Do You Want to Reload Your Own Ammunition?

I had been an avid shooter since I was a small boy. My father used to take me out to the shooting range as often as he could. When I got old enough, I bought my first rifle. A Remington 700, bolt action 30-06. I still have that rifle 20 years later, and is still a good shooter. As you can imagine, for someone that likes to shoot as much as we do, it can be very expensive, not to mention impossible if we didn't reload our own ammunition.

If you pick up just about any shooting supply magazine, you'll see that there is an endless number of equipment types to choose from, leaving the novice a bit confused on what he/she really needs to get started. A common mistake for the new loader is choosing speed and volume over accuracy of loads and learning good habits. There is nothing wrong with multi-stage reloading presses, but I suggest a single stage press to start out with. I reload mostly rifle rounds, so even now, I prefer a single-stage over multi-stage. I weigh every individual powder charge to ensure accuracy. Depending on what you're reloading for, 1/10 or 2/10 of a grain can make a difference in accuracy on the target.

The first thing is, you want to find a good press. I chose the RCBS single stage. I built a heavy-duty work bench out of 2x4's and plywood to mount the press to. The next thing is that you need to find some good dies to use for the caliber you're shooting. Again, I chose to stay with RCBS, but opted to spend a little bit of money on some good quality titanium's. The set came with two dies. The first one is the depriming and resizing die, which pushes the spent primer out of the primer pocket, as well as resizes the brass after being fired. Be sure to run your used brass through a tumbler to clean them FIRST before you run them through a die or they could get jammed! The second die is the seating and crimping die. After you have a new primer installed and powder charge loaded, the bullet is set loosely into the mouth of the cartridge, then seated when it's run into the die.

Next, you'll want to get a tray for your primers. Keep it clean from oil and debris! One half of the round tray is smooth, and the other has small ridges in a circular pattern around the center. The idea is that when you dump, let's say 20 primers into the tray, a little shaking will arrange the primers all face down. After dumping the primers in the tray, place the other half on top, closing it up. Depending on the size of your primers, pistol vs large rifle, sometimes you may have to hold the top of the tray up a bit to allow the primers room to flip over. With the ribs side down and leaving the tray rest on your work bench, gently slide it back and forth until all the primers are face down. When they are, allow the top to come down all the way and hold it closed, then flip the whole works over. Take the top off of the tray, and the primers should be on the smooth side of the tray, face up. You will need to purchase a primer tube to hold all your primers neatly for the re-priming stage. Only use the same number of primers as cartridges you're re-loading. I.E. 20 primers for 20 cartridges.

You will need a cartridge tray/holder for your cartridges to keep them from getting tipped over and to keep your work neat. Generally, you can get one that will hold 80-100 cartridges. Never put that many in there at one time though. Let's say you had an 80 count capacity tray. Put only 40 cartridges in at a time. As you work, when you've completed a stage with a particular cartridge, place it on the opposite end of the tray to keep it separated from the rest. ESPECIALLY when recharging with gun powder. Some powders need smaller volumes to do the same as others requiring twice as much powder. If you only fill half the cartridge with powder, it's too easy to "double load" if you don't keep your work separated. If you miss it, you could blow up your rifle or pistol because you inadvertently put in a double powder charge, or your could lose an eye!

You need a second tray, specially for the use of cartridge lubricant. My father used a one gallon ice cream pail top with a piece of cloth in it, lightly soaked with lubricant. I chose the commercial type with an absorbent pad. It has a cover with it too, so that when not in use, you don't get dust and debris in the lubricant and pad. The lube that I use comes in a pump spray bottle. When you're ready to resize your brass in a die, set several cartridges on the lubbed pad and roll the brass back and forth a few times. You DON'T need a lot of it! If you get too much on the cartridge, you leave the risk of hydraulic lock inside the die, or even pitting your brass. While pitting isn't really a problem, your finished product may not look all that appealing to the eye.

A trimming tool, and a de-burring tool is a must. Buy a caliber specific cartridge holder for your electric drill. After you resize your brass in the die, you need to have a drill to turn the brass, so that when you run the trimming tool on the mouth of the cartridge, the brass will be trimmed to the correct length. Each time you fire a round and resize the brass, the cartridge with expand and shrink, resulting in a lengthening. If you don't trim your brass, it could affect your accuracy on the target from round to round. The de-burring tool is good for nearly every cartridge out there. You can use one for a .223 to .50 cal if you wish. One end is hollow for de-burring the outside of the cartridge mouth, and the other end, shaped like a cone, is for de-burring the inside of the mouth. After you trim the length while on the drill, you can clean it up with the de-burring tool immediately following before removing from the drill.

There are a several methods for powder charging. Again, I do everything by hand. I have a small ice cream dish I use to dump my powders into. I also have a plastic spoon for scooping. I started out using a swinging powder scale. It takes a lot longer than electric scales, but I think they are a bit more accurate. If I'm reloading just for deer hunting, I'll use my digital scale. They're pretty close, so I'm not so concerned over the accuracy then. Either one you decide to use I think would be fine. It's just a matter of preference. Consider buying a new, soft bristled paint brush. A two or three inch is just fine. Use it for dusting off debris from your powder canisters before opening. Also, buy a small powder funnel. When you have extra powder in your dish with you're done recharging your cartridges, you can dump it back into the canister a lot easier, and won't spill it all over your table.

Last but not least, you need a good turkish towel to wipe down your cartridges of lube oil after each is completed. You DON'T want to leave it on them. It will collect contaminants and gum everything up. If you're reloading with lead bullets, the towel is good for polishing the lead bullets to a nice shine. I suggest foregoing lead bullets however until you get the hang of loading with jacketed bullets first. Lead needs to be sized first if you cast your own. There is a seperate greaser machine for lubricating the bullets, which will also trim the diameter for your caliber. Lead is a lot trickier to work with, as it's a lot harder to push through a gun barrel, so they need to be prepared before loading. It's not difficult, but it's a process for another article.

Don't forget the re-loader's handbook!!! I use Speer, but there are a lot of good one's out there, and some will cover loads for nearly all popular calibers, as well as the not so well-known ones.

This is a list of the equipment necessary to get you started. Other things as important as the right equipment, is being ORGANIZED! Keep your work area neat and clean. Pay attention to what you're doing to prevent future injury, or even misfires. Don't be in a hurry either.

Single stages can be a lot of work, but it's well worth it if you're looking for accuracy on the target. It helps to promote cartridge consistency for good performance. You may find that initially, it can be a little expensive to purchase everything you need. But if you like to shoot, and you take care of your equipment, it's well worth it in saving money in the long run, and it will last you a lifetime.

Happy shooting!