Vacu forming was a flop.
I mentioned these shot loads to my father in law, and now he wants to try them.
Guess I better make a few more, still gotta get more shot though.
Vacu forming was a flop.
I mentioned these shot loads to my father in law, and now he wants to try them.
Guess I better make a few more, still gotta get more shot though.
"I have enough ammo and guns to shoot my way into Nevada." - California resident.
$5 Box of El Cheapo Supremo 12-gauge #7-1/2s at Wally World gets you over a pound and a half of shot......
Gear
Few posts here but I've been shooting for 40 years and reloading for 35 of them.
I've made good shot loads using gas checks for the top and bottom of the shot load.
I would have to check my reloading tables to find the powder charge but I did not have lead issues and it holds a good amount of lead.
I think both checks were installed inverted.
If I may make a recommendation ..... I see you fabricated your tools to do this.
if you can "clean up" the design there in .. MARKET THEM
Venom, I appreciate the vote of confidence, but I don't think there's enough curiosity to support a product line.
If you or anyone else is interested in developing and producing a toolkit to do this, feel free, I shared this information to help out anyone who might have the same needs as I do, but no way to fulfill them with existing products or processes.
But if you do bring such a kit to market, I want a complimentary set in .45 Colt!
Gear
geargnasher
Thanks for posting this! Being new to the site, it's amazing the information available here! Great site! Have lurked on here awhile - just had to get in on here!
In the past few days, I had a few minutes to make a "bolt" - or would you call it a mandrel - to form the wads on. Got a case cut down to slip over it ok. I finally got a pattern made up to cut the plastic by that seems to come close to repeating what you have pictured. Then I ran into a small problem - my propane torch is busted so - improvise! I broke out a small solder iron and used it. (Well after I tried a butane lighter, but that made an ugly mess!) Using the iron, I could melt the plastic fairly well but had to cut it into 6 petals to get it flat - still does't look as good as yours but, my bad. But I was able to fill them and seal them up before sticking them in a shell as I can take the iron and "touch" the split in the sides in a few places and seal it. Anyhow, got a few questions if you don't mind and have a moment.
1. What size propane torch are you using to melt with?
2. Do you only use the flat portion of the jug - seems the part that has the texture on it doesn't do well..........
3. About what weight did you end up with for the shot in 357mag? (That's what I'm working on.)
I've got 6 made up to try - got to wait till I'm off work to load them up!
I have always loved to have some rat shot loaded up in a revolver while mowing hay/pasture on the tractor. Nothing like busting a cap on a fat rat running across the feild from a moving piece of equipment!
"In the beginning there was absolutley nothing! And then - even THAT exploded!"
Axton 1
Gearnasher-
I reviewed this older tread after you linked to it from the current PP thread. I was quite impressed with work. I can't believe I missed this one.
I have a question about your method that I didn't see asked. Did you leave the two slits in the side of the shotcup or did you fuse them together after loading the shot? It seems the the slits could open up if the cup was pressed from the end kind of the like the old rubber change carriers the banks used to hand out.
Regards,
Everett
"There's a reason John Browning's middle name is Moses."
Thanks for the interest, Everett, it does dandy for my purposes, anyway! I do leave the slits in the shotcup, just like in shotgun wads, and for the same reason: It improves the patterns.
If you look at the fired wad in the first pic, you can see the shotcups do get pretty beat-up going through the gun and the pellets swage into the plastic very hard after going through the oversized part of the forcing cone and then into the bore, but there's no place for the capsule to go but forward so it seems to simply swage through the gun. I shot some of the .45 Colt capsules through my NEF .45 Colt (only, not 45/410) and the wads looked about the same as the ones shot through the revolvers, so the extra beating going through the cylinder gap didn't seem to make all that much difference.
Gear
Thanks for the reply. The information on this site never fails to amaze me.
Best Regards,
Everett
"There's a reason John Browning's middle name is Moses."
Looks good, I'm going to try it for my 500 s&w and 45colt.
