Guns & Outdoors Forum

I've reloaded thousands of rounds, mostly .45 ACP and .223, on my Dillon RL 550 and hundreds of "results oriented" hunting and target loads on my RCBS.

I got into it in the '80s because, if I bought my components right, I could reload a box of .45 ACP for under $4.00. About half the price of factory ammo at the time. And I was 19'ish and had to buy food also.

I remember the old saying "Reloaders don't save money, they just shoot more" and that definitely applied back then.

I haven't set up my press in a few years and ammo cost is less of an issue now but I was curious if it still makes sense economicly?

I'm not looking for a component source, I think I still have a few hundred primers with $1.xx price tags . . . just reminiscing.

I've been pondering the same question. In the late 80's I was a broke butt with three children and a wife In college. My first press was a Lee Anniversary Kit that I bought as a Christmas gift to myself, a neighbor had gifted me $100. At the time I could buy a box of 357 for $9, not including dies and case trimmer it cost $2.38 to reload. Powder was $20 a pound, primers $20 a thousand, LSWC bullets $25 for 500 (Buffalo Bore molly coated). Most of my brass was once fired from the LGS. Roughly a 70% savings. 30-30 ammo was also $9 a box and I could buy factory seconds plinking bullets in bulk. As things progressed I was loading for my BIL and son. I was reloading at least 18 different cartridges. I know I put tens of thousands of rounds through that press.

Now I'm pondering reloading for my 6Arc. By the time I buy dies, powder, bullets and a comparator case, I'll have $200 invested. At my age and for as much as I'll shoot this rifle is it going to be worth it? I bought 4 boxes of ammo for testing this rifle, Hornady Match and Black, for $25 a box. I see decent hunting ammo for $42. My calculation, powder, bullets and primers will cost about $15 to $20 per box. Reloading custom hunting is a 50% savings but, when you add the cost of reloading equipment....

I have to admit to being disappointed in myself, this is the first time over 30 years I shot a rifle I own with fa...fa...fac...Ammo I didn't load myself.

I guess the better question would be, "Is it economical to SHOOT anymore?"

Scrounged brass and scrounged berm lead will carry you a long distance - at least on the bulk pistol stuff. But primers and powder? DAMN!

I think it can be done economically. The key - probably - is to not branch out into a bunch of niche cartridges. Problem is, most of us have done that for various reasons. But, if you logic your way through it, the trajectory of the latest wazoo round isn't much flatter than what we've had for over a century, and most of us aren't stretching the range anyway. Terminally, a bullet hole is a bullet hole, and we've learned a lot over the last 40 years about how to make effective ones - and it's NOT about the cartridge used to launch the projectile.

So yeah, folks are gonna call it "boring" but doing the bulk of your play with only a couple mainstream handgun and rifle cartridges will at least streamline the need to purchase a wide range of hardware and software to make the ammo.

I reload for better accuracy, because of wildcat cartridges, and specific bullet choices.
I don't reload to save money, though I may have done that at one time.
That does not mean I don't use factory ammo sometimes.

If factory ammo fulfills your bullet and accuracy needs for a given gun, go for it.

I can load (at today’s retarded prices inflated by wars and inflation, panic buying etc) load a box (20) of .223 for less than $12. Can I get bulk .223 for that? Yep. But bulk ain’t what I shoot. I want a specific bullet for a specific task. If I were to buy those, if even available, it would cost me 3-4 times more than what I can load them for. And I’d spend a fortune finding the load that worked best, IF I even found one.
Throw in bullet casting, so becomes way cheaper for rounds that can use cast bullets. Buying in bulk while painful, saves in the long run.

The equipment costs? Meh. Part of the hobby. Being honest, I can say that all my equipment has paid for itself with the “savings” over the years. Of course you have to shoot enough to pay it off. But that’s the point of the gun hobby….shooting. Unless you buy crap to hang on the wall and just fondle it from time to time.

I don’t factor my time in the equation. A hobby is just that. A hobby. It doesn’t pay. Because if it pays, then it’s a job.

