Florida B.S. Thread

Couple things I forgot to mention...

To find out if a powder you want to use in ammo you plan to store has a copper deterrent, you have to contact the manufacturer and ask, if it doesn't say so on the bottle.

And then there's load development. If you're loading for accuracy, I usually load ten rounds of each load and fire them in 5 shot groups and I try to separate the groups by firing other 5-shot test loads between them. I feel this gives me a better picture of how the load performs when I take a measurement of the two groups and average them before comparing them to other test loads. It's a long process and puts a lot of wear on your barrel, but as long as you're not shooting Benchrest for Group, it's not that big a deal. There is another method that is supposedly much quicker that I'm trying with my 6.5 CM, but it's complicated, requiring a chrono and an Excell spreadsheet. I haven't really gotten the results, partly because I've only done the first part and partly because my data is tainted by those crappy match grade primers.

Anyway, once you have some data, you can take the two or three best loads and load a bigger test batch...the more performance data you have the more the best load for your rifle will stand out.

Edit: You'll want a vibratory tumbler too for cleaning your brass. I use untreated corn cob media on my fired brass before I start any thing else. Clean brass=clean dies=better sizing. After I have completed resizing/decapping, trimming, and everything else and the brass is ready to be primed, charged and loaded, I'll run the brass through the tumbler again with treated crushed walnut shell media. By treating, I mean it has a polishing compound added to it. Flitz works really good, but a lot of people just use car polish because it's cheaper. This puts a nice polish on the brass and gets rid of any remaining case lube or contaminates that might have gotten on the cases during the process.

 

Whew, like I said, I don't know where to start.
I'll build a bench, take pictures, go from there. I couldn't get your pictures to come up on my computer....
I used to be fine with buying ammo online, but that's a thing of the past apparently. I'm no where the shot I used to be, I don't know if I'll be able to see the differences in such little adjustments in my shooting I do now. I just really want to see what the 2nd part of shooting part of shooting is all about, and build up my inventory again.

 

Well truth be told you're going to have a very hard time finding primers and powder right now. Probably the best thing for you to do is start to reload pistol ammo.

Pistol ammo is really simple compared to rifle ammo. I can't tell what dies you have. And if you're going to reload once fired brass you're gonna need a tumbler. Really there is no point in reloading of you're going to buy new brass.

 

Here's where I work on my firearms, I could build a new unit, and make the storage available directly behind in the book shelf for supplies.

I've had several carts loaded with stuff on several different sites, brass, powder, bullets, primers, and there is no savings to be had at the beginning. I'm just really intimidated about this reloading for some reason. Everyone says different stuff, the book says one thing is to fallow the book, no matter what. Then I read of all the different things people do.... just totally lost.

 

Haha, I disagree with this. For one thing, I don't handload my rifle rounds to save money. I do it to tailor the ammo for the best performance in my rifle. I reuse my rifle brass because it's easier to recover (brass catcher on my AR and a bolt action rifle for the 6.5 CM). I buy the first batch new because at least I know where it's been then I reload it from there. Plus, with the 6.5 CM the brass is fire formed to fit my chamber exactly and I only neck size until they become difficult to chamber before I body size them.

For my pistol ammo, I just buy new brass because it's a pain in the ass to pick up your brass from the pile of everyone else's, and since most indoor ranges don't allow reloads, it's a red flag for them if you're collecting your brass so it makes it harder to smuggle in your handloads. I worked it out once and found it was costing me about the same to load 100 rounds of pistol ammo using Hornady XTP bullets as it cost me to go buy a 100 round box of crappy pinking ammo. The upshot is, my reloads were of the same level of quality as a 20 round box of Federal Hydra-shoks or any of the other expensive high performance ammo sold in 20 round boxes. Plus the powder I use burns cleaner. So I was money ahead, even buying new brass every time. I suppose if I just bought cheaper FMJ pistol bullets it would be cheaper than the cheap blasting ammo, but they are also used for home defense.

Also, I find loading pistol ammo to be more complicated than rifle ammo barring the extra prep I do on my rifle brass. Pistol ammo has to be tamper crimped which adds another step to the process and it's a critical step since semi-auto pistol rounds head space off the case mouth. With most rifle ammo, which in most cases head spaces off the shoulder, the neck tension on the bullet is sufficient to hold the bullet in place.

