Reloading Advice please?

[Frenchieboy]

Ok Guys, I am starting to find a few problems getting a regular supply of the .222 ammunition that my rifle (A Bruno Fox .222) likes at a sensible price. Because of this and the fact that I get on really well with that particular rifle the way that I have it set up I am thinking about trying to reload my own ammunition. I know nothing whatsoever about reloading so I am hoping that you guys will be able to advise.

 

Firstly, please can one or two of you have a look at this link for a brand new reloading set up and tell me if it is reasonable value for money and what else I might need to buy before I can start reloading. Would this be a reasonable buy or might i be better buying second hand and if so what are the things that I need to watch out for?

 

http://www.sportsmanguncentre.co.uk/produc...EE90928'29/

 

Secondly, what are the laws/regulations regarding buying and sroring things like the powder etc; and what sort of price will the powder, primers, bullet heads likely cost me so that I can break it down to roughly how much it will cost me (per round) to reload my own ammunition.

Thanks (In anticipation)

 

Edit: Just an afterthought - If at a later date I decide to buy a .243 also (Which is highly likely) will the same equipment be suitable for reloading the .243 ammunition as well as .222 ammunition without "too many" extra expences please?

Edited September 23, 2010 by Frenchieboy

[al4x]

the list below it says what else you need. Powder round us is about £45 a tub and lasts ages primers are pretty cheap and heads are up to £20 per 100 but can be a lot cheaper. rough cost for you will be approx 30p a round or so

[garyb]

Powder - £25 - £40 a 1lb tub (1 pound = 7000 grains)

Primers - £2.50 - £5.00 per 100

Bullets - £15 - £25 per 100

 

I take it you have plenty of brass ?

Edited September 23, 2010 by garyb

[Paul223]

I've not tried the 4 hole press to have an opinion on it, I do however use a couple of the cast lee presses, which i find work well enough, the idea behind having more than one press is that once set up for overall length for a bullet type it can be left, untouched ready to go, same for the decapping neck sizer

 

shop around i think you may find them cheaper else where unless they have gone up in price recently

 

nowt wrong with the lee equipment

[Vermincinerator]

Frenchie,

many of us handload for quaulity and accuracy rather then for economy and as of such cost is around 80p to £1 a bang, dependant on calibre.

looking at the link to the kit you proposed, a turret press is not suitable for a beginner and i would advise against buying Lee equipment unless you plan to upgrade as your knowledge increases.

Personally i go by the "Buy quality, buy once" rule.

Look for a kit with a single station press and dies by any other maker, although good ammo is reloaded on Lee equipment it is poor quality.

Expect to pay £300+ for quality kit as well as a good digital calipre and a comprehensive reloading manual, the Sierra manual being one of the best IMO

Once you have your basic kit all you need to do to change calibres loaded is a set of dies and a shell holder.

If you would like to go into more detail about handloading PM me and i will help where i can

 

Ian.

[macca]

Buy the best you can afford - the Lee press you looked is OK but nowhere near the quality of http://www.sportsmanguncentre.co.uk/produc...7810120'29/

It has everything you want and will last a lifetime. Cast iron presses are far better than cast aluminium.

Cheers

[Redgum]

Frenchie,

many of us handload for quaulity and accuracy rather then for economy and as of such cost is around 80p to £1 a bang, dependant on calibre.

looking at the link to the kit you proposed, a turret press is not suitable for a beginner and i would advise against buying Lee equipment unless you plan to upgrade as your knowledge increases.

Personally i go by the "Buy quality, buy once" rule.

Look for a kit with a single station press and dies by any other maker, although good ammo is reloaded on Lee equipment it is poor quality.

Expect to pay £300+ for quality kit as well as a good digital calipre and a comprehensive reloading manual, the Sierra manual being one of the best IMO

Once you have your basic kit all you need to do to change calibres loaded is a set of dies and a shell holder.

If you would like to go into more detail about handloading PM me and i will help where i can

 

Ian.

 

I have to disagree with the above totally, Ok I get my brass for free but I'm reloading real accurate ammo for nearer 40pence a go. I was recommended Lee kit originally from someone who loads a hell of alot, he rekons the lee deluxe die set with the collet die is one of the most acurate dies hes used. Lee is cheap but for the money it works well, as for the turret press, the 4 stage one is ideal as you can set up a resizing die, powder feed die, bullet seating die and factory crimp with out changing them each time like on a single stage press. With all these dies set up there isnt enough room above a 243 loaded case to use the auto index, no problem just move it by hand. I love my 4 turret press and there are loads of free downloads from Lee to help you get started.

If I was seeking perfection with accuracy I would buy a custom built range rifle before changing loading kit. With most factory rifles you will be able to work up a load that is far superior to most hunting expanding ammunition that you can buy and for much less. On top of that you will have a very satisfying hobby.

At the end of the day, if you have loads of dosh and can afford a few grand on a rifle then yes, buy expensive reloading gear, but you won't go far wrong with Lee stuff.

