Discovered I had another bad habbit.

[Thumbcocker]

As one reaches his or her middle years there is often a process of self evaluation and inventory. One reflects on lifes good and bad days, things that turned out good and not so good, a character assessment if you will. During one such stock taking I recognized a heretofore un inventoried vice. Whenever I am at any retail establishment that sells ammunition I find myself inexorably drawn, as if compelled by unseen forces, to the ammunition area. I look at the prices on the ammunition offered for sale, especially .44 magnum, and despite my best efforts to maintain control........ I find myself smiling. But.... that isn't the worst of it. Lately, as my decent into depravity accelerates, I have been known to titter, chortle, and...... actually break out into a giggle.


Do I need to seek help? Is there a support group? Should I try to rectify my behavior or resign myself to how I am and make peace with my inevitable descent into crumedgonhood? Input is welcome.

[bandsmoyer]

Very common ailment among reloaders and casters. You'll be alright.

[runfiverun]

I look at the prices and remember why I never find Brass anymore.

[Kraschenbirn]

I look at the prices and remember why I never find Brass anymore.

I still find about the same amount of brass...being a 'brass rat' has paid for a lot of reloading/casting supplies...but, for the last couple years, it's been almost all 9mm, .40 S&W, and .223...and about half the .223s are steel-case. General trend appears to be fewer reloaders and more 'spray & pray' shooters. Ours is a private range with around 225 members and, from my observations, less than 1/4 reload and, of those, only 4 or 5 are boolit casters.

Like Thumbcocker, I've quite often had to restrain the giggles but my attacks usually come on the firing line when I hear someone griping about the price of ammo as he packs up his gear, leaving 50-100 once-fired empties on the ground. A couple weeks back, someone noticed the PC'd .308s I was shooting and asked what they cost. I told him " right around 13 cents a round" and he got real skeptical, demanding to know where I bought 'em for that price. When I told him they were reloads with my own cast/coated boolits, he just mumbled something about not having time to "mess around with reloading" and walked away.

Bill

[Pine Baron]

You should resign yourself to how you are and make peace with your inevitable descent into crumedgonhood. WE are your support group.[smilie=p:

[tommag]

A good way to cure yourself of that is:
Write down or print current prices of loaded ammo.
Post this on the wall of the reloading cave, with dates.
Ten years from now, look at primer and powder prices(if you can find components)
Say to yourself "I wish I could go back and buy ammo for that price."

I can remember when I could buy six boxes of 22lr for less than a hundred primers cost today.

[quilbilly]

It is impolite to point and laugh but tittering and chuckling is perfectly acceptable.

[GRUMPA]

A good way to cure yourself of that is:
Write down or print current prices of loaded ammo.
Post this on the wall of the reloading cave, with dates.
Ten years from now, look at primer and powder prices(if you can find components)
Say to yourself "I wish I could go back and buy ammo for that price."

I can remember when I could buy six boxes of 22lr for less than a hundred primers cost today.

I did just that back in the mid-90's but haven't kept it current. Primers back then were $10 per K and j-words were much cheaper, same with powders. I have percentages figured on what factory fodder costs to present day, only on what I use, and the difference will give even the healthiest of humans a mild coronary real quick. I was casting even back then, had it all figured out per round and per box. I don't know what it is, the independence part of me or the fact I never made much money which caused me to find ways to do things on the cheap.

[GOPHER SLAYER]

I have the same feelings. I have shot cast bullets for the last twenty years or maybe longer. When I think of shooting "j" words that cost 15 or 20 cents a piece at paper, I shudder. I have hundreds of "j" word bullets that I bought years ago at Sierra when I lived close to them but I just can't see any point in punching holes I paper with them when I can cast a bullet for nothing and punch the same hole. At our former range there was a fellow who would show up every Tuesday with several boxes of beautiful ammo in 223 or 243 and began to blast away. I remarked to him one day that his ammo looked like it was made at Tiffany"s. He shows up one day and decides he doesn't want to shoot anymore and starts selling his loading supplies at bargain basement prices. The last few boxes of 224 he simply carried over to Buckshot's table laid them done, got in his truck and drove off. We haven't seen him since. It is not unusual for a man to come to the range with a 7MM Mag rifle, shot two boxes of ammo and leave the brass. What a waste. If I can't cast for it, I don't want it.

