Any reloaders out there?

[millertime24 8]

You should find this one pretty funny. And to think I just wasted 1500 on a bunch of reloading crap when all I needed was a hammer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98I1i8Toj8E

Muff #5048

[steve1 5]

That video looks like a sure fire way to blow you or your gun up.

On a more serious note, I don't think there is much wrong with that cheap little lee loader. I heard they are very time consuming but that you can get a decent reload out of them.

I still use the same RCBS junior press that I was given for Christmas 45 years ago. I reload for precision accuracy as well as saving dollars.....

[Amazon 7]

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That video looks like a sure fire way to blow you or your gun up.

On a more serious note, I don't think there is much wrong with that cheap little lee loader. I heard they are very time consuming but that you can get a decent reload out of them.

I still use the same RCBS junior press that I was given for Christmas 45 years ago. I reload for precision accuracy as well as saving dollars.....

I am still using the Rock Chuker I inherited from my grandfather when he passed in 1968. Still have a bunch of his original dies too

[millertime24 8]

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That video looks like a sure fire way to blow you or your gun up.

On a more serious note, I don't think there is much wrong with that cheap little lee loader. I heard they are very time consuming but that you can get a decent reload out of them.

I still use the same RCBS junior press that I was given for Christmas 45 years ago. I reload for precision accuracy as well as saving dollars.....

I am still using the Rock Chuker I inherited from my grandfather when he passed in 1968. Still have a bunch of his original dies too

Thats pretty sweet. I need to expand my die selection to include .45 cal still. Of course that means $100 for another Dillon powder measure, tool head, and stand. Another $50 for the dies themselves. Then however much a .45 Dillon shellplate is. Of course I could just use 1 powder measure, but I'm FAR too lazy to go changing shit out everytime I want to change caliburs.

Muff #5048

[JohnRich 4]

Reloaders: RCBS Rockchucker. Dillon 550.

Calibers: .223, .308, .30-06, .30-40, .303 Brit., 7.5 Swiss, 7.7 Jap., 6.5 Carcano, probably a few others I can't think of right now.

Just finished up a batch of .223 this week that will keep me shooting my AR-15 in my monthly across-the-course matches for three months.

Just bought a chronograph and I'm going to measure my .308 long range load velocity this weekend.

Attached:
1) My reloading bench
2) Fresh .223 ammo

[millertime24 8]

Very nice setup! Looking at your bench reminded me that I want to get an electronic scale soon. I currently use the rcbs scale that has the weights you have to adjust. It gets you in the ballpark but nowhere near as accurate as an electronic one. I noticed you dont have a powder measure on your Dillon and that there was one of those hand operated RCBS measures in the back. Looking at your stuff I would say I probably have exactly the same stuff minus some rifle dies of course.

Muff #5048

[wolfriverjoe 1,353]

That's one advantage of the 550. With the 650 caliber changes are about $60 for the casefeed/shellholder, plus toolhead plus dies.

Depending on what you are loading now, you can get by with only one powder measure. Even using different powders. Just dump the leftover back into the jug and cycle the slider a couple times. I use a quick blast of compressed air to make sure I get all of it out.
Then change the cavitiy size. I write down how many turns from minimum it takes to get to each charge of each type (that's why there's space for "notes" in your loading manual).

All I do is clean the measure out, turn the adjustment nut to all the way "small" (if you count turns when you do that, you'll know how many to turn it back) and turn it back out as far as it needs to go. I check the charge before starting (even if no change) and every few hundred rounds anyway.

And FWIW, in the video - A .38 at max (or even a .357 at max) fills the case about half way.

"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

[JohnRich 4]

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Very nice setup! Looking at your bench reminded me that I want to get an electronic scale soon. I currently use the rcbs scale that has the weights you have to adjust. It gets you in the ballpark but nowhere near as accurate as an electronic one. I noticed you dont have a powder measure on your Dillon and that there was one of those hand operated RCBS measures in the back. Looking at your stuff I would say I probably have exactly the same stuff minus some rifle dies of course.

I have several sets of toolheads for the Dillon press, with separate powder heads. However, I've found that there is too much variability in the powder charges for my liking. So I hand weigh each charge on the electronic scale, so that the powder charges are exact, down to a tenth of a grain. At 1,000 yards with .308 a variance of a tenth of a grain equals about two inches on the target. That means I don't really use the progressive feature of the Dillon 550 press as much as I could. Powder throws vary by plus or minus .2 grain. For 100-yard ammo that doesn't really matter, but when you get out to 500 yards or beyond, it makes a difference. My ammo is really accurate by doing it the slow way.