There’s also the satisfaction of doing it myself. The pride of shooting a tiny group knowing I put in the work to do it. Seeing my daughter and son in law using ammo I crafted to harvest critters. Having them help me with said ammo. Crafting a 45-70 round suitable for an 8 year old to shoot a giant ass buck. (At the time nothing store bought available) Passing along the knowledge.

So, it’s worth it. No matter the cost, really.

I load for obsolete cartridges. If I don’t load a good portion of what I shoot would sit in a safe. I like to shoot them!! That said it gives me warm fuzzies to know I can shoot for a long time on what I have squirreled away

"It depends."

For my bulk ammo, 9mm and .223 fodder, it is not worth my time, even if some money is saved. I'll even go a step further and say for my low volume hunting ammo where I've found a suitable factory load, it isn't worth it.

For match grade ammo or specialty hunting ammo, it is still economical, especially with the more basic tools I use. 7mm Rem Mag, for example, with the bullets I want to use, is far more economical to handload. I suspect once I do the math .45-70 will be the same.

I consider certain cartridges well worth reloading.

Orphaned, obsolete and just not very popular rounds, reloading is about your best option. Two of my personal favorites 6MM Remington & 41Mag both are vexed by lack of availability & price. Of the two the 41 is worse off than the 6 REM.
Our local big box formally known as Cabela’s has 6MM R in stock from time to time. I don’t recall seeing factory 41M on the shelf any time in recent memory.

These two get most of my attention of late.

The it depends is spot on.
I've always picked up deals when they present themselves.
Not because I need them now or even in the future but because someone will.
Today was a 3 dollar box of bullets.
Will I use them ?
Maybe in the 30-40 krag or a 30-30 but they are in stock.

My future shooters have little worries of the expense to shoot.

The Craig would be a great choice for those and a great case for reloading.

I reload .223 Remington because my bolt gun has, if i remmber correctly 1;12 twist barrel. I thought it was a junk barrel and was thinking of replacing it. It only likes the light stuff. Book.says 40-55 gr bullets, it shoots patterns with 55 and up
52s it does ok, 50s are decent and 48s its a Lazer. Hard to find 48 gr factory loads.

Diver43 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 12, 2026 12:19 am I reload .223 Remington because my bolt gun has, if i remmber correctly 1;12 twist barrel. I thought it was a junk barrel and was thinking of replacing it. It only likes the light stuff. Book.says 40-55 gr bullets, it shoots patterns with 55 and up
52s it does ok, 50s are decent and 48s its a Lazer. Hard to find 48 gr factory loads.

Man, economics aside, it's cool to be reminded of the other benefits of hand loading. I gotta go burn some powder.

I hope CPJ's kids know how lucky they are.

PFD45 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 12, 2026 12:34 am

Diver43 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 12, 2026 12:19 am I reload .223 Remington because my bolt gun has, if i remmber correctly 1;12 twist barrel. I thought it was a junk barrel and was thinking of replacing it. It only likes the light stuff. Book.says 40-55 gr bullets, it shoots patterns with 55 and up
52s it does ok, 50s are decent and 48s its a Lazer. Hard to find 48 gr factory loads.

Man, economics aside, it's cool to be reminded of the other benefits of hand loading. I gotta go burn some powder.

I hope CPJ's kids know how lucky they are.

The grandson is gonna have the coolest grandpa ever.

When I reload, cast bullets, or powder coat bullets I get left alone.

That alone is worth the time spent doing it.

breamfisher wrote: ↑Fri Jun 12, 2026 2:01 am When I reload, cast bullets, or powder coat bullets I get left alone.

That alone is worth the time spent doing it.

I'll bet I wore out 2 sets of head phones and an SD card listening to "Quadrophenia" while putting some miles on the Dillon and making 45 ACP.

PFD45 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 12, 2026 3:03 am

breamfisher wrote: ↑Fri Jun 12, 2026 2:01 am When I reload, cast bullets, or powder coat bullets I get left alone.

That alone is worth the time spent doing it.

I'll bet I wore out 2 sets of head phones and an SD card listening to "Quadrophenia" while putting some miles on the Dillon and making 45 ACP.

I remember hearing the “clack clack” of the 8 track while dad was relaxing as a kid. I can still hear it!

