I Proved It

It looks like reloading is going to work out okay. I drove all over town and learned that shopping for reloading supplies in Miami is a complete waste of time. It looks like there are only two shops here that have anything, and they don’t have what I need. So I’m buying almost everything online, with huge hazmat fees. But it’s still better than paying for factory ammunition.

I had to pay TWO hazmat fees, believe it or not. No one stocks all the stuff I need, so after exhaustive Googling, I gave up and ordered from two vendors. I also ordered bullets from Laser-Cast.

It appears that I will be able to put together 40 boxes of very good ammunition for .45 and .38 Super for around $8.60 per box. That’s an average. Don’t make me break it down. It does not include the gigantic investment in tooling, but that will be partly offset by around three hundred dollars’ worth of free bullets from Hornady.

The tool costs are mostly behind me, and I don’t plan to spend a lot more. So the $600 or so net expense will eventually be defrayed to some extent. I’ll kill about $350 of it on the first batch. I think. It’s hard to find decent .45 ammunition for under $15, and .38 Super might as well be bricks of cocaine. I got lucky and got a good price on my first 600 rounds, but ever since then, I’ve been seeing crap prices. And we never have gun shows any more! What’s up with that?

I hope my figures are right. Once again, I have to state how amazingly confusing addition and subtraction can be, to a person who had no trouble with advanced calculus.

If this hobby still sounds expensive, compare it to golf, which is possibly the most worthless thing you can do with your life. A few years back, I heard my cousins say they were willing to pay over a hundred bucks each in greens’ fees alone, for one day of golf. WHAT? To knock a ball around on a giant lawn and come home with nothing to show for it? Not even a useful skill? Count me out. Fishing is even worse, if you do it right. Begin by spending $35,000 on a used boat in okay condition…well, that makes the point, right there. Once you’re that far in the hole, there is no point in discussing the other expenses, like gear and fuel. You can fish well, or you can buy a second home or commercial property as an investment. That about sums it up. I know freshwater is cheaper.

Of course, now I face the predicted temptation: shoot as much as possible, because THAT WAY I’LL SAVE MORE MONEY! I don’t care. I think shooting 200 rounds of pistol ammunition a week will be great practice and well worth the effort.