The electronic scale is very nice compared to the balance beam scales. I throw my powder charges from the RCBS machine, and make them a few tenths of a grain below what I actually want, then use a powder trickler to bring that up to the exact amount I want. That way the trickler adds the precision to the variability that comes out of the powder measure. It's slow, but sure.

Attached: Dillon 550 tool heads

I only have one motorized trimmer, so that has to get re-adjusted every time I change calibers, which is a PITA. But that item is just too expensive to have one for every caliber. I also have an RCBS hand-crank trimmer that I'll use sometimes if I have only a small quantity of cases to trim.

[millertime24 8]

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That's one advantage of the 550. With the 650 caliber changes are about $60 for the casefeed/shellholder, plus toolhead plus dies.

Depending on what you are loading now, you can get by with only one powder measure. Even using different powders. Just dump the leftover back into the jug and cycle the slider a couple times. I use a quick blast of compressed air to make sure I get all of it out.
Then change the cavitiy size. I write down how many turns from minimum it takes to get to each charge of each type (that's why there's space for "notes" in your loading manual).

All I do is clean the measure out, turn the adjustment nut to all the way "small" (if you count turns when you do that, you'll know how many to turn it back) and turn it back out as far as it needs to go. I check the charge before starting (even if no change) and every few hundred rounds anyway.

And FWIW, in the video - A .38 at max (or even a .357 at max) fills the case about half way.

I fear you underestimate EXACTLY how lazy I am. I cant be bothered to change a powder measure from one tool head to the next then recalibrate for a different load. Thats why I currently have 3 powder measures for all three tool heads I've got. Did I mention that sometimes I pay far out the ass for my lazyness.

Muff #5048

[millertime24 8]

Awesome! Yeah I hear what you're saying about the absolute precision with rifle ammo. All I do right now is handgun and all I really care about is making major power factor with a reliable running load. If I were reloading for rifle I would use my RCBS SS hands down. BTW, how much does one of those scales set you back?

Muff #5048

[steve1 5]

John,
I've never used the electronic measurers. Maybe I should give one a try. I know the balance beam scales can hang up, ever so slightly. I've got in the habit of pounding on the table till the scale settles in for a measurement. Are the electronic scales more accurate? I guess I need to do some more reading on the subject....

I set my powder measure a little light and use a trickler to get the final measurement.

I don't like the RCBS powder measure I use now. Sometimes it will cut grains of powder in half. I think there are better powder measuers on the market these days.
...................................................................

Wolf River Joe,
That sounds like a good idea to blow out your powder measure with air. Putting the powder back in the right can after use is important too.

Did I ever tell you the story of how I got my 4831 powder mixed up with 4064. I guess I'm lucky to still have both of my blue eyes....and face intact!

[wolfriverjoe 1,353]

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Very nice setup! Looking at your bench reminded me that I want to get an electronic scale soon. I currently use the rcbs scale that has the weights you have to adjust. It gets you in the ballpark but nowhere near as accurate as an electronic one. I noticed you dont have a powder measure on your Dillon and that there was one of those hand operated RCBS measures in the back. Looking at your stuff I would say I probably have exactly the same stuff minus some rifle dies of course.

I have several sets of toolheads for the Dillon press, with separate powder heads. However, I've found that there is too much variability in the powder charges for my liking. So I hand weigh each charge on the electronic scale, so that the powder charges are exact, down to a tenth of a grain. At 1,000 yards with .308 a variance of a tenth of a grain equals about two inches on the target. That means I don't really use the progressive feature of the Dillon 550 press as much as I could. Powder throws vary by plus or minus .2 grain. For 100-yard ammo that doesn't really matter, but when you get out to 500 yards or beyond, it makes a difference. My ammo is really accurate by doing it the slow way.

The electronic scale is very nice compared to the balance beam scales. I throw my powder charges from the RCBS machine, and make them a few tenths of a grain below what I actually want, then use a powder trickler to bring that up to the exact amount I want. That way the trickler adds the precision to the variability that comes out of the powder measure. It's slow, but sure.

Attached: Dillon 550 tool heads

I only have one motorized trimmer, so that has to get re-adjusted every time I change calibers, which is a PITA. But that item is just too expensive to have one for every caliber. I also have an RCBS hand-crank trimmer that I'll use sometimes if I have only a small quantity of cases to trim.