[Half Dog]

I'm sure they have a pill for that but if you are like me, I'm enjoying myself so I don't bother with doctors.

[mold maker]

I too am full of snickers and giggles as I peruse the factory ammo prices. If we ever see each other at that moment, I'm sure we will have a shoulder slapping ROFL time of it.
I started casting in the early "60 when a 100 ct box of primo bullets were less than $6.00. Many as low as $4.25, and I considered that highway robbery.

[DerekP Houston]

Do I need to seek help? Is there a support group? Should I try to rectify my behavior or resign myself to how I am and make peace with my inevitable descent into crumedgonhood? Input is welcome.

I vote curmudgeon! I laugh everytime my coworkers complain about the cost of going to the range. Hell costs me about $20 and I get to go whenever I want :D.

[runfiverun]

I had a couple of guy's at work as me to go shooting with them.
I was a few hundred miles from home and only had my 357 and 44 lever guns with me at the time.
but we set a time and place and I showed up and set up targets and such and waited [and warmed up with a hundred or so rounds]
bout an hour or so later here they come.
they had to wait for the guy at wal-mart to find his key and sell them the ammo.
about 30 minutes later they were done shooting and I was still popping cans and such so they asked how I could afford to have a pile of empties like I had there.
I gave them an about price of what we pay as casters and loaders.
I thought they were gonna choke since I still had a bunch of ammo left and had spent less than they had for their 30 minutes.
I gave them both some pointers on shooting open sights and we proceeded to play 'hit that rock over there' with my lever guns for another hour.

[FISH4BUGS]

As one reaches his or her middle years there is often a process of self evaluation and inventory. One reflects on lifes good and bad days, things that turned out good and not so good, a character assessment if you will. During one such stock taking I recognized a heretofore un inventoried vice. Whenever I am at any retail establishment that sells ammunition I find myself inexorably drawn, as if compelled by unseen forces, to the ammunition area. I look at the prices on the ammunition offered for sale, especially .44 magnum, and despite my best efforts to maintain control........ I find myself smiling. But.... that isn't the worst of it. Lately, as my decent into depravity accelerates, I have been known to titter, chortle, and...... actually break out into a giggle.
Do I need to seek help? Is there a support group? Should I try to rectify my behavior or resign myself to how I am and make peace with my inevitable descent into crumedgonhood? Input is welcome.
I set out this spring, after casting all winter, to load as much ammunition as I had components for. I wound up loading a ton, and still have a ton of components left over. I now have a closet full of ammo. I love it. Pick your guns that you want to shoot, take a box of 100 rounds (or more) for each of them and off you go to the range....just like going to the grocery store.
I bought many Dillon cartridge boxes and went to town. I would set up and load one caliber until I ran out of cast and sized/lubed bullets, or plated bullets for subsonic loads.
Looking in the closet makes me smile. I will actually on occasion sit down at the closet door and pick a few boxes to open and check out the ammo. Now THAT'S nuts if you ask me. I guess I get pleasure from knowing that I manufactured this ammunition. I didn't ASSEMBLE it....I MANUFACTURED it.
Many thousands of 9mm, a few thousand subsonic 9mm, thousands of 38's, thousands of 357, thousands of 44 from light cast bullets to full house loads (some jhp), thousands of 380's, and I am now working on 45 acp. The 50 cal ammo can of 223 (fmj) and the 50 cal ammo can of 308 (fmj) doesn't hurt either. A closet full of those great blue Dillon boxes.
That gives me a smile when I look at the price of ammo too. It feels like my ammo doesn't cost me anything, but I know it does. I can shoot a cast 38 cheaper than a 22 these days. Cast 357 too. Cast 44 too. Cast lead and light loads - the biggest cost is the primer. I got 2500 lbs of ww's for free when a friend closed his tire shop. Best thing that ever happened to me.
I go to the range and when I am done shooting, pick through the brass buckets and add to my stash. I have more brass than i will ever use in my lifetime. I simply cannot help myself.
When they call a cease fire to change targets I will pick up unwanted brass out in front of the tables. Hey.....it's not like I am some homeless guy going through the dumpster you know.
You are fine - it is all part of the hobby. Thank goodness there are those that don't cast or reload, buy their ammo, and leave their brass behind. It lets us kind of people do our thing.

