Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Reloading in the shop?

I've alway's had my bench in the house but we just put new floors in and I moved bench to the shop. While the shop has a good stove it's only used when it's needed, winters are cold here usually and everything is ambient temp unless the woodstove is cranking. Can I relocate my whole reloading setup there?? I usually reload in binges mostly in spring and fall, would the temp changes have any effect on powder and primers? Just an idea,,not 86'd from the house or anything like that! Thanks in advance. Jim

Jim,

Here's what I have in Montana:

My main loading room is the "shop," which has an old Ashley wood-stove. only used rarely because I also have a smaller loading "room" in the basement, for when it gets cold in winter (say down around zero).

That said, I keep the bulk of my powder and primers in the shop, which gets pretty warm for 1-2 months in summer. I keep the powder in typical plastic coolers, but not the primers, and have never found any measurable difference in performance. In fact, a couple weeks ago tested some "low pressure" 12-gauge handloads that had been sitting in the shop for at least a decade. They chronographed the same as they had back then.

Thanks a million John,,, It sounds like my move to the shop is going to be fine! Your writings are great as usual and your loads on the 358 Norma magnum have made me a fan or life!

My only concern would be rust on the dies and presses. I live in humid Tennessee. Thirty five years ago when my son was born, I had to convert my reloading room to a nursery for a couple of years until we added on to the house. I came close to having to replace a lot of dies.

Humidity would worry me more than temp swings, although in a lot of places they go hand-in-hand. A friend lived in Houston for a while and his brass ammo would surface rust if he left it in his garage. The only temp/humidity swings my ammo goes through are when it's really cold outside and then I climb into a warm pickup to drive to the next spot.

I load out in my shop too. I use my metal welding table. I keep my press, powder measures, etc in a metal file cabinet. I keep brass in zip lock bags in the file cabinet. I keep my bullets in a wood cabinet. Both cabinets are on wheels so I can clean under them. I keep powder and primers in my closet. I think you will be fine. I binge load too.

All my handloading stuff and bench is in my living room. Much nicer decor than flowers and knicknacks. There are some advantages to being a bachelor.

We have too damn many rifles and shotguns and various pieces of dead wild animals in the living room to set up a loading bench.

The most practical handloader I've ever known, however, had his loading "room" inside the only closet of his living room. It was a small house, small living room, and small closet, but he screws a stout board across the back of the closet and mounted a single-stage RCBS press on the board. The only two rifle rounds he ever loaded were the .250 Savage and .30-06, and with both he used the "middle" load of IMR4320 in the old Speer manual he owned (his only manual) with whatever 100-grain or 180-grain bullet was cheapest down at the local store. (Except for Winchester Silvertips. He hated them.)

Neither of his rifles had a scope, yet he killed a lot of deer and at least one elk every year--along with a bunch of coyotes, selling their hides for more than enough cash cash to buy IMR4320 and cheap bullets.

Very timely post, i am soon to be relocation to an area of BC in the okanagan, called Kelowna, specifically the Glenrosa area and I will probably be putting my two gun safes and all my reloading stuff in the detached 20x27 workshop, it is fully insulated, but no heat, they claim they had no issue storing their tropical plant in there durning winter, so hope it will be okay for my stuff.
Here is a picture of the workshop.

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That guy was not a Rifle Loony, was he.

I think the funnest reloading I did was .25-20 and .256 WinMag for that revolver of mine after Hamilton sent it to me with a possible load. Honestly, living in a van (Class C motor home) down by the river there was no room for reloading. So I got a folding TV tray to put stuff on, a Lee hand press, a chair, and set to work.

Sure was simple and easy.

A potted palm in Kelowna?

How cool is that?

I hope your move goes well and you enjoy the new place.

I bought a mini-split AC unit for my shop, which is a freestanding building on my property. It’s 72 degrees year-round and humidity is kept to a minimum. Light years better than my tool shed in north Florida, that thing was like “the box” in Cool Hand Luke most of the year.

I have one of my spare bedrooms upstairs as my reloading room. My upstairs gets stifling over summer as we have been get temperatures up to 44 degrees celsius the last few years. I keep my powder in the garage in a small bar fridge (turned off) up against the back wall which is against an earth bank, so not against an outside wall that gets direct sunlight. However even my garage gets stifling in the really hot summer days so I turn the fridge on for a couple of days over the really hot days. I turn the temperature setting up to highest so it probably around four degrees celsius. There's about $800 of powder in there and I don't want it going off.

I have one of my spare bedrooms upstairs as my reloading room. My upstairs gets stifling over summer as we have been get temperatures up to 44 degrees celsius the last few years. I keep my powder in the garage in a small bar fridge (turned off) up against the back wall which is against an earth bank, so not against an outside wall that gets direct sunlight. However even my garage gets stifling in the really hot summer days so I turn the fridge on for a couple of days over the really hot days. I turn the temperature setting up to highest so it probably around four degrees celsius. There's about $800 of powder in there and I don't want it going off.

I do and have done my handloading in my shop since 2003 and in a small shed before that. I totally agree with what JB said regarding storing primers and powder. I've never had any problems with stuff going bad. I have some primers that are 20 years old too. Powder never gets a chance to get that old, as I go through that pretty quickly.

No issues with my bench, tools and powder in the basement. Keep a few primers there for easy access, but the majority are kept upstairs to keep them far from the powder, which is somewhat out of hand.

The basement used to be somewhat damp, but I replaced the heat pump some years back with a bigger unit, and one luxury I permit myself is keeping the thermostat set at 70 year-round. Still, my bill to run the totally electric home runs about $125 a month.

my reloading room is a mess its just has gotten to small, i built a 8 x 16 insulated room including floor is insulated in my pole shed, i even put in a marine plywood floor,controlled electric heat so room stays dry ,warm in winter , cool in summer and its locked so no one goes in their without me knowing it.everyone likes my set-up for reloading ammo. also i have my hundred yard gun range next to my pole shed with a heated shooting house with 2 cement shooting benches. this rifle range has been state approved 100 yard private range, i keep range mowed like a golf course . i did have some legal battles with the county about my range but i won everything,heck i am out in the country,no houses in the way ,big 10 foot berm just some liberals that moved in from the cities and did not like noise ,they have since moved and now we have all gun people around here. dang liberals !

I always had my reloading setup in the house until a few years back. Grandsons staying with us regularly required me to give up the spare bedroom and move out to the garage (attached and insulated). As Mule Deer stated, it gets warm for 1-2 months in summer. I've been concerned about powder storage with the temperature swings but it sounds like it's not an issue. I installed an electric heater for winter time.

Can't believe how neat those reloading room photos are. Me I am in the garage and every flat surface seems to accumulate stuff pretty fast. I have a portable heater and now installing a window AC unit so will be in good shape for year around use. I had issues when loading in hot weather when sweaty fingers would corrode brass and bullets. Powder has been fine, primers I need to store them in the house.

Clearly some of these guys are "way toooo neat !!!!!