Reloading - getting started?

adrock1978 said:
So your saying it takes much more expensive equipment to reliably load rifle cartridges and for that reason I should start out doing pistol cartridges? Is the dillon 550 or 650 considered progressive? What's "progressive? A machine that does multiple steps?
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It doesn't take more expensive equipment. I started loading .308 before I ever did Pistol rounds. Not sure what he is getting at. Pistol is a breeze, rifle is more involved.

Progressive machines crank out a round each time the lever is pulled. You should start single stage, doing each step one at a time to gain a complete understanding of the process.
 
adrock1978 said:
So your saying it takes much more expensive equipment to reliably load rifle cartridges and for that reason I should start out doing pistol cartridges? Is the dillon 550 or 650 considered progressive? What's "progressive? A machine that does multiple steps?
Click to expand...

A lot of people reload rifle cartridges with simple single (means much less expensive than progressive) stage reloader, so the answer is NO. It's just that rifle cartridges involve more steps (therefore, it can be more complicated/confused for beginners) to prepare and reload than handgun caliber.
You can reload both with single stage without problems, just take your time, go each step slowly, follow reloading book, and you should be absolutely fine.
If you look at the link I provided to you, it give you tons, and tons of info.
 
My first reloader was the "lee loader" for 30.06 and I still own it. It sells for about $25. You use a brass hammer to mechanically force your brass thru the sizing die. This is slow and makes very accurate ammo. Since this process only resizes the neck only of the casing your reloads are specific to the firearm it came from. Bench rest shooters neck size only no matter who's equipment it is. You can actually start with this setup and learn a lot about reloading. You will need to buy a scale, deburring tool, dial caliper, case length trimmer, brass lube and primer pocket brush. You can get reloading data from any powder makers free brochure or get a nonproprietary manual such as lyman as a first book or ask me to copy some out of my manuals for you. Minus the cost of components( bullets, primers and powder) you can start for under $100 and make safe, accurate high quality ammo. These might be hard to find in person but are still available new thru "midway" a shooters supply store. A nice feature about reloading like this is that this setup is total portable and fits in a shoe box. If you then catch the reloading bug and upgrade to a progressive stage press you haven't wasted money as you still need most of the tools you have purchased.
 
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