I wish I would have known this when I first started

[stevemiller]

When I first started reloading I asked questions always got the trial and error story from most.I spent hundreds on bullets that I loaded maybe 10-20 just to see how they worked in my firearm.Wasted a lot of time and money,Gave away a lot of bullets even powder.Had problems with the AR after buying several rounds finally found a site that spelled out the AR for me loaded to their specks and nailed it.Started working the .300 win mag same thing trial and error getting pretty close to what I want but still not on the money.Well tonight I found what I wish I would have found years ago------------ JBM-Calculations-Stability.It is a calculations site that covers all of this.FPS vs grain vs rifling vs spin drift vs trajectory vs ETC.So in short if your new to reloading look this site up it will save you a lot of time and money. 

[greenhead_killer]

Tag. My dad and I were looking at getting into it

[mazama]

How many reloading manuals do you have,the more you have the more knowlrdge you have,i have all the major ones,i hope your are not trying to use your computer for everything,if you are good luck,i have been reloading over 40yrs you will not learn every thing at once.

[MadMooner]

Bullets are getting longer as mono-metals (TSX) are getting more popular along with the increase in people enjoying long range shooting and paying more attention to BC.

Unfortunately, gunmakers seem to be a little slow to keep up and stick with twist rates that are too slow to shoot some of the more popular bullets. Still see a lot of 22-250's twisted 14 or 243's twisted 10+.

They work fine for many bullets, but leave some of the best sitting on the shelf because they aren't twisted fast enough to stabilize them.   

[stevemiller]

How many reloading manuals do you have,the more you have the more knowlrdge you have,i have all the major ones,i hope your are not trying to use your computer for everything,if you are good luck,i have been reloading over 40yrs you will not learn every thing at once.

I would only build a load up off a manual(I have several to go off) but not one of the manuals I have new and old tells you whether a load would be stable or not in a given firearm.

[Biggerhammer]

 

[Caretaker]

I always use multiple sources when calculating a new load.  I keep current on the following books:  Hornady, Nosler, Barnes, Reloaders Hand guide, Sierra, and Speer.  Out of all these the Hornady is in my opinion provides the most detailed science behind ballistics.  Manufactures powder web sites are a good source and the web such as JBM.  I will take all these sources and document the information and find the medium balance where to start.  Once I range test them and find a load that uniformally is consistent I will take that load and play with the powder charges and seating depth. 

[kc0yef]

Get the Speer reloading book
It has pictures
I just started reloading and almost everyone that had been reloading for a long time said Get Speers
Did I mention it has pictures.
Also
here is a link to the online Ballistics Stability mentioned afore
http://www.jbmballistics.com/cgi-bin/jbmstab-5.1.cgi

[Curly]

Anybody know if the answer to this about the JBM calculation:  When you enter the bullet length, do you include the plastic tip length in the case of a ballistic tip or TTSX?  I see they have a place for entering the length of the tip, but it seems like you could simply leave the tip length blank and just enter the overall length in the bullet including the tip.  Probably doesn't make much of a difference in most cases, but maybe it would make a difference in light bullets like .224 cal 50 gr ballistic tip? 

[stevemiller]

  Measure the bullet for the first and only the plastic for the second.

[T-Dozzer]

Tag

[Wazukie]

It doesn't really matter how much you read, or what the ballistic calc tells you, you will never know if it works until you shoot it.  The books and the Calc's are just a guideline to get you started in the right direction.  Just my 

[Biggerhammer]

It doesn't really matter how much you read, or what the ballistic calc tells you, you will never know if it works until you shoot it.  The books and the Calc's are just a guideline to get you started in the right direction.  Just my 

 

[stevemiller]

You are so right.  but this thread was meant to be a guide to a good start for newbies,I only wish I would have had it when I started out.would have saved me some coin on light bullets when its allready known by others that heavier works better in mine because of the rifleing and its allready known that to much speed and a heavier bullet dont go well with a fast twist.No need to start at the bottom and work up if its known that you need to start in the middle. 

      But do all your own reading and get your own figures dont go by what I or anyone else on this forum says. 

[Jekemi]

I wish I had known a lot of things before I got started. However, reloading is a craft and a science. It is learned in increments so very little money is actually wasted when you add up the mountain of experience and knowledge you will gain over the years. As with anything else, begin at the beginning.
1. The best thing you can do is find a mentor, an experienced reloader, and continuously pick his brain.
2. process control. Record what you do and repeat your processes that work
3. As has already been said, the manuals are great but are only a guide. Consult a couple (I like the Sierra Manual because you can lay it flat down on the table and remove pages to easily copy information if you want)
4. try to standardize on one or two rifle powders, one pistol powder, and one or two shotgun powders. I see guys with 20 different types of powder but it really isn't necessary. I am down to two rifle powders, one pistol powder, and one shotgun powder. Makes life simple and easy to repeat.
5. Slow Down! Take your time. Progressive presses are nice but unless you are shooting a lot of ammo they really aren't necessary. A good turret press will load lots of ammo, keep it consistent, give you better control, and allow you to carefully watch the process.
6. Have fun. If you aren't enjoying the process why bother?