I've read through the whole thread and I see where this project is going on my bucket list. Had a rat show up at the barn I rent to keep equipment in so that's my goal, minute of rat patterns at 15' or so.
I was all set to charge into it but there was no #9 shot to be had. A trip to my LGS yielded none either but they did have a 10-pack of Speer 44 shotshells,, for $16. GASP! CHOKE! I did not fall down but did get a bit weak in the knees.
My Charter Arms 44 Bulldog will get the duty, partly because the size is easier to have on the belt when moving stuff around and partly because it is my ONLY 44 right now.
I'm going to end up working with the method shown here, just not sure when.
Thanks for the great write-up, Gear.
Yer welcome, Alan! You can use #8 shot just as well, maybe better on rats. If you don't have any, buy a box of cheap 12-gauge skeet loads and you'll have well over a pound of it for $4-5. Milk/water jugs are essentially free.
Gear
If you have gas checks for the caliber you intend to load shot loads for, that is all you need. 1 gascheck upside down over the powder and another one upside down over the shot and crimp. in a 44 you could use 7 1/2s and still get a good pattern.
I thought I might chime in with an experience here.
I went out grouse hunting this last season and i took my marlin 1895 guide gun with my shot loads just to see what i could do with em.
Well they fed through the tube perfectly, and netted me three grouse in three shots. I would prefer a shotgun for the purpose, but these in 45-70 are definitely capable of some short range kills. I had originally loaded these up for just this reason, as i often se grouse while hunting deer and elk, and these are pretty quiet too.
"I have enough ammo and guns to shoot my way into Nevada." - California resident.
Why this thread is not a sticky eludes me, had to search pretty hard for this one...
Has anyone done 45 ACP from 308/06? I'm thinking about trying that out but the RCBS dies are astronomicaly priced.
Just an added note to an oldie but goody here, you can make shot cups like Gear has shown for BP rifles and get some decent patterns inside of 20yds. I've used them in my .50 to replicate 28ga loads to shoot pot meat (rabbit & squirrel) at deer camp.
An old Cherokee was teaching his grandson about life. "Inside me two wolves fight," he told the boy.
"One is evil - he is anger, envy, greed, arrogance, self-pity, resentment, lies, false pride, and ego. The other is good - he is joy, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, generosity, truth and faith. The same fight is inside you - and every other person, too."
The grandson thought for a minute and asked,"Which wolf will win?"
The old Cherokee replied, "The one you feed."
I dabbled w/this also. I found a solution in a pile of range brass most likely from a Judge. I cut the 410 case flush at the cylinder face. Used a built up wad ,a plastic wrap (actually Mylar from my Dads magnumitus days) and a folded crimp. W/6 and & 1/2 shot 10yds would be sort of an outer limit. The biggest issue I had was over seating the primer w/o a proper tool. I made a few up w/regular wads also. They worked well enough that a roll crimp tool is in my future very soon.
In the time of darkest defeat,our victory may be nearest. Wm. McKinley.
I was young and stupid then I'm older now. Me 1992 .
Richard Lee Hart 6/29/39-7/25/18
Without trial we cannot learn and grow . It is through our stuggles that we become stronger .
Brother I'm going to be Pythagerus , DiVinci , and Atlas all rolled into one soon .
Cut-down .410 hulls worked for me too, but I had to turn down the rims slightly to get them to fit against the cylinder ratchet in my New Vaquero. Some revolvers have larger rim cutouts.
Gear
BP | Bronze Point | IMR | Improved Military Rifle | PTD | Pointed |
BR | Bench Rest | M | Magnum | RN | Round Nose |
BT | Boat Tail | PL | Power-Lokt | SP | Soft Point |
C | Compressed Charge | PR | Primer | SPCL | Soft Point "Core-Lokt" |
HP | Hollow Point | PSPCL | Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" | C.O.L. | Cartridge Overall Length |
PSP | Pointed Soft Point | Spz | Spitzer Point | SBT | Spitzer Boat Tail |
LRN | Lead Round Nose | LWC | Lead Wad Cutter | LSWC | Lead Semi Wad Cutter |
GC | Gas Check |