BTW, I usually load a dummy round for each bullet I shoot regularly to simplify setting up my dies when loading for different bullets.

If you're willing to work around it, you could mount the press on the right corner there and just mount your case trimmer on a block of wood and clamp it to the table when trimming. You're powder measure has a stand you can use or you could mount it to the wall. For that matter, Lowes sells furniture inserts for up to 3/8 bolts and they have hand tightening knob bolts so you could install the inserts and take your press off the table fairly easily with no tools required. Could do that with the powder measure too.

 

No, still just little blue question marks for the pics. Thanks on saying that about the table, I was thinking use my existing table, it's study as hell, I can move things here and there depending on what I'm doing. I need to unbox everything and just start, take pictures, and look for guidance. Please bear with me, I suck on the computer, but really want to get going on reloading, I obviously need help, and it's here. Thank you.

I've unboxed everything, and have looked at videos, read all kinds of stuff, and still have no clue what to do here. No real instructions anywhere, completely discouraged. I can't find anything that looks like my shit, almost done with this again.

 

It doesn't really matter if the equipment looks the same. It all serves the same purpose. my set up...3rd time is the charm...




Don't get to frustrated. Just downshift into a lower gear and grind it out, haha. It's a methodical process.

 

these two videos are about as basic as you can get, but he explains the basic process very well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LttBArZcQ9g
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQVpuY9WV60
The only differences you'll have with your equipment is that you will only need to set your dies up once and leave then screwed into the turret of your press. The exception being is that you'll have to reset your bullet seating depth for different bullets you try.

Another difference is his priming tool. You can get one like that if you want. Supposedly it is easier and faster, but I like using priming feature on my press because I figure that hand primer will cause a lot more hand fatigue than the press primer if you're doing a hundred or more cases at a time. You should have a primer tray similar to what he had with ridges so you can shake the tray lightly until all the primers are faced the same way. With my press primer, you'll have a tube the primers sit in and in my case I have to put the cover on my tray and turn it upside down. Then with all the primers outside up, I use the tube to pick them up one at a time. the tube should have a little plastic end on it that will grip the primer by pressing the tube down on it. The tube also has a little grasshopper clip that keeps the primers from falling out when you turn the tube over to put it in the press fixture. Once the tube is in you can remove the clip and use it to press the last primer in from where it's held by the plastic gripper. This is why the hand tool is faster because you don't have fool with loading the tube. However the leverage you get out of the press when seating the primer makes it light work as opposed to having to squeeze that hand priming tool for every case.

What he doesn't show you is the case mouth chamfering and deburring you need to do before sizing the case. Or cleaning the primer pocket, but like I said, this is reloading at it's most basic.

And do yourself a favor and get a set of digital Mitutoyo calipers with a large display. It makes reading the measurement a lot faster and less prone to mistakes.

 

Does anybody have a stout spring compressor for sale rent or borrow? I want to install my 14-in 700 lb springs and what I've got doesn't seem to be up to the task, and what you can rent from the Auto Box stores is definitely not up to it.

@allenfab

@Timbo's Customs

 

All I’ve got is the cheap autozone one as well.

 

I had my old man emu’s done at a local Firestone broke the spring compressor but it was like $20

 

Anyone ever go to the Dade City gun club/range? Thinking of going tomorrow and looking for an outdoor range.

 

I was there a few weeks ago. It's okay and the ROs are friendly, but the Wyoming Antelope Club in Clearwater is a much nicer range. Plus I'm not fond of the rifle benches at Dade city. They seem to be made for much bigger people than me, lol. Dade City might be a little closer to you, but from Tampa Palms, I think it would be worth the extra drive time to shoot at the WAC.

I live in North Tampa, between Busch and Fowler and it seems like I can get to Clearwater faster than Dade City so it's really a no brainer for me.

 

Good to know, I'll check out WAC, thanks for the info

 

Happy new year, y'all!

 

Happy New Year

 

HFNY everyone.
If your neighborhood is like mine, out in the old citrus groves, the new years at midnight is like a battlefield, guns going off all over the place, along with the fireworks.

 

so FB popped up with this memory, can't believe it's been 7 years since that 1st citrus meet I went to. oh how she had changed haha, also got big plans for the Tacoma here this year! BIG plans

 

So when's the next Florida meet?