Why Do You Reload?

Elmer

Elmer

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Ever given any thought as to why you reload? A recent survey from Shooter Survey reports the top reasons as follows...
85% reload to save money
67% reload for improved accuracy
30% reload for waste reduction
44% reload for customization

The survey allowed more than one answer hense the figures add up to more than 100%. Other reported reasons for reloading are...

personal satisfaction
relaxation
fear of ammo shortages

Why Do You Reload?

TIA
Elmer
 
Due to the cost of 9mm and 5.56 now I'm only stocking up components when I see a good deal.

I load 45/70 to

Save money
Improved accuracy
Load customization
 
I started out reloading, and I kept telling myself I was doing it to save money. :rolleyes:

For some calibers, yes, I do save money. But with the price of ammo now, it doesn't make much economical sense to reload something like 9mm or .223/5.56. But, I do customize my loads, so I get the performance I want that just can't be gotten with factory ammo.
 
Fear of ammo shortages. I haven't even started yet but have been buying equipment and supplies since the shelves went bare last time.(it also put me in a not wanting to shoot my stockpile mode that sucks and I haven't been able to shake yet)
 
I began to save money, or at least shoot more for the same cost.

Now I do it to wring the most accuracy from each of my rifles. Even though I can usually find a brand that shoots excellent, it then becomes the standard against which I measure.
 
I load for 12ga & 20ga I reload shells that lets my auto shotguns work as they should and not become jam O matics , I don't save alot of money , but its relaxing and I have alot of fun, casting my own slugs and buck saves in my shotshell loading
 
When I started 124gr 9mm was not as available. I was mostly shooting 115 WWB or the lowest cost brass cased ammo I could buy. I started to shoot 45 ACP and that was limited to 230gr. So my original intention was to be able to shoot 124gr and 147gr 9mm and 200, 230 gr 45 ACP. I later added 380 auto and 38 Spl.

I do not save ANY money. I do shoot more and I get to shoot the round I want without breaking the bank. I only reload pistol ammo. With the cost of 223 so low it just doesn't justify the extra time and setup for me based on the amount of rifle I shoot. My cost for 9mm is around $.10 a round and 45 ACP cost me $.16. This is not factoring in any cost or $ value for my time.

These days I do it out of habit more than anything else. I like making consistent rounds that I know will function in all my guns. I like to be able to dial in some rounds for particular guns. At first I liked to tinker a little bit but for the most part these days I just bang out range rounds. The equipment has long been paid for so that is not any factor anymore. If ammo keeps dropping I might store my components for a rainy day and go back to factory.
 
Because nobody in my circle of friends reloaded and it made me cooler than an ice cube. When you're doing something that no one else is doing it helps you stand above mere mortals.
And then one day I discovered (quite by accident) that I could load better ammo than I could buy!! My hilltop got higher, my loads were more accurate than most anything I could afford to buy.
Then another day I found that I could tailor a load to a specific gun (handgun or rifle) and achieve outstanding accuracy. Hell, things I used to shoot in the whole chest were now being shot on a specific hair!! Another pinnacle!!
I could go on and on, but you get the idea.
 
Add a poll - I'm really surprised at the "save money" %%
 
I started reloading to learn a new skill, to save money, to have my alone time (sing badly), to tailor the loads to my individual requirements, to never be dependent on a store to have what I need and more than anything, to shoot more.
 
When I first started it was a combination of saving money, and getting more accurate ammo. I was using a friends press and scales, so I only had the cost of components to think about.

These days I seriously doubt I spend less money reloading. But I get more ammo for my money. I usually do a rough calculation of my cost per round to reload, vs the cost per round at the store, and go with whatever's least expensive.

Currently I reload 38, 357, 44mag, 30-30, and 308. And I shoot factory 9mm and 223/556. My biggest savings are with 44mag. Its nearly $1.00 per round in the store, and I can load it for a lot less.
 
