Also keep in mind temperature a safe max load at 50 degrees may be a way to hot at 80 you have to adjust dont shoot your winter max loads on a hot summer day bad things can happen

Three words.......

Case length gauge

I lock the door to the gun room 90% of the time when reloading and I have loaded some to hot but found it when I went to tag the box. 2 gr to much polled them then done it wright. After you pull 50 rounds and reload you will double check your self!!

Keep your load within limitations....if you want 4000 out of a 22-250. For get it....brass won't last long primers loosen quicker and the extra vol wont be noticed in the field. Get a swift....

I'm pretty new to reloading compared to a lot of people here, but here are a couple pictures and description of what has worked well for me so far.

When dispensing powder, I place my prepped cases in a cartridge box and work from left to right. I first remove a row of cases and set them aside so there is always a blank space between the full case I'm setting into the box and the empty one I'm pulling from it. After the charge is weighed and poured into the brass, I take a bullet and set it upside-down inside the case mouth before transferring the cartridge into the box. This clearly marks each case that has a charge it in, preventing both squibs and double-charges. In the calibers I reload (.30-06 and .22-250) double-charges are impossible without spilling, but I'm cautious about it anyway.

I dispense powder using the volumetric powder drop that came with my Lee Classic set, dispensing it into an old .30-06 case that has a messed-up neck from a time when I rushed a bullet seating and tried to press it with the bullet cockeyed. Using this case is a constant reminder for me. The only time powder touches the actual prepped case is after the load is weighed (I weigh each load) and 2 seconds before the bullet is dropped in upside down. For .22-250, the bullets are skinny enough that they can pass through the throat of my funnel so I drop in the bullet before I even remove the funnel.

http://imgur.com/rpNoATo
http://imgur.com/kTArsgT

Happy shooting,
Mitch

there is no better advise than this eliminate all distractions and keep your mind 100 percent on the task at hand. and write everything down.

there are also some good instructional compact discs. hornady etc.

Well I had nothing to do today so I decided to read this and thought I'd toss in my two cents.

We all develop our own routine. I prefer to do large batches, especially case prep, one step at a time. I include a note marking off the steps as I finish them. It may be a while before I do the next step and because of my records I know without a doubt I've completed a step or not. Once I had 1000 30-06 cases I knew I had measured the length on but didn't have a note so I did it again.

I also never touch primers. I started into reloading by loading 8mm mauser. I loaded 10 rounds at the starting load. When I was priming them I touched the primers. I had 1 squib in that batch of 10. I recognized something was off and cleared the bore before firing another round so no harm was done and I learned something and no longer touch primers. Sure it could have been a bad primer but after thousands and thousands of loads I haven't had another squib.

This was briefly mentioned but a paper clip with one end bent can be a very useful tool for inspecting cases. We all (assuming you read your manual) have heard about case heads separating. If running a paperclip inside the cases and tip hangs up on a "ridge" just above the web it's time to retire the case. But it can also hang up on dirt too. Here's a link for more info on it http://www.accurateshooter.com/technical-articles/case-head-separation-cause-diagnosis/

I didn't see this mentioned but I also RE-READ the info in the manuals from time to time. A refresher never hurts and you'll be surprised how often you'll pick up a new tid-bit of info.

I'm a big fan of headspace gauges and have one for every rifle cartridge I load.

Keep your bench clean. Some of the pictures people post of their bench make me cringe. Stacked 3 layers deep of different things seems like a bad idea to me.

I'll also say trust your gut. We all know sometimes there is something telling you that something is not quite right. I've thrown out some brass that despite all my careful inspection and found nothing wrong with my gut was still telling get rid of it. This included a decent size batch of 308 brass. Did I prevent an accident, I'll never know but I felt better by tossing it into the scrap bucket. There was another day I was going to load up a few rounds but I literally dropped everything I touched when I was getting my stuff out and ready to go. I took that as a sign that I wasn't meant to do any loading that day.

