I'm just getting into 12ga reloading. So far I'm about $700 into it, and yesterday I made my very first complete #4 buckshot shell. I currently own the most expensive shotgun shell known to man. 🤣

When I think of what I have spend on reloading equipment it reminds me of the Tiger King guy going "I am never going to financially recover". But I really enjoy it so.

@unclefreedom213

Ай бұрын

Amen to that. I've hit the man look at all these primers I have and it hurts just a littke everytime I reload a 4 cent primer cause I know I'll never see it again

I'm self employed so work for $0 per hour, so my time is worth nothing.

@Theoneguythatdoes

Ай бұрын

Harsh realities. Bless your business brother

@jimmyslim1628

Ай бұрын

@@Theoneguythatdoes thank you.

@JayTheWorst1892

Ай бұрын

RealAF podcast LOTS of great info for you in there! Never quit! This stranger is rooting for you!

@unclefreedom213

Ай бұрын

I feel that my friend I have schedule c on taxes since I left the Army some years suck some not so much

Uncle's real name is Freedom.

@unclefreedom213

Ай бұрын

Indeed my friend lol

One thing you could also add to the handloading cost is amortizing out the case price by the number of reloads you expect to get out of it. On average, you should expect between 5 to 7 reloads out of brass. The hotter the load, the fewer reloads you can expect.

@ChadBoss-qr4hl

29 күн бұрын

I was just looking at an old Lee Loader kit I dug out of the closet from probably the 1960's or 1970's or maybe even before that. If you don't know what that is, it's a small boxed up set of handloading tools where you don't need any kind of press or anything like that, all you need is a hammer (or a stout stick-- the instructions actually say this) beyond what's in the box. Anyway, replying to your comment because I had heard that "5-7 reloads" figure you mentioned elsewhere before... The instructions in that set say brass can be reloaded HUNDREDS of times! I was pretty astonished to see that in the old days they were apparently a lot more optimistic about the number of times brass could be reloaded. I would probably stick to 5-7 myself.

@newscoulomb3705

29 күн бұрын

@@ChadBoss-qr4hl It depends on what you're loading and the gun you're using. "Hundreds" still seems optimistic, but if you're shooting a bolt action and only using a collet neck sizing die, you could definitely get dozens of reloads out of a piece of brass. Either way, you should be inspecting each piece of brass each time prior to reloading.

@piewolfe

29 күн бұрын

​@@ChadBoss-qr4hl Those Lee Loaders were great if you were living in the woods for a while. I have almost all of them in every caliber & gauge I need.

@ChadBoss-qr4hl

26 күн бұрын

@@newscoulomb3705 That's a good point actually. The Lee Loader doesn't size the neck at all. It actually recommends firing the brass in your rifle to obtain the correct size for that rifle.

@ChadBoss-qr4hl

26 күн бұрын

@@piewolfe They are cool. I know it's not quick or efficient in the slightest, but there's something compelling about being able to have at least basic reloading capability in such a small footprint. I had read at one point, don't know how true this is probably not actually very common even if true, that in the old west they would do their reloading at night around the campfire with similar kits.

Almost 19K subs!! Way to go keep the awesome videos coming 👍👍

The problem with hand loading is your trading money for time it is cheaper but takes a lot of time

@Blueknight1960

Ай бұрын

The hardest and time consuming part is brass prep. Even for just 500 rounds, the time will be measured in hours. Then depending on how you measure powder (electronic or beam scale), can be hours and unless you have a really comfortable place to sit while reloading, your back is going to start hurting.

One thing you could touch on in this series of videos: some factory ammo has sealed primers and necks, which can extend ammo viability when exposed to oily chambers, sweat, rain, etc. This is major pro for a person's EDC ammo and kit. Agreed on all given points. I hand load to acheive best accuracy, and to produce otherwise unobtainable or excessively expensive ammo.

I thought your real name is Uncle Freedom? lol😂 Thanks for all the information, keep up the awesome work! Thank you brother 🤙🏻

I’m retired on social security now so it’s like the government is paying me to reload my ammunition for all my different guns lol

Thanks to your teachings I have 200 rounds of quality 223 ammo thanks for the knowledge

What's your opinion on composit shells? Found them at the store in 5.56 and 308 not sure what to think of it, I do like that their lighter but what are the pros and cons? Or better yet, what does uncle freedom think?

I miss the handloading that I did prior to wife and kids. Got more $ than time these days though....

