Factory Ammunition or Custom Hand Loads

[migrabill]

I am not a reloader myself. I will buy commercial ammo from Barnes or Swift etc. Or I have Lance Hendershots hand load the Barnes or Swift etc. I have found both shoot great.

 

[Nhoro]

30-06 factory ammo but I am about to start reloading. Here in Zim, factory ammo is expensive. $80 for Hornady Interlock last time I bought a box. So at $4 a shot, it adds up quick. My 458 lott is even crazier so I have been handloading with a friends equipment for years. That stuff runs about $26 per round. So I have bought dies and was given a press. For me it is mainly cost, I can't afford to shoot without reloading. My costs will come down to maybe $4 on the 458 of so and $2 on the 30-06. I already have brass

 

[Mark458]

30-06 factory ammo but I am about to start reloading. Here in Zim, factory ammo is expensive. $80 for Hornady Interlock last time I bought a box. So at $4 a shot, it adds up quick. My 458 lott is even crazier so I have been handloading with a friends equipment for years. That stuff runs about $26 per round. So I have bought dies and was given a press. For me it is mainly cost, I can't afford to shoot without reloading. My costs will come down to maybe $4 on the 458 of so and $2 on the 30-06. I already have brass

The 30-06 is definitely high, but that 458 Lott price is out of control. I don't hand load myself but at those prices I would definitely learn to do it. I have my 458 Lott ammo custom loaded for not much more than you're having to pay for 30-06 rounds. Good luck.

 

[1dirthawker]

30-06 factory ammo but I am about to start reloading. Here in Zim, factory ammo is expensive. $80 for Hornady Interlock last time I bought a box. So at $4 a shot, it adds up quick. My 458 lott is even crazier so I have been handloading with a friends equipment for years. That stuff runs about $26 per round. So I have bought dies and was given a press. For me it is mainly cost, I can't afford to shoot without reloading. My costs will come down to maybe $4 on the 458 of so and $2 on the 30-06. I already have brass

i ended up reloading my 458 win ammo to get exactly what i wanted. that said, the $160 a box for similar ammo helped that decision.

 

[SETH RINGER]

FACTORY, BUFFALO BORE, FACTORY.

 

[Tanks]

Competition ammo, wildcats, and CEB solids I hand load. Rest is factory.

Especially considering volume of competition ammo.

 

[Hififile324]

Generally speaking, I load for all of my guns. However, this year I took Federal Premium 200gr. Terminal Ascent factory ammo for my .300 Win mag. I took 6 animals, 6 shots all DRT. The ammo shot as good as any of my custom tuned handloads. I was very impressed with the bullet performance which I reported here on AH elsewhere. Top Quality factory ammo has really improved over the last decade and there is no reason it should not be used if your rifle shoots it accurately.

 

[dogcat1]

If you shoot a Blaser R8 , factory ammo is all you need....

 

[Wyit76]

I use both options rifle depending. All of my rifles get broken in with factory ammo. I usually try 3 or 4 different factory loads and can find something it either loves or a bullet that is workable, some guns prove they are a hand loading endeavor, either way this also gives brass to begin the process. I believe your theory is sound that higher end custom rifles will use hand loaded ammunition more commonly due to several reasons and it isn't necessarily that they are high end or custom. I believe the majority of custom rifles are built in wildcat, customized factory cartridges, or no longer commercially produced cartridges, meaning they are a hand load only proposition from the beginning. The alternative to this is guys who are meticulously and build exactly what they want. This scenario will likely shoot exceptionally with factory ammo but is hand loaded for regardless because the user enjoys it or can not leave well enough alone.

Both of my wifes rifles, a Weatherby Vanguard Camilla 6.5cm and Sako 85 Finnlite 270win, are factory loaded ammo. The 6.5cm is frustratingly accurate with 143 ELD-X ammo, consistent 3/4 moa groups from field positions, and I can not efficiently build a better load for it. Her 270 also shoots the ELD-X exceptionally but the 136 Terminal Accent is the go to for this, similar accuracy but far tougher and flatter shooting. I prefer hers to be factory options as well to reduce her stress while preparing for her girls hunting camp.

My 6.5cm, a Bergara B-14 Carbon, and 7mm prc, a Rugera American gen II, are both factory loads. The 6.5cm prefers the 130 Scirocco II loaded by federal, likely to become a hand loading rifle due to that ammos discontinuation through federal. The 7prc shoots the 175 ELD-X better than it has any right to do so.

I have a second custom 7prc built on a Sako action underway currently, I am hoping it won't be as picky as the 7mm rem mag it used to be! My 9.3x62 is a hand loaded cartridge due to the fact that it came with everything required to feed it for a lifetime when I purchased the rifle. My winter project is to find a load it truly likes. 30-30 is another hand load cartridge, not by necessity just for nostalgia. 300prc is hand load to use the 212 Bore Rider from Barnes. 6mm ARC is also hand loaded for bolt gun pressures rather then factory gas gun loads.

 

[Mark458]

I use both options rifle depending. All of my rifles get broken in with factory ammo. I usually try 3 or 4 different factory loads and can find something it either loves or a bullet that is workable, some guns prove they are a hand loading endeavor, either way this also gives brass to begin the process. I believe your theory is sound that higher end custom rifles will use hand loaded ammunition more commonly due to several reasons and it isn't necessarily that they are high end or custom. I believe the majority of custom rifles are built in wildcat, customized factory cartridges, or no longer commercially produced cartridges, meaning they are a hand load only proposition from the beginning. The alternative to this is guys who are meticulously and build exactly what they want. This scenario will likely shoot exceptionally with factory ammo but is hand loaded for regardless because the user enjoys it or can not leave well enough alone.

