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Posted: 5/3/2012 11:12:47 AM EDT
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So I'm going to start reloading soon, I've been looking around at a few places for bullets and brass etc.
So far it seems significantly more expensive to reload (new brass) than to just buy already made ammunition. The two cheapest 100 peice brass and bullet packs I've seen on midway add up to about 64 cents per round, just for the new brass and bullet. Is it just that all the cheap stuff isn't in stock? Or is it actually more expensive to reload unless / until you start reloading once fired? |
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I shot new ammo for many years, but tried to save my brass.
When my shooting picked up recently, it was worth the initial investment in reloading gear. By this time I had already saved up a large quantity of pistol and 223 brass, so I don't have to buy brass. I also go to local pistol/carbine matches, and I am usually able to pick up 2-4x more brass than I shoot. If I had to buy all the materials new, then I doubt reloading would be worth the expense, Unless you were reloading for extreme precision, or because it's your hobby and you enjoy doing it. |
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Thanks for the info guys, my initial plan was to buy new brass load from there and sell the once fired brass afterwards. Using the once fired brass income to buy more new brass, thusly reducing the cost of just buying new brass and furthermore reducing the need for extra equiptment / time spent making ammo (don't have to clean size deprime etc).
But seeing as it costs more to buy new brass than it does to just buy the already made ammo, I guess I'll have to invest in the rest of the equipment and time and effort to reload old / used brass. |
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Thanks for the info guys, my initial plan was to buy new brass load from there and sell the once fired brass afterwards. Using the once fired brass income to buy more new brass, thusly reducing the cost of just buying new brass and furthermore reducing the need for extra equiptment / time spent making ammo (don't have to clean size deprime etc). But seeing as it costs more to buy new brass than it does to just buy the already made ammo, I guess I'll have to invest in the rest of the equipment and time and effort to reload old / used brass. i would forget about buying new brass and just buy a tumbler. brass can be reloaded many times. |
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Thanks for the info guys, my initial plan was to buy new brass load from there and sell the once fired brass afterwards. Using the once fired brass income to buy more new brass, thusly reducing the cost of just buying new brass and furthermore reducing the need for extra equiptment / time spent making ammo (don't have to clean size deprime etc). But seeing as it costs more to buy new brass than it does to just buy the already made ammo, I guess I'll have to invest in the rest of the equipment and time and effort to reload old / used brass. i would forget about buying new brass and just buy a tumbler. brass can be reloaded many times. This was covered just a few weeks ago. You aren't shopping around. Buying (once fired) brass I'm getting loads down to $0.21/rnd (62gr FMJBT). That's with brass taking $0.07/rnd. If you extrapolate that out to 7 reloads (if I take care of the brass), that actually means my loads are $0.15/rnd or $150/case. Where can you buy brass 62gr ammo for $150/case? |
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Thanks for the info guys, my initial plan was to buy new brass load from there and sell the once fired brass afterwards. Using the once fired brass income to buy more new brass, thusly reducing the cost of just buying new brass and furthermore reducing the need for extra equiptment / time spent making ammo (don't have to clean size deprime etc). But seeing as it costs more to buy new brass than it does to just buy the already made ammo, I guess I'll have to invest in the rest of the equipment and time and effort to reload old / used brass. i would forget about buying new brass and just buy a tumbler. brass can be reloaded many times. This was covered just a few weeks ago. You aren't shopping around. Buying (once fired) brass I'm getting loads down to $0.21/rnd (62gr FMJBT). That's with brass taking $0.07/rnd. If you extrapolate that out to 7 reloads (if I take care of the brass), that actually means my loads are $0.15/rnd or $150/case. Where can you buy brass 62gr ammo for $150/case? u using pulled bullets and powder? where to find all seems out of stock? I'm at $0.20 a round not counting my brass 
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If your adding the cost of the brass to the price of each round it looks bad but you need to run the cost of each load after that without the price of brass since you reuse them multiple times or add that extended life into it. For my AR or anything I load bulk of once fired is the way to go way cheaper but high quality hunting rounds is where you really see the savings even with good quality new brass. Cuts cost of that stuff at least in half if not more.
