# what do i need



## gentleman4561 (Jul 16, 2007)

i was wondering what i would need to start hand loading 12 gauge shells, how much it costs? and how much i will save rather than just going to the store and buy my shells :beer:


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## Burly1 (Sep 20, 2003)

You can get a Lee Load-All, the most inexpensive press out there, for around $40. A pound of powder is about $20. Shot is around @$30 for 25#. Wads are cheap, at around $5 for 250.
If you are loading run of the mill stuff, I don't think you will see an economic benefit to reloading. You can, however load very good, high quality plated shot loads cheaper than the store price of $10-$15 a box. It's all in what you need.....and what you want. Satisfaction in making your own ammo is hard to quantify. Shotshell as well as metallic cartridge reloading is like any other hobby. If you like it, and can realize a positive benefit, then it's worth it. Good shooting, Burl


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## darkgael (Feb 10, 2006)

The answer to your question depends on a lot of variables. Ultimately, you may be better buying from the store; shotshells can be had pretty cheaply.
You'll need a shotshell reloading manual. Lyman makes good one and the powder manufacturers have them for free at gun stores.
You'll need a press. (maybe)
That being said, if you are going to be a high volume shooter - a few hundred a week every week - then a progressive press is the way to go. Dillon ($719), Mec ($245 - $1000), Hornady($500), and others, have them. Those prices are representative.
If you are just going to load a box or four every now and then, or you have time or are on a budget, then a single stage press is called for. As Burl noted, Lee Precision makes a little single stage press called the Load-All which sells for about $40. Mec makes very nice single stage presses that start at about $125. RCBS makes an 1 1/4" 12ga. reloading die set that fits in a press like the Rockchucker. All of these work and will produce shootable, dependable ammo.
Also, Lee used to make their Lee Loaders in shotgun gauges. They work. They are available on Ebay - there are some there as I write this. The 12 gauge sets usually do not bid up too high; the .410 sets sell at a premium.
You'll need wads and hulls. To find out which wads go with which hulls, you need to read that manual. It's NOT as complicated as it sounds BUT wads and hulls must be matched due to differing interior shapes of hulls.
You'll need shot, powder, primers. Primer choice is, again, something that the manual will tell you about; pressures can be quite different, all other things being the same, just by changing primers.
If you are shooting a break-open gun, then you can use brass hulls and not use any tools (no press!) at all other than a scale for weighing charges and a dipper for measuring powder and shot. There are some variables about using brass hulls. If you want that info, post that in reply.
Loading shotshells adds another, fun, dimension to this hobby.
Pete


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## gentleman4561 (Jul 16, 2007)

can i use brass shells in my 870 and can i find every thing i need at bass pro


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## darkgael (Feb 10, 2006)

I don't know from personal experience whether you can fire brass shells in an 870. There is a fellow over at the reloading forum at jouster.com who has used brass shells in his pump gun, but it was not an 870, a winchester repro, I think. I cannot find the thread. A longish thread about reloading brass hulls is: http://www.jouster.com/cgi-bin/reload/r ... read=24036.
There are various and substantial differences between loading "modern" plastic hulls and brass. In most ways, brass hulls are easier.....but will they work in your gun? Most brass shells that I have seen use large pistol primers. The big difference is that modern components, especially plastic wads, will not fit; they are too small. While the exterior of a 12 gauge brass hull is "12 ga." the interior is really 11ga. and so needs 11ga. wads. They are readily available from Dixie Gun works. You step back into the past a bit when using brass hulls; you have to make a "wad column". ( three types of wads are involved - an overpowder wad, cushion wads, and, after shot is dropped, an overshot wad. They are inexpensive.) The case is sealed with some type of glue - Duco, Elmers, waterglass, not crimped. 
The Dixie catalog has a very clear explanation about how to do this. Though their focus is on black powder, smokeless loads work well. 
It is a simple process and can be done w/o tools except for, maybe, a dowel, though if I was to write it all now it would sound complex. It isn't.
The shells work just fine. They pattern well in my SXSs.
Pete


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## darkgael (Feb 10, 2006)

I've been thinking about the 870. One problem that you might run into would be the follower in the magazine tube. It may well be smaller that the mouth of a brass case; it would enter the case, maybe break the seal on the round and cause a problem. There are easy ways around that but it's a thought. 
If you'd like, I'll send you an empty brass hull and you can run it through your gun to see if it cycles. If it does, then we can deal with the rest.
If that sounds reasonable, send me a PM or an email with your address and I'll send a hull and some wads.
You probably cannot find any of this at Bass Pro.
Pete


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