I was under the impression that the electronic scales aren't really any more accurate than the balace ones, just more convenient.
I have an old Lee scale that give me "half a tenth" (1/20) of a grain.
I have a couple check weights that I use to calibrate it every so often and it's dead on.
It's a bit more effort/skill to use, and I have to wait for a few seconds for it to stop going up and down, but that ensures it isn't hung up.

And what kind of powder are you using that you get 0.2 variation in your powder measure??
That's a huge variation. I'm using ball powder in my rifles (Win 748 and 2230C data) and it meters within less than a tenth variation. But then again, ball meters the best (one of several reasons I use it).

I size and decap my rifle cases, then clean the lube off and measure and trim ("hand" trimmer with the power drill attachment). That way I have sized and trimmed cases ready to load. I run the size die in a seperate songle stage, and don't have a size die in my Dillon.

"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

[JohnRich 4]

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BTW, how much does one of those scales set you back?

The Dillon scale is $140:
http://www.dillonprecision.com/#/content/p/9/pid/25213/catid/7/D_Terminator_Electronic_Scale

They tend to charge a little more than others, but they have a no-BS guarantee - if it breaks, for any reason, they'll fix or replace it for free, no questions asked. And they do.

[millertime24 8]

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if it breaks, for any reason, they'll fix or replace it for free, no questions asked. And they do.

And their stuff is warantied forever. I have friends that have worn their Dillons slam out due to shear volume of reloading. They sent it to Dillon and recieved their press back in bran new condition with brand new parts. Thats one of the reasons I was sold on Dillon.

Muff #5048

[JohnRich 4]

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I've never used the electronic measurers. Maybe I should give one a try. I know the balance beam scales can hang up, ever so slightly. I've got in the habit of pounding on the table till the scale settles in for a measurement. Are the electronic scales more accurate?

I don't know about more accurate, but they are certainly quicker. It only takes it two or three seconds to settle down on a reading. I hated waiting for that balance beam to quit swaying back and forth, even with the magnetic dampening. It is very sensitive though, and simply breathing on it will change the reading, so you have to be careful sitting in front of it. And every once in a while after dumping the measured powder into a case, it won't return to zero properly, so that charge becomes suspect and has to be re-done. I have built into a habit of checking to make sure it reads zero with an empty pan on it before weighing the next charge. All in all though, a darned nice piece of equipment to have.

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I don't like the RCBS powder measure I use now. Sometimes it will cut grains of powder in half. I think there are better powder measuers on the market these days.

Yes, it will do that, with extruded powders. Or sometimes those long grains just cause the rotation of the handle to snag and hang up. Bumping through that resistance invariably produces a charge that is way off from what you want. I dump 'em back in the hopper and re-do it. That only happens about once every 25 cases though. Ball powders flow much more smoothly without this problem. But the high-power rifles I shoot work well with IMR-4895 and Reloder-15 - both extruded powders, so I have to put up with it.

[JohnRich 4]

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And what kind of powder are you using that you get 0.2 variation in your powder measure??
That's a huge variation. I'm using ball powder in my rifles (Win 748 and 2230C data) and it meters within less than a tenth variation. But then again, ball meters the best (one of several reasons I use it).

I use mostly extruded powders, IMR-4895 and Reloder-15. They don't meter as nicely as ball powders, which flow more uniformly. The extruded powders are like the old game of pick-up sticks, where you throw a bunch of sticks down, and they are jumbled together in random fashion. Sometimes, they just fall with more open spaces than other times between the grains. But Reloder-15 is what the armed services use for long range .308 loads, so if you want the best, you just hand-weigh to get the results you need.

By the way, there's a serious shortage of Reloder-15 right now. I've looked at four companies, and they're all back-ordered on it. Just used up my last. I've had more on order, but there's no telling when it will become available again.

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I size and decap my rifle cases, then clean the lube off and measure and trim ("hand" trimmer with the power drill attachment). That way I have sized and trimmed cases ready to load. I run the size die in a seperate single stage, and don't have a size die in my Dillon.

Yep, that sounds pretty much exactly like how I do it. I size and prime a large batch, and then set them aside in plastic bags. That way I can finish them up quickly 100 at a time with powder and bullets for an upcoming match.

[steve1 5]

I've also had the longer grained powders hang up, delivering half a charge.(In the RCBS powder measure) It takes a lot longer to check each charge with a scale, but that's what I do on rifle reloads. I'll have to look into buying one of those electronic scales....

I've been using an electric drill for years to trim my cases. It's cheap and works well.

I've been so darn busy the past few years, that I haven't been doing much reloading or shooting. I need to start up again. My shooting skills have really fell down. I can really see the difference at hunting season....

Thanks for the advice....