1eyedfatman Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 (edited) I'm just starting to get into reloading. I bought a used Dillon 650 and sent it off last week to Dillon to get it refurbished. I'm starting to gather the other items needed. I originally thought I would build a little reloading table in the garage and setup my reloader there. But low 30's temperatures have the garage feeling like a freezer at night. And being in TX, summers will have it feeling like an oven during the day and I'll be sweating all over the place. I'm not just concerned about comfort, but also keeping a consistent temperature range for powder and the reloading process. After talking to a few guys in the shooting club, I see its pretty common for people to setup their reloading table in the house/apartment...whether that be a closet area, spare bedroom, etc. Both on solid and carpet floors. So I'm looking at setting up in a corner of our workout room which happens to be my dry fire room. The room is just a carpeted, upstairs empty bedroom. I'm just wondering if I need to take any precautions? There is a closet in the room with a lock where I could store the powder and primers locked up in case a guest wonders in. Other then that, I had no special storage plans. I do have a large rubber mat which an exercise bike is sitting on which I may put under the reloading table just to put a layer between it and the carpet to make sweeping up lost particles easier and make it less likely that power would get into the carpet. I could put a little fire extinguisher in the room. I do figure that is a safer situation then a garage with a floor heater. Edited January 13, 2015 by 1eyedfatman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Matzka Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 I've had both garage and living area reloading spaces over the years. I prefer the living space setup by far, and for exactly the reasons you stated. Sounds like you have a good handle on locking things up to prevent unauthorized access and safety. I'd go with your plans and never look back. Enjoy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshxdm9 Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 I started in my pole barn but way to hot in the summer and way to cold in the winter. Moved to dedicated room in my basement with dehumidifier and never looked back. I do all my tumbling in the garage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mach1soldier Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 If you have interior space, use it. I have both. I prefer to be inside. Inside stays cooler, doesn't cause things to rust as bad, powder and primers stay dry and I'm just generally more happy inside. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flatland Shooter Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 (edited) I store powder and primers in the house (avoids temperature extremes) but have all the equipment on a bench in the garage. I try to load up enough ammo in advance that I can wait for a nice day to load. Even though it gets hot in the summer, I open all the garage doors and keep a nice breeze running through it with a big bug blower fan. During the winter, I just wait until the temperature in the garage is tolerable. Bill edit to add: I only run the brass tumbler outdoors. I let a nice breeze push that air borne crap over to the neighbors. Edited January 13, 2015 by Flatland Shooter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trickpony Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 I had a 550 set up in the garage for about 4 Months and it began to rust. Indoor is best if you have the room. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChaseMarshall Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 You know you want it in the house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gahunter12 Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 I have my benches out in the garage. My oldest press (RL550b) has been in my garage since 2008. I live in NE Ga, and have never had issues with rust. I do keep my presses lubed, and covered. My powder/primers stay indoors. That said I should have my new reloading shop (10x20 building) finished by mid Feb. It will be climate controlled, with a dehumidifier. I will have 16ft benches down both sides, with a short bench across the back wall. I will have cabinets on each side before the benches to store primers, powder, and bullets. This has been my long time dream to have an area dedicated to reloading, and gun smithing away from the house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butterpuc Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 (edited) I have mine setup in my office, do some work to pay bills, load some bullets, repeat Edited January 13, 2015 by Butterpuc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
basman Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 You will use it more and enjoy it more if it's in the house. You won't mind making 20 test loads if it's convenient, no dragging components in and out. When I first started I had my press in the garage, would wake up at 5 AM in the summer to do some reloading before it got hot. In the winter, I had to set up heaters an hour prior to reloading. Started feeling like work, moved it inside and never looked back! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoBell Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 Mine is inside on a hardwood floor in the breakfast nook, the best lit part of the house and the nicest view. Makes reloading much more fun. If you have it on carpet, a barrier of some sort over the carpet would be good so you don't have to vacuum spilled powder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmorris Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 My brother and I started reloading in the garage 30 years ago. In Texas there are about 14 days of the year when it is pleasant in a garage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1eyedfatman Posted January 13, 2015 Author Share Posted January 13, 2015 You know you want it in the house. Ah, wise words from Grand Master Chase. Got your CZ yet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeRush Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 People on here always tell me to move, but I load quite comfortably year round in the garage in San Diego. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxbat Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 Reloading in the basement, very comfortable, which is important if you don't want mistakes. For tumbling I built an exhaust hood, fully enclosed, with a 6" exhaust duct. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatJones Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 I load in an room just off from our living room area. It's carpeted, but I use an office chair mat like this to catch most of the crap: http://m.staples.com/touch/product.html?catname=Chair%20Mats&catid=CL70205#447139 I tumble in the garage because lead dust from tumbling is the biggest lead risk in reloading. I don't have kids, so I store my powder and primers unsecured in my loading room. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToddKS Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 Inside. And not just a corner, dedicate a room. I have an exterior door handle that locks with a key so that I can secure the room. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverBolt Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 If your table is going to be on carpet I would suggest putting a heavy 3/4"+ sheet of plywood down first. Any give/flex in your platform could have an affect on your press and seating primers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bkreutz Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 A lot depends on your location.I have a all season conditioned shop, but living in Seattle doesn't require extremes in conditioning in either direction, hot or cold. Seeing that you're in Texas, that doesn't apply to you, I spent a bit of time In Texas courtesy of the Army so I can't imagine trying to load in an unconditioned space. Since I can load basically any time of the year, I only load as I need rounds, which means I load about a thousand a week. A way to approach it in your situation is to calculate what amount of ammo you need and then load it during more temperate times, but load more than the 1K per week that I do. Here are a few pictures of my shop that I can use all year long. And the obligatory watchdog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motosapiens Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 There is a closet in the room with a lock where I could store the powder and primers locked up in case a guest wonders in. First you need to address your security problem. If you have 'guests' wandering in that you don't think are trustworthy, you should consider changing the locks or something. I leave my stuff set up all the time in the spare room. Any guests that wander in are interested in shooting and smart enough to not screw with stuff unsupervised. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatJones Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 If your table is going to be on carpet I would suggest putting a heavy 3/4"+ sheet of plywood down first. Any give/flex in your platform could have an affect on your press and seating primers. I disagree. After time the legs on a loading bench compress the carpet padding and sink down to better footing. A hunk of plywood keeps that from happening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1eyedfatman Posted January 14, 2015 Author Share Posted January 14, 2015 There is a closet in the room with a lock where I could store the powder and primers locked up in case a guest wonders in. First you need to address your security problem. If you have 'guests' wandering in that you don't think are trustworthy, you should consider changing the locks or something. I leave my stuff set up all the time in the spare room. Any guests that wander in are interested in shooting and smart enough to not screw with stuff unsupervised. I will say security is "normal". We don't have people just wonder in that we don't know. Just seeing if precautions need to be taken for stupid stuff that may happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmorris Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 First you need to address your security problem. If you have 'guests' wandering in that you don't think are trustworthy, you should consider changing the locks or something. I keep mine locked for others security not mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverBolt Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 Another issue with carpeted floors is lost primers. At some point you will drop live primers. Live primers and vacuum cleaners do not make a good combo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newmexicocrawler Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 I enclosed the area around my well stuff, ran ac/heater vents in there and its on the house serveillance/alarm system Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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