I just got my first reloader and was looking for any tips or tricks and the best place to buy supplies from you experienced guys. I will mainly be loading .243 Win., 6mm Remington and 375 H&H Magnum. It is a Lee load master. Thank You.

Welcome to the dark side.


The first thing to do is to get your hands on a loading manual and read it from cover to cover. That will bring you to a level that will equip you to ask questions.

If that press can be operated as a single-stage, you ought to use it as such for a while until you get a handle on all the single steps. IMO.

Then ask a lot of questions.

Which manual do you recommend?

There are many to choose from and I'm sure they're all good, but I personally like the Lyman manuals. Their data is not specific to any particular bullet maker and they use a pretty good selection of powders also. Speer, Hornady, Nosler, and Sierra all publish good manuals.

^ X2, Lyman and Nosler and Hornady are my most used manuals. Hornady is conservative, but includes service rifle loads of interest to me.

I use a Sierra and Speer manual. I also consult Hodgdon's website for their take on appropriate powder charges for the powder they make.

Welcome to the addiction

Lots of good info at the link below.

http://www.texashuntingforum.com/forum/u..._T#Post4597732o

Welcome. Enjoy. Be Safe. If you have questions or doubts, ask. Lot of experience on this forum, some old, some new.

Thanks fellas.

I use the Lyman 49th the most, with Nosler and Speer tied for second. And Google...

I won't be any help with the small pills, but have experience with the H&H - had a good experience with the IMR 4064. Had to consult ye olde notes for some guidance.


285gr Speer Grand Slam #2473
68.0 gr. IMR-4064
Winchester Cases (new)
Federal 215 primer
O.A.L. - 3.650" - bullets were no doubt seated out

Never used this load in the field - just experimented with it from the bench once. Interesting story - we fired one shot - it papered right where we wanted, okay, so far so good. Fired second shot - still one hole in target. What-the-???!!! We immediately pulled the bolt, checked the chamber, barrel - all clear. Nothing. Shot #2 had simply evaporated. We had seen nothing hit anywhere. Oh well, we shrugged, loaded up shot #3, it hit up and a little left of shot #1. You could cover both holes with a dime. Okay - but the mystery of shot #2 was aggravating. So I ended up going behind the target board - the backstop was the side of a hill immediately behind the board. Two holes in the ground there too. Huh?! So I went to digging out those holes. Found one Grand Slam by itself, two others stacked up together, one exactly behind the other. Craziest damn thing. Didn't have a camera handy that day, but wish I had.




270gr Hornady SP #3710
69.8 IMR 4064
Winchester cases (new)
Federal 215 primers
O.A.L. 3.650" - most likely seated out

This load knocked a mule deer off the side of a steep hill in Wyoming at about 110 yards. It was a big doe - they were issuing doe tags that year - she sort of robotically pedaled her front feet for a few seconds then keeled over sideways, slid and tumbled down into a ravine. Nice. Just think of the letter V, with her down at the bottom of it. And there it was late in the afternoon with dark-thirty coming on. Add to that, while we were down there trying to drag her back up and out, something started circling around us in the thick brush, snarling as it went. Double nice. So I ended up trying to help drag with one hand, holding a .357 in the other, looking for the forest spook to show itself so it could maybe get a face full of 158 grain pain. We managed to get loaded up and got the hey out of dodge without getting jumped before total darkness fell. I measured the entry & exit holes that 270 grainer made with a ruler - 1 1/2" entry, 2 1/2" going out - could stick my hand in that one.

Also have an entry in the log book in regards to my work with the .375 H&H - "Note: Winchester cases hold more powder than Remington cases" - am not sure what I saw or did to arrive at that conclusion, that was a few years ago - maybe someone else could chime in about case volumes.

As always, DON'T use those powder load figures as stated - work your way up, and don't copy the OAL either - that was for a particular rifle, probably not compatible for yours.

^^^^^^^

Note: Winchester cases hold more powder than Remington cases"


have seen the same thing with 45-70 cases. loading a mild load had a few Winchester brass and mostly Remington and using starting loads there was a very noticeable difference in how full the cases were. the Winchester cases held 10 grains more powder than the Remingtons.

Good reason to always start low and workup any time a component is changed.

First and Utmost thing is Safety Safety Safety.

Just be sure to stick with the EXACT load information. On OAL, let's say it lists a boat tail bullet. You have flat base bullets and figure- what's the difference. Even when the OAL is identical, the boat tail takes up less volume in the case. Substituting a flat base could increase pressure as the flat base will take up more space. Some manufacturers also have a thicker web in the base- which is good but the interior volume is therefore less. So....follow proven loads and don't start substituting components- at least to start.