First, I'd like to say that I reload for fun not to save money. Second, I saw a post somewhere that got me thinking about how much it really costs to reload a box of .410 shells.
Flats of AA .410s can be had for about $100 with some frequency and $80 for 3 cases if the rebate is active. Reloading a box of .410 shells can be done for ~3.50 if you really try to find good deals on the components. At first glance, reloading seems like a great deal.
However, most people don't factor the cost of their hulls into the formula or the opportunity cost they are giving up by not selling their hulls. AA HS hulls (AKA Red Gold) can be sold for .20 a pop on gunbroker or even this website. Heck, even the boxes have value but I won't take that into account here. That means for every case of new ammo you shoot, you'll get $50 back. That comes out to $3/box for new shells or $5/box if there is no rebate.
That means, if you shoot less than 40 rounds of skeet/year with .410, you will save no money. For every additional round you shoot after the first 40, you will save $1.50/round. After everything is said and done, the benefits are barely better than 12/20 reloading.
The other question I have is, why the heck doesn't Winchester sell their primed hulls like cheddite. Brand new primed winchester hulls could probably sell .25 a piece without a problem. At $62.50/250 hulls, I guarantee winchester would make more money on hulls than a case of their ammo. They are practically giving away money to their customers by not selling these empty hulls.
Lastly (I might be preaching to the choir here), NEVER BUY ANYTHING BUT AA/REM .410 AMMO. Federal/Rio prices barely beat out AA's and you can't sell their hulls.
Flats of AA .410s can be had for about $100 with some frequency and $80 for 3 cases if the rebate is active. Reloading a box of .410 shells can be done for ~3.50 if you really try to find good deals on the components. At first glance, reloading seems like a great deal.
However, most people don't factor the cost of their hulls into the formula or the opportunity cost they are giving up by not selling their hulls. AA HS hulls (AKA Red Gold) can be sold for .20 a pop on gunbroker or even this website. Heck, even the boxes have value but I won't take that into account here. That means for every case of new ammo you shoot, you'll get $50 back. That comes out to $3/box for new shells or $5/box if there is no rebate.
That means, if you shoot less than 40 rounds of skeet/year with .410, you will save no money. For every additional round you shoot after the first 40, you will save $1.50/round. After everything is said and done, the benefits are barely better than 12/20 reloading.
The other question I have is, why the heck doesn't Winchester sell their primed hulls like cheddite. Brand new primed winchester hulls could probably sell .25 a piece without a problem. At $62.50/250 hulls, I guarantee winchester would make more money on hulls than a case of their ammo. They are practically giving away money to their customers by not selling these empty hulls.
Lastly (I might be preaching to the choir here), NEVER BUY ANYTHING BUT AA/REM .410 AMMO. Federal/Rio prices barely beat out AA's and you can't sell their hulls.