Reloading .45 APC
 

Is there a cost saving? Or is it strictly for the thrill of DYIing?

Curious,
Tom

I can shoot .45 auto for less than most can shoot .22 rimfire. A lot depends upon component selection, with bullets being the biggest cost driver. Powder, primers, and cases are a "fixed" cost, although buying in big lots helps. Once you have cases, they last a long, long time if properly cared for - dozens and dozens of reloads.

So, if you are clever, once you have cases, powder and primers can be the most significant cost, depending on your bullet costs. My bullets are essentially free to me; I cast them from wheel weights given to me by local tire shops eager to dispose of them. Commercially cast or swaged lead bullets are the next step up in cost and convenience, and can be had remarkably cheap. Jacketed bullets get more expensive from there, with even "plinker" grade bullets significantly more expensive than cast.

So, in essence, savings are directly proportionate to effort expended, and/or willingness to use cast bullets.

As a general rule, you can reload near match quality ammo for the price of the cheap stuff, no matter the volume.

If you shoot 2000 rounds a month, you can realize savings pretty quick. If you shoot 100 rounds a month, it will take you awhile to realize any savings.

I've also heard it said many times that if you don't enjoy reloading as an activity onto itself, you will be back to buying pre-made ammo within a year or two.

If you're not sure this is for you, DO NOT go out and buy a Dillon (unless of course you plan on letting me purchase it for a big discount when you tire of it). Get yourself a basic single-stage press, learn the mechanics of each step, and decide if this is for you. This will also help you properly set up a more expensive press later on. With a single-stage, you will quickly figure out if this bores you or interests you, and you will only have around $100 invested.

I have five presses (two progressive, two single stage, and a turret), three types of case trimmers, numerous automatic and manual chamfering/deburring tools, a vibratory media cleaner, and an ultrasonic cleaner. I use almost every piece of equipment depending on which caliber I'm reloading. I'm hooked.

I have a Dillion Progressive. I'd like to pickup a cheap single to get started. Are there any where the parts will match with the Dillion.

It's been a while since I did this, but I used to reload a lot of .45 ACP and, IIRC, I did so for about 1/3 the cost of cheapo factory ammo. Back then a box of 50 was around $13-$15. But primers grew on trees back then too and not anymore.

As long as Dillon uses standard dies, you can use any single-stage press with them.

The difficulty lies in the fact that by removing the dies from the Dillon and reinstalling them elsewhere, you will have to recalibrate the dies with every transfer.

I'd recommend just getting a separate set of dies for the single-stage.

Lee and Hornady have good systems that allow you to pre-set the dies and remove them easily (but it won't be compatible with the Dillon press.

If you get this:

Lee Challenger Breech Lock Single Stage Press - MidwayUSA

And this:

Lee Deluxe Carbide 4-Die Set 45 ACP - MidwayUSA

You will be good to go.

Thanks all, for all the information.

Jeff; Do you have any concerns or precautions you take when melting lead for casting bullets?

Legion: I have reloaded shotshells for years for skeet in both 20 and 12 ga, but gave up skeet shooting because of shoulder problems, So I'm familiar with the routine of reloading in general. Recently I've become interested in pistol shooting, particularly .380, .38 special, and especially .45 ACP. I guess my question now boils down to "will reloading cost me more than retail off the shelf (not including equipment).?

Jeff, I would like to talk to you at the next XXX about shooting and reloading in general.

Rick, .45 ACP is around $25/50 at my local range. Don't know about primers. I imagine I will find out soon enough. As far as reloaders go, I understand that a fellow goes by Snowman, who has a nice Dillon for sale cheap.

Thanks,
Tom

Don't melt your own lead if you don't have to. Lead oxide is the nasty part and unless you are careful all during the process of sorting the old weights and disposal of the slag you will contaminate your property and or yourself.

Take some time looking and you can get good deals on used equipment. look for deals on the consumables and you can save plenty of $ without messing up the place mucking around smelting lead. A case cleaner is very good to have as well.

I found that jacketed slugs ended up being worth the extra $ as they are clean, easy to use and produce good reloads that feed well. the gun barrels stay cleaner as well. Another good part of reloads is you can tune the power to the use. Light loads for paper target and the like.

