My first loads ever

McCarthy, EXCELLENT JOB!
A little OCD, but we all start out that way!
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True story. You wouldn't believe some of the OCD stuff I did my first year or two, notebooks of handwritten information that I now look at and just laugh. But much better to start out that way IMO and figure out what's important to record and not than to start out all cavalier and half-cocked. :D
 
True story. You wouldn't believe some of the OCD stuff I did my first year or two, notebooks of handwritten information that I now look at and just laugh. But much better to start out that way IMO and figure out what's important to record and not than to start out all cavalier and half-cocked.
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I have the same notes. I felt the same way after reloading for awhile... that it was silly to document every tiny detail. And then I thought... these notes are actually pretty good if a new re-loader found them and didn't have immediate access to a manual, or at the very least they are a great personal account of a new loader's first few thousand rounds with a single stage and then progressive. Don't discount those notes... how many times have we enjoyed reading hand written accounts of our favorite personalities? Who's to say your recorded material won't be someone's cherished memoir... maybe your grand kids as you pass down your loading knowledge.
 
Thanks guys.

Difference is, I'll stay OCD. I actually missed a hobby where in depth consistency is more than just an option. Reloading, measuring, testing, analyzing, documentation.. all calms me down. It forces me to sit down and do something with my hands and be patient.

In this day and age everything is so hectic and superficial. When I'm done with my chores for the day I love being in my new reloading room. It's the only room in the house where I actually close the door. If the phone rings I won't answer it. I turn on my 80s SONY world receiver, listen to some small prepper station out west and always find something to do or load up.

Heck, the other day I brought a bag of rang brass home, deprimed, cleaned and sorted it. If a friends runs out of cases at some point I'll have some.
 
McCarthy, you're OCD. And that's okay. You're loading excellent ammo right out of the gate.

Other's have mentioned how they were OCD when they first started; then learned to relax a little. Me, I was the cocky cavalier one. The first couple years I loaded, I didn't even catalog anything. I relied off memory. Fortunately, I did have a good memory and forgot pretty much nothing.

Granted, I still have a (not quite as) good memory. But I've gained a lot of common sense. I've learned over the years - though seemingly countless life's humbling experiences - that I am human and am quite capable of making mistakes. Therefore, I'm more meticulous now than ever.
 
'Notes' are one thing,
Some guys write a novel, a really LONG one...

I note down if it was new or fired brass,
What my case and COAL length was,
What powder/how much, what primer,
Then record how the first test batch does at the range.
Once it gets recorded, I RARELY add anything else to it.

My brass history was something else entirely...
Every batch of brass got a case,
The case got a sticker to write on,
The neck thickness, trim to length, volume, primer pocket specifications, ect.

Bench shooters gets REALLY picky about brass...

Now, with the general varmint and occasional range shooting, I don't even bother to keep track of the brass past the first loading.

I'm even buying used brass, that is something a bench shooter would never do!

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I shut the phone and everything else off when I'm loading.
It's my 'Disconnect' time.

Same with meals. I simply REFUSE to answer the phone or text while I'm sitting down eating...

The best time I've had in YEARS was floating around on a lake,
Drowning bait, Telling lies, Drinking too much 'Cool-Aid'...
Well out of cell phone range!

That must be why I like Varmint hunting so much,
Just a chance to disconnect, turn everything off, just sit and listen to the world on it's own terms...
Don't really care if I bag anything or not, just sit there until I get tired of sitting there,
Then I get a drink and sit some more someplace else...
 
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