Is it cheaper to reload 9x19 rounds, or to buy them off the shelf?
Not including the price of the reloading equipment and the time... Just the shells, power, bullets, etc.
Well, there are 7000 grains in a pound of powder. With that knowledge, go find a load you want to shoot somewhere, and then price 1000 bullets, 1000 primers, and enough powder for 1000 rounds. Its up to you if you price 9mm brass, but if you are reloading fired cases thats normally free.
You lose money reloading in the long run imo, but you shoot more, and you learn how modern firearms work. There's always some new gizmo you have to buy, lol. If you put any value at all on your time, it'll never come out.
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I wouldn't say you always lose money reloading. In fact, you just about always save money. Example 9mm:
pick up range brass free
primers .015 (Wolf/Powder Valley)
powder .015 (AA #5 Powder Valley)
bullets 124 gr .09 (Berry's)
Total cost .12 each or $6.00 a box of 50
When you compare it to a good self defense round you can reload your own for a lot less. When you compare it to cheaper range ammo maybe not so much. I reload a lot of my own 9mm.
right much as carbine says.
the price on 9mm has dropped nearly to pre-obama levels so buy 'practice' ammo and save the cases to load your own 'prmium' rounds with jhp's, xtp's or golden sabres or your choice of others.
I do this and keep myself (I have an S&W pistol and Marlin Camp that swap mags) and 2 nephews that have 9mm's in 'good stuff' +P.
one has an S&W 915 and Kel-Tec carbine that uses same magazines
another has a Kahr pistol and a HiPoint carbine (wifes carbine mostly) I load for also.
those +P loads come out of those carbines with a 'crack'.
I enjoy reloading and do it as much for relaxation as for the actual ammo reloaded. BTW I don't charge myself for watching TV or mowing the yard or washing the car either. Maybe I should??
I enjoy reloading and do it as much for relaxation as for the actual ammo reloaded. BTW I don't charge myself for watching TV or mowing the yard or washing the car either. Maybe I should??
All depends on what you want to do. You state that you find it relaxing, so your time doing it is not a factor. I, on the other hand, do NOT find it relaxing, or even interesting. It's just necessary for some of my loads, and so I end up reloading for a number of weapons I have. But when I find a good buy in ammo, I tend to buy it. So I got 2K 9mm for $360 delivered. That was a good buy for me. I reload my cowboy ammo, as it is hard to find what I am looking for. I buy .308 and .30-'06 as it's easier to get that way.
And I cut my lawn with a check - keeps the house looking good, my wife happy about how it looks, and since I travel for work, it is reliable to be done. All in how you look at it.
Reloading is a hobby. It's fun to look for that "perfect" load. I don't see it as "work."
"Cost saving" has been hashed ad infinitum. There are no cost savings. You just end up shooting more, and doG help me if the wife ever finds out just how much $$$ is actually stashed under my bench, in the powder locker, etc.....
Just use your FREE time to reload and it wont add to the cost of reloading. While the wife mow's the grass, you can be reloading for free too !!!
I think its cheeper to reload than buy ammo but the prices have gone up so much on the equipment that starting out now is expensive. If you shoot enough, the cost savings will pay for the start up. The average shooter, 1-2 bx's every 6 months wont be able to see the cost savings for a looong time.
I do both. I reload and I'll buy ammo. If it goes on sale, I'll buy it and use it.
It also depends on which weapon I use also. Some of my rifles-only my reloads get used same as shotgun
I reload in the winter time when there is not much else to do. I'll sit down for days and weeks on end reloading what I think I need for the upcoming year.
I reload for handgun, rifle and shotgun. I can reload premium type bullets cheaper than I can buy regular ammo most of the time
If you value your time like the other posters have mentioned, then I guess there's no sense in going fishing or hunting.......
you cant count your time, its like anything you do if you arent doing it for someone else then its free. Take the time you spend in front of the tv or the computer and do something good with it. i have been loading since 1968 and am still using the same old single stage press that i started out with, powder measures are the same, the scales are the same. I would like to get a progressive loader but just cant justify it with the stuff i already have. I do buy some ammo when im running low on brass if its a good buy.
jut remember that if ammunition prices go through the roof again, you have the capability of making any type of ammunition that you want. Even if you buy online there is no middleman, no shipping or Hazmat charges and no need to hide from the wife how much you really spent on that last case of ammunition. That being said, the hardes part of reloading ammunition for me is priming those case 100 at a time(the hand gets tired) but once that is done, I can make 200 rounds pretty quickly! I keep about 1000 rounds on hand to feed my Uzi as well as 45 acp, 44 magnum/44 special, 357 Magnum/38 special, .308 Winchester, .223 Remington, 10mm auto.I found out years ago that I could not afford to buy ammunition to feed every firearm that I owned.I also reload during my down-time, which is Winter, days of heavy rain or wind or when it is extremely hot outside, or when I would like some peace and quiet.That way, I am being productive instead of spending money on things like casinos, drinking, wild women food, and shelter.