You gotta remember to when comparing 223 rounds you looking at cheap ass crap bulk stuff and comparing that to a quality load tailored to your gun. I load a hornady hpbt for cheaper than crappy bulk. The price of components is going up again to so ... |
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Thanks for the info guys, my initial plan was to buy new brass load from there and sell the once fired brass afterwards. Using the once fired brass income to buy more new brass, thusly reducing the cost of just buying new brass and furthermore reducing the need for extra equiptment / time spent making ammo (don't have to clean size deprime etc). But seeing as it costs more to buy new brass than it does to just buy the already made ammo, I guess I'll have to invest in the rest of the equipment and time and effort to reload old / used brass. i would forget about buying new brass and just buy a tumbler. brass can be reloaded many times. This was covered just a few weeks ago. You aren't shopping around. Buying (once fired) brass I'm getting loads down to $0.21/rnd (62gr FMJBT). That's with brass taking $0.07/rnd. If you extrapolate that out to 7 reloads (if I take care of the brass), that actually means my loads are $0.15/rnd or $150/case. Where can you buy brass 62gr ammo for $150/case? u using pulled bullets and powder? where to find all seems out of stock? I'm at $0.20 a round not counting my brass Keep your eyes open and buy it as soon as you see it. I got my powder was WC844 powder from Wideners a month ago when it was in stock. I bought 24lbs. Same thing with primers. Bought 5,000 a month ago for $100. Bullets are less of a problem, but I used golden west brass (new 62gr FMJBT) and bought 5,000 from them. Their stock appears to be dwindling so you may want to jump on it quick. Keep your eyes open. |
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20/1k primers
60/1k 55gr FMJ or tracers from Midway 43/1k worth of surplus w844 60/k OF brass = $123 or $183 for 1000 rounds of loaded brass ammo Check patsreloading for powder 32lbs for $360 shipped 280rd/lb @ 25gr/case = 3.6lbs Top brass or FS reloading has/had 55gr FMJ for $55/k round up to 60 dollars Primers- Wolf from Widners at $15/k in bulk + shipping and haz mat = roughly 20/k Brass is free or off the EE 60 shipped Buy in bulk and save. |
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So I'm going to start reloading soon, I've been looking around at a few places for bullets and brass etc. So far it seems significantly more expensive to reload (new brass) than to just buy already made ammunition. The two cheapest 100 peice brass and bullet packs I've seen on midway add up to about 64 cents per round, just for the new brass and bullet. Is it just that all the cheap stuff isn't in stock? Or is it actually more expensive to reload unless / until you start reloading once fired? That is probably not far off, for initial observation. If you are looking for a large cost-to-price delta, look at the Mk262, or TAP 5.56 NATO stuff that goes for about $1.20 per round. Don't compare to the cheap XM193 or XM855 surplus stuff. Also, your initial brass purchase is one time cost for (hopefully) about 5 reloads. In otherwords you are going to amortize that brass cost over the number of reuses in reloads. Shop around for powder, bullet, primer, and other expendables. The mail order places are usually offering good deals on one or the other from time to time. |
| If you get into annealing the brass, you can get even more reloads out of it, so long as you're careful about your process. The Hornady annealing kit is simple, safe and effective. You'll go a good bit further than 5 reloads, so long as you're not loading them up way hot. |
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i just went through all this recently, so here is what ive already come up with in the past 2 months.
