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You don't need a tutor. However, books are indicated. I was very impressed with Richard Lee's book. Lyman manuals have been around for more than a century, originally under the name Ideal before Lyman bought that firm. Your Redding press should do whatever you need. I have learned that a second press is a real convenience. Lee makes an inexpensive single stage press that I actually received as a free bonus when I bought the first edition of their loading manual. I now keep it for decapping using Lee's universal decapping die. Lee makes inexpensive but innovative products.
My first press was the RCBS A-2. After a half century they still make the very similar Rockchucker. You can definitely save money if you cast bullets. It's hard but not impossible to find free wheelweights these days, but assuming that you do and that you scurry after your empties you'll load for under a nickel per round. Watch gunshows for primers and powder. There are all sorts of molds on ebay, fewer on gunbroker.
You will need good calipers, not the garbage often labeled with the names of companies in the handloading business. Calipers can suffer damage so buy new. Starrett, Brown & Sharpe, and Mitutoyo are the best brands. Shop around for the best price. You will need a good 0-1'' micrometer, but that's not necessary at this time. I do suggest that you order a Brownells catalog to seee a good selection of quality tools and a great deal more.
I'd start with rimmed cases; they are about as problem free as possible. Buy carbide dies. The Lee factory crimp dies finishes the job well.
Do not handload to save money. You will load for less money, but the real purpose is to find the best loads for your gun. You'll also have loads that the ammo companies simply don't sell.
Thanks for the information on how to get started. I have recently acquired a couple uncommon calibers, 35 Whelen and 454 Casull, so looks like I need to take up reloading or shoot my self into the poor house. The 35 Whelen came as a Remington 700 CDL and the 454 came with 2 Ruger Super Redhawks, one in 2.75 inch barrel Alaskan and another in 5.5 inch Toklat. So you can say I am pretty committed to reloading in the future.
In addition, I'll be loading the 45LC tier-3 Ruger-only loads, and .357 magnum 180-200 grain hard-cast loads. After that, I'd be happy to tailor my 308 win and 7.62X54R for some good hunting loads. The NatGeo show "Life Below Zero" where Chip's wife, a native Alaska woman was able to use a Mosin Nagant 7.62X54R shooting running Caribu ~300 yds out has inspired me
I just reload a few rounds each year for my .338WM rifle I use for hunting in Alaska. If I fire some factory rounds, then I save the cases and neck size-them for a period of perhaps 2 additional firings. So, new full-sized brass at the beginning, then two neck-sizing follows. My bullet of choice these days is the 225-grain Barnes 3-shock tipped, and use the Barnes online reloading data. Since it often gets cold during the moose season, I cycle the neck-sized rounds though the rifle both during the summer, and on a cold rifle during moose season. The rifle has a 3-position safety, which is handy when cycling ammo through it.
Finding good reasonably priced brass for the 6mm has been a hard find. I have an 80's model Remington Varminter in 6mm. I load for it. Brass these days can get close to $1.00 a round as it seems like the round is only made as a seasonal component. I've seen it as high as $1.50 a round. Remington brand brass is only made once every 3 years. You need to be standing in line with credit card out to get any. Luckily I stashed a lot of it away years ago. I'm shooting a max load of IMR4350 under a custom 75gr HP and getting a hair over 3500'ps out of it. Bad medicine on coyotes out to 600yds. It sports a tuned Leupold 6.5-20 target scope on it with a custom 1.5lb trigger. It's accurate enough to call the shot on a yote at 600yds if the shooter is capable.
I started back in the early 70's stuffing ammo. At the time, all I had was a 243 and a 3006. Now when someone asks "What do you load for?" I just answer- everything. I load for stuff most folks never even heard of like the 45 Clerke or the 6x 45. I'm old school which means a progressive loader will never be in the reloading room. Far too many mistakes happen with those things. I can't afford mistakes which is why I load for a bunch of commercial trappers and family. I do it for fun, not for hire. For hire brings a lot of unwanted regulations and BS. Besides, I enjoy the challenge of making a rifle/pistol shoot match quality groups that otherwise might considered a lemon gun.
