The book The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Handloading, by Dean A. Grennell, was originally published by Follett Press in 1974. Since then eight other editions by several authors / editors have been published. The most recent (9th ed.), The ABCs of Reloading: The Definitive Guide for Novice to Expert by C. Rodney James was published by Krause Publications on 12 Jan 2011.
I recommend that all reloaders read The ABC’s of Reloading.
The ABC’s of Reloading has been touted by many as one of the best books on reloading ever written. That said, as with all things, your mileage may vary (both by reader and edition). While this book does not include any reloading data, it covers the theory, philosophy, history and technique of reloading. The book covers a broad range of topics of which some might not be of interest to you. It does not cover every topic relevant to reloading so it may not have everything you are looking for; but, it contains enough information that it may take more than more reading to absorb it all.
I have not read the ninth edition; however, I have read many reviews that do not consider it to be up to the same quality as the previous editions. Of the editions that I have read, I prefer those by Dean Grennell. I find his presentation informative, entertaining and amusing.
As I said above, I highly recommend this book to reloaders. It is also a great addition to any gun enthusiast’s library.
Note: As of 4 Jun 2014 (when I saw it), Amazon.com has a page (link below) for a 10th edition of ABC’s of Reloading, edited by Jorge Amselle. It is listed as currently unavailable and no date is provided. The cover picture on the Amazon site has the same picture and cover layout as the Handbook of Reloading Basics. Both are published, or are to be published, by Gun Digest Books.
editions I know of (title, contributor(s), publisher, year):
- The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Handloading ⇒, Dean A. Grennell (author) Bob Springer (editor), Digest Books, 1974
- The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Reloading ⇒, Dean A. Grennell (author), DBI Books, unknown date
- The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Reloading, Dean A. Grennell (author), DBI Books, 1985
- The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Reloading ⇒, Dean A. Grennell (author), DBI Books, 1988
- The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Reloading, Dean A. Grennell (author), DBI Books, 1993
- The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Reloading ⇒, C. Rodney James (listed as author) Editors of Handloader Magazine (listed as author), Krause Publications, Mar 1997
- The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Reloading ⇒, Bill Chevalier (editor), Krause Publications, 2004
- The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide For Novice To Expert ⇒, Bill Chevalier (editor), Gun Digest Books, 2008
- The ABCs of Reloading: The Definitive Guide for Novice to Expert ⇒, C. Rodney James (editor), Krause Publications, 12 Jan 2011
- ABCs of Reloading: The Definitive Guide for Novice to Expert ⇒, Jorge Amselle (editor), Gun Digest Books, unknown date
Footnotes / Sources:
Grennell, Dean A. The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Handloading. Ed. Bob Springer. Northfield, IL.: Digest, 1974. Print.
“The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Reloading, 2nd ed. ⇒” Amazon.com. Web. 04 June 2014.
Grennell, Dean A. The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Reloading. 3rd ed. Northfield, IL.: DBI, 1985. Print.
Grennell, Dean A. The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Reloading. 4th ed. Northfield, IL.: DBI, 1988. Print.
Grennell, Dean A. The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Reloading. 5th ed. Northfield, IL.: DBI, 1993. Print.
James, C. Rodney, and Editors of Handloader’s Digest, eds. The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Reloading. 6th ed. Iona, WI: Krause Publications, 1997. Print.
“The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide to Every Facet of Cartridge and Shotshell Reloading, 7th ed. ⇒” Amazon.com. Web. 04 June 2014.
Chevalier, Bill, ed. The ABC’s of Reloading: The Definitive Guide for Novice to Expert. 8th ed. Iola, WI: Gun Digest, 2008. Print.
“The ABCs of Reloading: The Definitive Guide for Novice to Expert, 9th ed. ⇒” Amazon.com. Web. 04 June 2014.
“ABCs of Reloading: The Definitive Guide for Novice to Expert, 10th ed. ⇒” Amazon.com. Web. 04 June 2014.
“Handbook of Reloading Basics. ⇒” GunDigestStore.com. Web. 04 June 2014.