Don't reload when you're tired, sick, distracted, mad, ect. Only do it if you can give it your full, undivided attention. Also, once your a have a cold beverage you're done for the day.

I'll say this one separately but don't reload when you are in a hurry. If you are rushing to make ammo the night before a match, hunting trip, range time or whatever the case may be you're asking for trouble. Way to many problem threads start with "I was in a hurry". A little planning can save a lot of problems.

This post is not a "reply" to the previous post, but is instead a reply I wrote re the Distinction of Standard vs. Magnum primers in .223 Remington...so I am posting it at Help New Reloaders for other new reloaders' benefit:

OK, I will solve the rest of the story here as none of the other posters [after me] have done so, and I am really disappointed in them...

The magnum primer is generally recommended for:
(a)igniting all ball powders as ball powder is "relatively"
harder to ignite than other [stick-type] powders and the magnum primer has a relatively much "hotter" flame than standard primers;
(b) especially recommended when igniting a ball powder in cold weather of 0 degrees F and below;
(c) igniting larger quantities of ball powder (think .338 Win. Mag, 22/250, 308 and 30/06, etc.)

See the older Speer manuals of 1970-90s vintage for a good discussion on this.

Thus, when switching to a magnum primer for a load previously worked up to a safe maximum, one should certainly back off the same powder say 10% and work back up to a safe level with the magnum primer, especially if the loads will be used in hot summer weather - i.e ground hog hunting here in OH - as the magnum primer develops higher pressure faster than the standard primer did with the same quantity of powder. So you can't just use a nmagnum primer withe the previously safe pressure load of the standard primer and expect the same pressure! You may very well get an overload/excess pressure, and you may not! Understanding this so far.

Notice none of the other posters have mentioned any of this...and I have other things to do than type...but have answered as these others do not seem to get it although you are the rookie reloader and they allegedly are "veterans"...

That being said, the CCI 400 standard primer has done very well at igniting my ball powder of choice (Winchester 748) so I have not opted to try the CCI 450 Magmum primer...in the .223 Remington as I hunt a lot in the summer and the 400 standard works fine. BUT, if hunting coyotes in sub-zero conditions I would do so with a Magnum 450 re-worked load. You will likely benefit with a more reliable, complete powder burn...relatively.

Oh, by the way, the BR-4 costs almost twice as much now as does the standard CCI 400 or the Magnum 450, so it is more than just "pennies" as one poster claimed. The BR-4 allegedly has better "quality control" manufacturing than the 400; let CCI tell you what are the other differences between it and the 400.

huh i should start thinking about that more.

A lot of info in here!

I've read through a lot of it over the past few days, very informative.

I'm about ready to start reloading, have read Lyman's twice now, and have most of the equipment at home, with the rest in the mail on the way. Was wondering what you guys would recommend as a second manual. I know there's a few good ones out there, but was wondering what ones have the most comprehensive load data from different manufacturers. Lyman gives various different bullet brands, that's more what i'm looking for rather than a brand specific manual that only covers their own products.

Pretty much Internet data if you want various brand data. The Hodgdon magazine deal gives quite a few choices but the website fleshes it out much better.

Greg

actually 4 words - sheridan slotted ammunition gauge

this is a chamber gauge thats cut to SAAMI minimum chamber specs (which is just larger than maximum cartridge spec)

which can also function as a case gauge for checking sized brass.


if your brass (and ammo) fit this tool, any in-spec chamber will successfully work for your reloads.

Backy33 look in your reloading manual and look at the velocity each load is making and if powder A. is 34 grains of powder will go 3400fps and powder B will go that same velocity but with 30 grains of powder you know powder B is a more "powerful" powder just remember though they are all powerful no matter what and always remember to not mix up Magnum and standard primers

Hey guys I got a question and it's probably on here somewhere but I got a tikka heavy barrel Varmint 22-250, I would like to use 55g nosler ballistic tip with IMR4064, but I need the load data for it min to max I also want to know how accurate that load is an anyones input or any other loads you guys may know about that would work?