Help.. Data for lee 7/8 slug

[AlaskanGuy]

Well guys, I really went and done it now.... Wednesday is my sons 17th birthday, and got a old jc higgins 12 ga that my father gave me when i was a teen, and i re groomed it and set it all up for him, added some lead to the stock to make the gun deal with slug recoil better and such.. Also cut the choke off... Re-did the stock, you nave it.... Ordered the lighter lee 7/8 slug mold and it finally arrived..... So I cast up a bunch this morning, and sat down to start reloading, and whammmmmmmm no data for the powders I have on hand..... I live remote so there aint no place to run down to get some different powder....

I have about every type of hull and wad known to man pretty much, and can make was colums with the best of them, but it seems i dont have the right powder for these smaller slugs....

Powders I have on hand that could work are:

Herco
Unique
2400
800x
Alliant 410

Any ideas guys??? I guess I could just load the shells up with pyrodex and go to town.... I have shot bp 12g shells pleanty in single shot guns, but his is not a single shot...

Helpppppppp birthday is on the 19th....

AG

[Hogtamer]

sorry man, got nothing with those powders

[AlaskanGuy]

What about SR 7625 or a reduced load of herco.. Lots of data for 1 oz for herco.....

Ag

[FullTang]

Herco, Unique, and 800X can all work. What kind of wads and hulls are you using? I like Fed 12S0 with the Lee 7/8 slug---seems like a perfect fit, and it gives great accuracy out of a rifled or smooth bore.

[AlaskanGuy]

Well, i have 3 choices for wads that seem to fit nice.... The MEC 100T4, the fed 12S0, or the claybuster CB4118, as well as a couple others.... Lots of different wads... Just no data for the powder i have available.. I was thinking rem plastic hulls, or win.... But i have lots of different hulls as well.... I thought I would go with the lighter stuff for the son, so I bought the mold after looking at the ton of load data for the 1oz lee, and of course I diddnt look specific for the 7/8 dang it, and got caught with my pants wayyyyy down around my ankles...lol

[longbow]

Not sure about the slower powders ~ Herco, 2400 or 800X and don't know anything about Alliant 410. I have to think that if loading for max velocities Herco or 800X might work okay but not sure about less than max. loads. You could try some 1 oz. slug loads subbing the 7/8 oz. slug. If there is enough pressure for the powder to burn it might do okay. Worst that would happen is incomplete combustion or maybe a blooper.

I will take a guess that Unique would do okay though. It should be fast enough to burn even with the light slug. I would go with 1 oz. Unique slug recipes then adjust the wad column to suit.

By using a lighter slug there will be less recoil which can be a bonus for a young'un (depending on size).

I used reduced charges of Unique when my son was a little young for full 12 ga. recoil for grouse hunting and those worked fine. My son was only about 12 at the time though and yours is 17 so recoil maybe not an issue.

I'll see if I can find any 7/8 oz. load recipes for the powders you have but I am thinking they will be sparse if there are any.

I think Unique is your best bet, the others I am not sure about.

Longbow

[FullTang]

Hi AlaskanGuy,

I think you're all set---the 12S0 will load into the Rem or Win hull (though it's a tighter fit in these than it would be in a straight-wall hull like a Fed or Fiocchi) and it will hold the 7/8 slug perfectly. The newer Win AA-HS hulls have thinner walls, so you won't get a bulge. You could go with Herco for a big boom, but my first slug loads were Lee 7/8 in a 12S0 with 25 gn of Unique in a Top Gun hull. That's a relatively mild load, and some folks would go higher, but that could be some fun plinking for your son to start with!

The CB Windjammer knockoff will also fit the slug, and will actually fit the tapered hulls better, but the stack height will be a little low (unless you go with the big load of Herco, which will take up the space.) You can use a card under the slug, but my experience with these wads has been mixed---they often blow out with a heavy powder charge.

