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Are factory reloads worth getting?

9K views 15 replies 16 participants last post by  Haywood 
#1 ·
At the gun show I just went to, there was a table set up from a company selling factory reloads. For .40 S&W, I could get 500 rounds for $100. New would cost me about $150. Any thoughts on factory reloads vs. new?
 
#2 ·
I've burned .38 Special factory reloads in wheelguns without troubles - some of it was kind of dirty, but it was pretty consistent and accurate.

It really depends on who's making the ammo and how skilled / detail oriented they are. I'd be more willing to shoot them in a revolver than an autoloader. The possibility for a doublecharge *does* exist.

With a price gap of $50 I'd be tempted to go for the new ammo. That's still a lot cheaper than .45 ACP, heh....

Peace,
Pete Zaria.
 
#3 ·
I can't speak for all reloading factories, but I have used Georgia Arms ammo for practice for quite a while with no problems. They are a reasonable drive from my home so I save on shipping. Their FMJ .45 ACP is several dollars less than WWB and they give a discount for the empties (Which means I police my brass at the range.)

While it is cheaper than new, it is more than rolling your own.
 
#4 ·
+1 on GA Arms....

But to the OP, yeah, I'd get factory reloads no problem, as long as it is from a reputable source.
 
#8 ·
+1 I wish some of you guys lived closer to me so i could show you how to cast bullets and reload your own ammo,as soon as i finish typing this i'll be cranking out about 300 rounds of .223 for my buddys M16 he burns through it on full auto but i sell it to him at $20.00 a hundred It costs me about $15.00 a hundred to load.Most of my ammo i load runs me about .05 cents a round from 9mm to 45 acp,44 magnum is .06 cents a round due to more powder.Bullet prices are going the way gas is and they aren't getting cheaper,i saw the trend about 3 years ago and started reloading,then about 18 months ago started casting bullets
 
#6 ·
I shot 200 rounds of Bullseye yesterday and they were fine. Ammo prices are getting so stiff I've moved entirely to factory reloads -- although they are going up too.
 
#7 ·
Reloads, warranty, and k-booms

Keeping in mind that your warranty will almost certainly be voided if a reload blows up your gun, think of it like this.......

If you loaded it and it blows up your gun it's your own fault, pay up and deal with it. Pay more attention next time.

If it's a bad round from a well known factory reloader like Black Hills, Bullseye, Georgia, or Ultramax you have a chance of getting your gun replaced or your problem solved.

If you bought it from Bubba and Chuck's Reel Good Gunshow Ammo N Beef Jerky Emporium, or if you shoot something your cousin's neighbor's widow found in the garage and only a couple of the cases are split......
 
#10 ·
If the reloads you're referring to are made by the Miwall Corporation, out of Grass Valley, CA, I can recommend them without reservation. Their .38 Special 148 grain WC reloads are every bit as good as factory new ammo from W-W, Federal, & Remington, at half the price. Same thing for their .45 ACP reloads, as well.

Somebody mentioned Ultramax. Stay away from this stuff, it's garbage. It goes bang, but where the bullet hits is anybody's guess.
 
#12 ·
I would stay with Black Hills, and Georgia, and Bullseye. Cabelas also sells reloaded ammo in bulk and you get a nifty ammo can also. Buying someones reloads is taking an awful and unnecessary risk IMHO. They may have been reloading for 20 years or just 2 days. If I don't know you, I am not buying your reloads - period.
 
#13 ·
A big +1 on GA Arms. I have been getting all my practice ammo from them for several months now---probably about 2k rounds so far. I had one (1) round of .45 ACP with a setback problem. Since I move my rounds from their shipping cans to the plastic reloading boxes before a range trip, it was easy to see that one round was too short. The other 1,999 rounds have been flawless. Seems to me to be a much better track record than WWB for a lot less money. :smile:
 
#14 ·
Guess I will go against the grain here, I won't shoot anyone else's reloads in my guns, even factory. Will only shoot my own. I have had bad factory reloads before which is why I swore never again. My gun came apart in my hands, and thankfully that was all that happened.

Georgia Arms is a good company I know, but I recently went thru a carbine class where one of the guys using GA ammo had an issue with the bullets themselves getting left in the barrel and when he worked the bolt, the cartridge flew out throwing gunpowder all over and the bullet left behind was pushed further into the barrel with next round. I could understand it happening once, but 3x and not in a row either. He ended up finishing the class with ammo given to him by the instructor. He had a few choice words for GA after that. My 2c....

SY
 
#15 ·
I shoot Black Hills blue box (reloads) .223 75 gr JHP in my Bushmaster Varminter and I've tried it out to 500 yards so far with great results. When I first tried it I purchased 4 boxes of the Black Hills blue box in different weight bullets. Once I found the one my Bushmaster liked the most I purchased 500 rounds of them for those days when I've got lots of coyotes or prairie dogs to shoot and don't feel like reloading. I've also got a few thousand rounds of old GI stuff in the bandileros and GI ammo cans. The Black Hills stuff shoots better and at 260 yards will punch a .40 caliber hole though one of my 3/8 inch gongs. Our 45/70 just splashes and makes a great noise when it hits it.
 
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