Savings start to look better for the smaller gauges. It galled me fierce to be spending 13-15 bucks/25 for 1/2 oz .410 ammo...
I load a lot of 7/8 oz for the 12...
These two posts sum it up for me.
I used to reload a lot, and for everything.
Lately, I find that I can buy quality factory loads cheap enough in 12 and 20 ga (and I'm not talking Wal-Mart promo stuff). I just got a check back from Winchester for $100 on their recent AA rebate. At ~$6/box, then take off $2/box for the rebate, it hardly makes sense to reload that type stuff any more, especially when you factor in another hundred dollars of equipment that you need to amortize over the number of boxes of shells you load before you even break even.
However... I like to shoot a lot of 7/8 oz loads in my 12 ga, and shoot a lot of 28 ga and 410 bore as well. With their lighter payload, they are cheaper to reload than the 12/20 ga stuff, yet cost two or three times as much for the factory stuff, so I definitely reload those.
