Reload to shoot or shoot to reload, or reload and don't shoot, or

[bubbadoc]

Prefer shooting to reloading, but reloading is not that bad. Gives me some 'therapy' after a stressful day ... and keeps me in mental touch with what I really like to do

[gacajun]

Prefer shooting to reloading, but reloading is not that bad. Gives me some 'therapy' after a stressful day ... and keeps me in mental touch with what I really like to do

Therapy !!

I shoot CAS every Saturday some place in Georgia and shoot out of state matches 8 times a year. I run through a lot of .38sp and 12g shotgun shells. Counting match and practice ammo I run through about 10,000 rounds of .38sp and 2,500 12g rounds. Having a 650 and caliber conversion kits helps. I also shoot a few other pistol and rifle calibers just for fun.

I reload in order to be able to afford to shoot competition but even more than that, for me at least, its a therapy thing. My two kids, sons, have married and moved off about 50 miles from us and we have 4 grandsons....wonderful little balls of energy. I am also at the age, 59, where there is not much on TV that interests me and when there is something that I do like I just DVR it so I can run through the commercials.

So I spend a lot of time in my basement reloading shop loading different ammo and shot shells, processing brass and shot shell hulls and even clean my guns occasionally whether they need it or not. If I don't have any reloading to do I'll take down some of my presses and do a little cleaning and lubricating. I've even been known to open up my gun safe, take out a gun I haven't "fondled" in a while and detail strip it and put it back in the safe. I have enough guns where I can do that once a week if need be .

For me, other than when my grandsons are over at our house my best time spend is in my reloading shop........therapy!

[Mastiff]

Prefer shooting to reloading, but reloading is not that bad. Gives me some 'therapy' after a stressful day ... and keeps me in mental touch with what I really like to do

Therapy !!

I shoot CAS every Saturday some place in Georgia and shoot out of state matches 8 times a year. I run through a lot of .38sp and 12g shotgun shells. Counting match and practice ammo I run through about 10,000 rounds of .38sp and 2,500 12g rounds. Having a 650 and caliber conversion kits helps. I also shoot a few other pistol and rifle calibers just for fun.

I reload in order to be able to afford to shoot competition but even more than that, for me at least, its a therapy thing. My two kids, sons, have married and moved off about 50 miles from us and we have 4 grandsons....wonderful little balls of energy. I am also at the age, 59, where there is not much on TV that interests me and when there is something that I do like I just DVR it so I can run through the commercials.

So I spend a lot of time in my basement reloading shop loading different ammo and shot shells, processing brass and shot shell hulls and even clean my guns occasionally whether they need it or not. If I don't have any reloading to do I'll take down some of my presses and do a little cleaning and lubricating. I've even been known to open up my gun safe, take out a gun I haven't "fondled" in a while and detail strip it and put it back in the safe. I have enough guns where I can do that once a week if need be .

For me, other than when my grandsons are over at our house my best time spend is in my reloading shop........therapy!

Now here is a man leading a parallel life with me. I don't know gacajun, but he appears to have a good understanding of mortality. You gave it away by explaining the DVR. See, guys like us don't have time or want to invest the time in watching commercials because we value time, not by the year or month, but by the hours and days. Great post, thank you sir.

[gacajun]

You are welcome.

[flyingrhino]

I shoot to reload in pistol calibers. I think I enjoy the reloading as much or more than the shooting. Been reloading for almost 50 years now. I find it relaxing. The 223 I reloaded to shoot when I was shooting competition. I didn't enjoy it nearly as much. Producing precision rounds was more work than fun.

[BSeevers]

Reloading for me is a necessary evil that I put right up there with cleaning my bathroom or mowing the lawn.

I don't think I could trust most to load my match ammo but I am willing to try. I load for 3 but feel the same way when it was one

[Jman]

I'd rather chew tin foil than reload.

[ClintDismore]

I just starting trying to reload in more of a bulk fashion. I had a single stage which now is being used for prep work but it took me so long doing it that way that I gave up for a while. Ran across a good deal on a progressive press and now I actually enjoy reloading. I'm doing it because, at the ever rising cost and scarcity of ammo, I can make my own cheaper. There is also some allure in it to me that I can look in an ammo can full of rounds and know that I made them.

[Mastiff]

I'd rather chew tin foil than reload.

So I am assuming (similar to the other gentleman's post), reloading is nothing more than a chore for you. Would it be fair to say that you reload only for 100% economic reasons? Or do you load odd calibers? I want to hear why reloading for you is tantamount to chewing tinfoil. It sounds painful.

Dog

[varminter22]

Definitely reload to shoot.

For the most part, I do enjoy reloading. But it does take up valuable time.

[TonyK]

Even if you consider reloading a chore, there is no way I would rather clean the toilet than pull that handle! And the payoff from that handle on my press is far better than anything you will get out of mowing the lawn...

And I have bitten down on foil a time or two and my press never left a metallic taste in my mouth....

[jmorris]

I like making things to make both better more than either of them alone.

[Lifeislarge]

I am absolutely fanatical about saving money. And I hate the idea of paying somebody to do something that I can do better. Reloading is a necessary evil to me if I want to shoot however it can be aggravating at times when my press buggers up. I take a lot of satisfaction in being self-sufficient in a lot of things.

