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Seeking advice and comment on the best reload spec for a Springfield XDS 3.3 compact 45.

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A boatload of Lapua cartridge brass has crossed the Atlantic, cleared customs, and is now in warehouses. Many large vendors report that they have ample supplies of Lapua brass in stock now. So if you need some cartridge cases, place your orders today.

At one time, it was popular for people to reload their own ammunition. In fact, at one time in American History, it was necessary. It seems like this might be a hot topic for some people so that they can get enough ammunition for target practice, etc. Obviously, those people who do not have ammunition, it would not solve their problems. But if one could buy the brass casings, the bullets, and the gunpowder -- they could make their own ammunition. Is this popular right now? Could someone hundreds of brass casings and bullets along with gunpowder, and keep themselves...

I am looking to buy a rifle that would serve two purposes: primarily a long-distance shooter and secondarily a larger game taker downer :-) I like to shoot beyond 600 yards and I want a rifle to suit that purpose. From info I've gathered, I should get a larger-calibered rifle, with at least a 24" barrel. I would like to keep the rifle below 10lbs because I also want to hunt with it some day. I am interested in hunting elk and moose, eventually. So I am thinking of a .308.

I just got back from Helena. I appeared before the House Taxations Committee this morning at 8 AM in support of SB 371, MSSA’s bill to encourage the production of powder, primers and brass in Montana. I asked the Committee to restore two of the three incentives stripped out by the Senate Taxation Committee, the tax breaks and the liability protection. I’m betting that the Committee WILL restore these needed incentives, and that the House will approve SB 371 in that form. Then the trick will be to get the Senate to go along with House amendments. I’ll let you...

Only in the state of Massachusetts could “blaming the victim” be extended to burglaries. Once again, the gun-grabbing fear mongers in charge of our state are looking to set a precedent that will no doubt have national implications. If this case goes to trial and Stanley Sokolowski is convicted, there will now be case law on the books that other judges can cite: The common act of reloading your own ammunition and the possession of the needed (and Constitutionally protected) supplies will be akin to domestic terrorism. The following email was sent to us by our good friend, and former...

Explosion, Fire Rock Bend's Nosler Bullets Plant Fire Officials Praise Evacuation; Damage 'Extensive' By Adam Aaro, KTVZ.COM POSTED: 2:33 pm PDT June 2, 2010 BEND, Ore. -- An explosion and fire rocked a portion of the Nosler Inc. bullet manufacturing plant in southwest Bend Wednesday afternoon, prompting an evacuation and the closure of streets in the area. Ddespite a blast felt for several blocks, all 100 workers were accounted for. The initial report was only about smoke shortly after 2 p.m. at the facility at 107 SW Columbia St., leading to a full evacuation. By 2:15 p.m., there were reports...

·11250 Waples Mill Road ·   Fairfax, Virginia 22030    ·800-392-8683 Rep. Brad Ellsworth Introduces Amendment to Address Re-sell of Once-Fired Small Arms Cartridge Cases Wednesday, May 19, 2010 Fairfax, Va. – Today, by a unanimous voice vote, an NRA-backed amendment was added to the House Armed Services Committee’s National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 5136) that will ensure serviceable and once-fired small arms cartridge cases are available for commercial sale. The Ellsworth amendment, offered by U.S. Rep. Brad Ellsworth (D-Ind.), compels military bases to sell small arms ammunition and ammunition components intact – meaning not demilitarized for scrap – as long as these...

·11250 Waples Mill Road ·   Fairfax, Virginia 22030    ·800-392-8683   Questions Arise Over Army Bases’ Disposition of Surplus Cartridge Cases   Thursday, April 01, 2010   Last week, NRA-ILA learned that quantities of once-fired small arms cartridge cases recovered from firing ranges on military bases, which by federal law the Department of Defense is prohibited from demilitarizing or destroying, were being sold for scrap.A governing law in this matter, developed with input from NRA-ILA, is a rider to the 2010 Department of Defense Appropriations Act. It stipulates that “None of the funds available to the Department of Defense may be used to...

