[brotherbrian]

Okay, so I go to the store to get "pistol" primers, and then I see "large" and "small" options. Which will I need? Isn't there a standardized size for pistol primers? I ask the guy what the difference is, and he just asks me "which ones am I looking for?"

Ggrrrr.... this is getting more frustrating, and we haven't even gotten the press set up yet. Now the wife wants to postpone reloading, because we can't find powder anywhere that isn't backordered, and even then, there appears to be a gazillion "types" and "kinds" and numerical designations that I have no clue about. I keep getting questions like "do I load hot?" or "am I going for lower recoil?" and all I know is I just want to start loading regular, standard, off the shelf, normal, everyday, run of the mill, average, shootable ammo for the range. Then I get back "you don't really know anything about reloading, do ya son?"

Of COURSE NOT! That's why I'm trying to learn, but it's like, if you're not an expert, you must be an idiot.

Same goes for powder. I got this bad feeling that I'm going to rush-buy the first handgun powder that avails itself, just so I can get started doing SOMETHING, and it's going to be the absolutely wrong powder or something. "Oh no, you want to use ANYTHING except what YOU bought!"

 

[darbo]

LOL....it can get a little confusing.

Tell us more about what caliber/s you are wanting to reload. Plus get at least 2 manuals. Lyman's is good. I haven't read but many here will say to get the ABC's of reloading. And Lee's is a good one too.

PS: looks like you aren't going to get much valuable help from the local know-it-alls.

 

[oso]

Depends on what cal. you are reloading. Then there are instances like .45 acp brass where some are large pistol and some are small pistol, I separate the LP brass from the SP brass and load both.

 

[.452dia]

That,s why most re-loaders will tell you to get a good reloading manual or two and read them cover to cover before you start buying equipment and components. Without the basic knowledge re-loading is very confusing and expensive. Good Luck

 

[ikes380]

The truth is, you are not ready to start reloading. The first thing you need to do is learn what reloading is. You shouldn't buy any components until you get a reloading book and read it from cover to cover, to the last page. You have proved by your post that you have no clue as to what you are doing.

Edit: Your wife is trying to save your life, listen to her.

 

[TheOldRedneck]

Find someone that shoots a lot and loads in your area that will let you watch. Lot of the old guys will show you and let you pull the handle. Don't get in a hurry to buy stuff after watching and learning you can make better decisions. Also knowing some that load helps when you stick a case in the die and rip the rim off.

 

[brotherbrian]

The truth is, you are not ready to start reloading. The first thing you need to do is learn what reloading is. You shouldn't buy any components until you get a reloading book and read it from cover to cover, to the last page. You have proved by your post that you have no clue as to what you are doing.

Edit: Your wife is trying to save your life, listen to her.

You are one of those "if you don't already know everything, then you don't know anything" guys. I have read several manuals cover to cover, and pardon the hell out of me if I haven't already memorized the countless powder brand-designation-weight-velocity charts, like you obviously have. Nor do I recall specifying a difference between large and small pistol primers. Either say something useful or constructive, or nothing at all.

P.S. The wife is growing despondent because we are obviously getting on board the reloading boat rather late, and "experts" like yourself don't feel like sharing anything useful, and there isn't anyone else here locally that we can learn from in person. So no, she isn't trying to "save my life", she simply is beginning to think it was just a waste of time and money in equipment.

 

[brotherbrian]

LOL....it can get a little confusing.

Tell us more about what caliber/s you are wanting to reload. Plus get at least 2 manuals. Lyman's is good. I haven't read but many here will say to get the ABC's of reloading. And Lee's is a good one too.

PS: looks like you aren't going to get much valuable help from the local know-it-alls.

You said it. This town is definitely stitched up by the "good ol' boys club". And they aren't sharing.

I'm looking to reload .45acp, .45colt, 9mm, .38spl, .357mag, and maybe later some .32 H&R mag. Not bothering w/ rifle or shotgun, just wanting to start off w/ pistol for now And I don't have the equipment for those either, lol. Nothing fancy, just regular old target bullets for now. And seeing as how there are so many kinds of powders, some is best for this caliber but not that caliber, others are good for these other calibers but not those, others are good for your caliber IF you want XX peformance, but only with XX bullets, etc. Do I need to jack in to the Matrix and just download the data, like some others obviously have? lol

 

[TheOldRedneck]

The fact that there is a place selling reloading supplies tells you there is someone that can help. Your load manual will tell you primer size for the round. There will be exceptions like some 45 acp cases are now small instead of large. Until a few years back they were all large. Name the rounds and one of us will give you primer size. Some loads with some powders like H110/296 need magnum primers. They come in both large and small sizes. 44 mag large, 357 small, powder and load determines primer type.

