My first press was an RCBS Rockchucker purchased as part of a kit in 1995. I bought that one after my brother purloined our father’s Rockchucker when he left for school. In truth, my father never reloaded and it was my brother who set up the kit in the basement after my father died. We both used the gear, however, until my brother took it with him.
No one taught me to reload; I read the Hornady manual and followed the steps in there. At first I just loaded for my 30-06 using RCBS dies I bought with the kit. I’ve bought several die sets since then, almost all RCBS, but really only reload for a few cartridges, all rifle at present. I have loaded some pistol in the past and might get back into that someday. I still have all that gear, but have added other bits over the years. I bought a Lyman 8 station turret press last summer and I really like it a lot. It is faster than my old single stage RCBS and produces ammo that is just as accurate. I also bought a Chargemaster Lite electronic powder dispenser and like it too. I rarely use anything else anymore.
In terms of manuals, I’ve used the Hornady manuals extensively because I use a lot of Hornady bullets. I also have used Nosler, Lyman, Barnes, Speer and Sierra manuals and still read them all for both knowledge and fun.
I’m not sure why I got into reloading, probably to save money. It probably does that, but it takes a while to amortize the cost of the gear. And I’m not really sure I’m saving anything when I keep buying gear and gadgets! Now it is an interesting hobby in which I can find a little solitude. And it is fun to see if I can make slightly better round for whatever I’m contemplating hunting. Mostly I think I still do it so I can shoot more.
