Reloading starter kit?

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Red Letters Honey Farm

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A few hundred will get you loading if you spend your money wisely. Your going to need to pick a caliber to start with. Also how many rounds are you thinking you want to load a month? Regardless if this is your first step into reloading. I would go with a single stage. Personally I would avoid the Lee loadmaster listed above. They are known to need some tinkering. Not something a new reloader needs to be worrying about imo.
Not very much. Times like this have me wondering if it would be better to keep supplies around to reload vs trying to find bullets.
 

thor447

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While I agree that it is difficult to find certain supplies right now, I'd never try to talk someone out of learning to reload. This site was an incredible help to me when I got started, and if you to decide to take the plunge, you'll find no shortage of helpful people here.

As far as kits go, as it was stated earlier, it entirely depends on your budget and how serious you are about getting into it. If you're just sort of kicking the tires around an idea, I'd suggest going economical to start. A co-worker of mine is in this spot and wants to start loading for his .308. He purchased the following:
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1013004049?pid=121744
While this is nowhere near top of the line, it's enough to get him started. Single stage presses are definitely the way to go to start out. If that's too slow for you, I'd recommend getting a turret press if you're starting with pistols. A small turret press can be purchased reasonably cheap. After my co-worker purchased the kit shown above, all he needs (aside from the bullet components) is a few gauges, calipers, tumbler, etc. He's set up to load his .308 for a hair over $300. I helped him by selling him a few primers. He was able to source some new brass and bullets fairly easily. Along with the security of being able to make your own ammo, I think you'd find it to be an enjoyable hobby.

With all of that being said, be prepared to spend a truckload of money if you really get into the hobby. I went economical to start, and have since sold all of that equipment, bought a really nice single stage press, Redding bushing dies, Lyman case prep station, electronic powder drop, and several other items for my precision rifle loads, and a Dillon XL750 press with several bells and whistles, along with a room full of smaller stuff for my pistol loads. It's a fun hobby, and I wish you the best of luck moving forward.
 

Cowcatcher

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You’ll soon find lots of debates on which press for this or that. In my opinion, the Dillon 550 does all of it well. If I could only have one press, it’d be a Dillon 550.

However, a single stage is a good tool to have also. So if you start with one of those you’ll always have a use for it in the future.
 

_CY_

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regardless if you decide to move on to Dillon 550 or better.
you will always need a single stage press .. why not start with one that you will never outgrow.
RCBS rockchucker has been a favorite for generations for good reason.
one that's 25+ yr old will work just good as a new one.

to me rifle loads and single stage go hand in hand. as each component needs to be weight/measured to equal match factory match grade ammo. got a Dillon 550 loaded with goodies. which just sits there while the good ole rock chucker actually gets used.

economics sure has changed .. plain jane rounds are now worth reloading.
may have to dust off the 550 for a few .223/9mm rounds.
 

thor447

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I completely agree with @Cowcatcher and @_CY_ , even if you go full on progressive, you'll still have a use for a good old single stage press. I fully endorse the RCBS Rockchucker, as stated above. Great press.
 

Engineman1960

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I started off with a used Dillon 550 I got off of Ebay. (I bought a setup that was 10 years old) He included his original invoice. I paid him what he paid, it came with extras, but I thought I got an excellent deal, compared if I bought new. I wanted to reload 9MM; .40 S&W and .45ACP for handgun and .223 for rifle. The 550 was a great fit for me.

Dillon had an excellent VHS Tape (that how long ago I bought it) I believe they have a DVD or even youtube.

Dillon's technical assistance is excellent, they even replaced broken pieces (the follower rod and the buzzer alert housing for the primer alarm) for free. The even replaced my balance beam scale housing (it would not zero) I told them I bought all this stuff used -- It didn’t matter !!!

You have to look at your budget and your realistic goals; I didn’t buy case gauges initially (I took the barrel off my Glock's and used it as a case gauge).

The initially setup came with a Dillon caliper set. I had a NSK caliper set that I bought years earlier for work -- found a used Starrett caliper set at a OKC Pawn shop for $25.

My advise, do your research, ask questions -- do I need this? -- Why do I need this? -- If it doesn’t look right or feel right, stop and try to figure out why !!!!

Good luck on your quest !!!!!
 

KOPBET

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In the seventies, I reloaded thousands of 38s and 357s and 45 ACP. All on a single stage RCBS Rock Chucker in an Air Force permanent party dorm room. Learning on non-auto loading ammo (e.g. 38 and 357) was considerably easier IMO. I'd recommend learning on wheel gun calibers first. But that's just me. I'm sure someone will come along and tell me I'm wrong.
 

_CY_

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Brownells Reloading Series - Part 1 - Introduction to Reloading (www.youtube.com)

 

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