Okay i know everyone knows about the primers, powders and just about anything is very scares. I'v looked everywhere for powder and primers and everyone is out of stock. GunBroker has loads of stuff but at an outrageous price. So many people bought a ton of stuff and marked it up because some people will buy it. Now my question... Would it be better for me to just shoot good factory ammo , go through each round by length and weight and go from there instead of trying to find any reloading supplies? I'm just at a loss right now and have no clue what to do. I can either spend all my money on reloading stuff minus the bullets, brass, primers and powders . Or save my money and just shoot factory and save the brass till they start better production on the reloading supplies. ??? Thanks for every ones time and knowledge!!
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New to reloading. No supplies anywhere??
- Thread starter mrfd217
- Start date
You're stuck it the same situation as most of us. Supplies are limited but still out there. Youe will have to be dilligent searching your local shops and the internet. For example, I was able to snag 2lb CFE, 5lb R17, 500 150gn 6.5 noslers and 1000 CCI primers in the last week. When you see it, be prepared to buy it. Save your money and snag it when it comes around.
Only powders are a bit scarce out my way. Forget about finding Varget or R15. This is most everyones pet powders so either develop another recipie or don't shoot. I have a great stash of 2000MR, Win 748, and Benchmark, all are excellent powders, you just have to go back to square one and find that ideal recipie.
Places to look:
Gun Shows - Negotiable Prices, where I get most of mine. <---should always be a first choice.
Forster online catalog- good place to buy is direct from the manufacturer.
Bass Pro Shops - Havn't began price gouging (at least here they are still the same price as two years ago)
Amazon.com or Ebay <--- some of the stores here have not began price gouging yet. Again MAKE SURE the SEAL IS INTACT.
Gun Shows - Negotiable Prices, where I get most of mine. <---should always be a first choice.
Forster online catalog- good place to buy is direct from the manufacturer.
Bass Pro Shops - Havn't began price gouging (at least here they are still the same price as two years ago)
Amazon.com or Ebay <--- some of the stores here have not began price gouging yet. Again MAKE SURE the SEAL IS INTACT.
My buddy and I just bought 6 lbs of Varget. With a little patience, we can come across most of what we want at fairly reasonable pricing. The only powder we have not found ( or been too late getting there) is H4350.
Having the best luck at gun shows with the folks who sell commercial ammo and components. Seeing lots of powder and primers coming available again and prices coming down slowly. If you attend a gun show, get there when they open. This past weekend I went to a gun show that had lots of powder for sale. The pistol powders didnt last an hour. So if you came in the afternoon you would have missed the opportunity. Rifle powders sat on the shelf all day long with 8 pound kegs of the popular powders like H1000, H4350, Retumbo and others.
We had a gunshow in Dallas this past weekend, no shortage of reloading supplies, and all the die sets you could want. Every brand too. The trick was to get in before lunch (upon opening their was a line already to the end of the building). Have cash on hand to negotiate prices too. I was able to get the guy to drop around 15%, and cover the taxes by paying cash.
Wow, GREAT score ! Right place at the right time. I was also fortunate to find 2# of Varg about 2 months ago by virtue of pure luck at my LGS. have not tried it yet, i'm still developing 2000MR and Win 748, so the Varg is for future use...
I've lucked out this week and managed to find 5 pounds of H4350. 4 lbs at one store and 1lb at another. You just have to be persistant. I have about 4 different stores I visit looking for supplies. I snag what I can when they have it.
Supplies seem to be making a slow comeback as far as availability. Not having a hard time sourcing primers or brass. Berger bullets and powder seen to be the hardest to find right now.
Supplies seem to be making a slow comeback as far as availability. Not having a hard time sourcing primers or brass. Berger bullets and powder seen to be the hardest to find right now.
Thank you everyone for all input . I'm going to check all my local gun stores and see if they have any primers and powders on hand. One of my small gun store owners just got a shipment in last week that was ordered back in feb!! If i can get my hands on some stuff then ill go ahead and buy my reloading kit and the tools ill need to reload .308 ammo. Looking to get my hands into precision shooting and reloading but on a budget . 
I should not post this.. Its like giving away the location to your fav hog hole......but here goes
My go to person online is Nurse Bell on Gunbroker. Ruthie is a great lady that i have been buying powder from for over a year. You will pay current market pricing(her costs have gone up as well. I have 10 lbs of Varget in the cabinet and 8lbs of Bullseye all from Ruthie.
Once you buy from her, she will send out emails if she is getting in Shipments of powders and will give current customers first shot at it.
Here is her link on gunbroker.
Rifles, Shotguns and Handguns for Sale - Buy Handguns, Rifles, and Shotguns Online at GunBroker.com
Currently (6/1/2014) she has 2# of. Varget for $89 plus shipping.
She has just undergone or is undergoing treatment for cancer so lately she can be a little slow in responding.
My go to person online is Nurse Bell on Gunbroker. Ruthie is a great lady that i have been buying powder from for over a year. You will pay current market pricing(her costs have gone up as well. I have 10 lbs of Varget in the cabinet and 8lbs of Bullseye all from Ruthie.
Once you buy from her, she will send out emails if she is getting in Shipments of powders and will give current customers first shot at it.
