Re loading vs store bought cost

[topher]

Just getting into shooting and I hear about reloading and how it saves so much Money.. Was just wondering how much it saves? On average . I'm guessing the coat of equipment to start is going to be around $200 or so.. So what does a 308,cost to reload for example..

[MikePal]

I calculated it out for my 6.5 x 55 last year and it was going to be just under $1 per round to shoot reloaded ammo over a 5 yr period making all sorts of assumptions and pro rating the cost etc. Not worth it if you can buy ammo for $1 round ( gun shows etc) and basically only shot 4 boxes a year.

My buddy who's been doing it for years said he looks at it like your not going to save allot, but your going to be able to shoot more.

[DGearyFTE]

For the most part I agree with MikePal. The per round cost of reloading (once you have the basic equipment) is much cheaper but you will end up shooting more. I have something on the order of $1200 invested in reloading equipment but it can be done for much less. Having said that, to answer your question in a more direct way - based on an average 30 cal load
Average cost of brass case (new) $0.5 (I normally plan to reload any single case about 20 times so my per case cost is really about 2.5 cents
Average cost of powder charge grains (50 grains) based on $22 per pound is $.15
Average cost of bullet 160 gr $.32
Primer cost average $.03

So you load for pretty close to 50 cents a round. As you can see it will take me some years before I will cover the cost of reloading equipment. On the other hand if you look at reloading as a hobby that compliments hunting and shooting then the cost is really about the same as buying another rifle and scope. Point being that once you have the equipment then you have a much greater flexibility.

[DGearyFTE]

The real reasons I reload:
1. Buying bullets in bulk is easier and I can store more, using them as I need them. A box of 100 bullets (30 cal) is about $35.
2. You can tailor you load to a rifle to provide greater accuracy and normally better speed
3. Reloading will allow you to tailor a load for different times of the year as different gun powders perform differently at different temperatures
4. With a good cross section of bullet weights (I have 110 Gr, 125 Gr, 150 Gr, 165 Gr adn 180 Gr) there is a tool in your reloading room for just about anything you want to do. I feed my 30-06 all of these. It is just plain fun to shoot different weight and see how the perform. Try finding all of these in a single place where they sell factory ammo. You just can't find this type of cross section of factory ammo anywhere.
5. Reloading and learning about the ballistics gives you a better appreciation of performance. IMHO I believe this will lead you to be a better hunter because you will understand the performance of your rifle better and therefore make better shot selections.
6. Shooting more = shooting better. Nothing replaces practice and I personally have misgiving about folks shooting 3 rounds a year before hunting season to prove the scope is still aligned and then go off and hunt critters.
7. Reloading allows for reduced safe loads. This means you can go shooting just for fun and reduce the recoil. It also means that if you are not planning to hunt out to 300 yds why bother building a max load when a minimum load will meet the need.
8. Reloading is not covered by the Firearms Act, it is actually covered by the Explosives Act. Legally you can have up to 69300 loaded bullets if each one has a net explosive quantity of 50 grains. (I recommend reading the Act since I have condensed this particular section).
9. There is nothing that can replace the satisfaction of loading and shooting your own bullets.
10. Reloading allows you to control quality. This means that with good procedures and an established protocol you can build better ammo than you can buy.

[rf2]

One other thing to consider - you should be comparing to the cost of premium store bought ammunition, not your general run of the mill stuff. My experience so far is that even my least accurate reloads have been more accurate than run of the mill store bought rounds.

Of course, the sky is the limit when it comes to how much you want to pay for the reloading components - premium bullets used by many reloaders can easily cost $1 each for a 30 caliber.

[DGearyFTE]

rf2 is right, just like anything else you can always spend more money. However, I bought a bunch of Remington 22 cal 55 gr SP bulk bullets. My first load without any tuning gave me <1 MOA. I think the cost of each bullet worked out to be about 5 cents.
Friend of mine has a 300 WSM. He likes the really pretty nickel coated factory ammo $47 per box of 20. At that price my wife would be limiting my shooting to once a month, if that.

[MikePal]

Have to add in your intent.....if your primarily a hunter....the customizing of load/bullet is really not necessary. If your shooting off hand or with a barrel rest your not going to notice a 1/2 " difference at 50 yds.

Most of the load tweaking guys do is for target shooting...'lead sled' accuracy.

[Gaoler]

Just getting into shooting and I hear about reloading and how it saves so much Money.. Was just wondering how much it saves? On average . I'm guessing the coat of equipment to start is going to be around $200 or so.. So what does a 308,cost to reload for example..

Sooo many variables...
Bullets can go from "pulled" military surplus at a few cents ea. to high end specialty bullets that cost $40 and up for a box of 50-100.
Standard quality primers are available for about $30 a thousand.
You "could" (maybe)buy enough reloading tools to get by for around the $200 mark, but... It'll be cheaply made stuff.
At minimum you'll need.

-A single stage press
-A scale or some other method to dole out powder in the right weight. Lee sells "dippers", but... your optiond will be limited.
-A set of reloding dies for the caliber(s) you want to load.
-A primer seating tool if your press doesn't have a system built into it.

There are a plethera of other tools that make the process easier, faster and facilitate the manufacture of better ammo.

I reload pretty much everything I shoot. I probably have thousands of dollars "invested" in my reloading gear, but...
Given the quantity of ammo I load there's no way I'd do it with a "Lee Anniversay Kit".
You need to decide how much ammo you're going to need for the shooting you do.
If all you do is sight in/hunt.. I doubt reloading is going to be worthwhile.
You'd be better off just buying the best quality anno your gun likes and stick with it.
Myself, as a competive shooter... Reloading is pretty much a neccesisity... When you go through 300 rounds of .223 in one match you kinda have to reload.

[topher]

I m sure its more cost effective for handgun loads.. Re. .45acp

[DGearyFTE]

Mike - agree that playing with accuracy is a sled activity and I do spend a good deal of time at the bench toying with loads. On the other hand, once I am happy with a load then I like having lots of cheap ammo at hand to shoot from various positions I think I am going to use when hunting.
Gaoler has it right. You really need to decide what it is you want to do before you get into reloading. For my part I like to target shoot as much as I like to hunt so it is pretty much a slam dunk that reloading is for me.