Books for the new reloader

[RollinCoal11]

I plan to start reloading in about six months and wanted to start reading up on it. Want to concentrate on precision rifle loading so what books did you guys start with

Thanks

 

[EddieNFL]

Start with the basics. The Lyman is a good all around manual. From there you can delve into the writings of any number of authors - Brenan, Zediker and Tubb to name a few.

 

[Walt K]

Handloading for Competition by Glen D. Zediker. A good, solid, informative book.

 

[ksthomas]

ofd343,

I'd recommend something like The ABCs of Reloading. If you can find one of the original printings done by Dean Grennell, they were very good. Informative, basic and complete. The suggestion of the reloading manuals is likewise a good place to start. While I really like the books that Glen has done, they're definately not a place to start. Or the books that Dave Brennan edited, either. Either of these will simply give you more information than you really want right now, and will overwhelm you at this point with a ton of details you won't have the experience to make use of just yet. Great books, but save 'em for later.

 

[spradley]

You may also check around for a local that can help you get started. At one time the bass pro shop in my town gave free reloading classes. Books are good but nothing like being taught by someone who's already reloading and knows what they are doing.

 

[FLIGHT762]

Handloading for Competition by Glen D. Zediker. A good, solid, informative book.

You beat me to it. THIS ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^.

If you want to load for precision shooting, this is the book. It's not perfect, but there's a lot of information that's NOT covered in the regular reloading books. If you know NOTHING about reloading then the ABC's of reloading is a good starter book, but this precision reloading that we all want to do because we come to "Sniper's Hide". Precision reloading is a whole nuther animal. Understanding how to use bushing dies, sizing mandrels, resizing/shoulder bumping, tools necessary for precision ammo, Zediker's book works and gives the different ways to make accurate ammo. I had been reloading for 30 years and Zediker's book opened my eyes to other ways of doing things. Money well spent.

Yeah, yeah I know, I'm fucking old.

 

[Fred @ Bison Tactical]

I have a hard time reading Zediker's book. Its mostly his writing style I have trouble with. I will tell you that while not a loading book, Accuracy and Precision for Long Range Shooting by Bryan Litz is a really good book. I am almost done reading it, and I am very happy I decided to buy it.

 

[scatterbrains]

My personal list for beginners.
1. ABCs of reloading
2. Lyman 49th
3. Lee precision edition #2
4. Lyman cast loading book (if interested in cast bullets)

I also recommend the manufacturers books for the bullets you will use, hornady, sierra, nosler Etc.

 

[Cproflow]

I think a good flow would be to start off with ABCs of Reloading, then the Lyman 49th ed, and maybe the Hornady manual (for the discussions on interior & exterior ballistics). After getting some fundamentals and terminology under your belt...pick up the Zediker book. I'm really torn on Zediker's book. It does indeed have a lot of great info...but that info is buried like diamonds in the rough. I don't believe I've read a book more in need of an editor. Quite literally, that book would be 100% more useful if it were 50% of its published size.

 

[damoncali]

Another vote for Lyman - it has the best instructions. Hornady, Vihtavuiri, Nosler, Speer, and Sierra are also decent. Berger, not so much. There is also an old out of print book from Sinclair that is very good for the precision stuff: Sinclair International's Precision Reloading & Shooting Handbook 10th Edition: Bill Gravatt, Fred Sinclair: Amazon.com: Books If you find a used one somewhere, it's worth picking up.

 

[RollinCoal11]

Thanks for all the feedback guys

 

[Ultraman550]

I have the Speer, Lyman and Hornady reloading book but in all honesty I have learned the most from this site and just internet searching. There are so many tricks of the trade that I have not seen in any book I have picked up. I use books for powder/bullet data but every time I read something that an experienced reloader has tried and been successful at or even just tried but not been successful at I write it down. I know its not a big deal but things like a plastic straw in the RCBS Chargemaster to make dispensing powder more accurate is the kind of "tried and true" things I'm talking about.

 

[dbowhunter]

Just wanted to put in a couple cents here...

I have done some casual reloading in the past but I am getting into it now for precision reloading.

I purchased "Metallic Cartridge Handloading: Pursuit of the Perfect Cartridge" by M.L. "Mic" McPherson

I regard this text very highly. It was easy to read, it referenced various tools and pieces of equipment with comments specific to the advantages and disadvatages of each. The text is very easy to read and always explains the 'why' of everything. I findmyself referencing it all the time.

After reading McPherson's book cover to cover, I started into Glen Zediker's "Handloading for Competition." I would second those folks that say it is difficult to read. It must just be the nature of his prose, but I find it hard to follow and understand as well as somewhat rambling and unfocused at times. I have not dove into Zediker's piece nearly as much as I have McPhereson's due to this.

I would highly recommend McPhereson's piece as having more information then I plan to ever need, and I would not recommend Zediker's as it was not as easy for me to follow.