gixxerjunky Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 I am wondering what a normal monthly budget for reloading 9mm and .223 for about 400 rounds a month would be? What do you guys usually set back a month to buy components with? Me and my ole lady will be splitting the amount. I'm not looking to stockpile 100k rounds but enough to shoot whenever we want would be nice. I understand in the current climate prices are inflated but I would like to know under normal circumstances what you usually spend. I'm thinking $100 a month possibly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 Then set aside $100 per month... I actually have no idea how much I budget for shooting. I buy components when I need components, and try to buy everything in bulk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gixxerjunky Posted June 4, 2013 Author Share Posted June 4, 2013 I will buy my primers in bulk IF and WHEN I can find them but I was thinking about bullets and such how much would be a good amount to save. I hate having to impulse buy on stuff so this period in time is terrible for my shooting hobby. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djthemac Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 I allocate 350.00 a month for all shooting expenses broken down as follows 140.00 = 2000 Bear Creek .40 180 TC bullets 80.00 = 2000 Small Pistol Primers (F U obummer) 30.00 = WST powder (10,000 grains roughly) 20.00 = brass I lose a bunch at matches 20.00 = fuel to get to matches 40.00 = 2 X local club match entry fees 20.00 = random stuff? For you, there are a bunch of variables mostly pertaining to bullet type 9mm 30.00 = 500 bear creek 147 grain 9mm bullets 10.00 = 2000 grains of W-231 20.00 = 500 small pistol primers 0.00 = I assume you will be reusing brass 223 50.00 = 500 XM193 55grain FMJ 33.00 = 500 powder charges (I use ramshot tac @ 25.5 grains requiring 1.78lbs per 500) 20.00 = 500 small rifle primers 0.00 = I assume you will be reusing brass Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gixxerjunky Posted June 4, 2013 Author Share Posted June 4, 2013 You shoot 2k a month? Dang lol I only wish I could shoot that much. I don't have enough matches around me to do that. I only have maybe 2 matches a month I can attend if I'm lucky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djthemac Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 (edited) You shoot 2k a month? Dang lol I only wish I could shoot that much. I don't have enough matches around me to do that. I only have maybe 2 matches a month I can attend if I'm lucky. I just use this as my primary hobby/obsession and put all my extra coins towards getting better!! Also I only shoot around 250ish rounds at matches, the rest of it is used in practice. I am not sure how into practical shooting you are planning on getting, but there are some great GM's around who have written books on how to practice effectively on varying amounts of ammo. I am currently using the Mike Seeklander book which I highly recommend if you are interested. Edited June 4, 2013 by djthemac Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertftw Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I am just starting to reload 9mm and have gathered supplies in the last month or so buying from different places and paying multiple hazmat and shipping fee's I have it to $.16-.17 a round so not the cheapest by any means lol, Powder from cabela's, primers from midway, bullets from MG once the powder runs out It should drop to $.15 around which is about $20 a month saving for me (1000 rounds a month). Also I'm using range brass so that is not in the price as it is free to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deerassassin22 Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 A good way to keep cost down is to do a bulk purchase with your club or 10 or 15 friends most places will give you a better price Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gixxerjunky Posted June 5, 2013 Author Share Posted June 5, 2013 Well I don't know many people who reload at my club as its not the biggest. I haven't shot much this year there but when I get more involved I will be asking around for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmorris Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Dave Ramsey might get mad at me but I don't do a monthly budget on reloading. I order in somewhat large quantities, so that $1600 bullet order might last more than a year but saves a lot of money over getting a little bit here and there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DillonBlue Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I am just starting to reload 9mm and have gathered supplies in the last month or so buying from different places and paying multiple hazmat and shipping fee's I have it to $.16-.17 a round so not the cheapest by any means lol, Powder from cabela's, primers from midway, bullets from MG once the powder runs out It should drop to $.15 around which is about $20 a month saving for me (1000 rounds a month). Also I'm using range brass so that is not in the price as it is free to me. I'm in the same boat, just getting started and picking up components from here and there as they become available. It will be great when the supply levels out and a real, Dave Ramsey style budget can be set up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillD Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I get a bonus in the spring, right around tax return time. First thing that comes out of it is money for 20-30K primers, 16-24 lb of powder and 20K in bullets. It's around $4000. I like to shoot, it's why I got involved in this sport. I don't play golf, I drive an older, fuel efficient paid off car and live in a modest home. During good weather, I'll shoot 800-1000 rounds a week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
