Why YOU should get into reloading. Yes, YOU.

[Expatriate]

I always thought that primers were the only component in reloading that couldn't be reused and couldn't be homemade. Turns out I was wrong. Doktor_Jeep pointed this out in the original post but I wanted to discuss it more and find out if anyone has experience with this method.

You use the white parts from the ends of "strike anywhere" matches, crushed carefully into powder, to refill your primers.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=113826
http://www.roguesci.org/theforum/showthread.php?t=3317

You can reuse a primer, here is how (as taught in the book Homemade Guns & Homemade Ammo) :

1. Push out/remove primer with a small nail.
2. Carefully remove the anvil from the primer cup (do not lose this 'the anvil' ! ).
3. With the flat head of a nail (using a hammer) re flatten the inside of the primer cup where (the dent) the firing pin hit.
4. Carefuly remove the white or blue part (at the tip) of a strike anywhere match, then powderize (if you are not carefull it can strike the match) it then pack it in the primer cup "tight" till it is half full and will not fall out if upside-down.
5. Replace the anvil into the primer cup.
6. Push back into the brass (the casing).
you are done (these work like a charm)

You can also use the remainder of the match heads to make a gunpowder substitute by crushing them. Probably not as powerful, clean or "smokeless", but much better than nothing.

Can someone with a gun try this out and tell me how well it works compared to regular ammo? I'm really curious as to whether the recoil would knock the packed match heads out of the primers in the magazine? PLEASE
I don't own any guns since I live in Ontario right now and refuse to bow down, get fingerprinted and register my weapon just to own a long gun (pistols are out of the question in Ontario).

This is really interesting to me (even though I have no guns) since it would remove most of the "control points" that the government could theoretically impose on the ammunition supply to civilians. As long as you had brass, dies and a press you could keep shooting until your brass wore out.

[rwbris18]

I had a Kentucky percussion cap longrifle. It was very accurate.

You can store the percussion caps just as easily as you could store primers. I beleive the difference is in making your own black powder and bullets. The bullet is easy... all you need is to store a mold.

Question 1: Will the white match tip work in a percussion cap or can you make percussion caps?
Question 2: Has anyone used firework powder?

If things get this difficult (shtf), I don't think you will be shooting every day but saving your ammo for when needed. I recommend you just keep a few extra thousand rounds handy whether you reload or not.

[New York For Paul]

I just saw a reloading magazine at seven eleven.

Are there any other good books to recommend?

[Bill M DC]

FYI...The Cove campground in Gore, VA has a gun range.

[Cap]

Deleted

[Expatriate]

Question 1: Will the white match tip work in a percussion cap or can you make percussion caps?
Question 2: Has anyone used firework powder?

Question 1: I'm 99% sure that it will, as long as there isn't way too much or way too little in the cap. Still, we need someone to test it for us.

Question 2: I've used firework powder from "roman candles" for small scale bb-firing cannons on an r/c model sailing ship I built once, and I can tell you this: it's MUCH less powerful than black powder, and makes MUCH more fire and smoke. I doubt you could really hurt anything with a projectile launched that way, which is why I used it instead of black powder for my ship's cannons, since I didn't want to injure anyone by accident.

I just saw a reloading magazine at seven eleven.

Are there any other good books to recommend?

I haven't read them, but you could take a look at these ones, they got good reviews on Amazon:

ABC's of Reloading

Precision Shooting Reloading Guide

Lee Precision Modern Reloading 2nd Edition

Hornady Reloading Handbook 7th Edition

Nice setup Cap! How much did that all cost you?

[Cap]

I just saw a reloading magazine at seven eleven.

Are there any other good books to recommend?

What would you be interested in learning about? Centerfire or shotshell reloading?

Here's a good start:


http://www.lymanproducts.com/lymanproducts/books.htm

[Doktor_Jeep]

For anyone in the Seattle/Cascadia zone I will be doing a reloading class on November 2 in Monroe.