[Thumbcocker]

FISH4BUGS

When its just you in the house and the shades are drawn;you have contemplated dumping a few thousand rounds in the floor and rolling around in it. Haven't you? Fess up.

[DerekP Houston]

FISH4BUGS

When its just you in the house and the shades are drawn;you have contemplated dumping a few thousand rounds in the floor and rolling around in it. Haven't you? Fess up.

Oh come on now, who HASN'T done that?!?! I take personal pride every time I fill another ammo can full of 38 specials and push it in the closet =).

[bedbugbilly]

I finally broke myself of that self embarrassing habit . . . people were beginning to whisper when I tittered after looking at the prices. Now . . . I don't even check out the factory ammo . . . it's been so long since I have purchased factory ammo that I don't think my heart could take the price tags. What can I say? There's just something so right about casting and rolling your own . . .

[w5pv]

If it wasn't for casting and reloading I couldn't shoot hardly at all.

[robg]

Even in the UK I can load mid rage 357 mag for the same price as 22 and full power stuff for just a bit more .the best part is it more accurate.just a shame powder and primers are so expensive over here.I feel smug too.

[michael.birdsley]

If it wasn't for casting and reloading I couldn't shoot hardly at all.

This is the truth. I don't save money but, I easily double what I can shoot. Plus it is always on hand.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[DerekP Houston]

This is the truth. I don't save money but, I easily double what I can shoot. Plus it is always on hand.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I've got quite a few years of shooting to make the break even point work, but heck reloading/casting is half the fun for me. Can't always get out to the range but I can always flip over to the bench or turn on my lead pot.

[Handloader109]

Yep, I Titter and going like a stuck hog..... And I'm a rather new loader. 9mm has gotten cheaper than what it was a few months ago, but I can still make my reloads way cheaper. Now I did buy a couple of boxes of subsonic the other day to compare with my reloads to use with my suppressor.

[wv109323]

Like others I could not afford to shoot if I had to buy factory ammo. I cast and reload and have less in a round than I can buy .22LR.
At my club it is nothing for a member to go through 300 rounds of USPSA practice. Some reload but most do not. Some are wealthy enough to afford factory ammo.
I pick up what they leave laying. The most common: 9MM,40 S&W, .45 ACP and .223 Rem.

[popper]

I find myself smiling. But.... that isn't the worst of it. Lately, as my decent into depravity accelerates, I have been known to titter, chortle, and...... actually break out into a giggle.
Cheap entertainment and better than $12 a head for lousy movies. Enjoy.
First 'real' auto I bought in 69 was $5.5K, now an equivalent is $40K.

[NoZombies]

I cast and reload so that I can shoot cheap ammo through expensive guns.

I still buy .22 when I have the chance to get it for prices that don't make me blow a fuse, but that's about the only factory ammo I've bought with any consistency in years.

[spfd1903]

BIL and the nephews (18 and 21 yrs.) visited this weekend for a wedding shower. They don't own any guns, but like to shoot. Last time we had a chance to go to the range, a few years ago, I broke them in on some .22 cal. pistols, and a 9mm. This time I brought a Hi-point .40, a 1911, and a Ruger .45 Colt Vaquero. Grabbed a couple heavy Mil-surp packs and started jamming ammo in. Never really counted the rounds, just wanted to keep stuffing the various plastic bags until the packs were near full. Four hours and six hundred rounds later, we had to head back. They had a blast, and I still had plenty of ammo left. If I was buying new ammo, the stats would be...we left after going through fifty rounds of each caliber.

[FISH4BUGS]

FISH4BUGS
When its just you in the house and the shades are drawn;you have contemplated dumping a few thousand rounds in the floor and rolling around in it. Haven't you? Fess up.
The thought never crossed my mind. That might be uncomfortable.

[500MAG]

They actually sell Ammo?

