Handloading
Handloading, or reloading, is the practice of making firearm cartridges by manually assembling the individual components (metallic/polymer case, primer, propellant and projectile), rather than purchasing mass-assembled, factory-loaded commercial ammunition.
[2] Some consider handloading cartridges or shotshells a hobby, but reloading can save the shooter money, providing a greater quantity of higher quality ammunition within a given budget.
Target shooters often experiment extensively with component combinations in an effort to achieve the best and most consistent bullet trajectories, often using cartridge cases that have been fire formed in order to best fit the chamber of a specific firearm.
Store-bought ammunition may be unavailable at when commercial supplies are exhausted, but having the ability to reload one's own cartridges and shotshells allows continue shooting despite shortages.
Some cartridges initially purely designed for handloaded target shooting, such as the 6.5mm Creedmoor and the 6.5mm Grendel, have not only gained mainstream acceptance in the civilian market but also partial adoption by regular military.
These presses allow the user to quickly change caliber by swapping die heads (turrets) and produce one complete round with 3-6 pulls of the handle.
The reason shellholders are sold separately is that many cartridges share the same base dimensions, and a single shell holder can service many different cases.
[26] Bottleneck rifle cartridges are particularly prone to encounter incipient head separations if they are full-length re-sized and re-trimmed to their maximum permitted case lengths each time they are reloaded.
For semi-automatic and automatic rifles, the customary practice is to move the midpoint of this shoulder back by no more than 0.005 inches, for reliable operation, when resizing the case.
For bolt-action rifles, with their additional camming action, the customary practice is to move this shoulder back by only 0.001 to 0.002 inches when resizing the case.
It is only by measuring from a fixed diameter point on a bullet ogive to the start of a bore's rifling that proper spacing can be determined to maximize accuracy.
When in use, the case is locked in place in a head-down fashion inside the far end of the "hammer", and then the device is swung and struck against a firm surface.
Berdan primed cases require a different technique, either a hydraulic ram or a hook that punctures the primer cup and levers it out from the bottom.
The use of safety glasses or goggles during priming operations can provide valuable protection in the rare event that an accidental detonation takes place.
Non-magnum revolver cartridges are the easiest to do this with, as they generally have relatively large cases, and tend to perform well with small charges of fast powders.
The use of safety glasses or goggles while reloading shotshells can provide valuable protection in the rare event that an accidental detonation takes place during priming operations.
The primary difference is that large shot cannot be metered in a charge bar, and so must be manually dropped, a ball at a time, in a specific configuration.
Generally, this means that the maker's warranty is void, and the manufacturer is not liable for any damage to the gun or personal injury if handloaded ammunition is used that exceeded established limits for a particular arm.
A manual from a South African powder manufacturer Rheinmetall Denel Munition (previously Somchem) is available for reloaders with adequate information and guidelines.
[45] Historically, liquid priming material was available for reloading rimfire ammunition, but the extreme explosive hazard of bulk primer compound and complexity of the process (including "ironing out" the firing pin strike) caused the practice to decline.
Often it is possible to reform cases from similarly sized ammunition which is in production, and this is the most economical way of obtaining brass for obscure or out-of-production calibers.
Shotshell reloading is sometimes done for scattershot loads, consisting of multiple wads separating groups of shot, which are intended for use at short-distance hunting of birds.
The handloader is afforded a wider selection of bullet weights than can readily be found in commercially loaded ammunition, and there are many different powders that can be used for any given cartridge.
Careful adjustment of the amount of powder can give the velocity that best fits the natural harmonics of the barrel (see accurize and internal ballistics).
Use of moderate pressure loads extends the life of the case significantly, not to mention saving quite a bit of wear and tear on the barrel.
The neck of the case is placed in a propane torch flame and heated it until the crayon mark changes color, indicating the correct temperature.
In addition to the obvious step of using a minimum charge, rather than a full power one, significant cost savings may be obtained through careful powder choice.
[54] For the truly frugal, the cheapest method of obtaining bullets, buckshot, and slugs intended for reloading use at low to moderate velocities is casting them.
The hard jacket material, generally copper or brass, resists deformation and handles far higher pressures and temperatures than lead.
[59][60] The strong bond between jacket and core created by the electroplating process makes expanding bullets hold together very well, and the Gold Dot line is now in use by many police departments.