 

[ikes380]

You are one of those "if you don't already know everything, then you don't know anything" guys. I have read several manuals cover to cover, and pardon the hell out of me if I haven't already memorized the countless powder brand-designation-weight-velocity charts, like you obviously have. Nor do I recall specifying a difference between large and small pistol primers. Either say something useful or constructive, or nothing at all.

P.S. The wife is growing despondent because we are obviously getting on board the reloading boat rather late, and "experts" like yourself don't feel like sharing anything useful, and there isn't anyone else here locally that we can learn from in person. So no, she isn't trying to "save my life", she simply is beginning to think it was just a waste of time and money in equipment.

I did give you some useful information, there is no guess work in reloading. Everything is precise and exact. It is all in the book, start slow, learn the basics first.

 

[brotherbrian]

Okay, I am just going to start off with what we will reload the most of, which is .45acp. So now I just have to make a list of all the different powder brands-types that are for .45acp, and just hope that someone locally finally breaks the good ol' boys code and actually puts something, on my list, out on the shelf. Otherwise its over before I've even started.

 

[leftcoastrebel]

You are one of those "if you don't already know everything, then you don't know anything" guys. I have read several manuals cover to cover, and pardon the hell out of me if I haven't already memorized the countless powder brand-designation-weight-velocity charts, like you obviously have. Nor do I recall specifying a difference between large and small pistol primers. Either say something useful or constructive, or nothing at all.

P.S. The wife is growing despondent because we are obviously getting on board the reloading boat rather late, and "experts" like yourself don't feel like sharing anything useful, and there isn't anyone else here locally that we can learn from in person. So no, she isn't trying to "save my life", she simply is beginning to think it was just a waste of time and money in equipment.

You must forgive him for his honest concern and the Frank way he expressed it. I know that the manuals I have do cover the difference and many of the have the needed primer size in the description of the case at he start of each cartridge' s load data. Since even he difference between Magnus and standard primers may effect the results most manuals are specific about that and, when specifying this usually mention small or large.

The fact that you have found manuals that do not have this critical information gives the more experienced reloaded concerns about what else may have been left out of those obviously inferior manuals??????

I would suggest that you shop for a couple more manuals, having it in hand before purchase to confirm that such important information is included. I would be hesitant to trust any published manual that had such a glaring omission

 

[volfan]

It is not rocket science, but you will need a little more of a foundation than it sounds like you have now. Get the already mentioned ABCs of reloading, or buy a manual ( the manufacturer of your favorite bullet - mine is Hornady - is good) or at least Google introduction to reloading or some such. Learn about the basic steps in the process. There are recipes in the bullet manufacturers manuals, or on powder manufacturers web sites that will give you a list of powders and primers that will work for the caliber and bullet weight you intend to load.
You will start with a fired case, punch out the old primer, resize the brass to original dimensions using your press and dies designed for your particular caliber. You will then seat a new primer ( appropriate to the caliber you are loading), pour in the correct weight of powder ( again the type of powder & weight of the charge should be easy to locate in a manual or powder company web site - match it up with the caliber & bullet you are reloading) Use your press and die set again to seat a new bullet atop the now charged case - seat to the appropriate depth, crimp the case mouth to hold the bullet in place ( for most handgun cartridges) and you have your ready to fire round.
For most calibers, there are a variety of powders that will work, but powders come in very different burn rates. A powder that will work well in a small volume pistol cartridge will not be safe in a handgun or rifle case with a larger volume. Let your manual or online reloading tables guide your choice of propellant. Most calibers will require a specific size of primer ( small pistol for 9mm for example) but brands can usually be substituted. Reading some loading information should make it clear enough to get you started.
Good luck. It is fun and not very difficult once you get familiar with the basics and understand the safety issues

 

[20361]

