When I first "retired" from law enforcement I wanted to get into some reloading. I began to buy some equipment but life interrupted all of those plans. No I have this nice 30 caliber carbine and I can't locate anyone to reload so my interest is perked.
I want to reload with some .308 bullets to get more than one can expect from fmj ammo.
I'd like to get into this with the bare necessities. Any helpful suggestions? Thanks

Give up on the minimalist mindset. You gotta have it ALL to be a proper reloader.

Get on eBay and score a nice old Rock Chucker.

Chief: Absolute "Bare Bones" way to get ready for reloading is to buy a Lee hand reloading kit (About $50) A set of dies and a pound of powder (Another $50) and you are good to go. You will obviously need brass (your fired brass ??) and a box of primers.
Definitely slow, but all the fundamental equipment is there.

The only bare bones kit that I can think of is the Lee Challenger kit. The scale is very tedious though, so you might want to get a digital version.

^^^^^^^^^^

This

I'd prowl some pawnshops, looking for an old Rockchucker, Lyman, or something also quality. RCBS 505 scale will do, and a powder trickler. A Lyman 55 powder thrower. Dies from any of the major makers. That stuff will last forever.

+1

The scale is crap, the rest is better than some reloader snobs will admit. I sold the scale out of the auto-index kit (not the challenger but the same scale) I bought for retail and made up the difference. I have since bought two more Lee presses (single stage). All my dies are Lee. Sure I have some RCBS parts and pieces but the point is Lee stuff is cheap and fine for most, if you enjoy doing it you'll buy more stuff.

Scales...Get a cheap digital then a nicer beam later if you're still interested. None of these things that are later replaced are wasted expenses as there are always new uses for the stuff.

It's addictive.

It's the most expensive hobby you'll learn with the intent to save money.

I thought knife making was!? Thanks for the good info all!

Keep eye out for deals on Craigslist or on here. I've found a few deals here that's saved me a few hundred bucks on what I've bought.

Gotta agree about the knives. I'm a sucker for exotic woods and finishes.

+1 Watch Craig's list and also the classified ads for estate sales.

Once a man passes, often no one else in the family wants the reloading equipment and you might be able to pick up a fairly complete set-up for a good deal as a package price. And fwiw - the old Redding and Ohaus scales, if in good condition, are better than most of what is sold today as powder scales.

Lee equipment. That's where I started and I've never felt the need to buy anything else. Good equipment for a good price.

Flea bay has a few presses pop up now and again at decent prices. I found an old Lyman lubrisizer on ther for under a c-note. ;-)

Never used Lee except for some of their dies but I can say that I started with a Lyman kit and most of my additions have been RCBS. If your going to reload alot of rounds (which I imagine you might since you have a carbine) I'd definitely spend a little extra for an electric scale (My Lyman wouldn't stay calibrated so I switched to an RCBS scale) and the RCBS hand priming tool.

Also, use the Hornady spray lube for lubing cases. Saves a ton of time and not as greasy as the oil.

Bare bones will get the job done if you don't mind taking your time but some tools are relatively inexpensive and make the process more enjoyable.

I started on a serious budget; little money and plenty of time. I bought a Lee hand-press (*breechlock), and set of lee dies for one caliber, inexpensive lee balance scale (powder), and lee hand-primer .
With powder, primers, case lube, bullets (total spent around $200) it was enough to start re-loading my own once-fired rifle brass into my own custom round configurations, and accuracy was immediately better than store-bought rounds.
Of course I bought most every item on sale.
I don't reload a huge-quantity of rounds, and later tried some nice bench presses, but always seem to come back to using the hand press; It's just what works for me. Have eventually bought dies for pistol caliber and other rifle calibers.

* nice thing about the breechlock sleeves is that you can set your die depths once, and then easily change out dies or even calibers without having to mess with resetting depths every time. HIGHLY recommended no matter what kind of press you get.

Best part is that I can take my stuff with me everywhere - to the ranch or range, and 'tweak' loads on the spot, as necessary.