Getting Started

Typical Set of Dies






Getting Started
Reloading is a great hobby but it isn’t for everyone. There are several things to consider when you contemplate getting into the hobby. First of all you need to have some time to devote to learinng and doing reloading. You can’t do it if you have five minutes here and there. Another thing is you have to be the type of person who is patient and pays attention to details. Reloading demands that you pay attention or your ammo will turn out poorly. You will get out what you put into it. If you only plan on shooting just a few rounds a year it probably wouldn’t pay you to reload.
First pf all you need a space with good light to set up your equipment. Then you need a work table that is sturdy as you will be setting up some equipment. Let’s talk about dies. The dies are essential as you need a set for every caliber that you plan on loading. For straight case handgun ammo I strongly recommend tungston carbide dies. Whilke they cost a few dollars more they will last forever and eliminate the need for lubung your cases beforehand. Handgun dies typically come in a set of three. The first die sizes and decaps the case. Sizing is essential because if you don’t size it the case won’t hold a bullet securely. When a round is fired the case expends hence the need for sizing. The sizing die usually decaps the case which means that the old primer is removed. The second die bells the case which is necessary especially with lead bullets to avoid shaving them. Many set up also allow you to prime the case in that step. The third die seats the bullet and does the crimp. You have two types of crimps a roll crimp for revolvers and a taper crimp for most auto rounds.
We will get into more equipment in the following reports. I do strongly recommend against a new reloader getting a multi stage reloader until they throughly understand all reloading procedures. It would too easy to make a mistake which would result in making a large batch of bad ammo.