I think the money saved AND the inherently more accurate ammo is totally worth the effort of reloading. I would shoot the same quantity regardless, this just makes it affordable. I can load 45acp for HALF what I can get for in the store (even on sale). Even 9mm is a few $ less when loaded, plus it is a little lighter and more accurate.
Of everything I load (9mm, 357, 41, 45acp) and plan to load very soon (223 & 308) only the 223 is not really worth the money. However, I am loading my 223 for accuracy, not cost savings. The 308 is significantly more expensive to buy, and I can load high quality precision ammo far cheaper than I can buy it in the store.
I reload and buy ammo. It just depends on how much free time I have and what I want out of the ammo. When I just need practice ammo I tend to buy in the summer and reload in the winter.
It's also nice to get out of the house and enjoy some music or a baseball game while reloading.
I do both. I reload and I'll buy ammo. If it goes on sale, I'll buy it and use it.
It also depends on which weapon I use also. Some of my rifles-only my reloads get used same as shotgun
I reload in the winter time when there is not much else to do. I'll sit down for days and weeks on end reloading what I think I need for the upcoming year.
I reload for handgun, rifle and shotgun. I can reload premium type bullets cheaper than I can buy regular ammo most of the time
If you value your time like the other posters have mentioned, then I guess there's no sense in going fishing or hunting.......
Dido! Winter reloading or when you want some pease and quite! Been doing more of that kind of reloading lately. Also, I reload because the stores are very far and don't always have what brand I want or the price is right up there. I find my reloads do out perform factory ammo too! I reload 40, 9mm and 380 and buy name brands Rem, Windchester, etc. and compare a mag of factory to a mag of reloads and have yet to find factory groups better than reloads.
I just started back to casting my own bullets, I have been casting a long time, but didn't always have time, since i retired I have more time to shoot and also to mould bullets. I have a new mould coming to cast 9mm, it should be here tomorrow. I should be able to shoot 9mm for about 4cents a round.
Ok! I've read enough about this! I do shoot more and love that I can not only afford reloads to shoot but envite someone to go try out my guns and ammo (Newbies). I have found without question, someone new to shooting my guns will ALWAYS shoot a mag of reloads better than a mag of factory, over and over again! Try it yourself. For this reason alone I will always reload for myself.
I live 45 miles round trip to the nearest ammo store that doesn't always carry what I want. Making reloading a lot more easy and less time than running around finding ammo.
The cost savings I used up last Saturday going to the range with my son. Kept giving him one mag of factory ammo and than another of my reloads. He left a believer in reloads. We finished up about 700 rounds of 40, 380, and 9mm. What a great day of fun in the rain. If we both didn't have to go back for supper we would of stayed until it was to dark to see the sights. Got to get night sights now!
Got to go to the barn and make more fun days! Sit by the TV if you must, but don't critisize those of us that have fun by making reloads, getting to shoot more and becoming more accurate shooters, because you are watched another rerun!!! Happy Trails!
Reloading the 9mm handgun is very easy thing if u have it.I reload and buy ammo. It just depends on how much free time I have and what I want out of the ammo. When I just need practice ammo I tend to buy in the summer and reload in the winter.Because there is no need to time to any kind of use.
Reloads DO shoot better than most factory. Case in point: this weekend we went shooting my AR-15. I took a can of my reloads, and a friend brought several boxes of PMC factory ammo. I also brought my chrono to test some new loads for a pistol, and just for grins we ran the 5.56 over it. The result? My reloads (55 gr FMJBT over 24.7 gr of pulldown WC844 in GI brass) had an average velocity of 3030 fps with SD of 6.7 fps. The PMC factory ammo ran average of 3050 fps with a SD of 47.5 fps. Guess which was the most accurate too?
There are 7000 pound of powder. With this knowledge, you have to take place, to find a load, then the price 1000 bullets, 1000 primers and the 1000 made enough powder. Its up to you if your price 9 mm brass, but if you reload fired cases, thats usually free.
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