I've only been reloading a few months now and started because of the price of commercial big-gore ammunition. I can load for anywhere between 1/3 to 1/2 the cost of commercial loads depending on whether or not I already have the brass (xf). At the rate I load I figure I'll offset the price of the press, dies, scales, etc., sometime before I give up the ghost....maybe. Then I will be able to say that I reload because I save money....maybe. Meanwhile, it is just fun (not sure about the psychological implications of that).

regards
Elmer
 
Dr 'Dre said:
Time spent reloading helps me relax and forget about work for awhile.
Click to expand...
^^^^^ THIS.

Shooting AND reloading are stress relief for me.

It started out that shooting was my hobby. Then I started reloading, and reloading became my hobby. Then I started wet tumbling, now my hobby is making dirty brass shine - shooting and reloading are just the means to that end. :D

Now @Bullseye Baldee is trying to get me to cast bullets with him. :mad: I'm fighting the temptation, I don't really want to go down that rabbit hole.
 
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I think I may have started reloading to save money, and I still do since I can still load high quality ammo for way less than cheap factory junk. Once I got past the learning curve I found I really enjoyed tinkering and experimenting with various loads for the different types of matches I shoot. Ive loaded super soft steel challenge loads all the way up to major PF 9mm ammo and about everything in between. There's a certain satisfaction I get from making something better than I can buy anyway, and the fact that its also less expensive is just icing on the cake.

Also, it developed as an evening hobby. My kids are young, go to bed early, I'm sort of a night owl so it filled a void in the evening that would of otherwise probably been wasted in front of the tube or something else about as useful.

So if I took the survey above I would check all 4 boxes, though I'm not sure what the waste reduction is all about.
 
I started reloading to save money (shoot more for same amount of money). I load/shoot a lot of .38SPL and .45ACP so I must be saving money over factory ammo. ;)

Like a couple o' you mentioned above, reloading is very relaxing for me.
 
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Makes sense to me. I started reloading 9mm so that I could load subsonic much cheaper.
 
I too started to reload to save money. Then just to be able to shoot because of the ammo shortage. The snowball just keeps getting bigger. I am gearing up to cast bullets soon. People also call me the Great Bald Swami....able to see the future.....I see Toprudder adding an outdoor extension to his reloading building. That will be for casting lead....even MidwayUSA sees this in his furture!
 
DB8E1B3D-8360-4C6F-AD17-E95AFA73BEF7.jpeg Started out as a way to Consistently sub MOA ammo for my 308. ~$0.64 on the first firing

6F615B94-06AF-4E88-A222-F5AB5E8A9D9E.jpeg

Now I find myself also doing to relieve stress. So.... am I reloading to shoot or shooting to reload .... IDK

I’m sure I’ll get some flak for the other forum name but I had printed off hundreds and am trying to get through them.
 
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THE EARLY, UNOFFICIAL RESULTS ARE IN...

Thus far the CFF reloaders stack up like this...

50% reload to save money
21% reload for improved accuracy
17% reload for customization
17% reload for relaxation
14% reload for fun
07% reload fearing an ammo shortage
07% reload to avoid buying factory ammo
03% reload because it's cool

The results, of course, are unofficial. Some who posted gave more than one reason and, in the absence of
clarity, some answers were interpreted.

Interesting, I think.

regards
Elmer
 
Because I can do this for 41 cents a round

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I started reloading when I was a PFC to save money. I shoot allot of .41 Magnum and I cast my own boolits. Very relaxing for me. Army taught to make my own explosives too, does that count?

CD
 
I still say it saves money. I can still buy in bulk and load 9mm for .10 a round. You can't find that from a store. I load 556 and 300blk and still cannot find it from a store as cheap as I can make it.
I guess if people only shoot like a thousand a year, sure, buy from the store.
Also with the kids gone now, it gives me a hobby to keep me occupied.
 
I can't say that reloading saves a lot in my case, more important for me that my reloads produces tighter groups even comparing match ammo and are more reliable. Plus its a kind of relaxing meditation, almost as much as cleaning the gun :)
 
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