loading 410 with a mec

[yodave]

okay got a complete reoloading set up for loadind 410 hulls on a mec single stage press, been farting around with it the last couple days and doing the usual you tube and google stuff to try and figure this little gem out. Years ago I had a guru at the top of the hill that would always lend a ear and help a guy out when he was venturing into uncharted territory, unfortunately those years are gone.......so here is what I got so far

cheddite and AA hulls, the 410 wads that have 5 different part numbers, H110 and chilled shot......I can size and I can prime, I get that, and I get the fact I need too use 15.7 grains of powder or the number 12 bushing in the press, now lets talk about wad pressure, the press tells me how much wad pressure I am applying, is this important? the reason I ask is when giving just a hint of wad pressure the shot column is not tall enough for a half ounce load of shot. No in order to get this smidge of wad pressure I am not fully stroking the press.....

So I moved on to fully stroking the press and I get a wad pressure of 40, what ever in the world that means, but the shot column is pretty much where I need it to get a nice crimp and no bumps on the side of the hull.....

So you four-tenner mec guys......what are your thoughts and or procedures for perfect ammo?

 

[mbogo3]

I still haven't got mine working properly after owning it for years.I have the same press in 20,12 + 28 gauge with no issues....Harold

 

[yodave]

I still haven't got mine working properly after owning it for years.I have the same press in 20,12 + 28 gauge with no issues....Harold

thats encouraging to hear............I put 25 rounds together for a test, but I forgot them on the way out the door this morning.
Right out of the box I discovered the shot bar was for 1 3/8 ounce shot loads, got the right one coming so for the first box I just weighed the shot out powder out on a scale, record number of upland birds this year and we are burning through the shot shells fast

 

[Kelly and Beth]

Sounds to me like you have wads that are a bit too big? I have an adjustable charge/#### bar on mine (no need for bushings) pretty good investment. Once you find the proper wad that you need you will enjoy loading 410. It's borderline retarded how much money you save loading 410.

 

[3macs1]

40 is way too much for plastic wads, that is what we used back in the day for fiber ones.Modern plastic wads you don't want to apply much pressure beyond making the gauge move That proves that the wad is fully seated. Too much pressure will pre-collapse the wad and reduce it's cushion effect and mess up the crimps long term. 20 max imo or less
Also don't assume the bushing is dropping correctly check every 4th reload for a while and check and you cannot mix and match wads
What 5 part numbers do you have, also is your 410 AA hulls new or old style
Cheers

 

[Seagull]

As eluded to above 410 is by far the hardest to load. The amounts of powder and shot being so tiny they don't meter as well and then you need to cram it in a tight space. I also use the universal charge bar and I find sometimes using just a few less pellets gets you that nice crimp. I also find once you set up for one type of hull you will need to make a lot of tweaks to use another brand. Not like 12ga, quite often you can get away with the same settings on different hulls.

Too much pressure will pre-collapse the wad and reduce it's cushion effect

I don't have this issue as the win and CB wads I use are solid as most are. He said it right, just get the gauge to move.

Keep playing around and you will finally be happy with the look and you will be happier with more cash in your wallet to.

 

[mbogo3]

Claybusters makes Win wad copies ......I have 3" Chedite hulls and Win 296 powder.I tried to duplicate the old Federal 3/4 oz payload.I'm sure it just needs fine tuning and I haven't got the time nor patience at the moment.Yes Win makes the new HS hulls now so the components will be different with regards to case capacity.With 3/4 oz loads the .410 will become a 30 yard gun.Nice on Huns,pigeons and grouse.For best patterns use small shot 6-7.5 lead. Harold

 

[yodave]

I am using the claybuster CB5050-410S which replaces the WAA410HS, SP410, 410SC and WAA41, and it says optimum load,1/2 ounce

 

[mbogo3]

In the Lyman 4th edition they have 1/2-3/4 oz loads but not with Cheddite hulls. In the BPI manual they use Cheddite hulls but their own special wads.This is where it gets interesting mixing and matching components.Are you loading 3" or 2.5" ? I can send you the data I have if you like.......Harold

 

[yodave]

2.5 inch

 

[R&R Rancher]

Couple of thoughts. As 3Macs1 said no need for a lot of wad pressure. A 410 wad has no collapsible section anyways, so what good does pressure do? I found that on my reloader I had to pause at the bottom of the stroke or the wad would follow the ram back up. I think air was trapped under the wad and pausing gave it time to escape.

Scale everything to make sure you are actually getting what you think. Stack height is critical in this hull to get a good crimp. I reload #9 for targets, so a half ounce takes up less room than a half ounce of #4's. I use hard shot which takes up slightly more space than chilled shot to get the same shot weight. You may need to short yourself a few pellets to get that correct height.

Good Luck!