The cure that was arranged by Montana Senators Baucus and Tester to fix the intended military destruction of once-fired cartridge brass last year appears to be suffering from a fatal end-run. Interested persons will remember that a year ago, helpful intervention by Montana's senators persuaded the Department of Defense to rescind a fresh DoD directive to military installation commanders requiring them to destroy once-fired brass, prior to selling it at auction into the civilian marketplace for ammunition reloading and other purposes. An end-run is being done around the rescinding order through quiet and sweetheart side deals with installation commanders that...

Liberal heads are exploding all over the United States. Three words, “Don’t retreat. RELOAD!!!” created quite the stir. So did the image of cross hairs on targeted congressional districts on a SarahPAC ad. The Alinsky trained leftists are in a hissy fit over Governor Palin’s use of gun metaphors. They find it “offensive.” They find it “threatening.” Too bad for them....

Just started reloading rifle ammo. Need to pick up a case trimmer. I do 200~300 in a batch. I'm thinking in terms of a manual trimmer with an electric drill attachment. I don't really feel like spending $300 for a Gracey. Any suggestions that would shorten research time would be valued. Thanks - HAPPY FIRST DAY OF SPRING - now go plant your tomatoes.

Obama Proposes Signing Treaty To Ban Reloading -- Even BB guns could be on the chopping block Gun Owners of America Fact Sheet 8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102, Springfield, VA 22151 Phone: 703-321-8585 / FAX: 703-321-8408 When President Obama went to Mexico in April, he proposed that the United States sign the Inter-American Convention Against Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, and Other Related Materials. Despite the fact that it purportedly deals with “illicit manufacturing and trafficking,” GOA is convinced that this convention defines these terms much more broadly and potentially presents serious dangers to Americans lawfully...

I know nothing of loading ammo. Just curious. Is it expensive and difficult to load your own ammo?? I use mainly handgun ammo. What is the learning curve and how dangerous is it?? Special regulations involved??? ... and do you really save that much money??? Any and all advice I will consider. This is one thing I love about FR,, it's better than Google. Thanks so much!

We all wondered when it was going to start. When the new administration would make their move against us as gun owners. Oh, everyone got upset about HR45--I'll bet I got over 100 e-mails warning me about this draconian gun registration bill that had been introduced in Congress. I was really glad to see Tom Gresham, host of "Gun Talk Radio," an editor, writer, television host on "Self-Defense TV," and one of the foremost gun spokespersons, come out and tell everyone to stop worrying about legislation so absolutely over-the-top--it would never get out of committee. Tom said save your energy...

Gun owners are alarmed over what they're witnessing in Washington, DC and state legislatures across the country. Realizing they could not succeed in disarming American citizens, Liberal organizations and their political representatives have decided to allow armed citizens to possess all the guns they wish. The hitch is, according to political strategist Mike Baker, the so-called gun-grabbers have decided to track ammunition for those guns by encoding the cartridges and maintaining a database.

Reloading ammunition in Pennsylvania may become a thing of the past if a bill currently in state legislature is passed. According to the National Rifle Association-Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA), “in the last year, so-called “encoded” or “serialized” ammunition bills have been introduced in 13 states — Arizona, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Washington.” The bills, if passed, would require all bullets and cartridge cases to be marked with a code and registered to the owners in a computerized database, therefore, reloading would be outlawed. “It (the bill) would eliminate reloading...

Reloading ammunition in Pennsylvania may become a thing of the past if a bill currently in state legislature is passed. According to the National Rifle Association-Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA), “in the last year, so-called “encoded” or “serialized” ammunition bills have been introduced in 13 states — Arizona, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Washington.” The bills, if passed, would require all bullets and cartridge cases to be marked with a code and registered to the owners in a computerized database, therefore, reloading would be outlawed. “It (the bill) would eliminate reloading...

TOMBSTONE, Ariz (Reuters) - Gunslinger Bob Krueger blasts away at his outlaw rivals at a tourist show in this storied Old West town, although rising ammo costs may force him to choose his shots. Krueger and his gnarly band of pistoleros are among millions of shooters, hunters and even lawmen across the United States feeling the pinch as sky-high metals prices and demand from wars abroad are driving up the price of bullets. Ammo prices for many popular guns have more than tripled in the last three years, driven in large part by surging demand for metals in rapidly industrializing...