hi havent posted in a while, but have been doing some plinking practice with the 223.
the gun has liked the following and i might reload
so far i have been using remington umc 55 gr £14 per 20
hornady vmax 55gr £27 per 20
i have about 80 fired cases
does anybody have a rough estimate how much i would save reloading these two cartridges.
thanks
initial outlay will be a few hundreds but it will be alot cheaper if you have a few rifles to load for
depends on how much you shoot really but my .223 loves the new 54gn vmax
email...... stephenbarrow@ntlworld.com
If it is just practice, why don't you use mil surp? As long as 5.56 chambers in your rifle...Originally Posted by ^varmints^
£34 for 100 of RG, is heaps cheaper than what you are using, and save them for when it matters.
depends on his rifles twist...mine is 1 in 12 and shoots rgs like a shotgun but does thumbnail groups with bullets in 50-54gn area
email...... stephenbarrow@ntlworld.com
sako .223 twist 1:8
rg should be ok in your rifle....save the brass
email...... stephenbarrow@ntlworld.com
does anybody find that mil surp recohets more than vmax.
my budget is prob 200- 300
i would should maybe 800 rounds a year
buy a cheap lee challenger and lee dies....electronic scales....vit 120 powder and 54gn vmax add 21 gns then seat bullet job done
email...... stephenbarrow@ntlworld.com
This will give you an idea on the costs involved when loading your own.
http://ultimatereloader.com/tools/re...ts-calculator/
You should be able to get set up for less than £200. If your throwing 50 or 53 grain V-Max Viht N120 is a cracking powder, Loiner1965 stole 20 of my re loads of 50 V-Max with N120 when he first got his 223 and put the first 5 shots inside a 5p coin!
55 grain Hornady SPWC #2266 also work really well in my 223 and only cost around £14 a box compared to £22 for 50 grain V-Max.
As stated already a 1-8 twist barrell should throw mill surp ammo no problem but I wouldn't use it for foxes just fire it off at the range and reload the cases with an expanding bullet.
Rick
22lr Anschutz XIV Carbine, 222 Tikka M55,
223 SGC AR15, Sig arms 25-06 SHR970 Deluxe, 12b Beretta 682 Gold E, 12b Fletcher English BLE, 303 RE P14 (Remington made)
69gr Sierra Matchking on Viht N140 would be my recommendation for this one. Get you to 600yds no problem.
Question about whether reloading is economical comes down to volumes that you shoot and quality of your components a high end reload isn't cheap but will give you a better outcome.
If you shoot loads then it's worth it, if not then I wouldn't bother.
When I started reloading back around 1970 or so, it was pretty cheap and the way to go.
By 1974 I was into reloading seriously with six different calibres, and now, although the shape of my collection has changed for reasons known to all of us here, I still reload seven different rifle centre-fire and two handgun cartridges. If I didn't, then I'd just have to give up - period.
I can make .308Win target ammunition for two of my .308Win rifles that suits them exactly - proven over the many years that I've been doing it. I'd simply ask you to price a hundred rounds of Lapua 167gr Match ammunition, and point out that I can duplicate it for about £50/C.
If you have more than a couple of guns, then sure, it makes sense to reload. Apart from the satisfaction you'll get out of tailoring a round for your gun and no other, you'll be laffin' when standing beside the guy paying £200+ for HIS factory stuff as you hand over the comparatively meagre amount for reloading supplies..
tac
thanks for the input, some people have a lot of experience on here and it helps a beginner like me. i have made a decision to start 2013 into the reloading world, a member sent a link to me and i was able to do some numbers which i think i could save.
brass- 300 cases fireformed from factory
gunpowder- not sure of brand £40 per lb
heads- sierra blitzking 55 gr £20 per 100
primers- £34 per 1000
so 1000 rounds would cost me £377
per 20 £7.50
per cartridge £0.38
factory ammo
hp rem umc 50 gr which costs £14 per 20
and the hornady varmint express at £26 per 20
just shows the savings
Sir, please start off as you mean to continue to avoid scorn being heaped on you.
'Gunpowder' is the explosive that goes in fireworks.
'Propellant' is the propellant that goes into the metallic cartridges that you intend to reload.
...and lastly, bullets are simply called 'bullets' - the rather odd term 'bullet heads' is errant nonsense.
Just sayin'.
tac
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Hi there,
I have been reloading since the late 1980s and agree with the guy who answered you that has even more experience. Reloading is definitely the way to go but I think if you get into it you will find it is more to do with producing accurate rounds that more exactly suit the purpose you have in mind rather than costs. That you can produce them cheaper than so-called "factory" rounds is just a nice added bonus.
My reloads (just 3 different calibres) are ALL more accurate AND more powerful than their manufactured equivalents, even assuming there is a manufactured equivalent for them that is, and in many cases there isn't - another good reason!
It certainly used to be impossible to buy from a gunshop complete rounds in .223 that had premium "varmint" bullets loaded into them at all various weights available, but I can and do load my .223 for vermin destruction using frangible bullets in 40gr, 45gr, 50gr, 53gr, 55gr, 60gr and 63gr as a for instance!
Try it and you'll be hooked!
Yup, buy a Lee Loader and give it a go - very cheap, quite effective and lots of fun.
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