I checked into the start up cost to reload .50 bmg. To reload 200 rounds of 660 gr ammo, the initial cost was around $1700. That's just the powder, primers, brass, press and dies. That's not including the things you need to prep the brass, powder scales and other accessories plus the time to prep the brass, set up the dies and your time to do the actual reloading. It'd be very easy to have well over $2000 invested just to reload the 1st 200 rounds. The powder when I checked into it, was over $300 for 8 lbs and you only get 200 rounds per container. I have reloaded 5.56 and some 44 mag and I've learned that reloading just isn't for me. I'll spend the extra for factory ammo but, that's me.

@ChadBoss-qr4hl

29 күн бұрын

That's actually really interesting. I just looked up the price of 50 bmg on ammoseek and it's around $3.65 per round not including shipping. I would have thought that particular caliber would be the ideal candidate for reloading but I guess not.

@Blueknight1960

29 күн бұрын

@@ChadBoss-qr4hl I guess once you make the initial cost it might be a little cheaper to reload .50 bmg but, that initial cost will hurt.

Lol thats hilarious. Those Barnes 85 grainers are longer than some 9mm HPs I make. RMR Nukes loaded to a 1.06" COAL.

It’s not about how much the components cost. Reloading is still more expensive when you include equipment in the cost, plus the time spent in the process is going to make it more expensive. But when you put the quality in the equation, the cost is justified.

how do you choose what powder to use for each of these rifle loads, and what would you use if the goal was to maximize the velocity of a light projectile out of medium length barrels(13.5-14.5)?

@chriswollan9319

Ай бұрын

Find someone or a group that has lots of data and you will find a few powders to try. “Sage’s reloading group”is good. Follow the rules there! Be specific with your questions. Be Safe!

Interesting but I still plan on learning to reload Less about saving money and more about expanding what I can do in the sport

@CrashRacknShoot

Ай бұрын

That's what you should take away. But drop all notion of saving money. We all used it to justify the startup cost. I assure you it is a lie lol. But it's damn fun, and a bottomless pit of things to learn and tinker with. If you're looking for a hobby that actually produces a real, tactile, observable result, this is it.

Hand-loading only makes sense if you're chasing that last MoA in a particular rifle or you're after something that's not available commercially. There is a _very_ brief period at the beginning of ammo shortages where costs are lower, but it's measured in days. How many rounds are you really going to make/shoot in the 10-20 days during the run-up?

I load certain ammo, I buy certain ammo. Depending on what you're doing, either could be cheaper. I do not trust factory ammo for defensive ammo. Have seen too many in the past that would have caused failures, and should never made it out of the factory. The only thing I can not control with my loads is if the primer goes pop. And a properly seated, quality primer, fails so rarely, it's really a non issue.

Hey Uncle Freedom you should check out armorally they sell bulk bullets you can get 500 55gr VMAX for $86.13. There shipping is kind of pricy but if you bundle the order it hurts less.

@roquri

Ай бұрын

I buy a lot from them. Trying to ignore their M5 lower sale...

Brass prep is brutal if ya do it right.

I live next to a cabelas that has a 500 round box of Mk262 for $169(its been there for year it’ll probably ring up for less it’s such an old batch.) I’m hesitant because I recently discovered my 16 1:7 finds the 65gr sierra game king to be delicious. Also, can anyone help me understand the relationship between powder burn time, gas system length/dwell time, and projectile weight/ length? Why?

@woodsghost9088

Ай бұрын

The gas system will be affected by how much pressure acts on it. This can be high pressure/short duration, or low pressure/long duration. Powder can expand quickly or slowly, but always faster than you can think. So a quick expanding powder will have full pressure in a shorter distance than slow powder. And each can impact accuracy, velocity, and reliability. No quick answers, it depends on caliber, barrel lengths, weights, springs, etc. Heavier bullets are also longer bullets. Heavier bullets require more energy to push down a barrel. Longer bullets also have more friction in the barrel because they have more surface area. Dwell time is basically how much time there is gas behind the bullet and touching the gas port/bolt carrier. A small amount of dwell time requires a very high gas pressure to impart enough energy to the bolt carrier to cycle the gun before the bullet leaves the barrel. A longer dwell time is more forgiving and reliable unless you are using a very violent powder. Then the gun is getting beat up more with every shot. I'll pause here. Do you feel your question is answered? Or do you need further explanation?