[FISH4BUGS]

Oh come on now, who HASN'T done that?!?! I take personal pride every time I fill another ammo can full of 38 specials and push it in the closet =).
I'm glad that I am not the only one that loves the piles of ammo in the closet.
My daughter (30 years old) calls the casting and reloading shed the "Apocalypse Room". 2 Freezers full of food and all my casting and reloading equipment and benches.
She DID say she knows where to come when the SHTF.

[GhostHawk]

I am not sure I call that a vice. Taking pleasure from lovingly hand crafting ammunition that meets or exceeds factory ammo in any category seems to me to be a quite honest emotion. Best not to be too loud or brag of course.

Hanging a nice target on the wall does much the same for me. Especially if there is a really nice tight group or cloverleaf. But making the ammunition yourself, casting the boolits, doing the research, the load development, figuring out what your individual firearm wants and needs.

That just adds cherry's, whipped cream and dancing girls on top.

[LakeviewBulldog]

When I go the store and look at even the cheapest ammo my mind boggles that people pay that kind of money for it. I am also guilty of sometimes taking out all my full MTM 45 ACP cases and laying them out on the table and looking at them. Its cool to know that I hand crafted all those rounds.

[GhostHawk]

Lakeview bulldog I have a sturdy table set up in my basement. It has one function, to hold MTM boxes of ammo. Rifles on the left, pistols on the right. Starts small and goes up left to right.

Sometimes I walk downstairs, spend a few minutes looking, straightening, take a deep breath, let out a big sigh, and go upstairs. Yep, I'm as ready as can be.

General rule, Calibers which I have a gun for with less than 300 rounds stacked on the table "nags" at me until it is solved. This month it is .30-30. Just bought two Win 94 lever guns and only have 200 rounds.

I had 50 rounds of range pickup and father in law gifted. Bought 100 PPU from Midway. My Range sells brass at reasonable prices so I checked there. Got another 50 rounds but I am still short.

Calibers that I expect would make good barter/trading I have been known to buy large quantity's of factory ammo. I'm sitting on some 2k of factory loads and another 400 of mine.

Just knowing it is there helps keep me calm, cool, thinking that I am as ready as I can be today.

Anyone have .30-30 brass for sale cheap? Just need a couple hundred. Sigh, kinda broke now, maybe next month.

[FISH4BUGS]

Sometimes I walk downstairs, spend a few minutes looking, straightening, take a deep breath, let out a big sigh, and go upstairs. Yep, I'm as ready as can be.
Nothing wrong with that. I do the same with my ammo closet. Just go there, pull a few boxes out, and admire my handiwork. I do the same with the yard and the garden.
I think it is simply the enjoyment of a job well done. My significant other calls it "groovin' on the garden/ammo/yard".
My 38/357 rn (H&G #39) and the swc (H&G #51) are handsome things, they are. 9mm (H&G #331) are there by the thousands. 44 mag (RCBS 240gr swc) and 45 acp (an old 230gr rn SAECO mould) also. Shiny brass, perfect cast bullets....yup....things of beauty.
I really don't know which is more enjoyable - consuming them or manufacturing them.

[DerekP Houston]

I have a ton more fun assembling them and casting them ever since i upgraded my gear. I'm sure the newness will wear off after awhile and I'll go back to the range and empty all my brass. The only thing I was was my arm strength was better, those h&g 6 cavity molds are *heavy*! the #50bb wadcutter has been the easiest for me to load (on progressive) compared to the flat base lee mold that occasionally shaved lead.

My father still buys 44magnum rounds from academy when we go to the range, I just shake my head when I see the price tag on a single box.

[FredBuddy]

Yup. At fifty bucks a box of 20 rounds of 45-70, my hot pink powder coated reloads sure do calm my nerves.

[buckwheatpaul]

Brother, You are in the right place.....we support, counsel, and help you spend your money.....all of these services at actually no cost on our end........

[Wayne Smith]

Different issue, but: 10.5x47R, 40-70BN, 41Colt, 8mm06, 9.3x57. Not sure I could buy ammo for any of them but I can make it cheap! Shooting my 44-40's BP/cast 200gr boolit - original load - absolutely fun. Lot of reasons to giggle occasionally.

[Thumbcocker]

Try finding. 44 special 190 grain wadcutters..