. Use gun cleaning solvent and brass brushes to clean your dies as if they are a pistol bore. This cleaning will ensure precision reloading and extended life of the die.

To resize and decap a case, 1) place the spent case in the shell holder (as shown in figure 8).

2) Pull down on the handle of the press until the case is all the way inside the die. This resizes the outside of the die and pops the primer out of the case.

3) Push the handle of the press back up. This resizes the neck of the case. Now remove the case from the shell holder and you have a decapped and resized case (a dirty case).

One note to remember is to pay attention to the primer reservoir (as shown in figure 11). Make sure you empty it and periodically clean out any residue that collects.

Note: I do not recommend purchasing cleaning media through mail order or on the internet. The reason for this is you are going to pay for shipping charges and you are usually purchasing 15 lbs. or more media at a time. A 15 lb. container cost around $15 - the problem is, so does the shipping. As a result of shipping you pay around $30 or more for your cleaning media. Purchase media locally if you can!

Yes, magic grooves!

Place the lid on the tray and take one last look to make sure all of the primers are orientated correctly. You then turn the cover to close off the open end of the tray.

Insert the covered tray into the hand priming tool (as shown in figure 18 ). Turn the tray cover until the primers feed out of the tray and into the priming tool.

After you have made sure there is a primer in the hole take a case and place it in the shell holder in the priming tool.

Squeeze the handle of the priming tool until it is closed. Let the handle open and remove the primed shell for inspection. The top of the primer should be about .004 inch below the lip of the case. I really do not know how to measure this other than by eye.

Figure 21 shows a properly primed case. The primer does not extend past the lip of the case.

To set up the seating/crimping die - I  first make a perfectly seated and measured (via calipers) empty (no primer or gun powder) cartridge and then use this dummy round to set up my reloading press every reloading session afterwards. Basically you seat a bullet while adjusting the height of the die and the seater plug until you get a cartridge that is perfect overall in dimensions and appearance.

First "just start" to thread the seating die into the press as shown in figure 23. Then place a non primed and sized case in the shell holder and bring the handle of the press all of the way down pushing the ram to its highest point.

Screw down the die until you can feel pressure as it rests against the lip of the case.

Back the die off by 1/4 turn and tighten the collet.

Back the seater screw/stem off all the way.

Figure 27 shows the Sierra Match King bullets used in this reloading session.

Lower the ram.

Insert your first bullet and raise the ram until you can remove your hand and the bullet is secure resting on the top of the case (bullet will be sitting just inside of the mouth of the die).

Remove the case and ensure that it is seated the correct depth. Also make sure there is no bulging anywhere on the case. Bulging will occur because the die is set too low in the press causing the case mouth to be compressed downwards. If there is bulging or malformed brass - back off the die and start over.

Rule of thumb: You need at least three CURRENT and reputable sources of load data to reload a caliber. The reason for this is you need to make sure the load data you are using is correct. The odds of one book providing incorrect load data is possible, the odds of three books or sources providing incorrect data is pretty improbable.

A good reference will give you the minimum and the maximum recommended grains of powder for a given bullet weight and type. Cross-check the minimum and maximum load for a specific caliber in three different sources. You will find that not all of the references have corresponding data.

The minimum and maximum in one source may not be the same in another source.

For Minimum figures - I usually do one of two things - 1) if more that one source list the same minimum I accept the data or 2) if none match I take the lowest figure. Work up all new loads starting 10% below the recommended charge weight. Then work your way up to the recommended charge. IMR recommends - "After firing several loads at the lower powder charge weight without ANY evidence of excessive chamber pressure the powder change weight may then be increased in 0.5 grain increments as accuracy needs and pressure indications permit."

For Maximum figures - I never load maximum weight until I have acquired reloading experience with a given caliber and I know how my rifle responds to the loads I have used so far. Even then I really do not recommend putting maximum loads in a fifty year old or older Military Surplus rifle.

Most powder, bullet, and reloading gear manufacturers provide load data for the most used sizes of bullets in print or on the Internet.

Some notable and reputable books are (always use the latest version of manual ):

• LYMAN's Reloading Handbook (General Powder and Bullets )
• IMR's Reloaders Guide for Smokeless Powders (Specific to IMR Powder and General Bullets )
• Redding's Reloading Manual (General Powder and Bullets )
• The Complete Reloading Guide (General Powder and Bullets )

To use a powder scale you must first make sure it is placed on a stable flat surface and then zeroed. A scale that is not on a flat surface, is faulty, or not zeroed can produce incorrect results and this is very dangerous.

When I finally get the charge set to the exact weight I want and the scale tares consistently (meaning that the indicator on the scale's balance bar points to zero with a powder charge in the basket as shown in figure 37 ) for five times in a row I lock down the powder measure.

Note: To be safe it is best to charge the cases with powder and seat the bullet - one cartridge at a time. Do not go through and charge all the cases then go and seat all the bullets. Although it is usually very hard to double charge a rifle case it is VERY EASY to double, triple or quadruple charge a pistol case and you would never know it...until you fired it

Once you have the scale, powder measure, and reloading press and seating/crimping die all dialed in perfectly it is time to make some ammo. Place your first correctly weighed powder charge into a primed and resized case. Place the case in the press and then seat and crimp a bullet.

You need to measure your loaded cartridges with a good caliper to make sure the overall length of the round is within the specifications outlined in your reloading manuals.

Section 10 - Costs of Initial Setup

jlm ;)

Note

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