CBR Shadow 53 Posted December 6, 2011 Report Share Posted December 6, 2011 I know there's a reloading section but it gets very little traffic.. I'm considering getting into reloading for .45acp Is it worth it for this caliber? How much of an initial investment is there and what's the avg cost per bullet reloaded? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
physicsnerd 139 Posted December 6, 2011 Report Share Posted December 6, 2011 If you have been saving your once fired brass and want to shoot cast lead bullets it will almost certainly be more cost effective. Without the brass cost, you could probably load 1000 rounds for less than $150. I did a quick check and Missouri Bullet Company has 230 grain hardcast (the most expensive) bullets for $47/500. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
EMAN 12 Posted December 7, 2011 Report Share Posted December 7, 2011 You got to add many hours of labor in there just to save $ But its a good hobby to pic up also. Thanx for the post Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BuffetDestroyer 969 Posted December 7, 2011 Report Share Posted December 7, 2011 If you want cheap, you can get a Lee Turret press kit for under $100 without dies or ~ $130 with dies (use a MidwayUSA coupon or shop Graf & Sons for a sale). Single stage is cheaper but will take too long. Use range pick-up brass like physicsnerd said, or else it will cost almost as much as factory. .45 brass can easily be loaded 5-10 times since it is pretty low pressure. Primers run about 3.3 cents each, you can find deals on plated bullets for 11 cents each (see X-treme bullets or your local bullet manufacturer) Powder like TiteGroup is less than 3 cents per load. So for plinking rounds you are looking at most $.22 a round and the cheapest I can find .45 ACP in currently is TULA at $.27/round before shipping from J&G according to gun-deals website. At a $.10/round savings, you would have to load about 1,300 to pay for your press and dies. This doesn't factor in your time which will be at least an hour to set up your press and dies (have a knowledgable friend help you), plus about 5-10 hours of reload time. If you shoot a lot, it is worth it. If you shoot less than 1,000 rounds per year, I would buy the cheap stuff in bulk and stockpile it. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RobRez 1,895 Posted December 7, 2011 Report Share Posted December 7, 2011 (edited) You may only save .10 per round of regular cheap target ammo. The big savings is in loading your own clean shooting top quality ammo. I know that with my .44mag, my hunting loads are less than a third of the cost. With practice you can load up to 500 rounds in an hour....not too bad to save .75 per round!!! That right there is a savings of $375 !! Bam!!If your Time is not worth $375 an hour, then you don't need to reload. But yes, you must be out there sending this stuff down range to see the big difference quickly. In my opinion, it is worth the added accuracy and top quality bullets, to load my own ammo of as many calibers as possible. Dillon makes presses for multiple cals. such as a set up for .308 and .45. You can simply swap out the dies in minutes and load the other caliber. Edited December 7, 2011 by RobRez 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BuffetDestroyer 969 Posted December 7, 2011 Report Share Posted December 7, 2011 (edited) +1 RobRez For good quality rifle ammo, you can easily save at least 50% off of factory (.308 Federal Gold Medal runs around $1+/round and I can load my pet load that is just as accurate and tuned for my rifle with 168 Matchkings for less than $.45/round). If you plan on doing a multi-caliber setup, the Hornady Lock N Load and Dillon offer excellent products that will be quick, but run around $400 starting without dies or plates and the accessories can get you up to $1500 quickly if you buy automatic everything (bullet feed, shell feed, low primer alarm etc.) to save time. ETA: If you load Hollow points in your plinking loads check out Zero Bullets. Also if you have a specialty setup for suppressors (i.e. subsonic loads) or competition accuracy, getting into reloading quickly becomes very cost effective. Edited December 7, 2011 by BuffetDestroyer 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
FORKLIFT352 63 Posted December 8, 2011 Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 I got a Hornady LnL 2 yr.ago to do .45.... Now it has become a major hobby. I have a whole room dedicated for loading. 12,20,.410 shotgun. ....45,40,9mm .308,.223 Over time I spent the money so if ever their be a run on bullets.....I'm not left standing with Oh shit look at the store. With the Hornady LnL I think you get 500 free bullets. When I got mine it was 1000. Pistol rounds ,if kept modest ,brass can go a long way. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Heath_h49008 442 Posted December 8, 2011 Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 Is it worth reloading to plink... right now, no. Is it worth it for high quality ammo if we go through another pinch in the market like we did a couple years ago when .45ACP went to $40 a box (If you could even find it)... 100% YES! Learn to reload... set aside a good amount of components... reload for your rifle (You have to if you acre about accuracy) There is no downside in reloading some... and a whole lot of benefits. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
