gsm1968 Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 I got exellent results with reloads, but I realy only did it as a cost cutting exercise. I now only use factory loads. The time and effort is just not worth it anymore. I'm happy for my group to be 5mm bigger with the convenience of grabbing ammo of the shelf. What was that about multi million pound factories being as good as anyone? Hmm, I beg to differ! Have you seen how many home loaders screw up, with terrible results? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunkield Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 Exactly no home loader will brag about the load that got stuck in his rifle or blew it to bits. A couple of other things to bear in mind are IIRC home loading will also invalidate the warranty on a new rifle. I have shot somewhere they are banned as well, I can't remember now but it may have been BASC Arran? liability insurance was stated reason anyway. Each to their own, as long as you are happy that's all that matters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ackley Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 hone loading is ALL about consistancy,which isnt available with factory ammo,they vary from bathg to batch and also vary in the same box,if you care to measure a few,also the powder charge isnt weighed it is loaded in volume,so again inconsitancy all these little inconsistancys add to to poor accuracy and that shot that you pulled out of your superb .5 group,which wasnt pulled it was the ammo by home loading you are tuning the ammo to suit your rifle so inconsistancys will hopefully be reduced when loaded correctly, if you are lucky enough to find factory ammo which suits your rifle go back to the shop and buy as much as they have on the shelf with the same batch number, I havnt used a factory round for over 15 years,and with the price of them I wounldnt want to dont knock the reloaders just because they want better ammo,also when you get into it,it is quite enjoyable yes the setting up can be quite expensive if buying good gear but you still then have it to load thousands of rounds which which be the same.you can spend as little or as much as you want on loading gear, Iam just waiting for my new annealing machine to arrive over £400 worth(just an example)just to soften the necks but it will pay for itself for the amount I reload Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenchieboy Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 (edited) I only use "Factory Ammo" in my 2 rifles and have no complaints for what I shoot at the ranges I tend to shoot my quarry from. I use either Hornady red tips or Federals in my 17HMR and can shoot a sub 1 inch group at 100 yards and I use Partizans in my .243 which regularly give me a 1 inch (ish) group at 100 yards! They do what I ask (They both give me clean, humane kills) so I am happy with that. I have only had one fox that ran after I put a 100g soft point (.243) in him and he dropped within about 20 yards so I will stick with the "Factory Ammo"! I don't have the space or the facilities for reloading anyway and I don't use enough ammo to warrant the expenditure of all of the reloading equipment, but that is irrelevant to the original question anyway, plus I believe in the saying "If it aint broke then don't try to fix it"! Edit: I should add that I can however see and understand the satisfaction and pleasure that you can get from "Home Loading" and getting succesful results from using your own "recipes"! Edited May 14, 2011 by Frenchieboy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inthedark Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 (edited) All this talk from reloaders about how wonderfull their ammo is just doesn't ring true. Yes its nice when it happens, and it can happen, don't get me wrong. But how often does a bloke in his garage beat a high tec factory with all the R&D resources available to them? Ammo manufacturers don't produce rubbish. Some rifles don't like some brands, thats life. I have been reloading for 40 years, yes I have produced some good stuff but I have also produced some utter rubbish so lets just say its a compromise at best. Every time, its the difference between mass produced and bespoke. Edit = (bit over the top on font size) Edited May 14, 2011 by inthedark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunkield Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 See, those home loads have made you go deaf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyb Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 Agree with Ackley... If reloading didn't produce better ammo then surely there wouldn't be a large industry to support the subject - after all who wants to produce ammo that shoots worse!? What is certain is that handloads ARE made to tighter controls than factory - you only have to weigh a factory charge, or check the OAL to see that.. Stuart... Handloads are banned on most / all BASC leases (but.. I've been told by BASC themselves that no one really cares or checks! How could you tell a handload from a factory?) Apparently there was a horror story in thetford once with a double charge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magman Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 Never shot factory ammo in c/f so wouldn't no How many re loaders have stopped and gone back to factory ammo ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kent Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 Agree with Ackley... If reloading didn't produce better