Reloading in Tight Spaces?

[Diamondback]

As some folks might have noticed from my AR build pics, I have a situation of being *very* tight on space. As I start getting into rifle work, and try to get back to pistol training more regularly, the prices on ammo cases have sent me starting to think "reload for training, factory for serious competition and Home/Personal Defense."

Found an article targeted toward apartment-dweller reloaders that packs all the tools into a shoebox for storage, so I thought I'd ask the reloading gurus here for your takes on it, see if you all had any thoughts for refining it. For one thing, Redding #5 powder tricklers aren't exactly widely stocked online, so I've been starting to wonder how the Frankford and RCBS versions compare on quality and "space footprints."

The Apartment Dwellers Guide to AR15 Reloading:

For those who'd rather just cut to the "recipe":
(These first three I'm thinking the Lee 90180 Breech Lock kit might be better bang-for-buck than a-la-carte)
---Lee Breech Lock Hand Press Lee 90685
---Lee Case Sizing Lube Lee 90006
---Lee Powder Funnel Lee 90190
Lee Pacesetter 3 die set in .223 Lee 90502
Little Crow Gunworks Worlds Finest Trimmer .223 LCG WFT223Rem
Lee Powder Measure Kit Lee 90100
Lee Pocket Primer Cleaner Lee 90101
Lee Chamfer Tool Lee 90109
Lee Perfect Powder Measure (opt.) Lee 90058
Hornady Primer Pocket Reamer Hornady 041210
Redding No 5 Powder Trickler Redding 05000
Lee Powder Scale Lee 90681
RCBS Universal Hand Primer RCBS 90201
Universal Reloading Tray MTM LT150M-30
Calipers (generic)
Cordless Drill
Chinese Food Take Out Soup Bowl with Lid
Shoebox
Lee Reloading Manual Lee 90277
BLHP Kit Lee 90180

Would appreciate y'all's takes on this, particularly any advice on potential problems and suggested improvements--bear in mind, I have no bench to mount things on, if I'm LUCKY I can get room to set up a TV-tray or small (18" to 24" square) folding table.

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[Velzey]

Somewhere I have an article that shows some great small triangular corner cabinets that look like a hutch, but open it up and you have storage in the doors and a nice press and powder measure ready to go. The main thing you want in a small bench is that it's rigid enough to full length resize rifle brass. Pretty easy to do with a stud finder amd a few screws.
I had a small bench setup in an apartment once and used a 2x4 under the press down to the floor then an L bracket and long screws right down into the carpeted floor. When I moved you couldn't even see where the holes were.

 

[Crohnos01]

It's definitely doable to reload in a small space. A bench reloading station is preferred, but you can get the job done with a hand loader... just don't expect to turn out hundreds of rounds in an evening
I use an RCBS powder trickler and it works just fine. Don't get too hung up on the brand names in the "recipe". Everyone has their own bias, including the guy who wrote the article. Focus on the concept and the type of equipment.. don't worry too much about it being Lee vs. RCBS vs. Hornady.

 

[snarlingdog]

I used a wood working bench from Lowe's. I bolted a 2'x2' 1" plywood to the top and was able to make bolt holes for my press. It worked well and folded up when I wasn't using it. I had a 30gal tub for my press and other reloading supplies to be stored in. I used the Lee powder measure cause it came with a stand. I still have it but now I have a bench in my garage. I'll post some pics of it tomorrow but I'll load a pic of the bench.

 

[Diamondback]

@Velzey I *wish* I could get a cabinet! We're talking about a 1950s 4-bed/1-bath rambler that's had Hoarder Clutter accumulating continuously since the 1960s--I'm the only one who's even been able to be arsed to start going through my grandfather's effects and he died almost *three decades ago*! (Neither my aunt nor my mother can be bothered to put down the e-reader or get off the couch... I at least have been working on getting things more neatly organized, containerized etc. but it's been a hard fight with limited success trying to un-learn a lifetime's worth of Slobovian Refugee bad habits reinforced across multiple generations--it's like after Grandpa's military career ended and its "keep small and easily packed" needs with it from PCS's they all decided "we're staying here and we're gonna go as far the other way as we can" or something. And just as soon as I get points on the board doing something, one of them UN-does all my work... I swear, if I win the Powerball the first thing I'm doing is either putting them into assisted living since they won't help themselves or buying a house with more space and hiring at least part-time administrative/housekeeping staff, somebody to ride herd and crack the whip when needed.)