[kneelingatlas]

For me, this sport is the convergence of four hobbies: tinkering, shooting, gun collecting and reloading; that's my order of enjoyment.

[at_liberty]

How about don't reload and don't shoot but have all the reloading equipment and supplies, including shot shell, handgun, and rifle? Part of that is prepper thinking, not having (yet) much interest in my AR-15, but being prepared to both cast and reload for it.

The same is true for other calibers. I have acquired new calibers and types of guns fast enough that I don't yet have them all to the gunsmith for optimizing.

I like to shoot handguns more than my shotguns and rifles, so my main activity in reloading is .45 ACP and .357 Magnum Lite. I could be heavy into shooting .45 Colt but am waiting for a couple new dies intended to reduce leading. I finally have the .45 Colt throat diameters properly matched with those of the barrels and a nice trigger job on my New Vaquero.

The point though is that there is a lot of equipment here, because it is my hobby to have it, not necessarily use it. Every gun can be fully supported, if the supply market goes away, unless I run out of gas checks, which doesn't seem likely. What I don't have yet is an iron pot to melt lead over a campfire. Electricity cannot be taken for granted. I do have 150 pounds of #2 alloy lead, molds for each caliber/gun, and even a #4 buck mold for my .410 Coach Gun and mating Judge. I guess carting around a supply of lead could present quite a challenge, but little more than a large supply of ammo would....it just needs to be divided into manageable packages.

Things have to change, and it will likely happen soon.

Edited January 26, 2014 by at_liberty

[TonyK]

Lead won't do you much good in that AR.....

[Hammer1]

.

Is there anything more fun than forming wildcat cases like the 14-221 Walker or 219 Donaldson Wasp and then reaming and turning case necks ?

.

.

[at_liberty]

Lead won't do much good in that AR...

No, I'm good. I also have gas checks and a gas check mold for lead bullets, including 22 cal. I have gas checks for 45, 44, 35, 30, and 22 along with the molds to match.

Edited January 27, 2014 by at_liberty

[sdbreload]

I can afford to buy factory ammo, but hate the idea of spending so much more than I can save by reloading. I also like the ability to tune my ammo for my guns and the type of shooting. It only takes about 10 min for me to crank out a 100 rounds on my SDB, so not really a time issue for me. Do it two or three times a week and I'm set.

[MG08]

I actually enjoy reloading. I feel like I accomplish something and actually "create". Plus I get to shoot the ammo up. I am feeding MGs, so it takes a bit to stock up. Buying components in large qty helps, and for a lot of calibers it is way cheaper. I also like loading machines, so tinkering and running them is enjoyable and relaxing to me. I have 9 progressive machines, from a Dillon SDB for 357s to 3 - 650s to a new Dillon 50 BMG loader I am just now playing with.

[twowheels]

I reload to shoot. It is satisfying to work up good, reliable, accurate loads and to have thousands of rounds on hand. But I'd be more than happy to go out into the garage and find that the reloading fairies have replenished my ammo supplies if that were possible. Since it is not, I don't mind reloading that much; the benefits outweigh the detriments but I can think of a lot of ways I'd rather spend my time.

[Jman]

I'd rather chew tin foil than reload.

So I am assuming (similar to the other gentleman's post), reloading is nothing more than a chore for you. Correct. Would it be fair to say that you reload only for 100% economic reasons? No, not entirely. Or do you load odd calibers? 9 Major and 300 AAC Blackout are pretty odd imo. I want to hear why reloading for you is tantamount to chewing tinfoil. It's the standing and cranking...and standing and cranking...and the standing a...well you get the drift. It sounds painful. It is. The high volume pistol ammo especially, the rifle stuff not so much. Reloading is NOT shooting but a terrible necessity. It's ALL about the shooting for me.

Dog

Edited January 29, 2014 by Jman

[BillD]

^{Long loaded .40 is pretty much a reloading prospect, as is .45 200 gr coated SWC.}

^{And then there is primer tube reloading, I've got an older Vibra Prime that works but it's still a 30 or 40 min chore when I could be drinking.}

[GT1]

Reloading is a means to an end for most of us. I'm sure the guys that are comp shooting burn out on reloading quickly. I have never understood the 'reloading zen' thing. Those guys that cuddle a rockchucker in their basement all day are welcome to it.

I don't find it unenjoyable, but loading on an auto-indexing press is not what I'd call fun, too many things going on to have time for fun. Sure does pile up rounds fast, though. The other end of it, a slow and plodding single stage press.........I'd rather pull my fingernails out.

If I could buy factory ammo for the same price I'd be all over that.

[ppknut]

I'm definitely in the camp of: "I reload to shoot and I shoot to reload."

I reload and shoot 9 different calibers and 3 gauges. With the availability issues over the last 4 or 5 years, I decided that if I wanted to shoot any or all of my toys at any given time, I didn't want to be at the mercy of the LGS or Walmart for ammo.

Almost all of my guns are 'old school' (only one polymer). Rather than beat up my 03A3 or my older Colts, or my grandad's hand-me-downs, I much prefer loading them down a bit. Finding the best and/or least power loads that will reliably function and perform well is quite satisfying.

I use to avoid obtaining new calibers because I just new I'd have to gear up with new dies, conversions, etc. Every time I did get a new caliber I found I was really enjoying the process all over again.