@NelsonZAPTM

Ай бұрын

Them 65 grain Game Kings are my favorite. Haven't seen them on the shelf for years. 62 gr GK's have appeared though. Might have to give them a go.

I've been looking into reloading a lot lately. I live in California so the whole ammo price situation is out of control and that is if you can find what you want, if you have to order or online, hell that's another whole freaking mess. You should make a beginners guide to reloading man.

@CrashRacknShoot

Ай бұрын

If you want great places for 101 reloading videos, Johnny's Reloading Bench and Bolt Action Reloading. Both here on KZread. Both channels have slowed to a halt in new content, but their videos are the best for new and experienced shooters. As to Cali reloading, make sure you get very comfortable with understanding the mess it is to receive powder, primers, etc. I thankfully don't have to deal with that, but for those details, there's a California native that goes by Viejo (Walter). Great guy, SUPER knowledgeable, and a vast source of knowledge for reloading in general, and in Cali in specific.

When you’re reloading 223/5.56 what’s your method for getting rid of crimps? Also I’m assuming you can use 223 cases to reload 5.56?

@unclefreedom213

Ай бұрын

I use a Frankford arsenal crimp swager, I've got a link for them in my description. I've been using it for years works on 5.56 and. 308 brass

It’s not completely about the cost for me, it’s keeping the same zero, also I get great accuracy and most my barrels like. Changing ammo is going to change your zero. I stick to mainly 62 FMJbt w/ cannelure . I get pretty good groups. If I’m going past 400 yards I’ll turn to my 18” spr with 77grain OTM. I only buy factory ammo for practice and for the cases. It’s cheaper to buy factory ammo and use the brass than to just buy brass 😮

@CrashRacknShoot

Ай бұрын

I gave up on trying to get new factory brass, personally. It's called reloading for a reason. If you need brass, buy once fired range brass. Quite a few sites sell police/military range brass that is all truly once fired. Almost all of it is crimped, so there's no possibility of them being someone's previous hotrod brass. Sure, there's prep. But when the hell isn't there prep with brass? Plus, at 6 cents a case shipped and taxed, I would never purchase new. I may be in the minority, but it's an absurd idea, save for those going to high level matches. Even then, I can still achieve sub MOA. That's more than enough for most.

@daviddrago9360

Ай бұрын

@@CrashRacknShoot I agree with you on once fired brass.

9:32 I'm hearing Tom Anderson from beavis and butthead 😂😂😂

Hey Uncle Freedom, i am curious, Has there ever been change in performance just by changing the grains ? For example the 556 caliber instead of like 55, I would use a 58, 66, or a 71 grain.

@unclefreedom213

Ай бұрын

Yes there is but it's mainly due to the design change from say a 55gr otm to a sleeker design in a 58 or 66. Generally heavier bullets perform better at distance and have better flight characteristics due to extended length

@SHOTRED555

Ай бұрын

​@unclefreedom213 Interesting, I heard lighter grain travels faster and heavy grain has more energy "knocking power" and recoil management.

@unclefreedom213

Ай бұрын

@SHOTRED555 I mean that's a given I thought you were referring to actual benefits one over the other. other things just in the velocity game from 40gr to 85gr you muzzle energy is almost the same because twice as heavy twice the energy but speed almost increases as a square so twice the speed 4x the energy. The issues comes from a 40gr at like 3800 fps is gonna be around the same energy as 77gr tmk at 2750 both are around that 1300 foot pounds but the 40gr is going to lose energy faster becasue its less ballisticalky efficient and the 77gr will keep energy longer becasue it's more ballistically efficient.

I just enjoy loading ammo just like any other hobby try not to think about the money I put into it all 😂

Not even gonna get into what my time is worth. But I will ask how valuable is the experience and knowledge gained by, even loading thousands of plinking rounds? Might as well prep a thousand rounds here and there after everyone else is in bed, out of the house. I don't work 24/7, so and hour here and there it's worth it.

@ChadBoss-qr4hl

29 күн бұрын

Knowledge and experience not just of the mechanics of how to load them physically, but the knowledge of what all the equipment is and what it does, the components of the final product and various effects of those on your loads too, like accuracy-wise. And like you said what does it cost to load up 50 rounds while watching a youtube video or whatever when everyone's in bed? Basically nothing.

Do you weigh your brass? Do you weigh your bullets? I use 69 grain Sierra Match king bthp. But a hobby is a hobby and is designed to give you something to do that you enjoy, and you have the joy of applying your hobby and repeating it later.