Both of my wifes rifles, a Weatherby Vanguard Camilla 6.5cm and Sako 85 Finnlite 270win, are factory loaded ammo. The 6.5cm is frustratingly accurate with 143 ELD-X ammo, consistent 3/4 moa groups from field positions, and I can not efficiently build a better load for it. Her 270 also shoots the ELD-X exceptionally but the 136 Terminal Accent is the go to for this, similar accuracy but far tougher and flatter shooting. I prefer hers to be factory options as well to reduce her stress while preparing for her girls hunting camp.

My 6.5cm, a Bergara B-14 Carbon, and 7mm prc, a Rugera American gen II, are both factory loads. The 6.5cm prefers the 130 Scirocco II loaded by federal, likely to become a hand loading rifle due to that ammos discontinuation through federal. The 7prc shoots the 175 ELD-X better than it has any right to do so.

I have a second custom 7prc built on a Sako action underway currently, I am hoping it won't be as picky as the 7mm rem mag it used to be! My 9.3x62 is a hand loaded cartridge due to the fact that it came with everything required to feed it for a lifetime when I purchased the rifle. My winter project is to find a load it truly likes. 30-30 is another hand load cartridge, not by necessity just for nostalgia. 300prc is hand load to use the 212 Bore Rider from Barnes. 6mm ARC is also hand loaded for bolt gun pressures rather then factory gas gun loads.

My 6.5 prc loves that 143 gr. ELDX. It was a perfect rifle for my Springbuck slam last year. Also took a nice Lechwe on that hunt. Nothing went more than 15 yards.

 

[Tundra Tiger]

I let my guns decide.

I much prefer to handload, and shoot some oddball calibers while living in a remote area, so it makes sense.

But occasionally factory ammo wins out. For example, I have a Savage 99 in .308 that I have never found a good handload for; the best I have put together produced groups of 2ish inches at 100. A few months back I tried Hornady Outfitter with the 150 grain CXs. And just like that - one inch groups, sometimes a little less.

But for most stuff, I make my own.

 

[Wyit76]

My 6.5 prc loves that 143 gr. ELDX. It was a perfect rifle for my Springbuck slam last year. Also took a nice Lechwe on that hunt. Nothing went more than 15 yards.

My wife has hammered a half dozen mule deer bucks with that 6.5cm and the 143 ELD-X, non went more than 20 feet. She had a heart shot whitetail doe make it about 40 yards but that's the furthest anything has made it. I had a 6.5prc that also loved the 143 ELD-X but it wouldn't feed correctly no matter what I did so I went back to the CM.

 

[Paul K]

I shot my first buck in W.Va with a borrowed Winchester 94 in 30-30 and a 170 gr Silver Tip and I was just a kid. Everything after that, including my Cape Buffalo,I used my hand loads. I am 75 years old and when I took that buck,I was 12 or 13 years old. Started reloading shot shells at 12 years old, with a Lee Loader, we were poor, didn't know we were till I was older.

Paul

 

[Mark458]

If you didn't know you were poor then you weren't poor. A lot of people out there with a lot of money that probably don't enjoy life as much as you did back then.

 

[yamoon]

I’ve been hand loading for about 60 years, started because I liked to shoot and couldn’t afford factory ammo. I rarely buy factory rounds, plus many of my rifles are no longer loaded for. I cast as well as hand load.
Mike

 

[Paulrhenderson]

I used to hand load before when I did more competitive shooting but now I’ve got kids and sports and don’t get as much time for reloading. Plus for most hunting distances factory is fine for me. I have a Hells Canyon Armory 300wsm barrel on a Tikka and it’s crazy accurate with 200gr ELDx bullets. A couple years ago took at Elk at 650yards with it!

 

[coreydb]

I shoot both and have success with both; even the DG. When I shoot factory loads however, I am verrry particular and only go with Federal, Norma, Hornady or Nosler.

 

[Frontier3006]

I have always used premium factory ammunition for hunting, and frankly, I just don’t see the value in handloading for that limited purpose. I appreciate the reliability, consistency, and availability of quality factory ammunition. (Which has only improved over the years). I’m not limited to whatever quantity of ammunition I happen to have loaded at any given time. If I need more, I can simply get on MidwayUSA and have another few boxes shipped to my door. I certainly understand the advantages of handloading for benchrest shooting, but for hunting, the difference between a half-MOA handload and a one-MOA factory load is practically insignificant. Then there’s the argument about cost savings, which, quite frankly, I call bullshit. By the time you purchase the dies, equipment, and components, invest the time developing a load, and then actually produce a batch of ammunition, those meager savings disappear. Again, I’m speaking strictly in the context of hunting. I completely understand why competitive shooters handload, and I appreciate that many people simply enjoy the process as a hobby. I don’t. I want a repeatable source of dependable, accurate ammunition that performs when it matters, and premium factory ammunition gives me exactly that.

 

[Hunting Hitman]

For Pigs and other Varmints I use the cheap factory loads for the work and on all big game I use custom loaded ammunition from Pendleton.

HH

 

[DLSJR]

I shoot both factory and hand-loaded ammo. My .416 Hoffman & .264 Win Mag is 100% custom loaded for me by the gunsmith who does all my rifle work. He builds very accurate rifles and also does a great job on the ammo he loads. In my .338 win mag and .375 H&H I shoot a mix of hand-loaded and factory ammo. I do 99% of my hunting with these four rifles. In my other rifles, I just shoot factory ammo.