I have 7 years experience as a firearms instructor with Florida Fish and Wildlife so teaching is not alien to me.

[Cap]

For anyone in the Seattle/Cascadia zone I will be doing a reloading class on November 2 in Monroe.

I have 7 years experience as a firearms instructor with Florida Fish and Wildlife so teaching is not alien to me.

I strongly recommend that if anyone has ever thought about getting into reloading, that they take the good Doktor up on this offer. This is a skill that can be very useful in the future. WARNING: It's highly addictive once you take that first step.

[rwbris18]

For anyone in the Seattle/Cascadia zone I will be doing a reloading class on November 2 in Monroe.

Anyone in Austin, Texas want to hold a class I can attend?

[BeFranklin]

Sounds like a good business to run out of your garage if the SHTF, lol.

"Lead for Silver"

lol

More like Hi ho Silver

[clytle374]

For anyone here who reloads. I recently bought a Lee factory crimp die for 233 and would highly recommend it for any bottle necked case. After actually using it, it isn't effected by case length nearly as much as standard crimps and while adding another step to the process it provides a much more uniform crimp and cartridge OAL.

I have to say it isn't just better, it make the old way seem like the wrong way. For about $10.

[Expatriate]

Here's a bunch of reloading manuals in .pdf form you can download for free:
Basic Reloading for Hunters
Ammunition, Reloading and Basic Ballistics
Reloading Guide for Centerfire Cartridges
How To Make Your Own Tracer Ammo

You need a username and password to download them so use this one:
username: randomperson5282
password: randomperson
or create your own account (requires email address)

[Doktor_Jeep]

More like Hi ho Silver

Well technically since the government does not consider silver to be real money...


But if you sell ammo without an FFL for fiat notes (what they call money) you will go straight to prison for years and years.


Therefore, if you traded ammo for silver coinage, those marked "trade unit" and not with actual dollar values stamped on them, would that be "selling ammo without a license" since it's the very government that says silver and gold are not real money to the point that they raided Liberty Dollar?

To convict a person for that, they would have to prove that silver coin is indeed real money then for a crime to have been committed, but that means we can use silver coin at the store.

And if everybody started using competing currency and dropped the play money, the Leviathan state would collapse in a year.

Yes you can do more damage with silver than you can do with lead. With silver you bring down the state, not lead.

The lead is for what the state will try to do to you if you use silver, or what you can do about that turn of events.

[xd9fan]

I want to reload the 7.5 swiss.
I see 2 die sets and 3 die sets out there.

Which set shoud I get?

thanks

[Doktor_Jeep]

I want to reload the 7.5 swiss.
I see 2 die sets and 3 die sets out there.

Which set shoud I get?

thanks

Hmmmm

Chances are you will use that caliber for accuracy?

A single stage press might be the ticket. But please provide more details on those die sets.

As I recall, a 2 die rifle set is basically one for resize and deprime, and the other for seating and crimping. But a 3 die set might be to seperate the seating and crimping stages, and that is more workable with a progressive press. Most progressive or turret presses have 4 positions for dies, one for resize-deprime, the other is for powder (sometime to expand the case mouth slightly) one for seating and the last for crimping.

With a single stage, you will invite trouble if you have seated rounds that are not crimped shortly afterwards so I recommend the 2 die set if you want to go with a single stage. But 3 is OK for a progressive and you have the freedom to experiment with different crimp levels (that can affect accuracy) or use different crimping dies that better suit your needs (factory crimp, taper crimp, roll crimp....).

[Pennsylvania]

I want to get into this and I've got a buddy who'd want to get into it too so I was thinking for Christmas I'd get him some of the basic gear or something. I was considering either a loading press or a Die set (I usually go in the $30-40 dollar range but I'm flexible).

