This was my first SHOT Show. I have to tell you this was an unbelievable experience. I have been to a number of different trade shows in Las Vegas, but this one beat them all.
One of the first things I noticed is that even with the HUGE crowds for the most part people were very polite to each other. One could sit down at lunch and strike up a conversation with total strangers and everyone expressed a genuine interested in what everyone did, from exhibitors to gun store owners to editors of major publications.
I decided at this show that I wanted to get into reloading even though I hadn’t ever done it before. I struck up a conversation with the editor of major hunting and fishing publication and I asked him about reloaders at the show. I asked him if becoming a reloader would really save me money and his comment was yes and no. He said yes because my per round cost would go down, but I would end up shooting a lot more (which by the way would not be a bad thing). He steered me toward a couple of different brands because of his personal experience with each of them. The first he recommended was RCBS because he said this was what he used when he started reloading; it is a good quality,durable and relatively user friendly. I went over and talked to Bill, one of their warranty technicians and was very pleasantly surprised to find a company at this type of show to spend the time to talk and explain the appropriate kit to get for a beginner. He didn’t try to talk me into a multi stage press or any accessories that I didn’t need to start out.
I plan on getting and trying out a couple of different brands of reloaders and will be posting reviews to let you know my beginner impressions.