ammo then surely there wouldn't be a large industry to support the subject - after all who wants to produce ammo that shoots worse!? What is certain is that handloads ARE made to tighter controls than factory - you only have to weigh a factory charge, or check the OAL to see that.. Stuart... Handloads are banned on most / all BASC leases (but.. I've been told by BASC themselves that no one really cares or checks! How could you tell a handload from a factory?) Apparently there was a horror story in thetford once with a double charge. When i checked on this for Aran booking i was told by hq they had dropped the rule but i may be chroned to prove legality (couldn't even buy factory for the gun i had) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kent Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 All this talk from reloaders about how wonderfull their ammo is just doesn't ring true. Yes its nice when it happens, and it can happen, don't get me wrong. But how often does a bloke in his garage beat a high tec factory with all the R&D resources available to them? Ammo manufacturers don't produce rubbish. Some rifles don't like some brands, thats life. I have been reloading for 40 years, yes I have produced some good stuff but I have also produced some utter rubbish so lets just say its a compromise at best. thats the difference in re-loads and hand loads. i doubt any serious benchrest shooter would use factory in a comp even if thier gun could chamber it, so quite a few people in garages beat those high tec factories. Does it make a difference to normal stalking results etc? nope not if we are honest. Can i beat factory rounds? you bet your life i can Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highseas Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 well for me and my .223 i could only get 1 inch with sake arrow heads but they where 25£ a box and a 40 mile drive to get them other than that it was feddral 55grn soft points at 2" groups or sake game head at the same group size now i shot for years with them and got on ok and killed a lot of vermin but at 200 yrds the groups werenot good enugh to shoot even rabbits so i was very limited in my range and vermin sheets showed this now i reload for ahlf the price, i have some thing else to fill time in when i cant sleep ( other than fly tying) and i gan get 1/4 to hal inch groups and can shoot crows out to 300-400 yards not every time but more often than not, so for me re-loading has changed my shooting, and thrue buying bullet heads/primers off hear and other forums sooo much cheaper i got 800 horandy heads for £70 not to long ago and 500 rounds down in a month Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince Green Posted May 14, 2011 Report Share Posted May 14, 2011 Never shot factory ammo in c/f so wouldn't no How many re loaders have stopped and gone back to factory ammo ? Well I have, because I don't see the advantage any more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted May 15, 2011 Report Share Posted May 15, 2011 Ah yes vince but you went to privi which explains a lot about your reloads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince Green Posted May 15, 2011 Report Share Posted May 15, 2011 Ah yes vince but you went to privi which explains a lot about your reloads. Not as much as you might think actually. years ago my main reason to reload was cost. Apart from military surplus which was often **** I could reload and save myself half the cost of factory ammo. I don't fully understand why that still isn't true today. My reloads now actually cost more than privi so there is no way I am standing out in my garage for hours at a time to lose money. I can still hit the bullseye if I do it right with privi. The rest as they say is detail Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dunkield Posted May 15, 2011 Report Share Posted May 15, 2011 How many re loaders have stopped and gone back to factory ammo ? I have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cossygun Posted May 15, 2011 Report Share Posted May 15, 2011 i just bought a tikka t3 lite in .243 tried it out with 100grn ppu and all within 1" at 100yrds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince Green Posted May 15, 2011 Report Share Posted May 15, 2011 (edited) thats the difference in re-loads and hand loads. i doubt any serious benchrest shooter would use factory in a comp even if thier gun could chamber it, so quite a few people in garages beat those high tec factories. Does it make a difference to normal stalking results etc? nope not if we are honest. Can i beat factory rounds? you bet your life i can Benchrest shooters are a different story, they tend to shoot calibres that aren't really available as factory loads. they turn their cases and ream the flash holes etc. Yes you can produce exception accuracy but is that within the scope of the average reloader and is it necessary to bring home a deer or a fox? thats the real question. I would suggest that the real advantage in reloading is not to place yourself at the mercy of the dealer network who buy whatever ammunition is giving the best deal at the time and change brands as they see fit and are often out of stock. Edited May 15, 2011 by Vince Green Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyb Posted May 15, 2011 Report Share Posted May 15, 2011 And that vince.. Is exactly why I reload The added accuracy and geekyness are welcome extra's... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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