Touchy Subject

[ACC]

Here was a very touchy subject between me and my brother.

Do you keep written records of your reloading?

As I have gone through my brothers stuff, I have found 12 years of records of everything he reloaded. Pistols, rifles and shot shells.

If you do keep records, how far back?

ACC

[Elroy]

I keep track of my brass,and sometimes drop notes in with a bag of brass letting me know how many times I have loaded it,or what I fired it in,but other than the lable my ammo boxes which I fill out with the details,I keep no records.

[762sultan]

As far as I know I have everything I ever loaded. I started in 1966. A lot of those guns I don't have anymore.

[Winger Ed.]

I've got a book that I write down favorite loads so I don't have to re-develop them.

On loaded ammo, I write down their specs. on a empty primer wrapper and include it with them however they are stored.
That way, I never have to ask myself, "I wonder what these are".

[Walks]

I used to keep log books on every gun and all ammo loaded for it.

But when I got into Cowboy Shooting, I sold off a bunch of guns and stopped loading/shooting anything but Cowboy Ammo.

Just never started up again after I left Cowboy Shooting.

[ACC]

Well I am going to have to start keeping those records. My wife says to keep the records on my computer. Takes up less room.

ACC

[Walks]

ACC,

Then the Computer crashes and you lose everything.

[GhostHawk]

I keep mine on the computer, saved to every computer I have access to once a year, plus flash drives and every couple of years burned to a disk with other important stuff. I hate writing, typing is easy. Editing is easy.

As to ammo, once a box is full it gets the details in black sharpie on the top.

If the load changes when the box is empty a bit of goo-gone and 0000 steel wool takes it right off.
Clean and ready for the new info. Caliber, Bullet grain weight, and powder and load. Since I load most things with Red Dot a 3 and a RD = 3 grains of Red Dot.
Short, sweet and to the point. YMMV but that's what works for me.

[Hick]

Everything in a spreadsheet on my computer (regularly backed up). I know exactly how many rounds of what every firearm has seen since I bought them, how many reloads each set of brass has, etc. When I plan to load a box I write the load info on a post-it sticky, then stick it inside the box of loaded ammo.

[Elroy]

When I go to the P.O. I usually grab me some of their sticky lables.I use them for everything from lableing ammo boxes to targets.

[BMW Rider]

ACC - It appears that you have lost your brother; sorry for your loss. I keep digital records, but they are for me and I do not expect anyone but me to pay attention to them in the future.

[Bazoo]

I keep a binder on most of the guns I reload for with a sheet of paper on each batch of brass (rifle) including how many times loaded an with what. I also keep things I've tried, what works and what didn't and why I think it didn't and ideas to try next or things to change. I rarely have more than one gun in each chambering. I also keep a record of the gun as to which springs have been changed and the like.

Pistols I do similar but I don't keep as much detail, especially about the times fired.

[onelight]

Mine are old school , my camera skills are lacking
Usually I just log them when working up loads I will stop when I find a load I like.
If I change components I work up again. This is a page from a very old mtm reloaders log book.

[JBinMN]

I am kind of "lackadaisical" about my load data records, but I do keep most of them in one of those white & black notebooks.

I usually only keep track of the things that "work" & not those things that do not in that book. Things that work for "me" & the firearms/platforms I am using when I reload.

Same goes for casting & the alloys I work with & the lubes are the same. I am pretty consistent with most of those, so they are not too important to me to keep real tight on the records of those things.

I will say that EVERY box or container of rounds I load is marked distinctively on the data used. Caliber, mnfr.( head stamp), OAL, primer mnfr & size, Weight of projectile, Grains of powder to the tenths, how many times fired, Date loaded & so on..etc...

There would be no issue with anyone who has a decent head on their shoulders to know what is in a box or container of the rounds I reloaded & what they are all about.

To me , that is more important than a record of what I did. The boxes & containers of rounds show what I did to any who might need or want to know.

Everyone has different ways & I am not sure that anything or anyone is "right" or Correct" in how they do things, but, like most folks know... YMMV , of course.

IMO, no one should get on anyone else for how they cast, reload/handload, etc. , since it just isn't much of their business anyway, since they are not shooting those rounds being cast & loaded..

Mentioning Safety is one thing, but the rest... MYOB. is likely a better thing to do.


But, of course, perhaps there is someone who walks on water about such things & will just say I am full of it...

Full moon ya know... Anything can happen...

[kmw1954]

I keep a folder with the folding pins that I add notebook sheets to. I also have it divided with tabbed separators. Each is divided by caliber and bullet weight and powder. The notebook paper gives plenty of room to detail the load and add notes as I go. On the backside I keep track of the loads with brass used, how many were loaded and the date done.

Debating on whether I should start a second folder for my cast boolit work.

[Minerat]

I have a bound book with all loads and notes back to 1984 when I started loading metallic cases for all guns. Before that it was only shotgun and I shot so many that I never has extras laying around. Load today shoot tomorrow was my motto. I have moved to computer but still write them in the book.

[MostlyLeverGuns]

I keep a data sheet on each firearm, description, serial nbr, scope, scope serial number, type of mount, fire polished?, a spread sheet of all the load development for that rifle, with best loads at top.
All ammunition is labeled by load and firearm, I do have some 'generic loads used in 9mm, 38 spcl and 45 auto. Cases are kept separate by headstamp and loy number in some cases. As the rifle count and caliber count increased, the need for better records became apparent. At one time 20 gr IMR 4227 under 454424 in the 45 Colt and 15 gr IMR 4227 under a 311041 in a 30-30 was all had to remember. Now I keep records for accuracy and safety. Regular backups to thumb drives are done. All information on computer, data and spread sheet printed and kept with ammunition for each rifle, with ammunition in labeled plastic box (shoe box/storage box) for each rifle.

[lightman]

If you did indeed loose your brother you have my condolences.

I made a spread sheet thats pretty much a copy of the MTM sheet that Onelight posted. I keep these in a large 3 ring binder. I have notes back to when I first started reloading on my own. Many of the pages have targets or Chronograph tapes stapled to them.

[Pete44mag]

I keep record of how many times my cases were loaded, I print on painters blue tape the complete load and date loaded on each box of ammo, (it's very easy to remove tape and replace). I have a spread sheet that I made up of all the loads for each of my guns that is backed up on thumb drive and I have a journal of each time I shoot a gun and the number of rounds fired. I may go a little overboard but I look at it as part of the hobby I enjoy. YMMV.

[onelight]

On ammo that I load with the auto disk I include the weight of the particular powder and chamber size on disk , I also show which press I was using I find the LCT throws a slightly heavier charge with some powders than my progressives do . So when setting up the powder measure I can go to my notes for the exact disk chamber I need to duplicate a powder charge. And the notes save having to work up loads again if I have all the same components and guns. I also label my loaded ammo box's but my box's get used for different loads and cartridges.
It's a time saver to keep a log notes can also be kept on good or bad about a particular load.