If anyone has an idea what would make a good reloading gift for the first time reloader I'd really appreciate it. We typically shoot 5.56 NATO rounds if that helps

[Pennsylvania]

bump

[Doktor_Jeep]

Lee has very cheap single stage presses for starters. Perhaps they still have that deal where you get a manual with it too. I think it costs around 80-100 to get completely started but that depends on the going rate for powder, bullets, and primer. It will cost more.

[thesnoo23]

Is there anyone who might be in Arizona around late February/March timeframe who would be willing to give me a quick reloading lesson? I plan on getting some books, but I learn much better from watching and doing than from reading.

[Expatriate]

There's some good introductory reloading videos on Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYS_3VsmOP0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Zuai...eature=related

http://www.youtube.com/results?searc...rch_type=&aq=f

[Uriel999]

So I've started to get interested in reloading but preparing primers from matches and casting lead bullets sounds well...I'd rather just buy those parts. Molten hot lead does sound like anything I would like to be around. How much do those set you back typically to just buy new primer components and the pointy end parts?

[ihsv]

I think I'm getting the reloading bug. Just in time for Christmas, too

[Cap]

Today, I am teaching a friend of mine both Shotshell and Rifle/Pistol reloading. Starting with the basics and then later we'll cover how to fine tune your ammunition.

There is a lot to learn and if you do decide to get into it, my best advice is to read...read...read. Make a goal to learn all aspects of reloading, learn as much as possible, so you can teach someone else.

There is a lot more to reloading than putting a primer, powder and a bullet in a case, Learn it right and learn it safe.

[ghengis86]

Doktor Jeep:

first off, thanks for the thread. i've been on the fence on getting into reloading. Between this thread and a close buddy's experience (who reloads his own handgun calibers for 7-10 cents per round) and another price increase at my local gun store (they do a good job, but $17 for 50, .40, 185gr FMJ's is getting ridiculous) i think its way past time i get serious about this ammo necessity.

now to the nitty gritty and a plea for some advice.

first here is what i want to be able to reload. I shoot .40 in my XD. I try to shoot twice a month ~250 rounds a session but it usually ends up being one ~300 session. i also have a .22lr that i use for plinking. .22lr ammo is not bad yet, so this caliber is not a factor. my brother-in-law got a 9mm for christmas (where's mine pops-in-law?) and we now shoot together. he would throw down some cash for a press that we could share. I am also building an AR-15, so i want to be able to reload .223. so to recap, i want to be able to load .40, 9mm, .223.

I thinking the dillon RL 550B would be my best bet. is this an accurate assessment?
also, from Cap above, i'm suppose to read, read, read; where the best place to start? is the dillon instuction manual suffiecient to start reloading my .40 and 9mm?

Next, bullets, brass, powder and primers.
bullets: not too scarce yet, so i'm alright. cheaperthandirt.com is scarce on brass; any other suggestions on sources in these times? (i do pick up my own). primers; what do i need to get for this?

thanks for all the info in this thread. i apologize if i'm asking questions that have already been answered; i read the thread a few weeks ago and didn't go through it again before this post.

thanks!

[Doktor_Jeep]

For the price, the Dillon 550 is the most versatile and reliable. I am sure other models can be mentioned, or the better versions of the Dillon. But the key words "for the price" - I mean it. You only need one of these presses and it will last.

Brass at this point is all about what you pick up. Here is a tip: there are still people who will drive their Suburban to the range and blow off ammo before going home to watch the game on their plasma TV. In other words, there are still oblivious people out there who still have money. These people leave good brass behind. Spend a day at a public range and if possible, if it's not guarded by range nazis, there could be a brass bucket on hand being filled by these rich oblivious sheep (who probably supported McCain for being pro gun har har har - damned fools) and that is a gold mine for reloadable brass.

Primers - get the right size at least and never confuse pistol primers for rifle primers. Get them by the sleeve - thats 5000 per sleeve and it will cost you but this is necessary because you might be able to get 2 sleeves one week and then before you know it no place has any more in stock for the next month, so get it by the sleeve and as many as you can afford because the supply is not reliable.