@Crohnos01 Good to know--my main concerns, since it sounds like RCBS, Lee, Hornady and Frankford have all had to be pretty evenly matched quality just to survive in the market, are "lowest packed-for-storage volume" and "bang for the buck".

@snarlingdog That's an idea to look at, if I can ever get the ROOM to set something like that up again...

 

[fxdc]

I have always used a roll away tool box bottom. I upgraded last winter to a 4ft bottom box.
$299.00 on sale at Costco



More room for tools and spare parts, I use one inline fab QD mount for my 3 presses and a dillon swager. It also has the room to process rifle brass.

The whole thing has HD brakes on it and is stable. My old narrow roll away had a plate of 3/4" steel mounted to it as a counter weight for stability.

I love the fact that the system is moblie

 

[Mikej]

I load in a 10' X 10', so called, bedroom. Not everything is in that room though. The garage has brass, clean/dirty, vibratory tumbler, media and bulk projectiles. The room has computer desk, loading table, smaller amounts of clean brass, primers and some powder. There's roughly 5' between the computer desk and the loading table.



The table is an old timey two person school desk, probably from the '60s, with a 1 1/2" thick top. You've got to have a sturdy base, decaping puts a lot of stress on the platform, especially 9mm. I got the table at City Liquidators for $14.00 in 2011. Dollar store containers have worked well for me. See through is better for me than coffee cans.

I could not imagine using that Lee hand thing! You can really whiz through brass decaping and flaring. I can't imagine how slow you'd have to go with that hand thing.

 

[ageingstudent]

I used a wood working bench from Lowe's. I bolted a 2'x2' 1" plywood to the top and was able to make bolt holes for my press. It worked well and folded up when I wasn't using it. I had a 30gal tub for my press and other reloading supplies to be stored in. I used the Lee powder measure cause it came with a stand. I still have it but now I have a bench in my garage. I'll post some pics of it tomorrow but I'll load a pic of the bench.View attachment 335387

If i needed small and portable that's how I'd do it.

 

[bsa1917hunter]

MikeJ, I like your set-up. I've showed mine before on another thread, but it's pretty compact. Works great with plenty of elbow room. Makes it easier to navigate station to station (so to speak):



One thing I always suggest is to elevate the scale, so it's at close to eye level. Makes for more accurate measuring too. I also have my powder measure set up at that same level to make room for the case trimmer under it on the table top. Makes for a nice compact neat organized set-up.....

Here's a little closer view. Sorry about the mess of brass on the table:


Like you said, "you have to have a sturdy base", I totally agree: Notice the brace under the press. That is a solid oak 4x4. As for the upper platform that holds the scale, that one doesn't have to be as rigid. Has to be strong enough to not move around when you are dropping charges and weighing, but not herculean strong...

 

[Mikej]

MikeJ, I like your set-up. I've showed mine before on another thread, but it's pretty compact. Works great with plenty of elbow room. Makes it easier to navigate station to station:

View attachment 335430

One thing I always suggest is to elevate the scale, so it's at close to eye level. Makes for more accurate measuring too. I also have my powder measure set up at that same level to make room for the case trimmer under it on the table top. Makes for a nice compact neat organized set-up.....

Here's a little closer view. Sorry about the mess of brass on the table:
View attachment 335431

Good point in having the scale at eye level. As often as I weigh charges it wouldn't work for me to be reaching up so much. Doing single stage I will weigh the first three or so to zero in, then after that every 10th-16th charge. Probably don't NEED to do it that much, but I'm not loading for speed after all.

That's not a mess! Clean brass laying around, ready to process, is art!

 

[snarlingdog]

Here is another idea my buddy did something similar. Get a bench grinder stand at harbor freight for like $30 and bolt on a 1" plywood and make a set up you like. My buddy uses his in his living room and watches TV.