Basic rule of thumb.
Small calibers will use small pistol primer, like 9mm, 38, 32, etc.
.40 could go either way, depends.
Large calibers will use large pistol primer, like .45 .357, 454, etc. At least the few .45 Auto I have do.
Same goes for rifle calibers, I believe.
.223 uses small rifle primer, so does 300BLK and maybe a couple more I don't know.
Maybe someone who loads .243 and such would know.
30-06 uses large rifle primer and probably any caliber larger that that does also.
Oh, yeah, and then you the Magnum primers in small and large pistol and rifle.
Look at some ammo you have and you will see the difference between small and large.
I don't use a lot of different calibers, so I may be wrong on some of them.

 

[Bruntson]

To answer your first question: Small pistol primers fit .32 H&R, 9mm luger, .38 special, and .357 mag, although many reloaders use Magnum Small pistol primers in .357 mag.
Large pistol primers fit your 45 Long Colt and most .45apc....Some .45apc cases will use small pistol primers.

 

[TheOldRedneck]

Start with one and learn on it. What do you shoot most or have the .most brass for. The 45's are large pistol rest small. It is possible to use one powder for target plinking loads for all of them. For that go to a manual. Make a list of powders like tite group or bullseye that are listed with all of them and buy what you can find local.

 

[Sarge]

http://www.lymanproducts.com/lyman/presses-and-kits/pdf/IntroToReloading.pdf

 

[Bruntson]

Your second question is a bit harder to answer...What powder to use. There is wide number of powders to choose from and they each have a different burning rate. Lets assume you want a pistol powder that will work satisfactory in all the calibers you mentioned. I have looked in my Modern Reloading book by Richard Lee (2nd edition) and I see that they have loading data in all your calibers but .357 mag when using Hodgdon H38 pistol powder. There is not data for each and every bullet type and weight but there is enough data that H38 would be a good powder to start with......There your question is answered by just doing a little research in one of our common reloading books. Good Luck

 

[brotherbrian]

Thank you for the input. Most of the responses have been very helpful (minus one), and, to put everyone's mind at ease, I am not rushing into anything. I am a "hands on" learner. I bought the press after a lot of researching reviews and asking around. Now that I have it, I will tinker around with it w/o loading anything, so I know how it operates. I will closely inspect the dies and practice adjusting them, putting them on, taking off a few times to see how they work, etc. I won't be using any powder until I am confident on how the process works first. And I am continually reading. Currently am working on the Lee Reloading Manual that came with the press. Surfing Amazon for the Lyman one that came so highly recommended...

 

[darbo]

I would suggest picking one caliber you shoot the most, or maybe want to shoot more of, and get use to working with that caliber.

I started with 9mm and loaded a few thousand rounds before moving on to another caliber. At the time I was shooting a lot so the few thousand rounds got used up! 9mm will use the SPP.

The second caliber I started loading was .45acp. As has been pointed out you can run into LPP or SPP used in that cartridge. Although the LPP is by far the most common. I just toss the SPP cases in their own can and will load them one day when I feel like it.

As you have noticed there are a bunch of powders out there! I use either Winchester 231 or HP-38 for both 9mm and .45acp. These 2 powders are basically the same powder just under different brand names and will work fine in both of the pistol calibers I load.

Just a quick look through Lyman loading book I find 4 other powders listed that will work for both 9mm and .45acp. Titegroup, Bullseye, Unique, and Power Pistol. And there are others. So there are 6 powders that could be used to load 9mm and .45acp. Now if you just can find them for sale anywhere!

I have no experience with the other calibers you list. I will say that if you look through your manual at the different calibers you will most likely be able to cross reference powders that will work across more than one caliber. Just for the heck of it I looked at the 45 Colt section of the manual and find Unique, Win231 and Power Pistol listed as possibilities for that too, among others.

That is part of the fun in reloading. It is a constant learning curve. I have only been loading my own for about 3 years now and have barely scratched the surface!

Again I would say pick one caliber and start with that. Get use to working through the steps. I have read before that .45acp is a good caliber to start with since it is a low pressure cartridge. I know I personally like loading .45acp.

I won't bore you any more. Take your time, be patient. Ask questions here people will help. PM me if you want. If I don't know the answer I will tell you. If I can help you find the answer I will help.