armedmoose Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 (edited) Easy math I tell anyone asking about reloading... "Reloading doesn't save me a dime, it just lets me shoot twice as much than buying factory ammo." I apply this rule to any ammo i shoot... NRA Highpower, Local Matches, and plain old plinking ammo. i.e. If you are buying WWB for plinking, I just generalize that instead of spending 14.99 for a box of 100 9mm... I can just reload 200 rounds of quality comparable to WWB. Your normal ammo budget will be converted to your reloading budget, (save some $$ for buying 22LR!) I use this rule of thumb as advice, since shopping habits for everyone is different, bulk buying is where you see the most savings, but beginners typically purchase smaller quantities(1lb of powder, 1k of primers, 500 bullets). I'd hate to see a beginning reloader discouraged that they aren't producing 9mm match ammo at the 10-13 cents a bulker buyer is. Edited June 5, 2013 by armedmoose Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtp Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 When I started reloading some months ago, I would choke seeing people mention buying not one, but four cases of projectiles, and 16+ pounds of powder at a time. Subsequently seeing just how difficult it's been to get some components at all, as well as the GunBroker ^&%^% whom may or may not even shoot, charing $50-$60 for 1k of Tula primers..(normally ~$20), buying in bulk vs 'buy what I need for the immediate future' has won out any time possible. Even there it's not always dropping per round cost much if at all versus pre-panic, but it does control costs over worse alternatives, and I've still managed to come across a decent deal now and then. I really don't want to be paying > 10c/projectile for 9mm or .223, but definitely not much more than that. With MG price increases, it's currently at $140-$160/k or 14-16c/ea buying in 1k, or right around 10c/ea buying by the case. PD is a bit cheaper, but had some pretty long wait times....which in turn is continuing to remind me to buy in bulk, as much as possible, and in advance. Buying random Hornady or other projectiles is going to run anywhere from $15-$25 (even more now?) per 100, so - do the math. Likewise, I also did that 24+ lb powder purchase (mostly rifle), and even for pistol, am really considering 1# containers as nothing but for emergency purchase. With most powders, you're getting ~3# 'free' buying an 8#-er vs buying in 1#...not to mention if you're actually paying Hazmat on purchases for 1 or a few # of powder. I think BillD's got the right idea, and I'm trying to get there myself. Decide what you need for < some amount of time, perhaps a year > and buy it up front if at all possible, and/or decide if you have a cutoff level, at which point you fill up your supplies back to whatever level you'd decided on, e.g. a year's worth of supplies/components. Right now, I'd imagine some amount of scrambling/take what you can get is happening all around, but if you have at least 6 months covered, it may make sense to save some $ if money is tight, to still try to make a few higher quantity purchases, and then see where your monthly 'needs' get you and if monthly works for you vs just allocating X/month into a reloading fund, which may actually only be used 1-2x/year to buy in quantity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtp Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 @OP Your 400rds/month of 9mm and .223 would be just under 5k/year. Personally, I'd be looking at picking up 5k small pistol primers, 5k small rifle, a case of Montana Gold for pistol, and looking for a bulk 5k mil-surp .223 projectile purchase like what Widener's has on occasion, or other if you need more match-type ammo, but at least 1k at a time (only 2.5 months worth by your definition). This would give you some amount of reserve (a year for primers), and once you hit your 50% point, you can look at ordering to bring up to at least 'a full year,' etc. Buying projectiles 100 at a time just doesn't pay.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hatchet Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I buy in quantity, but can reload 9mm for about 10 cents a round. The wife and I seem to be going through about 1500 a month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertftw Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Projectiles being the most expensive part how do you get a better deal? At what amount do you have to buy to get a "bulk" price like 20,000 or something? And the question is meant for "normal" times. My MG's cost $.09 a round so $.10 seem like a nice price for the entire round Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
practical_man Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I am wondering what a normal monthly budget for reloading 9mm and .223 for about 400 rounds a month would be? What do you guys usually set back a month to buy components with? Me and my ole lady will be splitting the amount. I'm not looking to stockpile 100k rounds but enough to shoot whenever we want would be nice. I understand in the current climate prices are inflated but I would like to know under normal circumstances what you usually spend. I'm thinking $100 a month possibly. As other have said, set aside a budget you can live with as shoot that much. I went thru this when I started. My wife and I agreed I could spend $100 per month on shooting. Kids and family come first. With tha budget I mostly shot rim fire and saved the balance till I had enough to buy 5K primers and 8# powder, then on to buy bulk projectiles from wideners (now I buy almost exclusively from powder valley because the are nicer and more responsive) That was my start up cost and it took a while to accumulate the up front cash so I have steady flow. Now I budget a bit more but still only buy once a year. I get together with a couple of buddies and make a higher order. Can usually ship 70# of hazmat for one fee. Primers and powder in the same shipment is ok. Not buying anything right now because prices are crazy. Not shooting much either because work and kids keep me running. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtp Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Projectiles being the most expensive part how do you get a better deal? At what amount do you have to buy to get a "bulk" price like 20,000 or something? And the question is meant for "normal" times. My MG's cost $.09 a round so $.10 seem like a nice price for the entire round Shoot lead instead of jacketed, it'll drop costs quite a bit. $63/1k drops projectile cost of 9mm 124/125gr to 6-7cents/each for a ~33% savings. Some of these guys are buying 4x cases at a time of Montana Golds, with a higher discount. Makes sense if you're shooting a lot or have multiple calibers to feed. When you can find them, buying a sleeve/5k or more primers of the same type can get discounts. If your MGs are 9c/ea, I'd love to know how you're getting primer + powder for 1c/rd...buying 100k Tula primers at a time? Love to hear any tips on dropping per round cost...although not sure how many apply until things settle.. ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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