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by strogg
Fri Aug 28, 2020 9:42 am
Forum: General Gun, Shooting & Equipment Discussion
Topic: Getting Started Reloading with Limited Space
Replies: 8
Views: 4066

Re: Getting Started Reloading with Limited Space

Let me add my $0.02.

You'll probably want a lot of bins too. I have a whole bunch of those plastic shoebox bins from Walmart that I use to store brass that are going through the reloading process so I don't mix them up.

For presses, a single stage RCBS should fit the bill. RCBS parts are incredibly good bang for the buck.

Powder scales are hit and miss. Mostly miss. But you can make a cheap powder scale work for you in the long run if you just want to churn out ammo. You'll have to measure it several times and wait for the numbers to stop drifting. You'll eventually get a good, consistent measurement. It's a tad annoying, but considering you'll only do it once every time you adjust the powder measure, it's not the worst thing to use a cheap scale. I personally use a $20 Lyman digital scale. It works well enough. If you're thinking of getting into precision shooting and continually testing loads, then getting a much better scale will be worth the money.

As for dies, I mostly use Redding, RCBS, and Lee. Redding is great for precision. RCBS, again, is good bang for buck. The Lee dies are just cheap and cheerful. Keep in mind that RCBS dies typically have their nuts lock with a brass set screw. It can get knocked loose or stripped if you're not careful. I like to replace them with steel set screws. It's typically a set and forget anyway. Lee dies have looser tolerances. I notice that on mine, there's a lot of movement on the seater die, which leads to less-than-consistent OALs. It will also start backing out a bit over time. For those loads you don't care for precision, it's not a big deal. But for consistency, I'd go for RCBS or better. Also, Lee dies use rubber rings as a friction lock for the nuts. They will definitely move around. I put index marks on mine to make sure they are always in the same position. Lastly, their expander dies tend to catch on the brass. It's mildly annoying. But it's a lot harder to over expand the brass with those compared to RCBS. Overall, I don't really recommend Lee, but they function. And they will last. It's not worth the money for me to replace the ones I got already.

There's a thread on lube. I suggest you check that out. Same for brass cleaning.

Also, if you are getting into this to save money, it's probably not going to happen. For the most part it won't make economic sense to hand load unless you're shooting odd/expensive calibers or making a career out of it.

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