Reloads are fine and all but the house gun has Hydra-shok in it. 13+1

Just for reference, I just checked Precision Delta's website (a lot of IDPA shooters including myself buy our bullets from this company) and they get about $100 for 1000 bullets. 1000 primers will cost you close to $40. One pound of powder (about enough for 1000+ rounds) will cost around $20.

So at current pricing with primers still overpriced and still occasionally hard to find..... 100 + 40 + 20 = $160 to load 1000 rounds is about $8.00 per 50. This of course assumes you have been saving brass to reload. Buying new brass will throw a wrench in the works from a cost perspective although you can sometimes score a good deal on used brass from shooting ranges.

For 9mm, I am at around $6.50-$7.00 per 50 depending on what kind of deals I manage buying primers/bullets/powder in slightly larger quantities. (I reload mainly for light recoiling IDPA legal rounds, but I do see some cost savings as I went through about 8000 or so rounds practicing and competing in IDPA this past season)

I'm sure there is a cost savings...on the other hand, you'll probably shoot more, negating the savings.

I asked a friend with full auto license how many rounds he shoots in a year. He started out his answer with: "Well I use 25-30 pounds of powder...."

Some folks like cars, other like guns. His stuff runs from 9mm to .50. I'd hate to estimate the money he has in his collection. Surely enough to buy a GT3...or more.

Wow, the cost of bullets has gone up quite a bit. Too bad Bear Creek folded, they made great moly coated lead bullets, cheap.

Based on your location, consider Rainier Ballistics Bullets, they are in Tacoma I think. Not sure if they sell direct.

.45ACP is cheap and easy to reload! Reloading is only cheaper than buying ammo if you shoot a lot or want a specific load that you can't find. Reloading is a great hobby!

Just common sense precautions. Plenty of ventilation, gloves, long sleeves, no eating or drinking, clean workbench, etc. I wash my hands (regardless of the gloves) when done and strip all of my clothes off and straight into the laundry with them.

I would love to talk.

Nonsense. Common sense precautions and basic cleanliness are all that is required. These are simply old wives' tales perpetuated by folks with no experience with casting bullets.

Smelting lead is a far different process than casting lead bullets.

The very best modern jacketed bullets will not yet match the accuracy, velocity, and terminal performance of a proper cast bullet. Done right, cast bullets simply do not lead the bore in a handgun unless there is something wrong with the handgun itself. They feed just as well in the autos and are no messier to shoot than jacketed bullets.

I can afford to shoot any bullet I please. I shoot cast bullet by choice, not by necessity. I have found their performance superior in every way (in handguns) than any jacketed bullet. Jackets on handgun bullets introduce a whole plethora of new problems and compromises not found in cast bullets. They are an answer to a question that maybe never should have been asked, an expedient for large manufacturers to be able to produce bullets in quantity that more or less satisfy the needs of magnum revolver shooters and autoloader shooters.

Casting, sizing, and lubricating bullets is far more time consuming than swaging them, either with or without a jacket. It's just not economically viable to produce them commercially for the general reloading market. Without a jacket, pure lead (about the only form of lead soft enough to swage economically) bullets are too soft and therefor unsuitable for magnum handgun velocities. The method of application for the bullet lubricant, where they are dipped or tumbled, does not lend itself to proper application of enough bullet lube. All of this adds up to leading at magnum velocities. The soft bullets can be problematic with regards to feeding in the autoloaders.

The "answer" to these problems has been the jacketed bullet. While we do have some great jacketed bullets available these days, they do remain a compromise, and they are expensive. They are, however, the best option for "serious" loads for those who cannot or will not cast their own. Commercially swaged lead bullets likewise remain the best option for "informal" or plinking loads.

I would not even consider commercially cast bullets. Most are cast from far too hard of an alloy and lubed with far too hard of a lubricant in an effort to facilitate handling in bulk. I've never found one that is accurate and doesn't lead the barrel. I'm sure that is where some of the bad rap cast bullets get must come from.

Alas, this is an endeavor where one cannot "buy success". Good cast bullets only come from home. A proper mold is chosen for the intended application, a proper lead alloy, a proper lubricant, and the proper finished size. They wind up too soft to handle in bulk, with soft lube applied in big, deep grooves that will gum up everything if not handled with care. They are stored in ammo boxes, individually separated so as not to deform one another. There is no "free lunch" here, but, properly done, there is nothing that will match the performance of a cast bullet in a handgun.