please help a newb, reloading shotshells.

periculumnexnecis

periculumnexnecis

CGN Regular
Rating - 100%
17   0   0
Location
Kébecistan
I bought a semi auto shotgun for hunting goose, i would like to load some practice load for it, my only experience with shotshell reloading is full power slugs and buckshot.

I have a ton of winchester aa hulls, orange and white winchester wad, winchester primers.

I was planning to use a 1 1/8 load at around 1200 fps.

What powder should i use, something clean.Since i already use titegroup for reloading pistol cartridges, how good would it be with shotshells.

What is the difference between the winchester orange and white wad ( wt12 and waa12 ) are they interchangeable.

Is there a difference when loading target loads in a semi versus o/u or pump.

Please share your thoughts, your experiences.

Regards.
 
It is not the best powder out there for reloading 12ga but there is guys that use it ( pistol dudes normally that have lots) and I am sure if you check with Hodgdon they will have a recipe for your combo. The guys I have seen use it normally use a Remington TGT12 wad but I am sure there is something written for winchester wads also.
Orange WT wad is just a low cost wad with a slightly different shot cup height which is not enough to make a difference but they don't seal well in cold weather since they say the plastic is a poor grade
No difference in reloading for semi us pump. Just make sure you resize the brass.
wt12_zpseb5e81f1.jpg
 
get some red dot or green dot.

I load 18 grains of red dot, waa12 wad, 1-1/8oz lead, W209 primer and bango! you have a really nice load. If you need more mph then go with green dot. Not sure of the charge for green dot off hand though.

***Always double check a load you get from some guy on the internet with a manual before loading!!!****
 
Last edited:
Red Dot?? Man that is still one of the dirtiest powders out there even with their new so called 50% cleaner stuff. I was going to say 700X what I use but even that is dirty compared to what guys use today. It will work but if starting fresh there is much cleaner options.
 
The cleanest burning powder I ever used was Clays, but in 1-1/8 loads that fast the pressures are high. Green Dot was always a dirty, but good performer in that kind of load. I've been told International Clays was very close in burning rate to Green Dot, so possibly International Clays would give you a nice clean burn. What ever you use, pick a recipe that above 9000 PSI or it doesn't matter what powder, it will be dirty!
 
Ya for powders ive had a friend use 700x and works nice, ive used all the red,green and blue dot, its all pretty dirty and harder to burn complete without pressure, its fairly cheap, picked up 8 lbs red dot for $105-120. I have also had others use wst or the other winchester powders but of course they are more expensive. 17.5 grn red dot in those hulls would get you about 1200-1250 depending on barrel length, Also universal is really dirty, almost like red dot, i heard its just an older formula.
 
3macs1 said:
Red Dot?? Man that is still one of the dirtiest powders out there even with their new so called 50% cleaner stuff. I was going to say 700X what I use but even that is dirty compared to what guys use today. It will work but if starting fresh there is much cleaner options.
Click to expand...

Red Dot burns clean as a whistle when you load it close to max or at max.....Especially when using compression hulls like AA and Remington. I find most stuff burns dirty out of Federal hulls. Pretty sure that Red Dot is still a great powder.
 
Last edited:
Since you're using a semi you should be cleaning it regularly anyway for reliable function. I've used Red Dot in my Rem 1100 skeet gun for years and never had any real fouling problems. If cost is a concern to you try Alliant Promo. Weight for weight it is interchangeable with Red Dot, can be used in most pistol cartridges (9mm, 38, 40 S&W, 45) and is very reasonably priced. My local supplier sells it for $90/8 pounds or just over $11/pound which is near impossible to beat for economy.

From the Alliant website:
America's number one economy-priced 12 gauge target powder. Promo has the same burn speed as Red Dot, but is more dense, thus requiring a smaller bushing to obtain the same charge weight.
•Budget priced
•Economical trap, skeet and sporting clay loads
•Easy metering and consistent charging
Principal Purpose: Light and standard 12 ga target loads.
Secondary Uses: Handgun loads

Reliable performance shot after shot. Standard charge weights work great.
 
sharp shooter said:
Red Dot burns clean as a whistle when you load it close to max or at max.....Especially when using compression hulls like AA and Remington. I find most stuff burns dirty out of Federal hulls. Pretty sure that Red Dot is still a great powder.
Click to expand...