Elk Creek wrote: ↑Fri Jun 12, 2026 3:19 am

PFD45 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 12, 2026 3:03 am

breamfisher wrote: ↑Fri Jun 12, 2026 2:01 am When I reload, cast bullets, or powder coat bullets I get left alone.

That alone is worth the time spent doing it.

I'll bet I wore out 2 sets of head phones and an SD card listening to "Quadrophenia" while putting some miles on the Dillon and making 45 ACP.

I remember hearing the “clack clack” of the 8 track while dad was relaxing as a kid. I can still hear it!

8 track heads changing position ...

Damn, my Teac Reel-to-reel seems modern.

PFD45 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 12, 2026 3:03 am

breamfisher wrote: ↑Fri Jun 12, 2026 2:01 am When I reload, cast bullets, or powder coat bullets I get left alone.

That alone is worth the time spent doing it.

I'll bet I wore out 2 sets of head phones and an SD card listening to "Quadrophenia" while putting some miles on the Dillon and making 45 ACP.

For future reference, "Misty Mountain Hop" and "When the Levee Breaks". . .GREAT reloading cadence.

It is NOT economical to walk into the local Dillon store and ask the friendly sales staff “what all will i need to get started manufacturing .45ACP?

Japhy wrote: ↑Sat Jun 13, 2026 1:18 am It is NOT economical to walk into the local Dillon store and ask the friendly sales staff “what all will i need to get started manufacturing .45ACP?

So your answer to the original question is "no"?

I understand how old this sounds but I was treated really well by Dillon so . . .

I probably had a pretty unique experience when I was 18 in 1981 and I drove my 1967 El Camino from Glendale to Scottsdale to Dillon's original location with most of my worldly wealth in my pocket in cash and one of the friendly sales staff walked me into "the back" and showed me the mannequin they used to prove that Hornady's claim that it was dangerous to stack primers was unfounded.
I've since found my Dillon works really well and I did a lot more shooting because of it.


So even though my Dillon paid for itself many times over years ago, I guess it's just a different economy and reloading doesn't pay.

Dillon has great products and several people i shoot with have had great support. My comment was that their equipment and all accessories are not low cost these days.
I haven’t calculated where the break even is buying a complete reload system in addition to the cost of brass, primers, powder, bullets vs ammo prices available locally that are very competitive with many of the bulk online sellers.

I shoot about 1K rounds /month. Its mixed from 22, 9mm, .45
More 22 than 45 and 9 combined and more 9 than 45
I dont need any special loads and lately have even moved to federal automatch due to scarce cci standard 22. I buy automatch at Walmart for about .06 / rnd and no shipping.
9 and 45 come from the local range or SGAmmo depends in the price and inventory.

From a price/round perspective you can still get an advantage if you already invested in a good progressive setup and are just talking components. But when you include your time and if you have to buy just about anything equipment wise to get there? Nope. But that is just true today. at panic times, oh hell yes, especially if you want to stay sharp with your training. 5.56 and 9mm burns up quick when you do any run'n'gun training.

But most of my reloading is, as other have said, exotics like the 45-60 which are unobtanium any other way.

I just basically keep an ample supply of everything whether I need it now or not.

If you cant get what you want any other way, then time is never a factor.

service rifle?
Can I buy stuff I use for the short lines? Heck yes, and I know the guy that makes it and he is a perfectionist. He also charges like one. I would go broke buying 77gr match 556 in the volume I use. Posted I had a fun weekend last weekend, round count was 216. I will run 88 on Sun then next weekend 216, providing I dont actually hit the side yard range and practice.

The 600 yard line I shoot cant be bought. It fits my rifle to my spec, to my lands.

1K rifle
Yes they make 6.5x55, but they dont sell 6.5x55SE in the US. I cant buy a 6.5 that is running at almost 3K/sec from my rifle with a 142gr match bullet.

Then the Krag, 32 Win spl, 45-70 finally got 500gr lead rn in so its going to the range this fall...........

And yes, I can still produce better ammo for my needs in most cases than the factory does. Which includes picking the hunting bullet I like.

Oh, and I batch load. Picked up 2 single stage presses and a turret used and won a rock chucker. Maybe if I shot more handgun I would go Dillon, but that isnt worth it for me.

$1 each for bougie virgin brass. I’m saving money!