Starter equipment

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000shock

Active member
Hey all, ive been interested in reloading for a while but dont have any equipment at all yet. I just found a box of 39 gr sbk’s at my lgs and bought them since ive never tried them in my 204 and they are so scarce now!

Question…should i simply get a starter kit or piece together the tools i need? On kits, everything ive read is years old now, so which would you recommend today?
If piecing together, what tools should i prioritize and get first? Recommended brands for each tool also would be great!

I would be reloading for 204r, 223, 22-250, 6 arc, and 6.5 cm.
Thanks for any help everyone!
 
I load or have loaded: .17 rem, 17-204, 20 practical, 204R, 221 fireball, .223, 22-250, 22 creed, 6x45, 6x6.8 spc, 6.8 spc, 6 arc, 6x47 lapua, 6 creed, .243, .6.5 creed, 6.5x47 lapua, 300 blk, .308 win, and after a couple of decades of reloading and wasting a bunch of money what I use is listed below. Some of this stuff is expensive and not really starter equipment, but I grew out of the stater stuff rather quickly. In fact, the only thing I still use since I started is my Forster press (highly recommend). Reloading is one of those things that sorta of depends on how deep you are planning to go. I will say a Chronograph is a must have item. You need to know your speeds, not only for accurate load development but also for safety. An accurate scale as well. This is just some of the stuff I use which works for me. Not saying it is the end all be all list of equipment, it is just what I use currently.
Press - Forster
annealer- AMP
scale and powder dispenser - A&D 120i & auto trickler
Trimmer - Wilson
calipers - Mitutoyo
Software Quickload and Gordon's reloading tool
Chronograph- labradar and Garmin Xero
Case prep - I use an RCBS prep center but whichever one trips your trigger.
Hope this helps, let me know if you have any questions. Rjh
 
The first questions I would ask is where are the studs in the wall that I will bolt my new bench to.

Is the area secure and safe from children entering?

What will my new bench design be?

Work flow on the bench, where should I bolt all this stuff down to?

Do I want to load sitting or standing.?

Lighting/Climate control to prevent rust?

Safe primer and powder storage?

Where is a safe place to put my brass tumbler? The lead dust that accumulates on the floor around that device will harm children. If a baby gets a primer in its mouth...... OMG...

What ever press you buy will be ok.

Get some form of a velocity measurement tool. When you hit the listed velocity in the manual, consider that maximum. You will notice powder charges are all over the place from manual to manual. There are many factors, but the biggest one could be the different brands of cases. If you are not using the tested case type, start at the minimum charge and work your way up.

Trimming brass is the biggest PITA of the whole process. Next would be chamfer/de-burr.

I use Hornady 1 shot in a well ventilated area for blaster ammo 223 ammo. I tumble the brass to get it cleaned off.

For larger hunting cartridges I use Redding imperial with Redding graphite for the necks. Wipe the wax off with with alcohol and a rag.
 
60 years accumulation of reloading gear and experience. We've gotten way too annal in our approach to reloading. I load in my shop. Behind me is my shop. Even after 60 years I'm constantly changing things as my needs change. I just moved my single stage press to the main bench(I'd been using it just for case forming) and one of my turret presses to where the single stage and use it for trimming.

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1. A decent cast-iron press. I use a Lyman crusher press but have used RCBS Rockchucker, Hornady O-press, C&H Magnum and Lee Cast-Classic. They all work I just ended up after trades and offers too high to refuse with the lyman and it works. If I were starting out with just one press I look at something with Lock and Load bushings(I hate adjusting dies).

2. I have a number of case trimmers, Redding, Forester, Wilson, Herters(same as Wilson), the little Lee with cutter case length guage(never fails, but slow) and now Lee quick trim dies and cutter. I really like the Lee Quick Trim dies and have set up one of my turret-presses with seven dies(again I hate adjusting), they would work well with LnL bushings. Along with trimmers I like to chamfer with a hand held chamfer tool and clean primer pockets by hand. I like to handle my brass and can inspect as I work. I also can move this operation to the living room and spend time with my wife.

