Reloading .243

[tatsyr44 0]

Hi There! I am currently enjoying shooting my Sako varmint 75 .243! with the current prices of ammo i am seriously thinking about starting to reload my own ammo?.How much would it cost to get started in reloading,and what advice can anyone give? cheers.

[SNAP SHOT 194]

buy quality as you start out..... lee single stage press will get you sorted, but buy quality dies such as redding or forester.....

 

they are excellent....

 

 

get yourself a few reloading manuals ...... hornady book of cartridge reloading and lee's modern reloading are good....

 

tumbler, vernier calipers, primer pocket cleaner, deburring tool, priming tool.... lee hand primer or better quality....

 

scales, you can go manual, or digital, again quality stay away from the lee ones there pants...

 

rcbs, redding, are good.... powder trickler... i may of forgot bits and pieces but someone will no doubt notice a few more things...

... but build as you learn, you will also need a cartridge cutter to take the brass but to sammi specs.... after a few firings...

 

 

 

 

for the .243 my bullet choice was 58 v-max and 95g sst, or 87g v-max.... all accurate....

[sako trg 1]

Hi There! I am currently enjoying shooting my Sako varmint 75 .243! with the current prices of ammo i am seriously thinking about starting to reload my own ammo?.How much would it cost to get started in reloading,and what advice can anyone give? cheers.

dont try to buy everything at once,get the essentials and build from there.after the enitial outlay its cheap better quality ammo all the way & very rewarding :thumbs:set yourself a budget of around £500

Edited April 1, 2010 by sako trg

[steveff1353 7]

buy quality as you start out..... lee single stage press will get you sorted, but buy quality dies such as redding or forester.....

 

they are excellent....

 

 

get yourself a few reloading manuals ...... hornady book of cartridge reloading and lee's modern reloading are good....

 

tumbler, vernier calipers, primer pocket cleaner, deburring tool, priming tool.... lee hand primer or better quality....

 

scales, you can go manual, or digital, again quality stay away from the lee ones there pants...

 

rcbs, redding, are good.... powder trickler... i may of forgot bits and pieces but someone will no doubt notice a few more things...

... but build as you learn, you will also need a cartridge cutter to take the brass but to sammi specs.... after a few firings...

 

 

 

 

for the .243 my bullet choice was 58 v-max and 95g sst, or 87g v-max.... all accurate....

Hi

What powder are you using for th 87gr Vmax and what rifle?

 

Thanks

[dave1372 83]

I have not long just started out myself so hopefully this will help :

 

Where To Buy: If you are buying online try having a look at Reloading Solutions or Midway Uk

 

Have alook on youtube.....loads of videos on reloading you will learn loads

Equipment & Cost:

 

This is the list/comments/prices I got from the guy I used :

 

 

 

• Dies. Normally recommend and stock Lee collet dies for thoses reoalding only there own cases for re-use in their own rifle. These dies neck-size only and give excellent accuracy and case life. If you are going with a single stage press I'd recommend replacing the die lock rings with Hornady ones. These give a positive lock, repeatable die settings and save time. Dies are £28.00, lock rings are £4.50 each. I appreciate this makes a Lee die set almost as expensive as RCBS etc. It is a good combination though.

 

• Single Stage Press. Obviously an RCBS RockChucker (Cast Iron) is best. But they are slow and expensive. The Lee Challenger Breech Lock looks a good idea. It's about £67.00. To be honest I'd personally go for the Lee Turret and forget the auto index. We sell the Lee three hole turrets with manual index for £85.00. All the dies are in at once and once set stay set. This option means you don't need better lock rings, because you're not constantly changing dies.

 

• Powder dispenser. If you're going to use one I'd recommend the RCBS Uniflow or Lyman 55 – both are about £84.00. remember you'll also need a stand, which adds £20-25.00. See late info re Lee, personally I wouldn't!

 

• Powder Scales. Any good scale by RCBS, Lyman etc is OK. We sell Frankford Arsenal electronic for £37.00 or so and they seem fine. We usually sell Lyman in manual scales and they are £43.00. I really don't rate the Lee safety scale or Lee's powder measure and wouldn't sell or use them. It's a personal opinion based on 30 years use of reloading equipment and is provided as food for thought only. It's for this reason that I don't like kits / packages….You can end up with a lot of stuff that's not what you would have bought if you'd seen the alternatives.

 

• Primer pocker cleaner. RCBS really nice but doesn't do any more than the Lee, which costs very much less £15 or £3 – you decide!

 

• Powder funnel. All are OK and most under £5.00

 

• Ammo boxes. 50 or 100 capacity – MTM or Frankford. Makes little difference we have several in stock at £3.00 to £14.00.

 

• Primer Tool. Wouldn't look past the Lee auto-prime II. Not very well made, but worth keep buying more as they work better than anything else. I have a customer who goes through 3 A year, by his own admission he's a clumsy idiot and recognises most people get five years plus out of the tool.