YARP 300 Posted December 8, 2011 Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 I always like the excuse that people try to pull "you lose money in labor"......If you can chew gum and walk then you can reload and drink a beer while listening to the game (pick a sport) on the radio. I know, I know it's not like watching it but go a little old fashioned like your Gramps did. The cost comparison never works out either because like Heath said the price of components jump all over the place. It seems to me that when ever I get in to the cost comparison battle the guy who doesn't reload is saying I can get a case of a thousand for the same cost, but the difference is huge because he/she is usually talking about some steel cased blazer vs. a high end component round. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RobRez 1,895 Posted December 8, 2011 Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 Many friends of mine can shoot a hunting rifle with a scope from the bench just as well or better than I can, with little or no practice. Ascope and bench rest do amazing things for accuracy. Shooting pistols however, takes repitition and practice! Lots of practice! By reloading, I can afford to do that shooting. That is the reason my friends can never shoot as accurately as I can. I can pick up a pistol that I have never shot before, and usually shoot it better than the guy who owns it, if he doesn't shoot a lot. Not because I am an amazing marksman by any means, just due to practice. It becomes a natural movement and process. Anyone can get good at it with repitition and knowledge of what they are doing wrong!! My equipment paid for itself Years ago!! YARP hit it on the Nose!! I turn on music, grab a beer, and get to it! It really beats sitting on the couch, wishing I had more ammo. I have my loads down perfectly to suit what MY pistols shoot the best! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
FORKLIFT352 63 Posted December 8, 2011 Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 Last I looked .45 was close to 400.00 Per 1000...(brass FMJ dry box) I spend 100.00 LRN per 1000 35.00 per 1000 primers 20.00 for 1lb. Powder=1000+ powder charge. ....brass free or for very cheep. Soooooo. ...155.00 per 1000 If you cast your own bullets it could be as low as 55.00 per 1000. Like I said I will not have that empty feeling when I go to the store for ammo next year.... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Heath_h49008 442 Posted December 10, 2011 Report Share Posted December 10, 2011 You are paying WAAAAAYYY to much for ammo. http://www.sgammo.com/product/aguila/special-purchase-1000-rds-45-acp-auto-230-gr-fmj-brass-case-aguila-ammo That's for brass 230gr ball... if you're willing to use steel case it's only $20-$40 cheaper per 1000. 29.2-31.5 cents per round shipped to your door. But yes... buy components now and save all the brass you can. Reload for practice and all that. It's just not as good a deal as it once was considering the risk of human errors, and the cost of time. YMMV. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CBR Shadow 53 Posted December 11, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 11, 2011 You are paying WAAAAAYYY to much for ammo. http://www.sgammo.co...ase-aguila-ammo That's for brass 230gr ball... if you're willing to use steel case it's only $20-$40 cheaper per 1000. 29.2-31.5 cents per round shipped to your door. But yes... buy components now and save all the brass you can. Reload for practice and all that. It's just not as good a deal as it once was considering the risk of human errors, and the cost of time. YMMV. The brass you quote above is $0.29 / round, and the steel cased would be $0.27/round + shipping (what does shipping cost on this much ammo?) . The stuff I buy straight from cabelas is $0.27 and no shipping, plus I dont have to buy 1000 rounds at a time. Seems like Cabelas is the better deal. ($13.69 per 50rnd box of Herter's steel case 230gr .45acp) Unless the steel cased stuff you're talking about is better. Last I looked .45 was close to 400.00 Per 1000...(brass FMJ dry box) I spend 100.00 LRN per 1000 35.00 per 1000 primers 20.00 for 1lb. Powder=1000+ powder charge. ....brass free or for very cheep. Soooooo. ...155.00 per 1000 If you cast your own bullets it could be as low as 55.00 per 1000. Like I said I will not have that empty feeling when I go to the store for ammo next year.... You get free brass and free lead for casting? Do you use wheel weights or something? I've heard of doing this but I've read recently that zinc is used in wheel weights now. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Heath_h49008 442 Posted December 11, 2011 Report Share Posted December 11, 2011 I avoid steel case ammo if I have the option... If Cabela's has new 230gr bulk that cheap, cool! I just spat out some quick links I had. $400 was the going rate. Also, you can make boolits.... you can make powder... you can find, clean, and size brass... But you NEED primers. (they can be made, but not easily) My point being... stock up! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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