on average, 250 rounds per pound of powder, cheap bullets 70 for 500, and once fired brass 5 bucks per 100. the first 2 loads makes me break even, then you earn your money afterwords. seems like a big investment and you feel like its more expensive, but its not. you just save the money as you get a few rounds down the road. also, even the easy, cheap loads that you do yourself are infinitely better than the best off the shelf loads. the ability to fine tune a round to your gun, and get maximum shooter allowable accuracy is worth serious $ to most. minus handgun loads, i wont ever be able to shoot shelf ammo again after my reloads. and im just starting out! cant imagine what its going to be like in a year when ammo costs more than a kidney and ive REALLY learned to reload. buy a inexpensive Lee kit, spend a little more for the odds and ends, and you listen to the people here and in the books who know a thing or two, and you wont be disappointed. |
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i just went through all this recently, so here is what ive already come up with in the past 2 months. on average, 250 rounds per pound of powder, cheap bullets 70 for 500, and once fired brass 5 bucks per 100. the first 2 loads makes me break even, then you earn your money afterwords. seems like a big investment and you feel like its more expensive, but its not. you just save the money as you get a few rounds down the road. also, even the easy, cheap loads that you do yourself are infinitely better than the best off the shelf loads. the ability to fine tune a round to your gun, and get maximum shooter allowable accuracy is worth serious $ to most. minus handgun loads, i wont ever be able to shoot shelf ammo again after my reloads. and im just starting out! cant imagine what its going to be like in a year when ammo costs more than a kidney and ive REALLY learned to reload. buy a inexpensive Lee kit, spend a little more for the odds and ends, and you listen to the people here and in the books who know a thing or two, and you wont be disappointed. 70 for 500 is expensive for bullets. Generally, I spend $0.06/round in powder, $0.025 in primer, $0.01 in brass (buy for 70/k, get at least 7 firings), and $0.09 in bullet. $0.185/round, or $185/1000 rounds. Compare that to current shelf ammo prices (and the price reduction is more than 50% for far better ammo. If you're going to invest in components, do it now. ETA: bold - THIS. I started with a Lee hand press (if you have room for a workbench, I recommend starting with a single-stage bench-mounted press it, which will run you about the same price), and still use it. I have several other presses, as does anyone else who reloads. If you're patient and look for deals, you can do a lot more shooting for less money in the long run. |
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Thanks for the info guys, my initial plan was to buy new brass load from there and sell the once fired brass afterwards. Using the once fired brass income to buy more new brass, thusly reducing the cost of just buying new brass and furthermore reducing the need for extra equiptment / time spent making ammo (don't have to clean size deprime etc). But seeing as it costs more to buy new brass than it does to just buy the already made ammo, I guess I'll have to invest in the rest of the equipment and time and effort to reload old / used brass. Why would you do that? Just clean your brass and re-use it. Also, buying 100 at a time is fine for trying out a new bullet, but when you find a load you like you buy components in bulk. By the thousand. |
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Thanks for the info guys, my initial plan was to buy new brass load from there and sell the once fired brass afterwards. Using the once fired brass income to buy more new brass, thusly reducing the cost of just buying new brass and furthermore reducing the need for extra equiptment / time spent making ammo (don't have to clean size deprime etc). But seeing as it costs more to buy new brass than it does to just buy the already made ammo, I guess I'll have to invest in the rest of the equipment and time and effort to reload old / used brass. Why would you do that? Just clean your brass and re-use it. Also, buying 100 at a time is fine for trying out a new bullet, but when you find a load you like you buy components in bulk. By the thousand. I didn't see this post...but Chris is right. Why would you do that? They call it REloading because you are REusing already fired brass. If you buy new brass all the time and never REuse it then you aren't REloading. You are manufacturing ammo. Of course that's more expensive. |
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Thanks for the info guys, my initial plan was to buy new brass load from there and sell the once fired brass afterwards. Using the once fired brass income to buy more new brass, thusly reducing the cost of just buying new brass and furthermore reducing the need for extra equiptment / time spent making ammo (don't have to clean size deprime etc). But seeing as it costs more to buy new brass than it does to just buy the already made ammo, I guess I'll have to invest in the rest of the equipment and time and effort to reload old / used brass. Why would you do that? Just clean your brass and re-use it. Also, buying 100 at a time is fine for trying out a new bullet, but when you find a load you like you buy components in bulk. By the thousand. I didn't see this post...but Chris is right. Why would you do that? They call it REloading because you are REusing already fired brass. If you buy new brass all the time and never REuse it then you aren't REloading. You are manufacturing ammo. Of course that's more expensive. Well I math'd out according to some numbers some guys gave me in the ar15 chat for bullets powder and primer per round, and with the those numbers they gave me I math'd out that its actually cheaper to buy new brass using the money obtained from selling it as once fired after to buy more new brass etc. |
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My Lee Challenger Breech Lock kit ran me $115 with shipping. I live in Lubbock but my parents live near a small town called Wimberley (which just happens to be a 15 minute drive to the Cabelas there in Buda for me). When I'm down south, I buy powders, primers and cart it back up to Lubbock (1 lb runs me $10 more in Lubbock than in the Austin area). Dies ran me $30 (it came with a resizing die). My brass is either range pickup or picked up from what me and my friends have shot (I finally have all of the primer crimps removed). The other little odds and ends I have are a bullet puller, Lee Zip trimmer, a Harbor Freight 5 lb tumbler (all o which cost me about $70). For less than $200 I have a complete setup (primers $30/1k, bullets $40/500, and powder $25-$35/lb depending where I get it). If you seriously want new brass, go to a range and pickup fired brass, decap it all and sell it either for scrap or to reloaders as once fired. Buying new brass using it once an getting rid of it just doesn't make any sense. You have to remember that some calibers you just can't get new brass for period. Great example, my deer rifle is a Winchester Model 88 chambered for .284. I have not yet found anywhere that sells .284 brass new (Winchester only makes a few thousand boxes a year and it runs upwards of $45 a box) not to mention it is a popular case to wildcat. I do how ever have factory loads and brass that my dad has saved since his father gave him that rifle 45 years ago. If you can reuse it, why not save even more money?