If anybody comes across any 7.62x 39 BRASS, not steel case, at a great price, I'm looking for some. Needs to be once fired brass and reloadable. Don't care if it came out of a machine gun as long as it doesn't have the ribbed chamber markings on the case wall. Couple of thousand rounds would be nice.
The 6mm was originally the .244 Remington when it was first introduced in the mid 1950s, around the same time the .243 Winchester was introduced. The .243 won shooters' acceptance because it was capable of shooting 100-grain bullets, whereas the .244 did not gain the same popularity because the heaviest bullet it accepted was 80-85 grains because of the slower rifling twist (.244's 1 in 12" vs .243's 1 in 9"). Remington revised the design of the cartridge in 1963 and renamed it the 6mm Rem.
I agree with you, the price of brass cases in all calibers has sky-rocketed over the past few years. I remember getting Remington and Winchester brass cases for the various calibers I reload for something like .9 or .10 cents per case for the 6mm Rem cases, now they can run up to over a $1.00 per case.
What's the relationship between case length, and overall cartridge length?
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Originally Posted by Happy in Wyoming
There is none.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TaxPhd
Yeah, I knew the answer. I was just curious what he would say.
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Originally Posted by M3 Mitch
True, I think Magnum Mike's point was that the commercial reloads he had experience with had varying overall loaded length, too long can prevent chambering or feeding, too short gives more freebore before the bullet meets the rifling than optimal.
They also had varying *case* length, this can result in inconsistent crimping, if one is roll crimping.
So it's two separate problems, as I see it.
TaxPhd, sorry for the late response, and I see others have already answered your question.
Without going into too many technical details, the case length variations may not affect the overall cartridge length, and M3 Mitch explained it well. However, when a rifle round is chambered, variations in trim length can have an effect on overall accuracy due to the variations in the gap between the rim of the case and the beginning of the rifling at the end of the chamber, and that can have an effect on the pressure. Keep in mind that variations of up to .03/.04 will not cause significant accuracy issues, it's when you have ones like .10".
That's why I like to keep the trim length on all cartridges consistent.
I think 6mm Remington brass is the same thing as 7mm Mauser brass, but necked down to 6mm. That said I don't see tons of 7mm Mauser brass available either. Been a while since it was a military cartridge used by an army.
I guess just shop Midway or similar and buy a big bulk bag to get the lowest per-round cost. 1000 rounds of brass would last a guy quite a while.
Got my RCBS Rock chucker single stage back in 88 and reload for Pistols only, 44mag,357mag, 9mm, 45acp,
took a break with marriage and having kids.
Glad i kept all my equipment' I pulled it all back out and set up a little bench in my basement a few years ago , I find it relaxing especially in the long winter when trapped indoors, I turn on my stereo and little Heater and load away..
I think 6mm Remington brass is the same thing as 7mm Mauser brass, but necked down to 6mm. That said I don't see tons of 7mm Mauser brass available either. Been a while since it was a military cartridge used by an army.
I guess just shop Midway or similar and buy a big bulk bag to get the lowest per-round cost. 1000 rounds of brass would last a guy quite a while.
The 7mm Mauser was also based on the 8mm Mauser cartridge. I know Ruger chambered their M77 rifles in the 7mm Mauser a while back.
When I first started reloading back in 1986, I was looking for a rifle in one of the 7mm calibers, and I explored the .284 Win, 7mm-08 Rem, the 7mm Mauser, and the 7mm Rem. magnum, they're all excellent calibers, but I decided to go with the .280 Remington. I still have that same rifle with a new stainless steel target barrel.
Got my RCBS Rock chucker single stage back in 88 and reload for Pistols only, 44mag,357mag, 9mm, 45acp, took a break with marriage and having kids.
Glad i kept all my equipment' I pulled it all back out and set up a little bench in my basement a few years ago , I find it relaxing especially in the long winter when trapped indoors, I turn on my stereo and little Heater and load away..
Nice. I have an RCBS Rock Chucker also, bought the first one in 1993 and the newest one in Dec. 2015.
Arrghhh finally got a stuck case. I need to quit messin around with military brass that's all blown out. The rim on this case separated. Stuck case kit on the way and this die set will be down for 10 days.
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I reload as well.
I have an RCBS Rock Chucker also, bought the first one in 1993 and the newest one in Dec. 2015.
