For revolvers my minimum comfort zone for on hand brass is 500, 1000 is even better if I have two launching platforms and for automatics 2-3x that many. I avoid buying into calibers which do not have a parent cartridge just in case a caliber turns up out of style and brass becomes scarce. The few exceptions are the ubiquitous .357, .45ACP, and .38 super.
That said, last year I lucked into a short barreled Ruger SBH in .480 and immediately got to casting bullets but the seller only had a couple of boxes of brass and early last year was not a good time to be looking for 480 brass, Grrr... So I bought a couple of hundred Starline .475's and cut them down, and a purist on another site sold me a handful of Hornady brass which got me going to the range shooting instead of talking about it.
Recently Starline came through with a back order and between them and Midway I finally reached my comfort zone. So, what's your comfort zone in on hand brass stock?
That said, last year I lucked into a short barreled Ruger SBH in .480 and immediately got to casting bullets but the seller only had a couple of boxes of brass and early last year was not a good time to be looking for 480 brass, Grrr... So I bought a couple of hundred Starline .475's and cut them down, and a purist on another site sold me a handful of Hornady brass which got me going to the range shooting instead of talking about it.
Recently Starline came through with a back order and between them and Midway I finally reached my comfort zone. So, what's your comfort zone in on hand brass stock?