Factory Ammo, Reloads, or Both?

For you guys shooting cartridges that are commercially available do you reload, buy loaded, or do what I do and buy factory ammo then reload the brass?

I only shoot factory loaded ammo. I have saved hundreds of rounds of brass and would like to start reloading but cant seem to find the components.

I haven't bought a factory loaded round, other than 22LR, in a long, long time.

I generally purchase a box of factory with the appropriate bullet wt. / style, etc.; and, then I chrono the factory rounds and target my reloads to those velocities. Obviously, that doesn't work for the wildcats, for which I derive data with QuickLoad.

Doc

I like to get factory ammo if it shoots decent and has the bullet I want. The main reason I reload is to get the bullet I want with the charge I want in the brass I want. If I get close with factory ammo and the price is decent I'll go that route. Plus I'm still measuring charges one at a time by hand so weighing out 20 charges at a time is an exercise in patience for me. Maybe santa will bring me a powder meter or chargemaster for christmas. With loaded ammo you can just get to shooting then keep the brass.

One day a while back I took a trip to the range with my young son. Shot the big boomer (475L) till I was worn out and called it a day. On the way home we stopped off to one of my favorite little gun shops. Just for kicks I did a price check on ammo. They didn't have anything for the 475, but had some Hornady in 480 Ruger. Did the calculation in my head and realized that I had just finished shooting the equivalent of $160+ worth of factory loads. I was completely floored.

Truth be told, I'm a pretty young shooter. But outside of 22LR, I've never actually shot any factory ammo in my guns. How anyone can shoot the required volume of rounds to become (and stay) proficient with a big-bore hunting arm using only factory loads is completely beyond my understanding.

Or maybe I just haven't yet realized how, um... "underfunded" I actually am.

I haven't shot factory ammo, other than .22 and .380, in many years. I normally buy new brass and once fired off forums that I frequent. If you will watch the forums, you can get brass (whether new or once fired) cheaper than you can get it anywhere. As a matter of fact, I just traded with a guy tonight, to buy some new Starline brass delivered...cheaper than it can be bought (less shippimg) from Starline when they have it available.

l shot two 40 round legs at our local silhouette match last weekend with my S&W 460 along with 10 sighters for a total of 90 rds.. Factory ammo woulda been nearly $200.. My reloads were but a fraction of $200.Also,there are no factory rounds like the reloads l shoot at these matches..l do have a box of Hornady FTX for reference purposes tho ..

Everyone will tell you that to start to reload you will spend money to get set up to do so. However, over time you WILL save money that allows you to shoot more often.

If the price of the factory ammo you buy is close to what I can reload for I buy it. The only way now I can decrease my reloading cost further is to cast my own bullets.

How is the cost of your reloads nearly equal to the cost of factory rounds?

You can buy components at today's prices and still come in under .20 per round on most straight walled pistol calibers, using your brass. Unless, of course, you are using an expensive jacketed bullet. But, even buying jacketed bullets, you will come in way under the price of factory ammo.

I only shoot my cast bullets in every caliber that I load for and presently my reloads cost me under .08 per round...that is using my brass, also.

depending on what gun im shooting. i only reload for the 44 & 47-70. thats a trapdoor 1888 so it only gets cast and real black powder. otherwise id only reload the 44.

Well a recent example, I went to a gun show the other day and bought 100 rounds of 500S&W in starline brass loaded with 500gr Hornady XTPs. I paid $200 which is $2 a round. If I buy the same components from Midway I am up to about $1.50 for just the bullet and case. That is before you count powder, primers, and shipping on the various components.

That part is re-usable.

I know but I'm just getting started with the 500 so I figure If I still am paying a similar price for the components but don't have to load them myself the first time around, the extra few cents is worth it to me. Then I still end up with the brass which I can re-use. I suppose after a few loadings the average cost decreases but just starting out and having to buy all new components the price is pretty close.

You had stated in one of your posts that the only way that you could reduce the cost of your reloads would be for you to start casting your own bullets.

That will certainly work, but it is not the ONLY way as there are some commercial cast bullets available for the 500.

You should be able to buy 325gr( I am sure there are some heavier bullets available) cast bullets, powder, primer and reuse your brass to reload the 500 for about .80 per round...that equates to a 60% reduction in cost. Now, that might not be much of a savings to you...but it will work for me.

You could then load a few of your heavy, jacketed hunting rounds for practice and hunting...but the general shooting would be considerably cheaper.

Hardly can reload cartridges like 9mm,sometimes 223, and others cheaper. Once you have brass and the equipment, reloading is a lot cheaper. It meshes your soul with the gun. Most of the thrill of shooting my Shiloh Sharps is molding bullets, pouring the powder, wiping the finished case, and dropping into the chamber. Besides, 45-90s are hard to come by, just like if I was living in the 1890's. Which is part of the thrill.

I think we were thinking of two different ideas. I meant for the same components all brand new. You appear to mean reloading in general. The comment I made about casting my own bullets was somewhat of an afterthought. I have seen many types of commercially cast bullets available for relatively inexpensive as you mentioned. Especially compared to jacketed bullets. I already have 350gr XTPs, 500gr XTPs and 300gr FTXs ready to load up. I was looking at the 440 grain LFN cast as another possibility. Eventually I do want to get some molds and cast my own. When I was a kid we cast all our own muzzle loader projectiles as well as many pistol bullets that would be loaded slow enough to not need a gas check.

I have a Rockchucker but no dies. Powder but no primers, brass but no bullets. I feel so ashamed....

Getting started reloading while having 2 teenage daughters is a challenge. I'm shooting factory stuff right now out of my .460S&W and find it difficult to get the bullet I want for under $3/round. So I'm making brass.