The same can be said for powder. Do not purchase by the pound, purchase by the keg (8 lbs) In November we purchased 24 pounds of gunpowder (it all arrived on the 5th, by the way and I am not making that up). Prior to that we spent a month searching every joint in the region and they were all out - we had to take the shipping hit and order it special and even that took a long time.

Bullets - cast your own. Wheel weights are everywhere. Find SCUBA weights on Craigslist too. Old boats - if you can find any in a boat yard to have access too - may have a lot of lead ballast. Lead must be hardened a bit. Forget expensive antimony that for high-class rifle loads just use solder - get it by the role. Put in a 2' line into one 4lb melting pot full and that's only if you start out with pure lead. If you can, it is possible to salvage bullets from the backstops (being green eh?) and reuse them. I must have done a quarter-ton of bullets like that. It's a pain in the ass there are risks but I never was in want for bullets.


Yes things are getting tight and supplies are short, but that's the way it is until we die or the world is free.

[patriot.manifesto]

one question. do you need a dealers license to sell ammo? if not then why don't one of you fine people get into the business of selling recycled ammo or offer a service where people send you their brass and lead and in return get ammo for a small fee?

[Doktor_Jeep]

one question. do you need a dealers license to sell ammo? if not then why don't one of you fine people get into the business of selling recycled ammo or offer a service where people send you their brass and lead and in return get ammo for a small fee?

You need an FFL to sell ammo.

However you don't need an FLL to teach it. And someone who will not load their own is likely the sort who just wants to be an adult-sized child and play with guns, not use them in accordance of what the Second Amendment implies.

If someone offers to buy ammo from you, it's either just another useless baby boomer who is too lazy or a fed trying to set you up.


One thing that is considerable however is that since the government does not (and refuses to) consider silver as real money, I suppose TRADING ammo for silver trade units could not be illegal. However what is legal and illegal does not matter to this regime that does whatever it wants anyway. They make it look like they still care so they can play their gotcha game of lawfare on gun owners and patriots.

I just lend ammo or give it away.

[patriot.manifesto]

You need an FFL to sell ammo.

However you don't need an FLL to teach it. And someone who will not load their own is likely the sort who just wants to be an adult-sized child and play with guns, not use them in accordance of what the Second Amendment implies.

If someone offers to buy ammo from you, it's either just another useless baby boomer who is too lazy or a fed trying to set you up.


One thing that is considerable however is that since the government does not (and refuses to) consider silver as real money, I suppose TRADING ammo for silver trade units could not be illegal. However what is legal and illegal does not matter to this regime that does whatever it wants anyway. They make it look like they still care so they can play their gotcha game of lawfare on gun owners and patriots.

I just lend ammo or give it away.

Perhaps go through all the paper work for the FFL and market it? Just trying to give you ideas for making some fiat dollars. Instead of not being worth gold maybe they can be worth bullets no but it is a good thing to learn how to reload. My friend does his for when he hunts but that's very few. He's teaching me how it's done. but it's not a big demand in NJ. Even if you own a single shot .22 you're pretty much on the watch list. The restrictions here are absurd. I'm moving to PA.

[phill4paul]

Well technically since the government does not consider silver to be real money...


But if you sell ammo without an FFL for fiat notes (what they call money) you will go straight to prison for years and years.


Therefore, if you traded ammo for silver coinage, those marked "trade unit" and not with actual dollar values stamped on them, would that be "selling ammo without a license" since it's the very government that says silver and gold are not real money to the point that they raided Liberty Dollar?

To convict a person for that, they would have to prove that silver coin is indeed real money then for a crime to have been committed, but that means we can use silver coin at the store.

And if everybody started using competing currency and dropped the play money, the Leviathan state would collapse in a year.

Yes you can do more damage with silver than you can do with lead. With silver you bring down the state, not lead.

The lead is for what the state will try to do to you if you use silver, or what you can do about that turn of events.

+