PS I'm a trigger happy college student who would go broke if it weren't for reusing my brass and reloading it for 21¢/rd at the expense of some of my spare time. |
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Quoted: My Lee Challenger Breech Lock kit ran me $115 with shipping. I live in Lubbock but my parents live near a small town called Wimberley (which just happens to be a 15 minute drive to the Cabelas there in Buda for me). When I'm down south, I buy powders, primers and cart it back up to Lubbock (1 lb runs me $10 more in Lubbock than in the Austin area). Dies ran me $30 (it came with a resizing die). My brass is either range pickup or picked up from what me and my friends have shot (I finally have all of the primer crimps removed). The other little odds and ends I have are a bullet puller, Lee Zip trimmer, a Harbor Freight 5 lb tumbler (all o which cost me about $70). For less than $200 I have a complete setup (primers $30/1k, bullets $40/500, and powder $25-$35/lb depending where I get it). If you seriously want new brass, go to a range and pickup fired brass, decap it all and sell it either for scrap or to reloaders as once fired. Buying new brass using it once an getting rid of it just doesn't make any sense. You have to remember that some calibers you just can't get new brass for period. Great example, my deer rifle is a Winchester Model 88 chambered for .284. I have not yet found anywhere that sells .284 brass new (Winchester only makes a few thousand boxes a year and it runs upwards of $45 a box) not to mention it is a popular case to wildcat. I do how ever have factory loads and brass that my dad has saved since his father gave him that rifle 45 years ago. If you can reuse it, why not save even more money? PS I'm a trigger happy college student who would go broke if it weren't for reusing my brass and reloading it for 21¢/rd at the expense of some of my spare time. I heard the earth was so flat in Lubbock that you could shoot yourself in the back if your load was too hot. Be careful  . Please stay on topic and post GD comments in GD, not here. dryflash3 |
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Thanks for the info guys, my initial plan was to buy new brass load from there and sell the once fired brass afterwards. Using the once fired brass income to buy more new brass, thusly reducing the cost of just buying new brass and furthermore reducing the need for extra equiptment / time spent making ammo (don't have to clean size deprime etc). But seeing as it costs more to buy new brass than it does to just buy the already made ammo, I guess I'll have to invest in the rest of the equipment and time and effort to reload old / used brass. One problem with your plan. A tumbler cost between $45 and $70. When you buy your dies, the depriming/resizing die will be included in the set. Generally, I can get 2-3 reloads out of .223 brass before it even needs trimming. 5.56 brass is generally 1 maybe 2 reloads before it needs trimming. Only thing you lack is case lube, a $10 bottle will last you a couple thousand rounds. The time spent doing it isn't that bad if you do it when you have down time and do it in stages (say one night decap and resize all of your spent brass). With a single stage press, you can resize 150-200 cases per hour, I bill for $64/hr, so does the time spent really pay off the $64 your going to spend on just half the brass? Cleaning is easy, throw it in a tumbler with a timer for an hour or two and go do something else (like work, school, hang out with friends, drink beer, watch TV, play with the dog, etc.). The money you save reloading 200 rounds of brass pays for the tumbler (that's minus the hour or so of resizing/depriming if your like me an bill at your job for $64/hr). |
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