SUPER PUMPED, just ordered a RCBS rockchucker supreme reloading kit. seems to come with every thing except dies and shell holder. Now the powder, brass and primer searches begin. what kind of dies do you fellas recommend? neck or FL?
- Thread starter bigmike2121
- Start date
I live in Tyler and would be glad to give you some tips. PM me and let me know what caliber you plan on starting with. I would recommend that you reload for one thing at a time and not buy dies/powder for everything at once.
Welcome to the club! I have been reloading for over 30 years now and all i can say is that there is something new to always be learned! I highly recommend the Lyman reloading manual being it is chock full of info on the theory and practice of reloading. They have seemed to write thw book when there was no others. It is good to have 3 or 4 different manuals being you will find some variances in the loads due to firearms used and some will cover powders that others will not. Take your time and if possible link up with a reputable handloader who knows his stuff. Ask lots of questions!
There are advantages and disadvantages to both kinds of dies. You have to look at what you are doing with them.
There are advantages and disadvantages to both kinds of dies. You have to look at what you are doing with them.
i agree with this. I have 3 manuals (lee, hornady, and lyman) and the ABC's of Reloading (which is a good read). Between those and powder manufactures data you can get a good and safe load. Any new loads i do i verify with as many sources as i can. Start at the lowest published and work up to the lowest max published by a source. Can almost always find a load in that range that works great.
I personally full length size all my brass in all calibers. I tried FL vs Neck and I (my opinion again) didnt notice any real difference and i just prefer to FL size since i might have picked up some new-to-me brass at the range that just gets tossed in my brass bag. FOr a new person i feel FL is easier too. Run it through the FL die and itll work. Might not be the correct shoulder bump back or anything but itll still produce great ammo.
And be prepared and willing ot try new things. Ive gone through 3 trimmers now figuring out which route i enjoy the most. Recently got Hornady One Shot spray lube which i think is going ot be my new go to lube. Was using RCBS case lube II but when ii needed to do 600 pieces of brass the lube pad and rolling method just seemed way to slow. THe Spray lube was super easy and fast.
Just figure out what you truly want from your ammo as well. You can get great results (or i have) using cheaper "seconds" bullets and surplus military brass and doing minial case prep (swagging primer hole and trimming is all i do) and i get subMOA groups. THe ammo out performs me 75% of the time still. So if i spent hours doing all the case prep, neck tuning, ect i wouldnt really take advantage of it IMO.
Either way have fun and be safe!
FYI - I wrote up a reloading equipment guide for beginners a few weeks back. Sounds like you have much of it covered with the RCBS kit, but in any case, take a read: Beginner's Guide to Reloading Equipment | Bison Ballistics
JGiles thanks ill keep these posts handy, kit should be here monday but i leave to go back to work soon. ill pm you for sure and we can maybe meet once i get set up. much appreciated! good info from all here also!
damoncali, great link
Glad you like it. The subject comes up so often, I figured I'd write it once and just refer people to it.
The die question comes up pretty often here, and a quick search probably will turn up lots of info. The real answer is that there is not a wrong answer. They will all work fine. I would recommend starting with a full length 2 die set and go from there. Since you have RCBS equipment, you could do worse that using their dies. JGiles made you a good offer, I hope you can take advantage of it. Having a Mentor is always a good thing. Lightman
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