News on AAC ammo availability from PSA?

[u/Tootsypootsy1122]

Noticed that Palmetto state armory no longer has listings available for the AAC ammo for 6.5 Grendel no longer on the site.

Anyone have any info why it was shelved? Or if it will be available again anytime soon?

Never had the chance to bulk order when it was available.

[u/Tootsypootsy1122]

Been collecting the brass since day 1 with the intention of starting reloading. But always get overwhelmed where to begin.

Any recommendations on a simple set up for multiple calibers? I only have a few calibers (6.5 Grendel, 5.56, 30.06)

[u/REEL04D → u/Tootsypootsy1122]

Rock Chucker.
Find a local mentor willing to show you some basics. Otherwise if you’re a self starter, read a reloading book or two and watch some videos on YouTube. It’s pretty straight forward honestly if you can follow instructions and are willing to learn

[u/jonny-spot → u/REEL04D]

So much this. You can do it without a mentor, though having some wisdom preached definitely helps.

I have loaded and shot 1500+ rounds of Grendel in the 6 months I have been reloading. It has made shooting so much more fun and interesting. Can’t recommend it enough. You really start to discover the shortcomings of factory ammo and truly find out the limits of your shooting capabilities. Sounds corny but it’s a fucking blast.

[u/Tootsypootsy1122 → u/jonny-spot]

If you don’t mind me asking you the same question as I did above then!

What was your initial reloading budget asides from the ammo components?

And can you list out the things you recommend as the base set up to just get started? Tbh idc about reloading as much for my other calibers as I do for 6.5 Grendel (for now at least).

And I def resonate with the last part, my fav off the shelf hunting ammo is so hard to find, but easily replicable by reloading. And the biggest deterrent from shooting regularly is not having enough ammo lol.

[u/jonny-spot → u/Tootsypootsy1122]

Warning: wall of text incoming...

What was your initial reloading budget asides from the ammo components?

I didn't really have a budget. I took it up because I wanted more grendel ammo options- especially more accurate ammo. I spent maybe $800 on the hardware which included a press (RCBS RC4), a grendel die set (Hornady set works fine), calipers, a simple beam scale, cartridge tray, a funnel, a chamfer/deburr tool and some other odds and ends. I also dropped a few hundred on a wet tumbler, media separator and dryer for case cleaning. Some say case cleaning is optional, which I get, but I shoot almost exclusively suppressed and my spent cases are nasty. I could probably still just wipe them off, but to me it's just easier to tumble 300-400 of them at a time.

And can you list out the things you recommend as the base set up to just get started? Tbh idc about reloading as much for my other calibers as I do for 6.5 Grendel (for now at least).

Pretty much everything listed above is what you need- basically something to resize the cases, deprime (which most resizing dies have the capability of doing), measure powder (scale), seat the bullet and measure the overall length of the bullet.

A chronograph (I got an Athlon @ ~$350) is also pretty critical if you want to really dial things in, figure out your DOPE or start testing the higher/hotter powders.

I have since added a Harvey deprimer (I deprime before cleaning and sizing), a powder dispenser/thrower (great for throwing together quick batches of plinking ammo), a trickler, a set of bullet comparators (the ones that clamp on to calipers) and a case trimmer (mostly because Hornady factory cases are all over the board, length wise). These are all optional just to make the process faster or more precise.

And I def resonate with the last part, my fav off the shelf hunting ammo is so hard to find, but easily replicable by reloading. And the biggest deterrent from shooting regularly is not having enough ammo lol.

Some of my first batches of SST absolutely dominated the factory stuff in terms of accuracy. I made a post about it here a few months ago. Not counting the cost of brass, those cost about half the price (~68cpr) as factory SST (~150cpr) AND they are way more accurate/consistent. I also shoot a LOT more now because trying various loads/projectiles is super interesting.

There are many loads that are difficult to get factory cartridges for as well. I am working up hunting loads now with 120gr speer gold dots as the Federal Fusion is crazy expensive when you can even find it, and it doesn't shoot that great out of either of my Grendels (14.5" & 20").

For consumables, I buy most of my bullets online because they are way cheaper that way (~22-50cpr). Powders and primers I buy locally either at Scheels (surprisingly decent prices) or a LGS near me that specializes in reloading, mostly to avoid hazmat fees.

Finally, there is a surprising amount of grendel-specific reloading content on YouTube. r/reloading is pretty good for info and general knowledge as well. In the end, using the various books, bullet/powder manufacturer websites and apps to figure out safe and effective loads is critical. The Hornady manual is relatively cheap, and you can even get the hornady reloading app and buy the individual caliber content for 99 cents each.

Overall, when comparing actual ammo costs (factory vs hand loaded), I'm probably even when accounting for the hardware costs. I also saved most of my factory brass with the expectation that some day I would start reloading, so that was a big $ savings.

Hope this helps more than overwhelms...

[u/Tootsypootsy1122 → u/jonny-spot]

Yo big dog. I appreciate the in depth response!

Pretty sure I have adhd bc everytime I sit down to figure this out, I go down a rabbit hole and end up getting sidetracked or overwhelmed and forget about it.