Lubing Buckshot

[dverna]

I saw a video of a guy who used Lee Liquid Alox to tumble lube buckshot. He said it improved patterns. Is this really needed?

I will be using Lyman #2.

Thanks,

Don Verna

[dbosman]

I expect the answer is that if he thinks it helped, it did.
My question would be, is he using a standard plastic wad?
.....Which cushions and surrounds the shot load until after it exits the barrel.

[dverna]

db,
Yes, he was using a standard wad.

Don Verna

[HiVelocity]

Don-

I'm casting three types of buckshot; 0, 00, and #4 buckshot. I'm lubing the larger buckshot with Johnson's Paste Wax. While the buckshot is still a bit warm, I roll a small handful around in a Tupperware bowl and drop out on a piece of wax paper. Doesn't take much at all. I usually let it dry for a couple days. I haven't played with these shotshells yet, I'm hoping that they will work well.

BTW, I swab my rifle bores with JPW after cleaning and buff to a high shine. Any residual just wipes off with just a patch.

HV

[wonderwolf]

I've cast about 200 lbs of "00" in the last 4 years or so now. I lube with the Lee liquid alox and use a gas seal (no petals) from balistic products. I get very some leading after about 50 or so rounds but I have good patterns and my load is pretty solid though subsonic. I use Sharpshooter molds and found that I could not use wads with petals (they also failed often) because of the fit of the buckshot. After combat shotgun matches I break down the shotgun and use a tornado brush to clean the barrel very well. I could teflon wrap the rounds but I have no desire to slow down my reloading THAT much.

[dverna]

Thanks for the input guys.

Much appreciated.

[Bulltipper]

I have just started making buckshot loads for my 12ga M590A1. I am using 2-3/4" Peters blue shells, Hornaday versalite wads, 8 pellets, and I am processing my 00 Buckshot in my brass shaker with a little graphite lubricant in there to round out the shot and coat it with graphite. I am wondering what would be considered a good pattern at 15 and 25 yards. My shotgun has been ported and backbored by Hans Vang (VCS) and is supposed to do 3" at 15yds and 12" at 25yds. I am a little over those numbers but not too bad. Your thoughts?
Thanks,
BT

[Bulltipper]

I don't mean to hijack this thread, but will do it anyway... I forgot to add that my wads are taking a serious beating as opposed to wads from say #7-1/2 shot at the clays range... is that normal for buckshot?

[wonderwolf]

I don't mean to hijack this thread, but will do it anyway... I forgot to add that my wads are taking a serious beating as opposed to wads from say #7-1/2 shot at the clays range... is that normal for buckshot?

Yes and no, yes in that you have only 3 or 4 points of contact on the wad instead of a wider area covered by all the shot. From that "no" in that depending on what wad you are using it should not fail from mild buckshot loads. I use a more robust gas seal with my buckshot and it shows on recovered wads and I know I get more uniform velocity from using such a seal as I've chronod a lot of buckshot when developing the loads I use now.

Check out this link that goes over how I R&D'd my buckshot load, there are also pics of the gas seal I use. Maybe if I do another write up I'll take a picture of what the trap wads look like after they are shot with buckshot...they don't seal up well and they give poor patterns, felt wads may work better than just a trap wad for you.

http://wonderwolfs.blogspot.com/2011/09/loading-buckshot-for-016-round.html

[Bulltipper]

Thanks Wonderwolf, I read your blog and I am checking into flex seal, I could load the 9th ball that way and that kind of load is exactly what I was looking for. Cheers!
BT

[Lloyd Smale]

had a buddy who did the same. His rational wasnt improving patterns it was that if he shot a bad guy with it and it didnt kill them on the spot it would surely cause infections that would put him down and out of any future fights.

[Four-Sixty]

I've been using the BPI seal as well. I have recently obtained some of the BPI buffer #47 and am working to test it out.

I load the BPI seal over 19 grains of Hodgdon Clays (Not universal or international, just clays). Then, I put a 20 ga. 1/2" fiber wad on top of the seal. (I don't have 12 gauge fiber wads.) I drop in nine OO balls. I then shake in some of the #47 buffer until 2/3 of the balls on the top stack are covered by buffer. Then, I shave off a couple of layers of another 20 gauge fiber wad with a box cutter, and place the piece I cut off on top. With the Win Supersport hulls I can get a near perfect crimp and I don't have buffer leaking out.

I tried to pattern these yesterday, but the range officer basically told me no more paterning on their targets. He asked me to shoot at the berm to pattern them. I would say at the 50 yard berm I get groups about 3-4' wide. I think I'd be satisfied with this load, but I'd love to have a chronograph to tell how fast it is going.

[wonderwolf]

I've been using the BPI seal as well. I have recently obtained some of the BPI buffer #47 and am working to test it out.

I load the BPI seal over 19 grains of Hodgdon Clays (Not universal or international, just clays). Then, I put a 20 ga. 1/2" fiber wad on top of the seal. (I don't have 12 gauge fiber wads.) I drop in nine OO balls. I then shake in some of the #47 buffer until 2/3 of the balls on the top stack are covered by buffer. Then, I shave off a couple of layers of another 20 gauge fiber wad with a box cutter, and place the piece I cut off on top. With the Win Supersport hulls I can get a near perfect crimp and I don't have buffer leaking out.

I tried to pattern these yesterday, but the range officer basically told me no more paterning on their targets. He asked me to shoot at the berm to pattern them. I would say at the 50 yard berm I get groups about 3-4' wide. I think I'd be satisfied with this load, but I'd love to have a chronograph to tell how fast it is going.


I dislike range officers like that, Whats the difference between you testing a couple of rounds of buckshot and the yahoo that comes out and blasts 50 rounds of 9mm....the target backers are meant to be shot....