Reading some old magazines I found several old lists from RCBS, ranking cartridges by reloading popularity according to die sales.

I can't recall seeing their annual list for several years now. Are they still doing it?

Bruce

Probably can’t anymore because it would be discriminatory to the under achievers

RCBS being one of the underacheivers.

RCBS handloading dies have been sucking hind teet for quite some time now.

Just look inside Bass Pro Shop.....Hornady has over showdowed RCBS.

Better finished dies.

Hornady bought the comparator line of products from Stoney Point products and offers more gadgetry than RCBS.

Hornady also makes bullets, loading presses.

Only thing that Hornady makes that I really like is their die lock ring sets....Bass Pro has them in stock.

Never been a Hornady bullet guy....and I don't think I would trust their new presses with the twist in die holders.

Yep, might hurt someone’s feelings


I have mostly RCBS dies, some Redding, never liked Hornady dies or their bullets.

I only use Lee collet dies unless I buy once fired brass and have to resize with a RCBS before using . Except for my 250 Savages, Lee doesn’t make one, guess I could go through their custom shop process if my tight ass would let me.

Everyone should get a trophy... Damn.. ha ha.

You are a fu cking idiot and don't know much...

Lawrence i had to laugh. One minute he’s singing the praises of Hornady then to I only really like one thing their die lock rings..

I suspect RCBS doesn't publish their Top 10 list anymore because it would cause too much controversy between advocates of various cartridges on the Campfire.

I wasn't singing the praises of Hornady my observation was of their product line.

I'm sure Hornady makes accurate loading dies just like RCBS and others do but I prefer Forster or Wilson dies and Wilson tools.

I've been using the Stoney Point comparator tools before Hornady bought them out.

I shot Hornady bullets a little in the past and I like Nosler hunting bullets and Berger and Sierra target bullets better.

It's called choice Laurence...

The idiot that called me an idiot is the idiot.

Sad to say, but it only took 7 posts in this thread for someone to start calling someone else an idiot - and that seems to be a trend on this forum.

Why don't we try to get somewhere near the original intent of the OP? He seemed to be asking about the most popular cartridges among reloaders.

I can't find any actual data on the reloading side, but I did just read an article on the rising and falling popularity of several cartridges based on sales of ammunition and rifles chambered in those cartridges. Rifle Shooter Magazine published this in July of 2020, so there may be more current information, but the observations they make do seem to reflect what's going on in the market today. Here's the link: Top big game cartridges

Here's the reader's digest version of popularity trends, according to the article:

.243 Win - holding steady. The 6mm Creedmoor has made some inroads, but the .243 Win still is king of the hill in this caliber.

25-06 - king of the 25's, but that's not saying much. The 25's as a category are sinking steadily.

6.5 Creedmoor - continues to rise in popularity, eclipsing the 25's and much of the 7mm crowd. The 6.5 PRC is making the best showing for second place in the 6.5 category, with a slew of hotshot contenders lagging behind.

270 Win - strong support for this cartridge, but a slow decline on the charts overall.

7mm Rem Mag - king of the 7mm's in popularity. 7mm-08 is sinking steadily, but will not likely disappear in the author's opinion. .280 Imp and 28 Nosler are each showing a bit of a rise, but neither comes close to the 7RM.

30-06 - no longer the king of the 30 cals - the .308 Win has been ahead of this vintage offering for quite some time. The 300 Win Mag retains a strong following among those who want more velocity with a .308 cal bullet.

Above the 30 cal cartridges, only the 350 Legend seems to be rising in the charts, and it's too soon to know if it will last. The big magnums seem to be fading steadily.

That's it - I'd still like to see what cartridges reloaders are favoring.

We know reloaders are die-hard individualists, but overall sales of dies have to at least be influenced by overall popularity.

Sounds like a fair assessment to me.

What you think Laurene ?

I suppose the top ten list has SOME validity, but hard core shooters (spenders) don't go out and buy a new set of dies every time they acquire a new barrel or rifle. Or maybe they do, but not me. In the '80's and 90's, when I started getting serious about concentricity, I upgraded all my dies to Bonanza and Redding and Lee....and haven't bought a die since then. One might think that reloading bullet sales might be a better yardstick.

Jeez, John...now I've got to clean up the coffee that got sprayed all over my key board!

I'm glad you got that in early-on in the thread, though. A half dozen or so comments is about all any potentially decent thread is good for before the resident side-swippers, bloviators and Dunning-Kruger types* appear....like crows to a McDonald's sack.

On the other hand, it does reinforce my New Years resolution.

Be well and good huntin' and shootin'. -Al

* https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/dunning-kruger-effect

I'd be really surprised if their #1 and #2 aren't 223Rem and 9MM, take your pick on the order.

Hey Al that Dunning-Kruger effect seems rampant around here. LOL

Interesting article.

Thanks,

Bruce

John,
In light of the Beaver Award currently in process up on the Boobs & Politics forum, your answer should go in a new category as the "Best Answer" to a thread!

I wouldn't be surprised if one reason RCBS has stopped the publishing of their list is in order to avoid controversy..............

It would be interesting to see the comparison between the list from 10 years ago to today.

I would think ammo sales would be more representative of current trends since many more shoot factory ammo vs reload ammo these days.

Al and alpinecrick,

Glad I could brighten your day--or at least clear your nostrils!

John

The Savage 22 High Power dies aren't flying off the shelves?

They're right behind the 30 Remington.

Nailed it

Hell I havent bought new dies for 20 yrs.