Here is her link on gunbroker.
Rifles, Shotguns and Handguns for Sale - Buy Handguns, Rifles, and Shotguns Online at GunBroker.com
Currently (6/1/2014) she has 2# of. Varget for $89 plus shipping.
She has just undergone or is undergoing treatment for cancer so lately she can be a little slow in responding.
I have dealt with her before.^^^ There are many powders that are as good or better (cleaner) than Varget or RL15(Varget is pretty dirty). Most people are so stuck in their ways or listen to what everyone else is doing and bite off them that they miss the big picture. If you know how to read a powder burn rate chart a whole bunch of opportunities come to light....
You might check with local gun clubs. I'm fortunate that the gun club I belong to will order primers, powders and projectiles for members. Their pricing is wholesale + sales tax + 5% for the club. It still works out much better than I can get from commercial businesses, and I can order powder by pound, or jugs. The best thing about it is that for the past 18 months (panic time) I've been able to get everything (powser/primers) I wanted. They will not ship. I've also been very happy with Nosler over-runs/blems projectiles from Shooters Pro Shop: Home.
Although reloading supplies are clearly not as plentiful as at times in the past, they ARE available. You simply need to be diligent in searching for them. As mentioned, GunBot 17hmr rimfire ammo under the "Reloading" button should get you started. Alternatively, check the major reloading suppliers without fail early every morning and you will likely find what you need within a few weeks or so. For example, I check Bruno's, 3rd Generation, Powder Valley, Midsouth, Natchez, and a couple others first thing every morning when I'm looking to buy components. Don't wait until the very last second when you're about to run out of something, because you probably won't find it right that second. When you start getting a little low on a component, start looking right away. With a little perseverance, you should be able to find what you need (unless of course you're looking for Varget, which we all know doesn't actually even exist ).
).
Just bought 10 lbs Varget and 4 lbs H4350. Cost was $35/lb which included haz-mat and shipping.
It's all out there. Just be diligent.
It's all out there. Just be diligent.
I check my go-to sites periodically when I get a chance during the day. I tend to hit a good one a few times a month. If you have friends that reload, ask them what they need and toss it on your order if it's in stock. You'll split shipping and have somebody watching for you out there.
My local honeyhole had 6lbs of H4350 and 2lbs of IMR 4895, until I showed up. You gotta buy what you can, while you can. Also network with other loaders. I called 3 buddies, and they all wanted something whileI was at that store. I also have made friends with the manager at another spot. I call him every other week, and see what he has. I have bought lots of stuff fron him over the years, and he hooked me up with 5lbs of Varget last month. I also brought a buddy there to buy a wheelbarrow load of stuff. Best of luck, and keep at it, J
Thank you everyone for all input . I'm going to check all my local gun stores and see if they have any primers and powders on hand. One of my small gun store owners just got a shipment in last week that was ordered back in feb!! If i can get my hands on some stuff then ill go ahead and buy my reloading kit and the tools ill need to reload .308 ammo. Looking to get my hands into precision shooting and reloading but on a budget .
Have you considered IMR4064 for your .308? A buddy who got me into reloading suggested that over Varget and it has worked very well for me. It is available every day of the week on the internet. I know Varget is the cats ass, it is in my AR-15, but I have gone to XBR for it until Varget is easier to find.
I had guys at work two years ago asking me to reload for them and I told them I would as soon as they got me the supplies to reload.
Another guy went and bought a press and all the gear to go with it and then couldn't find the essentials to load with so he sold it in un opened boxes.
Another guy bought a thousand .223 rounds for a buck a piece last year because he was in a panic and two weeks later I found them for half the price he paid.
A bought two months ago I read that most of the supply houses started limiting Powder purchases to ten pounds and after that I started seeing more powder staying on the shelves longer. This was to make the hoarders pay multiple hazmat fees.
Whether it true or not it seems to be working.
It makes me sick when you see guys post, "oh I just bought 300 lbs of ___" then I laugh cause they will probably choke on it at some point.
As a point of interest, in addition to components, I've seen a change in availability of range brass. I've been a long time brass-whore, but in the past couple of months I've noticed a significant reduction of brass left at the range. I normally police up pistol brass that used to be available by the bucket-full (well, maybe by the big slurpee cup), but now at my club the only casings left are pretty much steel. Even non-reloaders pick up their brass. I figure the word is out that spent brass is going to become harder and harder to acquire. Anyone else noticed this decline?
I've noticed this too, but it's because my local range claims they're going to send it off and have it all reloaded so they can sell the ammo. But depending on the day, they still let me sweep up some brass.
Agreed. I have a pretty good stash but no where near that. But my LGS always has powders and primers. There was about a 3-4 month window about a year ago where they started limiting primers to 300 per visit and the powder selection was nil. I was in there 3 days ago and they had Federal Match primers on sale for $35 per 1000 so I picked up a brick. Kinda like the wife buying a pair of shoes because they are on sale... Other than that, I will just buy 1-2 lbs of powder as my supply dwindles or I will buy a pound of something that I haven't used before just to try a new load. I just wished they carried SMK's. They have piles of Hornady and Berger bullets but I have to pay shipping from the big stores if I want SMK's. Supplies are definitly becoming more available.