 

[Tilos]

@Velzey I *wish* I could get a cabinet! We're talking about a 1950s 4-bed/1-bath rambler that's had Hoarder Clutter accumulating continuously since the 1960s--I'm the only one who's even been able to be arsed to start going through my grandfather's effects and he died almost *three decades ago*! (Neither my aunt nor my mother can be bothered to put down the e-reader or get off the couch... I at least have been working on getting things more neatly organized, containerized etc. but it's been a hard fight with limited success trying to un-learn a lifetime's worth of Slobovian Refugee bad habits reinforced across multiple generations--it's like after Grandpa's military career ended and its "keep small and easily packed" needs with it from PCS's they all decided "we're staying here and we're gonna go as far the other way as we can" or something. And just as soon as I get points on the board doing something, one of them UN-does all my work... I swear, if I win the Powerball the first thing I'm doing is either putting them into assisted living since they won't help themselves or buying a house with more space and hiring at least part-time administrative/housekeeping staff, somebody to ride herd and crack the whip when needed.)

@Crohnos01 Good to know--my main concerns, since it sounds like RCBS, Lee, Hornady and Frankford have all had to be pretty evenly matched quality just to survive in the market, are "lowest packed-for-storage volume" and "bang for the buck".

@snarlingdog That's an idea to look at, if I can ever get the ROOM to set something like that up again...

Even an old house has a small closet with a door somewhere.
Buy/install some tamper proof hinges for it, remove the doorknob, replace it with a dead bolt, and put 3 inch screws thru the striker plate and hinges, thru the door jam and into the 2x4 framing.
Clear out the crap and lock it up, a space for reloading...done
It's what I did in a small apartment, confused the maintenance guy when I let him in to fix something else, but I knew he was not getting in there without breaking something.
jmo

 

[Tilos]

Here is another idea my buddy did something similar. Get a bench grinder stand at harbor freight for like $30 and bolt on a 1" plywood and make a set up you like. My buddy uses his in his living room and watches TV.
View attachment 335588

A piece of OSB stair tread is about an inch thick and works great for a small "bench top".
The best thing is you only need one stair tread, you can even double it up, and not have to BUY a sheet (or 1/2 sheet) of plywood.
something I've done,

 

[Diamondback]

@Tilos True, but in this case the two not connected to bedrooms/"stuff-storage former-bedrooms" are full of furnace and water heater--my point in mentioning age was less the age of the house than emphasizing just how much STUFF has been piling up in there and how long. Even the garage and pantry have been turned into crap-locker... not for lack of me trying to rein it in, but when you're the youngest and lowest-income of the household you don't exactly have a lot of leverage beyond threatening to walk out and make them learn to deal with their own household tasks like laundry, groceries etc.

Good point about the stair tread, which would probably also save a few bucks.

 

[ageingstudent]

Here is another idea my buddy did something similar. Get a bench grinder stand at harbor freight for like $30 and bolt on a 1" plywood and make a set up you like. My buddy uses his in his living room and watches TV.
View attachment 335588

Even I don't have 2 presses

 

[Member 5605]

I started reloading behind a door in a corner.

Made a corner bench that was solid for a press mount.

 

[Member 5605]

I started reloading behind a door in a corner.

Made a corner bench that was solid for a press mount.

Found photo of said aboveness..
I had triangular shelving above, and entire bottom was open for storage of the larger items (powder etc).

 

[Crohnos01]

Oh-no....
Just don't let an electrical inspector see that all nicely blocking your electrical panel.... Code requires 3 feet of clear area in front of the panel.... It never happens, but just saying

 

[Member 5605]

Oh-no....
Just don't let an electrical inspector see that all nicely blocking your electrical panel.... Code requires 3 feet of clear area in front of the panel.... It never happens, but just saying

The shelf dropped down and allowed the panel to open. It was in a house so.... with the door open in front of it, there wouldn't be any free space.

I don't live there anymore so that's a good thing eh?

 

[Crohnos01]

Yup

Like I say, most of the time, things just seem to "grow" in front of those panels.... it just is usually a good place to put "stuff"....I try to keep mine clear, but I found the wife's garden implement in front of it the other day.... it does become a pain to deal with when the lights go out and you need to spend 5 minutes moving crap to get to the panel to reset a breaker.