Factory or Handload recipes for older guns, sxs’s and such?

leveractionjunkie

leveractionjunkie

CGN frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
13   0   0
Location
Kamloops, BC
Factory or Handload recipes for older guns, sxs’s and such?

I know this isn’t the handloading or ammo sub forums, but it is the shotgun forum. Also I know there’s a lot of knowledgeable shotgunners on here in to more than Turkish delights and what’s my “xyz” worth.

So basically what my brains bin mulling over for the last few days is. What are some good sources for loads for vintage doubles, Damascus barreled shotguns, maybe even just some nice low pressure loads for soft shooting to avoid needless recoil? You guys using factory? RST’s? Polywads? Handloads? If so, which components?

I enjoy tinkering with loads and patterning them. Maybe we could accumulate a few for people who wind up inheriting an old shotgun. Maybe people want to take an old SxS for a round of sporting clays but don’t want to feed it full house loads. Maybe some have modern guns but really don’t like much recoil etc.
 
I've started reloading 12 gauge over the past year or so and have made many low recoil loads for buckshot and slugs, haven't done much if anything with target shot loads. I've been using the Lyman 5th edition Shotshell Reloading Handbook, it's pretty good and has some specific low recoil shot loads, other loads I've just used the same basic data with less powder.
Best wads for me have been Federal 12s3, 12s4 and Winchester WAA12, but that's because they are better for slugs, Claybuster wads are fine fir regular shot. Hulls I stay with are Federal Gold Medal, Remington STS, and Winchester AA. I just use an inexpensive Load-All loader, works fine.
 
CatntheHat is the guy to talk to if you ask me.
He likes sxs and black powder ones too.
Those pretty ones that us Damascus steel to make those barrels of yore.
I am sure he would offer some direction of where to look for reloading and ammo tips via the internet.
Rob
 
Well I don’t know how I’ve missed 16ga.com all these years. Pretty interesting place, thanks saskbooknut

I’ve also begun poking around the doublegunshop forums for info too. I thought at one time someone was publishing a manual for loading for old double guns.

Rob I’ll bet you’re right CatntheHat has probably got a wealth of info.
 
leveractionjunkie said:
Anyone experiment with modifying wads or using felt wads to open patterns up while using tighter fixed chokes?
Click to expand...
I use felt wads and also plastic wads ( only with smokeless powder!) with the petals cut off at times ,I have used commercial spreader components as well as home made ones out of cardboard .
i hunt with my guns as well as shooting clays with them .
it all depends on individual gun for me, condition and age have a lot to do with how I load for a particular shotgun
Cat
 
leveractionjunkie said:
Anyone experiment with modifying wads or using felt wads to open patterns up while using tighter fixed chokes?
Click to expand...

You can often get some pretty good results with spreaders in your shot charge, and using softer shoot as well, but the results vary.
What a load looks like on the pattern board does not always translate onto the range or into the field either, because the gun is being shot different on a moving target!
I prefer to shoot a bunch clay birds off station 7 after I use a pattern board to test my loads, it gives me a better idea of what is happening.
Then II try station 1, then 4, then I decide if I will keep using the load.
Cat
 
Good tip about shooting the loads on clays after patterning them. Always good to see the difference between a static test and real world shoot.

In my mind I was hoping something like spreaders would give fixed choke guns a bit of versatility we now turn to choke tubes for. Hate the idea of reaming out choke on some of the old guns
 
I find my roll crimped 2.5" shells with cardboard over shot card turns my fixed full chokes to in between ic and mod whereas reloaded 6 star crimp loads give very tight patterns
I shoot approx 15 grs of 700x in a claybuster wad 2.5" rst hull cheddite primer. I havent chronoed it but id guess based on leads in skeet its just below 1200fps. Very mild recoil
 
brybenn said:
I find my roll crimped 2.5" shells with cardboard over shot card turns my fixed full chokes to in between ic and mod whereas reloaded 6 star crimp loads give very tight patterns
I shoot approx 15 grs of 700x in a claybuster wad 2.5" rst hull cheddite primer. I havent chronoed it but id guess based on leads in skeet its just below 1200fps. Very mild recoil
Click to expand...

