Periodically, the discussion of keeping records for reloading comes up. Most of us find ourselves in two camps. Either we keep detailed records of every round fired, wind direction, humidity, elevation, ambient temperature, path of flight for the bullet, etc., or we don't keep track of anything.
I propose a third camp. I keep track of every batch/lot of ammunition I reload, noting basic info. If I want more details for a particular load, I have separate pages just for notes. In my system, I can at least know what this box of ammo contains. I sometimes get excited to load ammo for that new .441 Thumblicker I just found at the gun show and load up mountains of ammo with different bullet weights, powders, etc. Then I set it aside for a few years. The time comes when I pull out the old gun. I want to at least know what these rounds contain and when I loaded them. By having a scrap of paper in the ammo box with the lot number, I can at least find out the basics.
I'm attaching a blank page that I developed a number of years ago. I three-hole punch the paper and keep the records in a three-ring binder with sections for cartridges. I've used this system for over 30 years and I find it very beneficial. In the "notes" section goes whatever I think I want to remember, like the velocity or "light plinking load for my nephew" or "heavy load to see what a bruised shoulder feels like".
For many of my loads, this batch/lot of 100 is exactly like the batch/lot before that (and the one before that), so they just get ditto marks (") in each column. If I'm working up a load, it's possible that only the powder charge changes, so I often have a bunch of lots of 10 rounds where everything except the charge weight gets a ditto mark, then there is a velocity reading and maybe group size in the "notes" section. I also sometimes save important targets, which get three-hole punched and added to the notebook with the lot number noted on the target for reference.
I keep the records for everything I ever load, even if it's only a box of target ammo for a friend. Having these records has really paid off a number of times, like when that friend comes back asking for another box "just like the one you loaded for me 10 years ago". Sometimes I stop loading for a particular caliber, then come back to it years later. It's nice to not have to reinvent the wheel every time.
This is how I do it and it works for me. Of course this can be modified (or ignored) as you see fit. To me it's a compromise between spending hours recording every detail or not keeping any records. It only takes a minute or so to make the notes and it's well worth the effort.
CC Griff