3. Scales, I've putzed with e-scales and just don't trust them, with a balance beam scale I can see if something is wrong and fix it. E-scales I have it have faith in the readout and cant tell if it is wrong and they need to be calibrated with each use. I have old oil dampened scales that are older than me that are still accurate. I use a pair of RCBS 510's

4. Calipers, hard to get along without them, I have four on the bench all dial again had too much trouble with digital, keeping batteries in them etc. Along with the calipers I really like the Hornady comparator that clamps on the caliper blade, grate for adjust bump/headspace when sizing brass.

5. Priming tools, I really like the original Lee Hand priming tool, I like to feel the primes going in. I do like ones that take standard Shell holders and have used the priming arm on a press for small batch loading.

6. Powder measures, I have seven sitting on or over the bench some permanently set for something I load a lot of ( I hate adjusting) labeled with the powder and loads. One thing that is really important to me is a micrometer adjustable measure. Ones that you loosen the nut and slide the rod are just a pain, all gone. Dippers while archaic are handy to use, just this morning I wanted to load five rounds to experiment and a dipper was faster than anything.

7. Lubing brass, I almost exclusively use Imperial sizing wax, I hate One-Shot(I dont have the patients for it), lanolin/alcohol based sprays have work for high volume loading.

8. loading manuals have everything you need to know with diagrams and explanations I have at least a dozen dating back to the 1970's. They are the bibles of reloading, Lyman, Hornady and Sierra are my gotos.

Pretty much everything else is fluff, I've never tumble a piece of brass(I kill stuff and win things), necks get cruddy and a 3m pad cleans them, You can smoke bullets to find the lands, you can easily anneal with a socket and drill. I bought a chronograph 20 years ago when I was developing some new wildcats and it has set in its box for 15 yrs. your loading manual will tell you approximately how fast your bullet is traveling and range time will give you your drops.

You need to decide what you want to spend and what your goals are.

Have fun and enjoy reloading it is almost as much fun as shooting.

AWS
 
My room looks similar to AWS's just not quite as big. First off........a reloading book. Several books out there and you can get lots of loads of the internet but a book/manual is just handy and there is lots of information that you will need from a loading manual. Next is you don't have to spend a fortune on equipment. I don't care what they try to tell you but you don't have to break the bank or spend your kids college fund to start reloading. I've been using two RCBS Jr single stage press's for years and I mean years and they load accurate ammunition. One I bought new the other used at a garage sale. Unless you plan to shoot competitive you can get by with some of the lessor fancy equipment. It the funds are there then spend all you want. Start with the basics. A press, shell holders for the appropriate bullets you want to load, a priming tool (the Lee works good), a set of calipers, and of course dies, bullets and powder. Harbor Freight or Wholesale tool is a good place to start looking for calipers. Just because they are cheap doesn't mean they won't work. Buy a little at a time so it doesn't hit so hard. Used dies can be found at gunshows for pennies on the dollar as well as press's. You buy a bunch of high end stuff and wake up a month from now and decide you don't like reloading. Now you got a bunch of high end reloading equipment that either sets or you loose your ass selling it. Advertise in the classifieds that your looking for reloading stuff. Its everywhere and usually a fraction of new cost and people usually always have what you need.

Just FYI. Don't go to a site that caters to Bench Rest shooting and ask about equipment. BR shooters will spend a $1000 to take .010 off a group size. Your not there yet.
 
I thought this would be like opening every can in a case if worms! All the help is awesome and i really appreciate it guys.

My work bench is already built off of studs in our storage area wall so plenty sturdy and not much humidity. Kids are old enough not to taste test anything around my firearms equipment, and no young kids around at all.
William Suter said:
Just FYI. Don't go to a site that caters to Bench Rest shooting and ask about equipment. BR shooters will spend a $1000 to take .010 off a group size. Your not there yet.
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Not there yet…doubt ill ever be there! Just trying to kill some time, make more accurate and a little cheaper rounds for targets, prairie dogs and coyotes is all.

Sounds like nobody is really for the kits that are available right now then?
 
