I'm just starting the reloading hobby. Any info on good brass/bad brass...same for powder and primers. Where is the best source for quality/low cost material....etc.etc.etc...What are some of the mine fields I will run into and how to avoid them? Is it really cost effective to reload 9mm?
Yep. So long as you can buy it for 9.87 a box just shoot the hell out of it and keep stockpiling your brass. It will pay off in the long run. After you decap about 500 round of 9mm casings you will thing the blazer is an absolute steal!
The payback on 9mm reloads does take a bit longer than the bigger bores, but still worth it if only because you can tune a load to your gun.
In a 9mm, I really like 115s over fast powder like N320, N330, Clays or similar at +/- 1000fps. HP38/WW231 is another good choice, but somewhat temp sensitive.
Not considering equipment, 1k of jacketed bullets will run ~$80, 1k SP primers (if you can find them) will run $30 and powder will be $12. If you have the brass and the reloading gack - your cost is ~$125/1k or $6.25/50 rd box. If you keep the load somewhat tame, you can load your brass 4-5x easy.
Lately I've been shooting a 147-grain lead flat point load with HP-38. Here is my cost breakdown:
8lbs HP-38 powder - $110 with shipping and hazmat
Wolf SP primers - $107 per 5,000 case with shipping and hazmat
147 grain SNS casting FP - $52 per 1,000 with shipping (assuming you order 3,000)
Using 3.2 grains HP-38 and range brass, cost is:
$3.98 per box of 50
$79.68 per 1,000