[jmort]

31 grains of Unique

[AlaskanGuy]

Thanks guys..... For the help.... It will have to be a "unique" experience...

[starmac]

Your son and my wife share the same birthday, but she is a century or two older. lol

I hear them slugs work better lube with a bit of blood.

[evan price]

Claybusters wads don't work with Lee Slugs. At least the Winchester clones don't.

[FullTang]

Claybusters wads don't work with Lee Slugs. At least the Winchester clones don't.

Yeah, the Winchester clones are terrible, and the Fed clones are even worse for slugs, because of the ridge on the back of the petals that CB adds to their design. The Windjammer 8 petal clones don't have that; in fact, they have the thinnest petals around, which could make them ideal for .69 RB use, but the the gas seal and cushion section are so flimsy that the whole thing just collapses with any big powder charge (at least the batch I have does.) Very frustrating, leading to off-sounding loads and a lot of variability in velocities. That just never happens with the name-brand Fed wads---very consistent, very accurate, and the recovered wads look like they could be reloaded and fired again. That's how well they hold up.

[FullTang]

31 grains of Unique

That will definitely get it moving! I've been using hotter and hotter loads myself lately, because I find the big recoil to be fun (sounds crazy, but I think most folks on this forum feel the same way!) But the point is, you can load them anywhere in between 25 and 31 gn of Unique, and they'll work.

[AlaskanGuy]

Lol... Well, I will use the 25gr of unique and go from there... I dont wanna scare the kid off of his new shotgun..lol

Here is a pic of his new toy that i reworked for him... Started as my first shotgun bought by my dad and given to me in he late 60's or early 70's... I think he is gunna love it...



I know the pics suck, i will do better after his b-day....

[savage308]

I have a 20" rem 870smooth bore with rifle sights that I have had for 20 years and recently cast 7/8 lee slugs and my best load in that gun is fiocchi 2 3/4 hull,fed12so , 20.0gr titewad,7/8 slug,6 point fold crimp. no cards needed. shoots very good and most recovered wads look great.

[FullTang]

Hi Excess,

Yes, the fit of the .69 RB is perfect in the WJ-style wads---it's just that lightweight gas seal and cushion section that seems to cause all the problems. Have you ever tried one of the Downrange hybrid wads, with the Windjammer-style 8 petal top and the Federal-style spiral bottom half? I've been intrigued by those, and thought they might be useful for RB and slug loads, but no one around here carries them, so I'm waiting for my next big mail order to try them (not that I really need more wads!)

[FullTang]

Another thing I was wondering: BPI sells a swaged slug that is very similar to a Lee 7/8 oz (minus the drive key) http://www.ballisticproducts.com/Fos...tinfo/7000002/
Has anyone gotten any load data from BPI for this slug? It sure looks like it would load exactly the same as a Lee slug.

[AlaskanGuy]

Well, the 25gr of unique shot very well.... Especially for the shotgun in the pics above... I shotmsome in my gun and it wasnt bad at all, but my sons new gun was really grand... I shot a couple out of it, and by drilling the stock and adding hot lead that was poured into the holes, adding a couple pounds, you could really tell the difference between his new gun and my mossburg without the extra weight... I think he shot about 45 slugs and it kicked like his 308, very very comfortable... Now I am just gunna have to figure out how to keep him in shotgun shells for it....

We have a subsistence duck hunt coming up in april, so we shall see how he does with it then... With no choke, he will have to get close for him to kill something. On another note, my autistic son got drawn the other day for his first moose hunt. It is an "any moose" tag on federal land, pretty much a guaranteed moose.... We are very excited for him, and he is totally stoked.. He is going to get to use his 308 that he got for christmas.... Now I just gotta make arrangements to borrow an airboat for the copper river delta....

AG

[FullTang]

Sounds like a good result with the light slug loads---and it sounds like an amazing place where you live!

[AlaskanGuy]

I love alaska.... For the most part, folks leave you alone, and help out when needed... A big family pretty much where folks look out for each other...