I started reloading 38-40 for a mod. 92 Winchester around 1952 with an old Lyman "Tong tool"
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Stepped up to a Herters single stage press in 1954 for a lifetime suplly of ammo for my hunting needs. When I got into competition shooting, found it took two Dillon 450's to keep up w/rifle and pistol ammo demands.
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Ammo needs have reduced drastically so sent the Dillons down the road & have come full circle back to the old Herters single stage press.
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rjh said:
Reloading is one of those things that sorta of depends on how deep you are planning to go. I will say a Chronograph is a must have item. You need to know your speeds, not only for accurate load development but also for safety. An accurate scale as well.
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As has been stated, you can spend as much as you want to spend on loading gear. If you decide to stick with it, you will wind up like the rest of us with lots of gadgets to speed up the process or load a bit more accurate ammo, etc.

I started reloading long before chronographs were available to other than laboratories, commercial ammo manufacturers, etc. (due to prohibitive cost). Using loading data and procedures described in most reloading manuals, along with some common sense and a bit of care, you can load perfectly safe "factory grade" ammo without a chronograph. I did find the chronograph very handy in locating the accuracy nodes using ladder method during load development.
arlaunch said:
Trimming brass is the biggest PITA of the whole process. Next would be chamfer/de-burr.
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Trimming brass is a tedious, albeit necessary step in reloading. I, have owned, and sold, just about every brand & type of trimmer on the market, other than the latest "new motor driven brass preparation tools" that, I am sure, will do all of the above steps. The least expensive and, IMO, the most effective is the Lee Case Trimmer Cutter and Lock Stud in conjunction with the proper Lee Case Length Gauge and Shellholder. I mount the Lee cutter and a CHAMFER DEBURRING TOOL in a piece of hickory and find it quicker to trim and debur every case after firing rather than measure each case and trim only those cases which need trimming. Just chuck the case in lock stud mounted in cordless drill and trim, chamfer then debur in one operation.
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AWS said:
2. I have a number of case trimmers, Redding, Forester, Wilson, Herters(same as Wilson), the little Lee with cutter case length guage(never fails, but slow)
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AWS said:
3. Scales, I've putzed with e-scales and just don't trust them, with a balance beam scale I can see if something is wrong and fix it. E-scales I have it have faith in the readout and cant tell if it is wrong and they need to be calibrated with each use. I have old oil dampened scales that are older than me that are still accurate. I use a pair of RCBS 510's
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Never tried or trusted the e-scales. Too many folks had negative results ^^^^Balance scales simple and almost foolproof and the 510 is my favorite as well.
Like AWS, I prefer the micrometer adjustable powder measure for rifle loading but use a measure I built years ago for handgun loading w/the old single stage press.
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AWS said:
4. Calipers, hard to get along without them, I have four on the bench all dial again had too much trouble with digital, keeping batteries in them etc. Along with the calipers I really like the Hornady comparator that clamps on the caliper blade, grate for adjust bump/headspace when sizing brass.
Click to expand...
Ditto
AWS said:
5. Priming tools, I really like the original Lee Hand priming tool, I like to feel the primes going in. I do like ones that take standard Shell holders and have used the priming arm on a press for small batch loading.
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Again, simple, inexpensive and effective.
AWS said:
Have fun and enjoy reloading it is almost as much fun as shooting.
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Wouldn't classify reloading as fun, but it is fun but when you work up a load that is far superior to factory ammo it is very enjoyable; other than that, for me, it is just a means to an end. :D
William Suter said:
Several books out there and you can get lots of loads of the internet but a book/manual is just handy and there is lots of information that you will need from a loading manual.
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Definitely need at least one reloading manual to read up on necessary procedures/steps/tips in reloading a fired case. More than one is better for load comparisons (not all manuals will agree 100%....I usually check two or three manuals and average starting load, and work up from there. Lots of loading data here: HANDY ONLINE RELOADING DATA

I have probably only bought a dozen boxes of factory center fire ammo over the years, and those were for comparison purposes only. I don't anneal cases, even when I was shooting competition, as I had access to unlimited supply of 30-06 brass back then. Usually get 8-12 reloads to the case and keep each lot of brass separate so each case in a given lot has been fired the same number of times. When primer pockets get loose or the necks split, I start a new lot. I like clean brass so each batch is tumbled, deprimed, trimmed/chamfered, then loaded.
 