Ps, try Opticswarehouse they are cheaper than Sportsman, they may not have the stuff on their website but talk to them on their live chat service and they will help you out.

[activeviii]

I have started to load my 222 T3 for the same reason as you, can't get a steady supply of cheap PPU.

 

After help from NJC and no doubt more help to follow, i have gone as cheap as possible as i only want a bullet to hit within 30mm at 100 paces. i dont take longer shots than this so no need to pay silly money.

 

I have bought a 2nd hand Lee loader, the one you smack with a hammer in truth its very easy so a wooden hammer is enough to do it. i have only tried A-Max bullets, can be posted as not needed on your ticket £20/100. powder is £40 a shout and will load about 300 case's, primers £4/100

 

i started with 10% less powder as it says on the tub and i have only gone up by about 1gn but im hitting within what im after. i will adjust a little more and try a few differant bullets but for now 38p a click for me is happy days.

 

the lee loader i bought was £30 posted. great thing about it is its all in an A5 size box so i can take it to the range and play with powders and bullets with out having to take half the shed with me.

 

when i up the calibre i will do the same again.

 

ATB

Phil.

[macca]

I have 3 presses - a turret simplex master an O frame Simplex master O frame RCBS. I use them all. I reload 8 calibres. O frames are far more rigid than turrets and cast iron far more rigid than aluminium. You can "spring" aluminium presses on large or badly lubed cases. Lee collet dies are very good, redding competition bushing dies are excellent. A custom made gun will only shoot its potential when fed with high quality handloads - fed **** it will shoot ****. Quality handloads taylored to a gun will invariably shoot to guns potential - target or hunting. There are guys in our club shooting possibles and double possibles in F class open at 300 metres(10 shot groups meauring 3/4 moa at 300M) and not Quality guns with quality handloads give quality results.

Cheers

[pavman]

FB my advise is dont do it without a great deal of thought......

 

i have looked at this a few times and its really not a good idea unless a couple of you shoot the same cal and can share the cost, if you are foxing and anything like jo avg you are looking at between 20 and 40 shots at a live target a year plus perhaps a box to zero so around 3 prehaps 4 boxes a year. I know some lads shoot crows at range etc (dont understand it with a CF but each to their own) so it must take a fair old time to break even re loading . You have already stated factory ammo has served you well so unless you are unloading on targets is it worth it?

[al4x]

I don't think you will break even and it even makes rounds at £30 for 20 probably value for money. However you gain accuracy and consistency and reloading gear will last you forever

[ST3V3]

I have bought a 2nd hand Lee loader, the one you smack with a hammer

 

ATB

Phil.

 

The lee classic loader always scared me a little when I saw them being used but if it works then all good only problem with them that i can see is that I dont think they make them in .222 flavor

frenchie have a look here

assuming you have cases

bullet head 15p

primer 3p

powder 9p (assuming you dont spill any)

so there you go £5.40 a box of twenty.

so with prvi ammo being about £50/100 plus the intial outlay for equipment you should break even after approx 550 rounds before you will see any saving.

hope that helps and I hope I got my sums right if not someone will tell me im sure

Edited September 23, 2010 by ST3V3

[barney 66]

I am going to reload .222 shortly,bought all my gear 2nd hand but bought quality gear,RCBS,Lyman,Redding and maybe a bit more,i can understand people comparing the price of rounds and saying its not worth it if you include the price of the gear,but if you buy quality gear it will either last you a lifetime or if you don't like reloading you can sell up and get most of your money back if not all as quality gear is hard to come by as i found out.

[njc110381]

The Lee Loader isn't made in .222 any more. That's why the one Phil bought was second hand.

 

To be honest to get started all you need is one of these, a scale and an accurate caliper to measure OAL. You can get load data off of the 'net.

[ST3V3]

abc of reloading is a handy book to have a read of

[activeviii]

The Lee Loader isn't made in .222 any more. That's why the one Phil bought was second hand.

 

To be honest to get started all you need is one of these, a scale and an accurate caliper to measure OAL. You can get load data off of the 'net.

 

 

You beat me to it.

 

the reloaded i bought 2nd hand, gave it a clean and its now as new. Neil set it for overall length and showed me the ropes. now i can load 10 rounds in a few minutes as its that easy. ok at the moment im potting the powder but thats only after the pot was set to the right grain of powder, it is very surprisingly accurate.

 

150 rounds and its all paid for itself.

 

Phil.

[DaveK]

Sorry to rain on several parades (would have preferred to have said **** on picnics but thought it might be censored).

 

I've been reloading for a lot of years. Formerly pistols and now rifles. I've had the same LEE presses since the beginning so we're talking somewhere around 20 odd years.

 

My Lee presses are still working very well.

[adymorris]

Get a Lee press - try it use it, if you don't get on with it, sell it on - it will sell really quickly then fork out 5 times as much for "quality gear"