Like anybody, sometimes I need stuff. Unlike most people, I can’t just go to the store. Most times I can’t even go online. So I depend on banking goodwill with specialized people. 🙂
I load all my practice ammo for pistol, which means I’m nearly always out or almost out of one component or another. For some reason no retailer in a 50-mile radius stocks pistol powder, and it was becoming a problem until recently. Thanks to a recent generous visitor, I’m now good for powder and primers probably for the rest of the year. For bullets, I mostly depend on Ian and I had just hit him up for a box in the autumn. Good stuff, too…
With those bounties and the very mild winter I’ve been spending a lot of well, more time than usual bouncing lead off steel. Alas, all good things must come to a bottom. So imagine my chagrin when I wrestled the reloading shack away from the packrats this morning and after a brief loading session reached into the bullet box and felt…
Cardboard! Ew! Here it is not even really Spring and I’m running out of bullets, and I don’t like to go to the Ian well too often.
Fortunately, I just got his water working again. 🙂 Of course in the bargain I also got my water working, so that doesn’t earn me a ride in his Lear or anything, but still. This is a man who knows where to go when you need a box of bullets, y’know?
It’s good to have friends in specialized places. And it’s important to keep them friendly.
Joel, I’ve known very few people who rolled their own. It’s crossed my mind. It’d be nice to be able to create a round to do what I wanted it to do; more than that, I’m a cheap bastard. I always just figured it was too complicated, took too much gear, needed space I didn’t have, etc.
Reading this post, I had a bit of an epiphany. I just bought a house with not one but two garages, one upstairs & one in the basement. That was for the disreputable old motorcycles to which I seem to be addicted, but there is a bit of space to spare, possibly dedicated space. Enough for a bench, certainly. If a (perhaps necessarily) minimalist desert rat (your term) can find space & environment for it, I should be able to.
Your self-deprecation aside, I know you’re a pretty smart cookie. I’m no genius (don’t think–never been tested), but I’m no dullard either. I see no reason I can’t master–well, no, begin to learn–reloading. I got my C&R FFL a few years ago, & the odd rounds some of mine use might be another good reason.
If I fuck up, well, hell, I already have scars and a hellacious limp anyway (don’t ask “a limp what?”). That was a joke; I take safety seriously.
If I become a reloading fanatic, I’ll blame you. Won’t be your fault, but I will anyway.
All that said, can you (or any kind readers) suggest some good books or classes for a newbie to investigate? Preferably the former; I’ve always been an autodidact. I can attend classes, but they cost money, & I’m a tech–I’m very used to reading technical tomes & understanding them.
Thanks in advance.
Wow, that was longer than I realized. I didn’t mean to use up all of your tubes on the interweb. I may have clogged one up.
If I’d known I was going to run so long I’d’ve just emailed you. Sorry. It’s your blog, not a damned message board.
Consider bullets ordered. 🙂
with one of these you can reuse your range lead
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lee-44-Special-Caliber-Double-Cavity-Pistol-Bullet-Mould-TL430-240-SWC-90299-/121588789670
Tennessee Bud, any good reloading manual will be sufficient to get you the specific info you desire. Lee, Speer, Hornady and others all print them. If you prefer to do your book learning via the Internets, I can recommend another less rural hermit’s personal work. http://www.jeffersonian.therealgunguys.com/reload/reload.html
Thanks, Richard, I’ll look into those. I figured Uncle Joel’s readers would respond to a request for guidance–it’s what folks like us do.