pei precision
CGN Regular
- Location
- sault saint marie ON
what reloading manual do you guys use? just getting into reloading and need a manual before i start playing with explosives.
manuals
- Thread starter pei precision
- Start date
depends on what you can get,I have a nosler one.hodgson has one on line.It is good to get one there is a lot of info in them.If you have the choice of many, sit down for a while and go through them to see what the d iff's are.Get a good scale,lee collets die ,redding comp seating die,a few other bits and pieces.most of it depends on what gun you have and how far away you want to shoot,or how many.good luck and have fun
redshooter
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Central Ontario
The more you get the better. Lyman is prob the best if you just get one (have two diff ed.). I have a personal preference to Sierra's manual. Hornady's not too bad if you don't mind them favouring there pet cartridges (two of them as well). I have the two Hornady's because it's what I generaly shoot. I also have two Speer and a Nosler. They all serve the purpose but only my Lyman(s) gives a selection of bullets from all manufactures and cast loads as well.
It's not explosive...well not the powder any way. Think of it as very energetic fire starter. If your careful you'll be fine, no smoking, vacuming up spilled powder prob isn't prudent. Just think of it like any flammable solvent you have around the house. The difference is powder takes a little more heat to get it going. Now primers...
It's not explosive...well not the powder any way. Think of it as very energetic fire starter. If your careful you'll be fine, no smoking, vacuming up spilled powder prob isn't prudent. Just think of it like any flammable solvent you have around the house. The difference is powder takes a little more heat to get it going. Now primers...
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ultimate_monkey
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- victoria BC
Yes smokeless powder is , but black powder cartridges are loaded with explosive
I use the VihtaVuori reloading guide because I use N310 in my .32 S&W's. The VV powders are more expensive but burn cleaner.
Been experimenting with some N320 and N340 as well in .45 ACP and .38 Special.
Try to pick up a copy of "The ABCs of Reloading", and as many manuals as you can get your hands on. There are many free ones available (Alliant, Hodgdon, and Vihtavuori if you look around), but the Berger one is also good.
I have the latest versions of Sierra, Hornady, Berger, Nosler, Hodgdon, Speer, and a couple more that I can't recall right now. I always find myself looking at the Sierra manual the most. It has tons of different cartridges and many different powders. Plus the thing I really like is that it suggests a hunting load and an accuracy load for each bullet. Other manuals do that as well, but the Sierra offers more BANG for your buck.
A nice thing to have handy near your loading bench is a powder burn rate chart. It is basically a list of powders in order of how fast they burn. There are those that often debate the accuracy of such a list but I find it helpful to understand generalities - despite the naysayers.
Most guys could not tell you off the top of their head what is faster - 4198 or Varget but if you keep the burn rate chart handy, you will be able to better see which powders are good candidates for testing and why.
The basic behind all this is heavier bullets require a powder with a slower burn rate than a lighter bullet for the same cartridge.
In time, when you keep an eye on both your load data book and the powder burn rate chart you will come to anticipate why a certain powder has a max charge of less than another - due to relative burn rate.
Remember that faster burning powders burn proportionally cleaner and for that reason are often the better choice when deciding between two powders that produce similar results.
You will find that an indication that your powder is too slow is when groups tend to get worse as you shoot more rounds.
Also keep in mind that faster burning powders are easier on your barrel.
If you google "powder burn rate chart" - you will find lots of choices.
Most guys could not tell you off the top of their head what is faster - 4198 or Varget but if you keep the burn rate chart handy, you will be able to better see which powders are good candidates for testing and why.
The basic behind all this is heavier bullets require a powder with a slower burn rate than a lighter bullet for the same cartridge.
In time, when you keep an eye on both your load data book and the powder burn rate chart you will come to anticipate why a certain powder has a max charge of less than another - due to relative burn rate.
Remember that faster burning powders burn proportionally cleaner and for that reason are often the better choice when deciding between two powders that produce similar results.
You will find that an indication that your powder is too slow is when groups tend to get worse as you shoot more rounds.
Also keep in mind that faster burning powders are easier on your barrel.
If you google "powder burn rate chart" - you will find lots of choices.