Well that is all I reload is old AA's and it must have changed big time since I used a ton of it in the 60's and 70's and it was the dirtiest out there, if fact now they even sell it as new and improved cleaner version. The dirty gun is a small part of it to me since I clean them all the time anyway but why load to the max and burn up your hard to find hulls early plus deal with extra recoil when one doesn't have to ..
Not saying today' red dot is not a good or great powder just that if you are starting out new with no powder like the OP why not try a Clays or some other brand that is proven to be better all around. To each their own however since powder is like cars and everyone has different tastes . take care
 
Last edited:
Access to hodgdon imr and winchester products is easy for me since i buy most of my stuff at higginson's.Taken from the hodgdon web site, 18.2 gr of clays at 1200 fps gives 9800 lup of pressure, what the hell is a lup ??? 19.2 gr of internat'l at 1200 fps gives 9600 lup, 19.5 gr of super hcp at 1200 fps gives 9700 psi.17.5 gr of 700 x at 1200 fps gives 10800 psi.

Do you think high pressure loads like the 700 x is bad for my shotgun ?

I think that i will give clays or 700 x a try and see.
 
periculumnexnecis said:
Access to hodgdon imr and winchester products is easy for me since i buy most of my stuff at higginson's.Taken from the hodgdon web site, 18.2 gr of clays at 1200 fps gives 9800 lup of pressure, what the hell is a lup ??? 19.2 gr of internat'l at 1200 fps gives 9600 lup, 19.5 gr of super hcp at 1200 fps gives 9700 psi.17.5 gr of 700 x at 1200 fps gives 10800 psi.

Do you think high pressure loads like the 700 x is bad for my shotgun ?

I think that i will give clays or 700 x a try and see.
Click to expand...

LUP = lead units of pressure

It's a measure of how much a given load compresses a lead pellet in a universal receiver. The greater the compression the higher pressure the load. Copper is also sometimes used and you will see reference to CUP - copper units of pressure.
 
ted_dent said:
LUP = lead units of pressure

It's a measure of how much a given load compresses a lead pellet in a universal receiver. The greater the compression the higher pressure the load. Copper is also sometimes used and you will see reference to CUP - copper units of pressure.
Click to expand...

Just wondering of you have ever seen a conversion or logarithm for going from LUP to PSI. I remember looking years back but found nothing since I think LUP was the old system and we got screwed up when the data started to show in psi. I could be wrong

To the OP many used/ use the 10,800 psi 700x reloads for years especially trap and it is higher than some but under the max 11,500 psi saam1 requirements for 2 3/4" shotshells.
 
Last edited:
3macs1 said:
Well that is all I reload is old AA's and it must have changed big time since I used a ton of it in the 60's and 70's and it was the dirtiest out there, if fact now they even sell it as new and improved cleaner version. The dirty gun is a small part of it to me since I clean them all the time anyway but why load to the max and burn up your hard to find hulls early plus deal with extra recoil when one doesn't have to ..
Not saying today' red dot is not a good or great powder just that if you are starting out new with no powder like the OP why not try a Clays or some other brand that is proven to be better all around. To each their own however since powder is like cars and everyone has different tastes . take care
Click to expand...


To be honest I have never tried clays. Always got a good deal deal on Red Dot. I might try Clays the next time I buy a jug.
Cheers!
 
sharp shooter said:
To be honest I have never tried clays. Always got a good deal deal on Red Dot. I might try Clays the next time I buy a jug.
Cheers!
Click to expand...

Yes sir. I keep saying I am going to try it with some volume also but still have a few of the old metal 12 pound barrels of 700x that I have been trying to use up for years it seems. I got as far as buying and using a pound of Clays and it did seem cleaner than the 700x and loaded with no issues on my mec. A lot of the boys at the club sing it's praises and sware by it for 12ga. I switched to 95% 28ga and 410 about 10 years ago so not much 700x being used any more.
Kind Regards :)
 
3macs1 said:
Just wondering of you have ever seen a conversion or logarithm for going from LUP to PSI. I remember looking years back but found nothing since I think LUP was the old system and we got screwed up when the data started to show in psi. I could be wrong.
Click to expand...

I could never figure out why some pressures are measured in CUP or LUP and others are in PSI. I do recall reading, however, that you cannot just do a conversion from one to another multiplying by a constant. Again, don't know why but I did read that at one time.
 
ted_dent said:
I could never figure out why some pressures are measured in CUP or LUP and others are in PSI. I do recall reading, however, that you cannot just do a conversion from one to another multiplying by a constant. Again, don't know why but I did read that at one time.
Click to expand...

ya it all depends who tests the load and what data they record on different machines, newer psi figures have been replacing older cup pressures that were not as accurate.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom