Well, finally its time to assemble my first rounds!

The Equipment and Supplies

The Class Lee Loader -- a simple set of tools that works very well.

First, I gathered up all my equipment.

The most important part is the loading equipment -- the Classic Lee Loader set in .38 Special. Available at www.leeprecision.com. This kit is just about everything you need to load your own ammo. The other necessity is a rubber mallet. I bought a 12 oz. soft hammer/mallet at Home Depot for about $12.

As for hardware, you might also need a scale to weigh (or verify the weight) of your charges (not absolutely necessary -- more on that later) and a caliper to measure the finished cartridge's overall length.

Finally, you need your consumable materials. I visited my local reloading supply house and bought Winchester 231 powder, CCI small pistol primers, and some empty .38 Special brass. Obviously you can save a lot of money by reloading your own fired brass, but I didn't have any saved up. I will be saving the brass in the future. You should also purchase a tube of case lubricant. I bought the Lee Resizing Lubricant and it worked very well.

All the tools and supplies used in my first reloading session.

The only other tools I used was a piece of cardboard to protect my workbench, safety glasses, a pen and a laptop computer (with internet access) to view the reloading data tables on Winchester's website (www.wwpowder.com).

The Loading Process

I am not going to describe the loading process in excruciating detail. There are better websites for that. One in particular is: http://www.beartoothbullets.com/tech_notes/archive_tech_notes.htm/51 If you are looking for expertise in reloading from me, you obviously haven't read the introduction to this blog!

I will tell you that the loading process is relatively easy if you follow all the steps as outlined in the Lee manual that accompanies the kit. The manual is nicely illustrated with photos and the tools are all marked in such a fashion that it is easy to understand the use and orientation of the tool for each step.

In essence, the process is as follows. First, you de-prime the case (if necessary) by taping out the spent primer with an appropriate tool and your mallet. Then you drive the case into the sizing die. This takes some force and the case needs to be lightly lubricated first.

With the case still lodged in the sizing die, you place a primer on the priming chamber tool and gently pound the sized case out of the die, seating the primer in the process. Then you completely remove the now-primed case from the die.

Next, you gently tap in the flaring tool to open up the case mouth a bit for the bullet. You then add an appropriate powder measure. This was the first hiccup in the process. The Lee Loader comes with a powder dipper to measure powder by volume. However, it is calibrated to certain listed powders, but not Winchester 231. As such, I used a scale to measure the power charges. This was slower, but I wasn't sure what else to do at this point. The scale shown is a very nice Dillon Precision (www.bluepress.com) D-Terminator scale. This scale may be more than you need if you budget is tight, but I had one available and it was nice to have.

You then drop a bullet into the die and tap it into the case with the bullet seater. This seemed to be the most subjective part to me. The bullet seater is adjustable for depth, but you have to kind of figure it out by trial and error. My first loaded round wound up with the bullet a little too deep. I didn't have a bullet puller, so I couldn't fix it. The caliper is used to measure cartridge overall length, which is another measurement provided in the loading tables. Loads that are too short can greatly increase the pressure generated, which can be dangerous.

The last step is to turn the sizing die around and use the other end to crimp the bullet in the case with a few light taps. And then -- you have a finished round! Pretty cool!

My first properly loaded round in .38 Special!

A few lessons learned so far:

• Assemble all the tools and materials first -- don't get started until you are ready.
• Read the instructions through several times before you start. Read some reliable instructions on the web too, if you can find them. If you have a friend who knows the process, that is even better!
• Don't forget the case lube. Its necessary to make the whole sizing process work well.
• Be careful not to seat the bullet too deep. Work it in slowly and adjust your bullet seating tool as you go. Remember to check the overall length against published minimums.
• Your kitchen table is not an ideal place to load. Lots of hammering and such. You are better off in the garage if you have one.

All in all, the process was pretty simple. Its also pretty slow. If I got on a roll, I suppose I could load a box of 50 in about an hour? Maybe more&

A final note on safety. At first, I was a little nervous about pounding on the case when seating the primer. But, the set works in a very clever manner that seems to be exceptionally safe. Without a doubt though, were safety goggles when you load.

I loaded a few rounds tonight, and I will load a few more when time permits. If nothing else, I think this has given me an appreciation for how simple the process can be, and gives me some insight on how a loading press is going to work.

So far, so good!
 

I am sure there are many of you out there who reload already. Frankly, I expect experienced loaders to get exactly ZERO benefit from this blog, other than perhaps a few chuckles at my expense! However, I invite the knowledgeable among us to e-mail me if you have any tips to share, or any corrections to make. You can always reach me at daiker@realworldcarrygear.com.

This blog won't be technical or a "how to" manual. I don't have the expertise. Instead, it will be a story of how I learned to do something pretty foreign to me--in the hopes that it will inspire others out there to become loaders too. This is truly a case of--if I can do it, you can do it!

As I iron out my issues with my missing items for my press, I have decided to start simple. I logged on to Lee Precision's website (www.leeprecision.com) and ordered a Classic Lee Loader tool set in .38 Special. It was part number 90257, and cost less than $30 plus shipping. My understanding that this one small set is all the tools I need to reload my first rounds. In fact, the Classic Lee Loader was the first complete reloading kit ever offered for sale.

As soon as I can toss the relatives out of the house after Thanksgiving, I am going to try and load up about 25 rounds or so -- just to get the feel for the process and how long it takes. After that, I will be ready to crank up the press.

Keep watching back for updates. Thanks!

First Steps

I started out with the basics. First, I read what I could find on the Internet. There are lots of websites on reloading. Then I bought a reloading manual and read though the reloading process. I got the basic terminology down. So far, so good. Then I made some calls to gather together the equipment. My first call was to Lee Precision. I chose Lee because they have a wide selection of equipment and their prices are reasonable. I selected the Lee 50th Anniversary Kit. This kit features a simple single stage press and all the components you need, and then some! At the time of writing, this kit retails for only $128, and includes everything you need except a set of dies in the appropriate caliber. While at some point I would like to work up to a more sophisticated progressive press, the Lee Breech Lock Challenger Press in the Anniversary Kit is a great place to start.

Next, I went shopping for the components. Although there are great deals available online if you buy in bulk, I opted to visit a local reloading supply house. I was happy to support a local business, and even happier to get some much needed expert advice. Buying local also saves you on shipping and hazmat charges. I decided to start with .38 Special, and bought all the necessary components: some jacketed hollowpoint bullets, empty brass, gunpowder, and primers.

Time to start loading?

Well¬ exactly. I spent another day still trying to get ready. First, the press wouldn't mount easily to my bench. It wasn't the fault of the press, my bench didn't have a proper overhang. Back to the drawing board!

It's also worth noting that actually assembling all the necessary equipment is not a piece of cake for someone like me. My first read through the instruction manuals left me looking for the English version. Little did I know it actually was in English! Again, this is not a knock on Lee, just an indication that reloading requires either some level of mechanical ability or a healthy dose of patience.

After a series of setbacks, I have yet to assemble my first completed round. It didn't help that I seem to have misplaced a critical part of my press. Not sure how that happened, but I bet I find it with all my mismatched socks that somehow escaped the dryer.

My journey continues

This series of setbacks made it impossible to load my first rounds before this article went to print. Also, I figured out that the story of this journey is going to take a lot more space than I realized. So, we have decided to continue this saga online. My story, as it develops, will be covered in this blog. I hope you enjoy the rest of my account. Ultimately, I hope to answer the question: Is reloading really for anyone? Come follow my journey into reloading and find out!