12 gauge cost vs savings

[wagesgt903]

I have recently gotten into sporting clays and have thought about whether or not it would be worth reloading my own shells. From what I calculated last night there was little to no savings with 12 gauge. Has anyone found different and if so what are you using? Thanks in advance


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[Cadcom]

I have recently gotten into sporting clays and have thought about whether or not it would be worth reloading my own shells. From what I calculated last night there was little to no savings with 12 gauge. Has anyone found different and if so what are you using? Thanks in advance


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I don't see it. I have thousands of AA cases. I have everything I need to reload but don't see the savings. I let my boys deprime and prime the hulls but the cost of shot is just to high right now. At least for me anyway. FYI - Cabelas in Acworth had decent pricing on primers if you are looking for any.

 

[wagesgt903]

That was what I was starting to see. Apparently 28 gauge and 410 has a decent savings but 12 gauge is too cheap already from what I am seeing


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[PA4476]

Short answer ... It's not worth it.

I have reloaded tens of thousands of 12, 28 and 410 shells. I have all MEC 9000G loaders and can crank out close to 500 an hour on 12 and 28. The 410's go a little slower.

A few years back I was shooting up to 10 rounds of sporting clays a week, plus some 5 stand and skeet added in sometimes. At the time, lead was $20 for 25 lbs. It was cost effective to reload 12 ga back then given the amount I was shooting and the cost of lead. Also, at the time, you couldn't get the 100 round boxes of Federals like you can now.

I still load my 28 and 410's, they are still cost effective. Plus I have a couple hundred pounds of shot left from way back. Every now and then on a cold rainy weekend, I will set up the 12 ga and crank out a couple hundred just for the hell of it. But I only shoot the 100 count Federals from Wal-Mart now. I just bought 2,000 rounds (20 boxes) a few months back. I have spent ton's a cash on AA's and Remington STS's over the years, but found that I really don't see any difference in my scores over the cheap Federals.

 

[biker_bill]

That was what I was starting to see. Apparently 28 gauge and 410 has a decent savings but 12 gauge is too cheap already from what I am seeing


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^^^^^^^^ What he said. This is correct. I've stopped reloading for 12 & 20 myself.
He did miss that 16 gauge is still worthwhile and you can see some savings.
It'll cost you $6 a box to reload 1 oz shells and $5.50 to buy 1 1/8 ounce shells at Wal-Mart.
(It's because of the cost of lead, lead has gone through the roof.)

If you just want to buy the equipment for a SHTF scenario or to learn how it's done it makes sense. Otherwise it's cheaper to buy the 100 packs for $21 and change.

 

[gran torino]

The answer really depends... If you shop wisely and buy bulk, yes, a savings can be had.
12 ga has the least savings potential. In today's market we are loading 12 ga. at approx $4.25 per box. (1 oz shot, 1200 fps) To get this price we must buy powder and primers at gun club group buys (no hazmat fees). We will also buy shot at different times of the year through group buys or at large shoots to avoid shipping costs.
The greatest saving will be found in your sub gauges. If you find yourself shooting a bunch or have a few kids who shoot high volume, reloading can save a few bucks. If you shoot a flat per month, likely not going to save much.
Feel free to pm me if you have any questions about the process or want to hear about the speed bumps that are easy to avoid.

 

[biker_bill]

The answer really depends... If you shop wisely and buy bulk, yes, a savings can be had.
12 ga has the least savings potential. In today's market we are loading 12 ga. at approx $4.25 per box. (1 oz shot, 1200 fps) To get this price we must buy powder and primers at gun club group buys (no hazmat fees). We will also buy shot at different times of the year through group buys or at large shoots to avoid shipping costs.
The greatest saving will be found in your sub gauges. If you find yourself shooting a bunch or have a few kids who shoot high volume, reloading can save a few bucks. If you shoot a flat per month, likely not going to save much.
Feel free to pm me if you have any questions about the process or want to hear about the speed bumps that are easy to avoid.

Ask Gran Torino, he's the best guy I'd know to ask.

 

[wagesgt903]

Ya I'm gonna shoot him a pm. Even if I got it to where the cost was the same being able to get the shells I want might be worth plus would be interesting to learn how to do it. Thanks again guys


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[gh1950]

I've reloaded 10's of thousands of game and target 12 gauge loads. "Back in the day before Obama" you could be gun clubs or Gamebore for $3.50 to $4.00 a box if you looked around and could buy several flats at one time. I loved shooting Gamebore with the shiny shot

This has always been a big argument, and at the end of the day, the answer is going to be "it depends." I don't know the current price of components, but let's say that in a best case you save $2.00 a box, and let's say on the average trip to a SC clays course you use 5 boxes (100 targets, practice, do overs). You have saved $10. That's the value of your time. If you are going to parse it out, you are probably better of putting in an extra hour of work and buying your shells.

My personal decision was that at the end of day, it was cheaper to wait for sales and buy a bunch, even at today's inflated prices.

Now that said, it's an interesting hobby and that's not to be discouraged.

There are two places you can save some money If you seriously hunt with a 12 ga. you can save some serious coin rolling your own hunting loads which are super expensive off the shelf. So if you look at it that you pay for the equipment with hunting loads, and the target shells are just a bonus.

When you get to the small gauge loads, you can save some serious coin there. Especially .410. If you want to see some old men go into a feeding frenzy, and do everything but pull knives, throw some .410 AA's on the ground at a skeet range.

A couple of suggestions on saving money.

Best thing is do what Gran Torino suggests, hook up with a local gun club. Most of them order components when they order targets, so you save freight and HAZMAT. You have to be prepared to buy enough to wait until the next truck load, so the activity at the range may have effect on that.

Secondly, learn your components. Get a manual, and find out what wads substitute for what. Figure out if you really need hard shot (you don't). Learn what shells you can reload, you don't have to use all AA and STS. Bargain box shells will load fine for one time and you have an unlimited supply. The Federal bargain box shells reload uncommonly well using Federal data and wads (it's a straight wall shell). Even work out the cost of your powder -- for target loads there are almost an infinite combination. You have to keep up with what's available, price, and grains per load. I know a lot of people won't reload Fiochhi shells, I've loaded thousands. NOTE, I'm not suggesting that you Cowboy up reloading, all of the my hulls have published reloading data, even though I felt comfortable extrapolating a small amount.

Finally if you want to really cheap out, drop down to a 7/8 or 3/4 oz. load. I tried 1/2 oz. loads but could never get a decent crimp that would hold the shot in. Not going to say that Scotch Tape can be your friend, but

I agree with GT that a flat or two a month, it's just not worth my time, but that's a personal decision. Like I said it's a great hobby, and if you have kids, a great way to get them involved and teach them the value of working to shoot.

 

[gran torino]

Ask Gran Torino, he's the best guy I'd know to ask.

you give me way too much credit... forced to reload by necessity. thanks for the kind words my friend!