12ga slug mold for bear protection

.690 round ball mold .... :)

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http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?339590-Buck-amp-Ball-Once-again
 
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barsik said:
what kind of hulls are you using? all of the data I've looked at list the hulls and primer type and a specific powder charge. I phoned in to Lyman customer service for more data on their pellet slug but they haven't done any research for about 10 years. the best load I found so far is listed in the lyman shotgun manual lists a WW compression 2 3/4" compression hull, WW 209 primer, WAA12R wad plus a 1/8" card wad under the slug, and 35 gr SR4756, full crimp. accuracy at 25 yd is about 2 - 2.5", but every wad I find on the ground after shooting has most of the petals blown off. gun is a stock Mossberg 930 home security, cylinder bore barrel. the groups would tighten up a bit if the wad would stay intact, but every load I have tried blows the wad up, some worse than others. running the wad and slug down the barrel reveal nothing, no tight spots or rough areas and the slug/wad is a nice snug fit. maybe a tuffer wad is in order or a mouse fart load? any suggestions?
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sorry for the super late reply! I am presently using the winchester WAA hulls and Remington Peters gun clubs as well.

I am finding my wads normally lose their petals. But the only thing I care about is what the slug is doing on the paper target. I have had more than a few groups around 1-1/2" at 50 yards as well. Makes it very encouraging!
 
I am having good luck with lyman.678 round ball hardcast 12S0 federal shot cup and a heavy charge of longshot, sometimes a scoop of cream of wheat for a buffer on the blue dot loads

Pros:
No worries about the base slumping
Fast and easy to cast, fits most wads perfectly unlike the .690
A round ball is the deepest penetrating shape for a slug
Shoots thru my modified choke without losing petals
Seems plenty accurate as far as I can tell with bead sights

Cons:
Lyman moulds are triple the price of lee
Im guessing it bounces much further than anything else
Potentially not as accurate as some others
 
The 7/8 load I mentioned before has been used on two bears successfully. One bear, my dumbass brother wounded it with his .303 missed it several times then went and got his shotgun and killed it with the slugs. The other bear was shot with a crossing shot right to left entered the abdomen on right side, went through the diaphragm took out a lung and damaged the heart and exited just below the shoulder. The bear was DRT. These were both problem bears, not tiny but not huge. I’ve not had a ftf with any of my slugs and trust them as much as I would trust a factory slug, more really since I know they can perform.
 
hatman1793 said:
For dangerous 12 gauge slug loads, I think I would personally default to a factory 3" slug or 3 1/2" slug.
For all the BS, casting, testing, buying a new mold, etc, it seems to me that employing a factory load would be the way to go.
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Pretty bad idea, almost all factory slugs are pure lead and only good for deer... A 3" slug will not go thru a 5 gallon pail of water standing upright (11" of water)

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Notice it says deer, not bear
The only factory slugs I have found in canada that are suitable for bear are challenger, most canadian tire carry them

To get some perspective this is more suitable for big game than a standard 3" slug
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People have killed bears with .22, dosent mean its suitable. If I am going to carry a gun specifically for bear defense I will have a slug that I can count on to reach the vitals every time, not only on a small bear standing still facing broadside from up in a tree ...

Some perspective

3" standard slug 2 jugs, cuts in the 3rd
https://youtu.be/5FJE8l3x3tc

45/70 300 gr (says deer elk and black bear) 5 jugs, stopped in #6

405gr hardcast 10 jugs, thru the target stand....

https://youtu.be/JWi_aaEooU0

22 usually gets thru 3 jugs...
 
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I use WW for the LEE 7/8 cast slugs and my MEC 600 Junior in 2 3/4 and 3". Longshot is the powder, and have gotten the same results (speed) with 700X. For the last 5 yrs I have never got better then 40yrds in consistent impacts around 4 inches. That is fine for bush hunting, and self defense rounds for bear. They work very well. All hulls are WIN SUPER X, Waterfowl high brass (duck shot).

Last winter, I ordered the Forrest Camping Shotgun roll crimp tool from Russia. Once I had cut off all the tops of Star Crimp and re rolled as a roll crimp, I have been able to push them out to 60yrds consistently. WADS, I only use WAA12 (white), they take a beating going down chamber, but always stay together, plus I use .670 overshot card in the wad.
 
some of the recipes for the lyman pellet slug call for the Federal 12S3 wad and a pinch of Unique powder or something. where does one find those 12S3 wads now that they have been discontinued?
 
barsik said:
some of the recipes for the lyman pellet slug call for the Federal 12S3 wad and a pinch of Unique powder or something. where does one find those 12S3 wads now that they have been discontinued?
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If you can find Claybuster wads they have a direct substitute.
My load 42 grs SR 4756 federal gold metal case , win12R and a win primer. Also a few other combinations but was the most accurate in my Mossberg 535. 2-3 inches for 3 shots at 100 m.
 
Few tips

If you want better penetration (thats what she said) then drop your cast boolits in to water. Water quenching will harden them really nicely so they will go through most anything.

if youre using a rifled barrel then the wad petals are gonna tear off no matter which ones you use.

If filling the base with hot glue. Wait until it dries then use a hot blade (exacto knife held over a candle) to neatly trim the overflow flush to the base. Wipe the blade clean after each cut. Turns out great.
 
53Izzy744 said:
Few tips

If you want better penetration (thats what she said) then drop your cast boolits in to water. Water quenching will harden them really nicely so they will go through most anything.

if youre using a rifled barrel then the wad petals are gonnai tear off no matter which ones you use.

If filling the base with hot glue. Wait until it dries then use a hot blade (exacto knife held over a candle) to neatly trim the overflow flush to the base. Wipe the blade clean after each cut. Turns out great.
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I choose a wad with the thickest petal. I then trim the petals so they dont fold over nose of slug. This will eliminate tearing and improve accuracy.

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For black powder 10 gauge using all brass hulls, I first glued three .375 round ball into a triangle then glued .495 round ball on top. I then used Circle Fly nine gauge fiber wads and cards, propelled by 85 grains FF Goex.
I used a roll of heavy magazine subscription paper to keep this improvised slug centered in the 2 7/8 hull.
Clear silicone to glue in the last over shot card.

So far shoots like a slug gun at 18 yards from full choke barrels, my Parkhurst coach gun. So far no signs of tipping or seperation on the target paper. But I am kind of skeptical one can pull this off with the higher pressures of smokeless powder. I have never tried this because I have no need for it.

I had Nick Makinson give this shotgun a going over to ensure its safe to shoot. Also this older gun has plenty of meat in the chamber area. It's kind of a beast at 10 1/4 pounds with its original 20 inch barrels.
 
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Ganderite said:
These look interesting. I would like to try that load, but instead of the wad separating the 2 payloads, use wax to make a wax slug of the entire load. It would hit and then become a buck and ball.
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Ganderite, give it a try ... and let us know how it went.

From my research my gut tells me that wax alone will not be strong enough to "glue" the whole load together into one slug.

You might need to enclose the whole load into a wad and to keep the load together during flight. But I have no proof of this ....so I am looking forward to your results.

I am wondering .. if you manage to create a sort of frangible slug, why do you need the round ball? A load comprised of #4 or #1 buckshot .... glued together by wax into a slug ....should be able to kill anything on this continent ... no?

It would behave similar to this .....just with more penetration .....or at least that is what I would assume.....

https://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php/1635960-Unofficial-12ga-Slug-Penetration-Comparison?p=15046117&viewfull=1#post15046117

Looking forward to your test results.....
 
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