Why should I homeload?

[kennyc]

Once I started reloading, my accuracy and consistency improved.

My moustache grew and flourished.

I started getting women begging me to pleasure them.

Now, I am an internationally recognised star of adult films.

& all because I bought a Lee Loader!


or so a friend told me!

and then one cold autumn morning you woke up and Jo had sorted out the moustache with a blunt skinning knife!
that'll teach you to leave your back catalogue in the shooting lodge

[sidesy]

Two thoughts on this:
1. 'Accuracy' is a relative concept. For a stalking-rifle, anything 1" or under at 100yds suits me.
2. Pursuit of more accuracy than you need will be expensive in time, components, barrel-wear and possibly your good humour.

The balance between the cost of ammuntion in terms of time, gear used and components/barrel-life expended in testing will vary from shooter to shooter (and perhaps from rifle to rifle, depending on use.)

you thought about sorting out the issues in Syria ?

[Dalua]

you thought about sorting out the issues in Syria?

I had no idea they also were wondering whether to start reloading.

[phil384]

OK decision made, for the quantities I will be using I will buy the Lee Loader at £28, rubber mallet (£1 shop ) and some scales. I have thought about just buying the stuff but that's not as involving. If accuracy improves, that's got to be a good thing anyhow.

Thanks for your inputs

[kennyc]

OK decision made, for the quantities I will be using I will buy the Lee Loader at £28, rubber mallet (£1 shop ) and some scales. I have thought about just buying the stuff but that's not as involving. If accuracy improves, that's got to be a good thing anyhow.

Thanks for your inputs

forget the scales, buy a micrometer instead,it will be a better investment initially, the scoops work fine as long as you are consistant in your method, although you do need to use powders that are in the paperwork that comes with the loader.
you can always get some cheap Lee scales at a later date, they are awkward to use fast, but for the amount of loading you are going to do initially they are just the job.

[bewsh]

the Lee loader .

this^

£50 worth of hardware (Lee loader, mallet, cheap calipers, some case conditioning tools, chamfer, trimmer etc)

£70-80 worth of powder/primers (£70 VV N160 and £3-4 per 100 for primers)
£75-90 worth of bullets (at £25-30 a box of 100)
your own once fired brass

enough to make 300 rounds

including the lee loader that is 300 rounds at less than £220
excluding the lee loader and hardware its £170 for 300 round MAX...you can do it cheaper if you shop around or choose components carefully

I loaded for .243, .270 and .222 like this for years

no reason why you can't produce extremely accurate ammo with this

I did these with my Lee Loader

3 shots .243 100gr:



3 shots .270 130gr at 135yds
(I actually loaded these in the back of the car at the range with scoops and no OAL measurements. subsequently shrank them to around 1/2-2/3"



5 shots .222 60gr starting load



OAL tuned to this:



I now use Lee Zero Error target loaders (they come with all the toys if you are interested, not easy to find though!)

and I created a spreadsheet for scoop size vs grains for quick reference when loading here:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets...JGQsiMyfg/edit

[phil384]

Very helpful thanks, I can see how this can become an obsession!

[phil384]

Apologies for resurrecting the thread but:

I now have the .243 Lee Loader (£33 on amazon), mallet (I guess we all have one of these!), micrometer to measure case length, lee primer pocket tool.

Before I go and buy my powder, bullets, cases and primers do I NEED anything else? I know I could go to town with tumblers etc etc.

Do I really need a chamfer tool too? Or scales? Is the powder scoop not accurate enough if I'm consistent using it? I've seen several videos where none of that stuff is used and the rounds seem to come out OK. Please bear in mind I'm not target shooting just game shooting.

And how long should the complete round be when finished?

Once I've got the hang of this lark, I've got the .308 to think about

Thanks guys, looks like I've been sucked into the dark and mysterious world you all inhabit

[Turnup]

Apologies for resurrecting the thread but:

I now have the .243 Lee Loader (£33 on amazon), mallet (I guess we all have one of these!), micrometer to measure case length, lee primer pocket tool.

Before I go and buy my powder, bullets, cases and primers do I NEED anything else? I know I could go to town with tumblers etc etc.

Do I really need a chamfer tool too? Or scales? Is the powder scoop not accurate enough if I'm consistent using it? I've seen several videos where none of that stuff is used and the rounds seem to come out OK. Please bear in mind I'm not target shooting just game shooting.

And how long should the complete round be when finished?

Once I've got the hang of this lark, I've got the .308 to think about


Er....woss the mallet for?

Thanks guys, looks like I've been sucked into the dark and mysterious world you all inhabit

You have everything you need to make a start.

Chamfer tool is no biggie.

Over time you might need a case length trimmer as they stretch a little each time they are loaded/used.

Scales: well the problems with scoops are:

1) Quite difficult to use with a consistency which would compare with a weighed load (in fact probably impossible).

2) If you want to develop a load which is as accurate as possible then you will probably find that the sweet spot is not one of the scoop sizes but somewhere in between. Accuracy is not only for target shooting, most hunters want the best accuracy they can achieve so that they have the best chance of a humane kill (or can shoot at longer ranges with confidence).

Completed cartridge length: This can be a deep subject and not all rifles like the same length. I expect a rifle shootist will be along to provide advice on this, but for starters, SAAMI publish specifications for cartridge and chamber dimensions including a max cartridge length. This is sure to be a safe size (unless you have a massively under length chamber, which is very unlikely). Shooters do tune to greater (or shorter) lengths, but this is not for the beginner as getting it badly wrong can spoil your day and/or your rifle. In some rifles this has a significant effect on accuracy, less so in others.

Work up to max loads carefully, checking for signs of overpressure before increasing the load again.

[tacfoley]

So tell us, please. Why do you need a rubber mallet?

Are you also going to buy a combination sink plunger and whistle?

tac

[phil384]

To bang in rubber nails of course.









Or to whack the cartridge down onto the new primer and seat the bullet in the case too

[angrybear]

Apologies for resurrecting the thread but:

I now have the .243 Lee Loader (£33 on amazon), mallet (I guess we all have one of these!), micrometer to measure case length, lee primer pocket tool.

Before I go and buy my powder, bullets, cases and primers do I NEED anything else? I know I could go to town with tumblers etc etc.

Do I really need a chamfer tool too? Or scales? Is the powder scoop not accurate enough if I'm consistent using it? I've seen several videos where none of that stuff is used and the rounds seem to come out OK. Please bear in mind I'm not target shooting just game shooting.
And how long should the complete round be when finished?

Once I've got the hang of this lark, I've got the .308 to think about

Thanks guys, looks like I've been sucked into the dark and mysterious world you all inhabit

Wrong way around chap, a target does not feel pain or slink off to take days to die if your shot is a bit wayward

You need scales to get accurate & consistent ammo, all you can measure with a scoop is "a scoop full" which may be pants in your rifle.

[kennyc]

Wrong way around chap, a target does not feel pain or slink off to take days to die if your shot is a bit wayward

You need scales to get accurate & consistent ammo, all you can measure with a scoop is "a scoop full" which may be pants in your rifle.

out of interest how do you think factory loads are filled? clue its not by weight!
the scoops if used consistently (and yes it is easy to do so) will produce accurate ammo that the quarry will not be in a position to complain about on the account of it being on your plate(foxes aside) this is someone loading for game in small numbers not a "minute of a gnats whisker" bench rest guru, all he needs to achieve is the same or better than factory, the obsession can come later.

[bewsh]

Do I really need a chamfer tool too? Yes, get a fixed length case trimmer, simple, only trims when over length, particularly handy in .243 which has a habit of growing
Or scales? No
Is the powder scoop not accurate enough if I'm consistent using it? Yes it is, went for two years before I got scales. I now use a thrower and weigh every 5 or 6 throws then get bored and just throw them!

And how long should the complete round be when finished? Depends, i prefer to do mine in batch stages rather than complete round, Size them all, prime them all, charge them all, seat them all......rather than size, prime, charge and seat one and then move on, no more than a minute or two though really

master this stuff first and dont worry about the cleaning
if you are really worried get a shell holder and a cordless drill and just whizz the necks with some very fine wire wool

[bewsh]

Wrong way around chap, a target does not feel pain or slink off to take days to die if your shot is a bit wayward

You need scales to get accurate & consistent ammo, all you can measure with a scoop is "a scoop full" which may be pants in your rifle.

sorry but .
no factory ammo is charged by weight. None, they are all done by volume

Every single final load I produced for four calibres across .222, .243. .270 and .308 loaded only with scoops shot well under MOA
some shot in the 0.2-0.3's
I have the targets

unless you have done it don't discount it
if you have tried it and failed ask someone who can

I started checking scoops mainly down to niggling thoughts from comments like this
my scoop technique throws charges with less than +/-0.1gr
most electronic scales cant measure that and you will get more inaccuracies through poor sizing and inconsistent neck tension than you ever will with +/-0.1gr charge

add to that the fact that most people can't replicate the accuracy of their own rifle when in the field and the scoops are not the first place to look