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Not a thing wrong with buying a kit. It will or should give you the basic tools but you will still need dies and components. Ssome things that we suggest are things we all think we needed when we bought them. My first reloading Kit came in a red plastic box and you resized your brass with a wood mallet. Measured powder with a dipper. Very crude but it made good ammo. I think it was a Lee also.
 
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The guys above pretty much said it all. I will add only that I bought an RCBS Rock Chucker Master Kit way back when I was in college. I've used it to load thousands of rounds during the ensuing 30 years and have never had a problem. It's still going strong. I would happily buy another today if I needed it. I did add the Lee hand primer AWS mentioned (you wouldn't need to now because the kit comes with RCBS's version). There are some other goodies you can add on later, but with a good kit, a caliper, and good components, you'll have basically everything you need to get started.
 
Interested in reloading and capable of reloading are different. Are you detail oriented/follow instructions from start to finish? Pretty important skills for building small explosive devices that will be detonated close to your face,hands and other people.
 
spotstalkshoot said:
Interested in reloading and capable of reloading are different. Are you detail oriented/follow instructions from start to finish? Pretty important skills for building small explosive devices that will be detonated close to your face,hands and other people.
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That's why I said BUY A BOOK! That should be on the list if not No.1 on the list. You don't have to be a brain surgeon or rocket scientist to handload ammunition but you do need to pay attention to what you are doing.
 
Ya, my wife would kindly say im slightly ocd with anything firearms related. I have no prob getting nose deep into a book as long as its something im interested in. Lol, I dont even take anyone out shooting with me until i see or teach them how to handle a firearm safely at home away from ammo.

After reading all of the above, surfing multiple forums and picking a few brains face to face, i think i will go with an rcbs single stage kit and fill in gaps or replace components as needed. I appreciate all the help guys! This will be the first place any specific questions get thrown out when i do get started.
 
spotstalkshoot said:
Interested in reloading and capable of reloading are different. Are you detail oriented/follow instructions from start to finish? Pretty important skills for building small explosive devices that will be detonated close to your face,hands and other people.
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Funny anecdote…my boss, when i worked commercial construction, told me in a review that i did some of the best finish trim work of all our crews. He said i was “painfully meticulous.” After i thought about it, it was kind of like shaking my hand and kicking me in the junk at the same time!

Fwiw, im plenty capable attention wise. Just need to expand the knowledge base!
 
Can't go wrong with a kit to start. May be a thing or two you won't use often, but you'll have most everything you'll need except dies, and maybe something to trim cases with. Haven't looked at their starter kits lately.
Lots of folks here that will be happy to help you when you need it. (y)
 
At the price of components these days your not going to see huge savings compared to the cost of ammo. But not every rifle will shoot a factory bullet accurately. That's where reloading kicks in. You can tune your loads to fit your rifle. A half grain of powder or even 3/10's could make the difference between a OK rifle to a tack driver. That's the beauty of reloading.
 
Ya, i figured if i were to save anything on components, i would spend it in volume of shooting anyways.

Speaking of components, is there a powder that commonly works well for the cartridges above to start? Ive been told varget is pretty forgiving. And iirc not very temp sensitive also. I shoot in temps from 100+ down to 0- even sometimes. Though neg temps i usually stay home!
 
I've loaded 10's of thousands of rds, rifle/handgun on single stage RCBS equipment. (I have 2 RC and a junior). Typically I load in batches less than 50 rds. Occasionally I need to run a large batch for prairie dogs. You will probably need 3 or 4 powders for the cartridges and their respective bullet weights. Although there are a couple ball powders that would be crossover capable, but may require summer/winter loads if requiring max velocity. Nosler has load data that offers best accuracy/best hunting load reference by bullet weights in specific cartridges. You may want to consult Nosler to find possible crossover powders.
 
Well, looks like ill have a couple hundo for components. Lgs my gift card is for doesnt have rcbs kits, just standard lock n load and ap kits. Ill prob give it a little while and see if stock comes in. If not, spend it on a tumbler and case trimmer most likely. Stuff that doesnt come with rock chucker sup kit.
 
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