 

• Powder trickler. Not essential. Usually under £15.00 unless you go Redding, all are OK.

 

• Digital Vernier. In stock for less than £30. we have Trojan at the moment. They are engineering standard and we use them in the workshop.

 

• Case Lube – not necessary unless you are full length sizing. Not expensive. Pad £9 – Lube £5.50 if you decide to go that route.

 

• Bullets. Various 0.224 Ballistic tip / soft point between £17 and £30 per 100. expanding entered on certificate

 

• Primers – Standard £33 per 1000, Match £42 per 1000, smaller quantities are slightly more. **These can only be sold on production of a valid certificate under the VCR Act.

 

One last thing – case trimmer. This is important to maintain accuracy. No need to spend more than the Lee Holder, cutter, lock stud and pilot, which is about £15-20 all in

 

Good luck!

[SNAP SHOT 194]

buy quality as you start out..... lee single stage press will get you sorted, but buy quality dies such as redding or forester.....

 

they are excellent....

 

 

get yourself a few reloading manuals ...... hornady book of cartridge reloading and lee's modern reloading are good....

 

tumbler, vernier calipers, primer pocket cleaner, deburring tool, priming tool.... lee hand primer or better quality....

 

scales, you can go manual, or digital, again quality stay away from the lee ones there pants...

 

rcbs, redding, are good.... powder trickler... i may of forgot bits and pieces but someone will no doubt notice a few more things...

... but build as you learn, you will also need a cartridge cutter to take the brass but to sammi specs.... after a few firings...

 

 

 

 

for the .243 my bullet choice was 58 v-max and 95g sst, or 87g v-max.... all accurate....

Hi

What powder are you using for th 87gr Vmax and what rifle?

 

Thanks

 

Sorry mate just seeing the topic now...

 

i use either n160, or varget in the 58's and n160 on the 87's 95's and 105's.....

 

 

its a tikka M595 with a few modifactions..............

 

 

Snap.

[raynard 0]

hi, ive been reloading for a couple of years and i went down the cheap route and bought the lee anniversery kit, i ordered it from the states when you could get nearly two dollars to the pound, it cost me about £55 all i had to do was add the dies from the uk i think about £30. i use 55g blitzkings with hodgdon powder and get half inch groups from my tikka 243, i dont really think i could beat that

[deeangeo2 1]

I've been reloading now for around 25 years & reckon with current prices to get started you need around £500 minimum (New kit prices).

The first things to get are a couple of manuals: - Lyman & Speer.

READ & continually refer to them - they are your bible.

 

RCBS Rockchucker is the most 'Precise' press, but not as convenient & more expensive than a Lee turret press. I'd say buy a Lee Turret press (£100 approx) & don't bother using auto index.

Lee Autprime hand priming tool (£25 approx - not sure).

Buy RCBS dies (£16 approx), scales (£ approx), uniflow powder measure (£ approx), powder trickler & case trimmer (£100 approx). Vernier caliper (£50 approx) digital is best.

You also need the small things like case chamfer/deburring, primer pocket cleaning tool,cartridge case holder, case powder funnel & large funnel, correct shell holders for

A vibratory case cleaner (£100 approx) is a useful extra when you can afford one.

Consumables you need are case lube....(I prefer Lee) & obviously, cases, primers, propellant & bullets.

Check out ebay for 2nd hand stuff & any other source you can think of.

Good luck.

Edited May 3, 2010 by deeangeo2

[IanB 0]

What would you guys recommend as an all in one kit for reloading ?

[salukiwhippet 6]

I bought a breechlock challenger kit from reloading solutions and it's fine IMO. The powder measure doesn't like long grain powder (n160 etc), but I just weigh each charge for the .243 - it only gets used for stalking so I just do 20 rounds at a time. The measure works fine with H110 - rounds loaded with it go into 1/2" at 100 yards. I was up and running for one calibre, including components for about £220. Components are dearer now, but so's factory stuff! I'm currently saving about 60p a bang in hornet and 90p in .243. Plus I can shoot 40 grain noslers out of the hornet, as far as I know, no-one loads factory stuff in 40gn.

 

James

[john robbo 30]

Been reloading for 20 years now.

For accuracy NOT cheapness

I buy good components and it can cost me more than some factory ammo.

I have just found that privis shoot well in my 2250 and at a £10 a box using them for practice and crows to save on my dearer handloads.

You can load cheap but often cheap heads are shite when used on large game not expanding or over expanding.

Also the initial outlay will buy alot of ammo then you have to work up a load which might be easy it may not 2-3 powders at £35-50 a tub.

So my advice if you dont fire loads and have a factory round which works well stick to that.

Re-loading is not always a cheaper alternative.

[jamie g 17]

i would spend that little extra and get the rcbs kit or the redding kit.