I have found the same thing to a certain extent as far as overshot wads go. I think that 15 grain load is about 5,600 PSI IIRC and about 1,200 FPS but in reality it likely is more like 1,150 FPS.
In my experience even 1,100FPS will kill pheasants cleanly over a pointer or a close flusher however.:)
One of my old 16 gauge guns only shoots 65 grains of FFG and 7/8 oz of shot and kills birds with no issues:p
Cat
 
Quite interesting to hear your results regarding rollcrimps and overhot cards brybenn and Cat. I’ve often wondered if the older guns were choked so tightly because the ammo quality was nothing like the modern stuff. I’m gonna have to order up some goodies to have a go with it and see.

What pressure range are you guys trying to stick to? Sub 8000psi +/-?
 
I load for 2 different sxs 2.5" hammer guns
First is husqvarna 20b. Which my 1oz reloads of copper plated #6 shot took a coyote at about 40 yards. He took both barrels and made it across the field but he went down
The other is a linder proofed 1892 charles daly sidelock hammer gun. I shoot factory rst lite #6 from it. Ill eventually try black powder in brass hulls


I think the short forcing cones effect the patterns when using oversho cards. That or the card disrupts the pattern as it leaves the muzzle. Im no expert i just shoot alot. It doesnt seem to be as noticable in more modern guns though
 
catnthehatt said:
I have found the same thing to a certain extent as far as overshot wads go. I think that 15 grain load is about 5,600 PSI IIRC and about 1,200 FPS but in reality it likely is more like 1,150 FPS.
In my experience even 1,100FPS will kill pheasants cleanly over a pointer or a close flusher however.:)
One of my old 16 gauge guns only shoots 65 grains of FFG and 7/8 oz of shot and kills birds with no issues:p
Cat
Click to expand...

They do seem slow as i generally need an extra 6" lead in skeet for clean breaks. I planned on killing a turkey with it but so far this season ive only managed to kill 3 coyotes
Ill likely kick it down the 7/8oz and load them in my charles daly. My husqvarna shoots great with 1oz.
 
Most of the shotgun reloading anuals such as Lyman, etc have a few loads for 2 1/2" 12 gauge smokeless ammo, use the latest editions if you can. Many such loads use high grade Federal, Remington and Winchester target hulls cut to 2 1/2" with one ounce of shot and WAA12R wads with various powders and primers and pressures are listed. I have loaded and shot hundreds if not thousands of these in varying combinations and they work great for hunting and target. They usually suggest adjusting or modifying your reloader to fold crimp these shorter shells but roll crimping can work well with some combinations too. Pre HE marked AA , Federal Gold Medal and Remington STS, Nitro 27 stand up to repeated reloading or roll crimping best and I have also had good success with Kent and Federal Top Gun using Federal data. Most inexpensive hunting and target ammo hulls don't work well and aren't worth bothering with.
Published pressure tested data using fibre, cork and felt wads in smokeless loads is harder to find and frequently very old and uses obsolete components. Black powder loading with built up wads is much easier, really not much required except a suitable payload (say 1 oz), suitable charge ( say 2 3/4 drams of FFG), over powder card wad, suitable filler wads to get a correct crimp, shot, over shot card and then crimp. These are preferred for black powder as it tends to mangle and melt plastic so modern plastic wads are dubious and plastic hulls usually are not reloadable after the first firing. Try to find some old sound Canuck, Maxum or Imperial paper ammo, shoot 'em in a modern gun and use these cases or brass cases ( require 11 ga wads) for your black powder loads or modern Federal Paper Champion target if you can find them. Will Bilozir ( bilozir.net) has a good selection of these specialized components in Canada.
This is a huge subject and nobody has yet put together a comprehensive reloading booklet for low pressure 2 1/2" loads in smokeless and black powder, the available information is scattered all over and most of us loading this stuff settle on a few favourite loads and stock up on the components we need,
 
Thanks for the info Ashcroft. Might be fun to mess around with some black powder loads one day. Certainly get some looks from people I’m sure.

It’s too bad nobody’s compiled a database of low pressure 2 1/2” smokeless or black powder etc. aside from the sprinklings in manuals as you say.
 
leveractionjunkie said:
Thanks for the info Ashcroft. Might be fun to mess around with some black powder loads one day. Certainly get some looks from people I’m sure.

It’s too bad nobody’s compiled a database of low pressure 2 1/2” smokeless or black powder etc. aside from the sprinklings in manuals as you say.
Click to expand...

Ballistic Products has 2 1/2" loads inn their latest Advantages book.:cool:
Cat
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom