Storing smokeless power is safer than storing gasoline. Just make sure you don't put it a container (like a safe) that will confine it if it touches off.
Primers are a different story.
Generally I only keep 500 to 1000 primers on hand at any given point. I do this for a couple of reasons.
#1- I'm a sporadic loader. I can go months or in the present case, a couple of years, in between. I prefer to have "fresh" primers so I usually only buy enough for a couple of sessions.
#2- I've read that primers can be the most dangerous component to store. True or not, I'm content to err on the side of caution.
(YMMV on the primer part)
Far and away the largest benefit reloading offers me is economy. Some will counter that you don't save anything simply because you'll shoot more ammo.
That isn't true in my case, and probably quite a few other cases also. The reason is that my shooting time is very restricted. I have Lot's of "free time" to load ammo, but not a lot of time to haul everything to the range, setup, shoot then come home and clean all the guns later.
Bottom line here is if your range time limits the amount of ammo you can shoot, then you can save a considerable amount of money.
Another perspective on savings/economy would be using the more costly or exotic calibers, such as the .44 magnum, the ,454 Casuall, the .45LC, the .44WCF etc. Factory ammo for all of these calibers can be pricey. .44mag Factor ammo runs about $20/$25 a box for 50 rounds. Using bulk Hornady swaged lead bullets over a charge of ~ 17 gr of Alliant 2400, I can handload for the .44mag for roughly 1/4 the cost of factory ammo. This is a pretty stiff .44Spl +P+ or "light magnum" load, depending on how you look at it.
Again, the cost savings comes from not wanting to run through too many of them at one sitting. Even though I have a virtually unlimited amount of it, my desire to shoot more than 50 to 75 rounds of it per outing is very, very low.
I find it becomes unpleasant at that point.
Yet another cost savings perspective would be in the case of the less pedestrian calibers or more exotic (.44WCF. or .45 Auto Rim etc.). I lost count of the number of people here that voiced concern over the availability of some caliber or another in their area.
By handloading/reloading, you're always a set of dies and the purchase of brass away from just about any caliber you can imagine.
#2 benefit (IMHO) comes from the fact that you always use premium ammo when you shoot handloads. It costs the same amount to assemble a "junk range load" quality level as it does a premium self defense load (such as Hydar Shocks). By working up the exact ballisitc duplicate of .45acp Hydra Shoks, but using less costly cast lead ot FMJ bullets, you can practice with the same basic load you use for defense. No, it won't perform the same when it strikes the target, but since the target is only paper it doesn't matter.
Many will tell you this doesn't matter or it's a minor detail. IMHO, that's the wrong attitude. Overlooking minor details is generally what leads to a larger disaster. If you take care of all the details, it's amazing how well everything falls into place.
Cost of getting into it - can vary from around $20/$25 to $1000.
Figure on at least $200 to start by the time you buy a press, set of dies, powder, bullets, primers, scale, powder measure and find a source for brass.
IMHE - don't skimp on the scale and the powder measure. I tried and it doesn't work out. Get a good scale and a good powder measure.
I finally broke down and invested ~ $60 in a Hornady scale, but I'm still struggling with a $25 Lee powder measure. My ancient Lee turret press (which many consider junk - and I guess I do also since it is made of inferior materials) refuses to give up the ghost, even after close to 25 years of use.
If you want to explore the upper areas of caliber potential (ie: Load em "HOT"), you need a very accurate accounting of your powder. This isn't the place to cut corners when 1/10 of a grain can mean the difference between "safe" and "too much pressure".
If I get a chance, I'll post a picture of my planned relaoding setup also.
Sears had a miter saw stand on sale last week for $89, and I just picked up a second one. The whole thing folds down for storage. I mounted all my tools (miter saws, router bench, drill press, dremel tools) on 2'x3' pieces of plywood, plus picked up some blank 2'x3' pieces of 3/4" plywood for other assorted platforms.
One of those sheets is going to be used for mounting my reloading press and as a loading/cleaning station.
Broken down/folded up, the whole shebang will fit neatly into the corner of a closet and take up a little more space than a couple of shoeboxes and an umbrella or 3.
I figure I can roll it out and set it up in a matter of minutes.
