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Reason #1,393,048 to roll your own.

For practice, yeah, I agree. Even though I haven't for years. But roll your own for a real encounter (that's not apocalyptic SHTF)? NEVER ... for so many reasons.

for a real encounter (that's not apocalyptic SHTF)? NEVER ... for so many reasons.

I hear you, I guess. A lawyer friend I shoot with got to talking reloading. For starters, never sell or give away any ammo you make. His main 'caveat', though, is NEVER shoot a burglar with your own rounds, because no matter what, a wily prosecutor will turn that low-power, low-mass target ammo into a custom-made killing/maiming bullet that is banned by the Geneva Convention and under a bazillion statutes. ("Your honor, the accused actually sought out alloys containing toxic tin and arsenic! And he lubed the bullets with a carcinogen!") Let the factory share the lawsuit.

BTW: For serious SHTF I prefer a revolver. 30 years of range time on active duty and reserves with 1911's and M9's leaves me a bit wary of automatics.

I have no problem with the upper end of Lee's chart, which is VERY safety minded. My problem is how low can I go and still get the slide to reload? No need to beat the poor thing to death against paper, especially with 20-30 boxes on the agenda, and it's hard to find non-jacketed commercial rounds. Without reloading (and casting) I'd have to win the lotto to enjoy this hobby.

In my stupider years I experimented, and only by some miracle did I not end up a cyclops.

Reloading rifle ammo is more difficult. REALLY HIGH chamber pressures, super hard allows, strong crimps to keep .30/30 from telescoping inside tubular mags, and most of all YOU PUT THE THING RIGHT AGAINST YOUR FACE.

Has anyone noticed a strange new cartridge case in .45 ACP? I keep running across these cases that take SMALL pistol primers. Weird.

Like what reasons?