@unclefreedom213

Ай бұрын

Yes in true match loads or any load for the sniper platform as well as water capacity testing.

@CrashRacknShoot

Ай бұрын

I second the water capacity. More specifically alcohol testing, as little to no alcohol sticks to the brass like drops of water will. There is a far greater consistency in capacity testing over weight. With weight, you cannot know that the capacity is the same with full certainty.

@unclefreedom213

Ай бұрын

@CrashRacknShoot ohh I like this have you tested this out it's speaking to my tism

@CrashRacknShoot

Ай бұрын

@@unclefreedom213 yessir. Haven't made much in the way of new formulas lately, so I'd have to check my notes to see how it all goes. Heard rumblings on forums a while back, and it's much better. There are conversions from alcohol to water if you wish, but as far as I'm concerned, a liquid number is a liquid number. If it pours out the same weight, they are equal sized cases. It does work well for finding new brass to put in the precision groups.

@CrashRacknShoot

Ай бұрын

@@unclefreedom213 long story short, less surface tension, less left in the case. Plus it evaporates quickly, so you don't have to have a lot of drying time. That alone is nice.

Handloading is its own hobby, and its costs are much like the costs of building new guns. Something new is constantly coming along and stealing some more of your money and time so if you don't love it then it will quickly become the worst investment of your life.

@CrashRacknShoot

Ай бұрын

Like any hobby, if you're not into it, you'll hate it. I absolutely adore the process. It is a time sink I willingly enter any time I have free time. It's just so much fun. It produces real, observable results and is a bottomless pit of knowledge. Also just knowing I can produce extremely accurate and high quality ammo for my own firearms is just a very satisfying accomplishment. Yes I'm a weirdo that enjoys tf out of brass prep. It is probably my favorite part.

@MartinHayes2009

Ай бұрын

I gotta agree on all of that especially the brass prep I love doing up loads in rare or antique cases, I just scavagened and prepped a batch of WCC94 .38 special cases from a place in Mt.Juliet Tennessee

You’d know his real name if you paid attention enough. It was in one of the first videos he posted but has since been deleted.

Jason

@unclefreedom213

26 күн бұрын

Who's Jason?

@coreystone6587

26 күн бұрын

@unclefreedom213 😅 I don't know man you just seem like a cool guy named Jason that has alot of atvs and gun stuff 😂 it kinda fits

@unclefreedom213

26 күн бұрын

@@coreystone6587 🤣🤣🤣🤣

I don't think it's fair to include the native cost of the brass in your calculations unless you're only loading them once. And maybe you are, I don't know. But your brass input cost is going to basically halve every time you load it. If you reload it 7 times it's basically $0.002 per case, which might as well be free. I think if you don't count the brass you're at more like 72 cents per round. I know it's not absolutely free, but I think realistically it's closer to 10 cents a case than 30 cents. Also you don't have to even buy it, brass is essentially free and .556 is plentiful if you can pick it up where people shoot. But I know not everyone can do that. Failing that you can always buy the cheapest .556 range ammo you can find and use that brass. I made the mistake of buying empty brass once or twice, but then I realized that it makes zero sense to buy empties unless you are going for utter consistency and trying to minimize every single variable (which admittedly some guys do). I'll buy the cheapest range ammo before I buy empty cases ever again. But the point is, if you already have on hand, say, 100 rounds of .556, and you get out and shoot regularly, then why are you buying brass? Just shoot those and reload them. Therefore they shouldn't count towards your cost. Or at least you shouldn't count them as much, but I think I've made an adequate argument that the cost of brass is negligible if not way less that what you have it at.

@unclefreedom213

29 күн бұрын

My costbof brass is how much it cost as of the day of the video. I compared everything new make 100, or 1000 or buy 100 or 1000. I do remove the cost of the brass in every breakdown in the video

@ChadBoss-qr4hl

26 күн бұрын

@@unclefreedom213 Yeah I get it... That may have come across as a criticism... it wasn't meant to be. Just a personal opinion. It's a struggle to accurately quantify the cost of reloading. Like also the cost of the presses and the dies... You can amortize that into the cost per round but at some point if you stick to it that equipment should theoretically pay for itself or at least come close.

With that much powder do you have to keep it in a special cabinet? I think my wife would shit if she knew that I had 30ish pounds. Yes 2520 rocks, I wouldn’t have believed you a few years ago if you said Vit would be in the same price range as everything else. Clown World. Be Safe

Black Hills 262 isnt hard to find.