Leavenworth
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Lowermainland B.C.
You put a lot of thought into that setup !
Leavenworth
Leavenworth
44 Magnum 44 Special
- Thread starter Leavenworth
- Start date
Not so much thought, more just prior experience with my past loading benches. I knew when I came back to Canada in 2016 that we wouldn't be staying any longer than necessary, and that my goal was to earn money here to build back there. So whatever I did buy here, I wanted it to be cheap and except for any actual guns, all stuff we could move back with. Our little apartment is not very large but it's inexpensive, safe and probably not something we'll be forced out of because the owners are like family. So that's good.
The earliest photo I have of one of my loading benches is from around 2005, back in my Square Deal days. I had the press, lubri-sizer and single-stage press mounted on a solid oak table we had used in my Ice Cream Store as our "coffee center" before we seriously upgraded the store. I used some shoe-shelving for storage. I tried to give myself good lighting. I loved that set-up, it was near the end of my 50-year-long, many, many, many girlfriends, no longterm live-ins - loaded guns hidden in every room - bachelor period.
Around 2007, my best friend and I both "moved up" to the Dillon 650, sold off our Square Deals, and rented a "shared" loading room in a very secure area just outside of San Miguel. It was a nice "ranch type" area, limited access for anyone not wanted there, and nicely off the beaten path. We each brought our 650s and set up one in .38 and the other in .380 Cal. Many items from my own loading room as well as Michael's room made up this new loading room. Michael still loads there today, and when I visit San Miguel, I use it still myself. Although I won't move back to San Miguel but rather to a small hill overlooking a little town outside of Guanajuato City, I'll still plan weekends to go visit San Miguel and just stay in the loading room. There is a shower and bathroom there, and we have a sofa-bed already there. A home away from home, as it were.
My old coffee-bench sits in the corner with my shoe-shelving and bench light in the rural loading room.
Our .38 Special/.38 Heavy Duty 650 sits to the left of my old coffee bench. The loading room is usually pretty well stocked. There were some tight times during the primer shortage, but we have a good supply system coming from South Texas and New Mexico, so we never ran out.
And our .380 ACP/.380 Cal and Super Cal loading is on this 650 against the other wall. It was from experiences in Mexico that I knew I wanted a Progressive Press when I came back to Canada, and I wanted at least a 5-station press. Those Dillon Powder-Check dies sure spoiled me. As well as the powder compression dies when loading Black Powder or the .380 Super Cal case which has such a charge of Bullseye that you can't seat the 140 grain SWC without a powder compression die. That cartridge/gun combo gives you that authentic "Miami Vice" BOOM!
In my current apartment, I have not a lot of room. I saw the idea for a workmate loading bench on one of the U.S. forums I participate in and copied the idea. It's compact enough, and can "go away" to a closet all folded up if it has to. I actually searched out the same type of bench lighting that I used in Mexico, with the built in magnifier and swivel movement. I am sometimes a creature of habit. Yes, it's a mess. A squeaky clean loading bench is a clear sign of an obsessive-compulsive disorder. In Mexico, when Michael and I first rented our nice loading room, Michael payed the maid to clean it. She cleaned it alright, and everytime I went up to load I had to spend 30 minutes looking for my allen wrenches and small screwdrivers and top punches for the lubri-sizer -- because she had thoroughly cleaned the table top -- which pretty much sent me into a total shyte hemorrage at the time. I went and found the maid, and told how her how delighted I was with the super clean loading room, but if she would just leave the desk top "as is" after I left, I'd bring a liter of the Ice Cream of her choice every week when I came up for her to share with her family.
Obviously I need to find some of that cheap shoe-shelving for my Workmate benchtop.
The LNL AP and the Lubri-sizer are mounted to Inline Fabrication bench plates that can be removed from the table in a minute and stored in my safe when we are away. Or if company comes and I have to fold the thing up. I only use the lubri-sizer these days for loading Black Powder ammo for the Peacemakers. Everything else is powder coated now and sized on the cheap Lee Reloader Press, which is just installed with 3 bolts using wing-nuts for equally quick removal should the need arise.
I just added last week an RCBS Powder Check die to my press. I found I really missed having some sort of Powder Check system after so many years of having it on the Dillon 650's. The Dillon system gives you an audible "BEEEEP" if your powder isn't correct, and the RCBS system is only visual. But it's less than half the price of the Dillon, and it works just fine as long as you train yourself to give it a quick looksee with every downstroke of the press handle.
I like the Hornady LNL AP, although the Dillon 650 is a lot faster (by almost double) when the casefeeder is perfectly humming along. If I were starting out again, or when I move back to Guanajuato, I think I'll go with the new Lee 6-Pack Pro. It looks like a good press, and since everything has to be smuggled into Mexico, it's not a huge investment. Or, more likely, I'll just end up moving this whole loading bench -- presses and all -- down to Mexico. Wally style.
What this man said . if you fire a boat load of special loads in the revolver it can leave a ring in the cylinder . you might as well use 44 mag cases downloaded . get a reloading book on different loads . when you buy powder ask for the book that comes with that powder and you can go on the website of the powder company which brand you bought and look up loads on there . have fun but remember follow book loads . we had a guy at our range who wanted to try to use the least amount of powder to push a bullet out . he blew the top strap off a smith 629. I can't go into details but when he told me he had jammed a bullet in the barrel the previous time I walked away .
Leavenworth
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Lowermainland B.C.
Cal ex you have it down to a T !
Leavenworth
Leavenworth
Leavenworth
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Lowermainland B.C.
Cementhead ! I’m not one that would go off script ( well that’s not totally true ) but will do it right when I start . Thanks
Leavenworth
Leavenworth
I have yet to try .44 Special in any of my .44's, as I haven't found .44 Special brass when I look for it. I wouldn't mind trying it out just to feel the difference and compare it to the difference between .357 Mag and .38 Special. I developed a .44 Mag load with H110 that works in my revolver and lever action rifle that's not too much for the revolver.
No longer a fan of heavy recoil in magnum handguns.
I generally load my .44's down to ~ 850 fps using a 240 gr LSWC & .44 Mag brass.
A 'light special' as Dirty Harry would say...lol...
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NAA.
I generally load my .44's down to ~ 850 fps using a 240 gr LSWC & .44 Mag brass.
A 'light special' as Dirty Harry would say...lol...
---------
NAA.
luckythirteen
CGN Regular
- Location
- Yukon Territory
I use 44 special brass with heavy boolits to make a sub sonic load just for playing around.
The load is quiet enough in a rifle that hearing protection is not needed (at least for me lol)
But for plinking in the rifle, I prefer 44 magnum full house loads
In the SBH, I typically use 44 mag loaded a little softer. No burn rings in the chamber
The load is quiet enough in a rifle that hearing protection is not needed (at least for me lol)
But for plinking in the rifle, I prefer 44 magnum full house loads
In the SBH, I typically use 44 mag loaded a little softer. No burn rings in the chamber
