shot shells for 480 Ruger

[15meter]

Has anyone loaded snake loads for the 480?

[Viper225]

Easy AS Pie.
Prime the case.
Add approximately 6.0 grains of American Select, Unique, 20/28, etc
1 each 50 Cal Muzzle Loader Over Powder Felt Wad. Seat with 3/8 Dowel Rod (Felt Wad is app .0130 thick)
Add approximately 150 grains of shot (7.5, 8, or 9) Fill till you only have enough room to seat the Gas Check.
Install Gas Check Cup Down
Add Roll Crimp.

Out of my Alaskan this is a Super Snake Load. At 5 feet it will put down a uniform pattern in about a 6" Circle. The Gas Check and Wadd will blow a hole in the center of the pattern.
I worked with several different combinations of wads, and this worked the best.

Bob

[15meter]

Easy AS Pie.
Prime the case.
Add approximately 6.0 grains of American Select, Unique, 20/28, etc
1 each 50 Cal Muzzle Loader Over Powder Felt Wad. Seat with 3/8 Dowel Rod (Felt Wad is app .0130 thick)
Add approximately 150 grains of shot (7.5, 8, or 9) Fill till you only have enough room to seat the Gas Check.
Install Gas Check Cup Down
Add Roll Crimp.

Out of my Alaskan this is a Super Snake Load. At 5 feet it will put down a uniform pattern in about a 6" Circle. The Gas Check and Wadd will blow a hole in the center of the pattern.
I worked with several different combinations of wads, and this worked the best.

Bob

Any primer set back with this light a load? With this light a load in other calibers I have had the primer back out.

[Lefty SRH]

That sounds fun Viper. Does the felt wad sit right on top of the powder? I dont have any unique but Im pretty sure I have some HP-38 and Universal.

[chuckbuster]

Easy AS Pie.
Prime the case.
Add approximately 6.0 grains of American Select, Unique, 20/28, etc
1 each 50 Cal Muzzle Loader Over Powder Felt Wad. Seat with 3/8 Dowel Rod (Felt Wad is app .0130 thick)
Add approximately 150 grains of shot (7.5, 8, or 9) Fill till you only have enough room to seat the Gas Check.
Install Gas Check Cup Down
Add Roll Crimp.

Out of my Alaskan this is a Super Snake Load. At 5 feet it will put down a uniform pattern in about a 6" Circle. The Gas Check and Wadd will blow a hole in the center of the pattern.
I worked with several different combinations of wads, and this worked the best.

Bob

Only problem I see in this is I am never found within 5 feet of any snake for more than about .21 seconds. Usain Bolt should hope for such reaction time and acceleration...
KDK

[Viper225]

No Primer Set Back.
Bagged 2 Copperheads yesterday while brush hogging the horse pasture next door. Both were in the 7 - 10 foot range. The longer shot at app 10 feet took 2 shots for it to quit moving. The first one was close to mountable. It was a thumper, over 30 Inches.

The Felt Wad is pressed down on the powder charge firmly with a 3/8 dowel. Add all the shot you can get in the case and keep the gas check below the case mouth enough to roll crimp.
Press the Gas Check down on the shot charge, and crimp.

Bob

[15meter]

Did a small test with out drilled flash holes, primer was raised slightly.

Next was 45/70 cases cut down on the rim and trimmed to equal a loaded cartridge, when I fire formed these I got lots of primer setback.

Try 3 was with 480 case with drilled flash holes and milk carton over powder wad in place of Viper225's load. Worked great, zero set back and great pattern.

Next up is drilled flash holes on the 45/70 cases, looking for max shot capacity and to see if I can make bottle neck shot loads for the 480 just be cause they look so cool. Not sure what I am going to use for over shot cards. I don't know if 458 gas checks are going to be big enough.

[Viper225]

I hate to ask dumb questions, but why are you drilling out the flash hole??
I have only done that for Wax Loads, propelled by the primer only.

The 45-70 case may work out. It would sure up the shot count going to cylinder length.

Bagged 2 more copperheads Tuesday. That is 4 in two days. I put in about 5 hours mowing today and only saw 2 non-poisonous snakes.

Bob

[15meter]

Drilling the primer holes to ensure zero primer set back with the light loads, had a couple that locked the cylinder up in an earlier try. Maybe overkill, but this brass will never be loaded with anything but shot loads.

[15meter]

I hate to ask dumb questions, but why are you drilling out the flash hole??
I have only done that for Wax Loads, propelled by the primer only.

The 45-70 case may work out. It would sure up the shot count going to cylinder length.

Bagged 2 more copperheads Tuesday. That is 4 in two days. I put in about 5 hours mowing today and only saw 2 non-poisonous snakes.

Bob

Boy, I like cold, poisonous snakes don't do well in Michigan. There is a small rattler in Michigan that is extremely rare, I have never seen in my life.

[GooseGestapo]

Even cheaper, is use a 1/2" hole punch to cut card wads from scrap cardboard.
Use a card wad over shot and crimp in place. 5-6gr of Bullseye powder.

Saves 5cents on gas checks. No need to buy wads. Corregated cardboard works great as over powder wad. Solid cardboard allows more shot. This is a low pressure load. Doesn't flatten or crater primers. Seats case back against breech face to prevent backed out primers dragging or tying up action.

I use 7/16" wads in .44mag and .45colt with .4oz shot in .410 to shoot squirrels and blackbirds.
MUCH cheaper than reloading.410 hulls with plastic wads and shotshell primers over 2x of slower burn rate powders.

[denul]

Where would one get a 1/2" hole punch device?

[G50-70]

[QUOTE=denul;4333092]Where would one get a 1/2" hole punch device?[/https://www.harborfreight.com/9-piece-hollow-punch-set-3838.html

[nicholst55]

I like the idea of using .45-70 cases to make cartridge-length shotshells! That would be a perfect use for Hornady's too-short brass!

[Tom W.]

IIRC you can fill a .45 acp case and put hot glue on the top. Load as usual.
Kinda like filling a .40 S&W case with lead and using it for a boolit for a .44 mag.
I know that a .40 makes a great boolit for the .44.....

[JSH]

Anyone moved forward on using 45-70 brass, full cylinder length?

I have got 10 pieces of Hornady brass done, thinned the rim thickness and turned down rim diameter.
Run that into the Hornady crimp die and it will fit very nice into the 480 Blackhawk cylinder. Need trimmed to length, no biggy.

I am going to use 45 caliber cardboard over powder wads. Use two of the same to crimp over the top of shot.

Going to try titegroup for powder.

Any input, I am all ears.
Jeff

[JSH]

Well here was the one recipe I came up with

Hornady 45-70 case, reworked full cylinder length
Standard large pistol primer
Titegroup 5.0 grains
Vegetable fiber over powder wad
71/2 shot(all I had for now) ended up 290 grain payload + or -
45 caliber gas check over shot wad
300 WSM die put a very nice roll crimp on the mouth

Only one loaded.
Patterned very nice at five big paces.
Tied up the cylinder though.

Drill flash hole and try again?

Any of you that have prior experience I am all ears.

Jeff

[JSH]

I have read where some are spraying the shot with Hornady one shot. I am wondering if anyone has tried thinned out alox or some of the floor waxes to be of any benefit.
Jeff

[JSH]

Well this project is back on the bench.
What size drill bit to open up flash holes would those in the know suggest?
Jeff

[hodg0610]

I've got a box of 5-in-1 brass that I bought by mistake. Going to try making shotshells from that and firing them in a 410/45 LC derringer. For wads I used a hole punch at work that cuts out discs that are roughly 7/16 in diameter. Made a bunch out of cereal box material.

[BAGTIC]

1) The maximum distance a snake can strike is 1/2 its body length To be a threat at a distance of 7-10 feet the snake would have needed to be 14-20 feet long.

2) It is illegal to kill snakes, even copperheads, in Missouri.

[hodg0610]

I tried the 5-in-1 brass using 6.5 grains of unique, topped with an overpowder card, topped with as much 7.5 shot as I could fill the case with, topped with an overshot card. Topped that off with some Elmer's glue to hold everything in. Tried them in a single shot 45 LC/410 derringer today. Only tried 5 rounds, all of them worked fine. I only tested for function and didn't really check for pattern or penetration. It seems to shoot about a foot low at 10 feet.

The 5-in-1 brass already has an oversized flash hole of approximately 9/64 diameter. The cases are a good bit longer than 45 LC cases. The 5-in-1 cases are 1.55" vs 1.28" for 45 colt. They are obviously not as long as a 410 shell. The diameter (.43" at the mouth) is also smaller than either a 45 LC or 410 shell, but that didn't appear to matter for function. There is some noticeable expansion of a few thousandths at the case mouth after firing.

Overall, I'm pleased with this so far and will experiment further. Just glad I found a use for this 5-in-1 brass.

[St. Hogustine]

How does the spread compare from a round that uses a plastic wadding/cup to one that does not, from a rifled pistol barrel? I'm wondering what will work best in my 7.5" Super Redhawk.

[BAGTIC]

Snakes, including copperheads, are protected in Missouri. Not lawful to kill them.

[JSH]

Anyone done anything more on the 480 shot loads? Got some things out of the way and I can get back on this again for a while. I never did drill my flash holes, I will review what others have done.

[Ramjet-SS]

This is intriguing for sure but I have a 6" Tuarus Judge that shoots 2.5" 410 and its killer on small rodents and snakes. Sounds like someone needs to make a shot cup like Speer had for the 44 mag 45 colt it would add substantial shot to the mighty 480. Maybe some drilled out poly rod diameter smaller than the case ID so it can extend into the throat and a crimping groove?

Similar to these for the 45 colt http://https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1010937313/speer-empty-shot-capsules-45-colt-long-colt-box-of-25

[Warhawk]

I’ve done the following for 45 Colt snake loads when there was no plastic capsule.

Load a light charge of 231, seat a gas check over the powder. Fill the case with shot and seat another gas check, upside down and crimp in place. Works great, kills snakes dead, never had any primer problems and I always used my odds and ends brass for this.

[nicholst55]

I’ve done the following for 45 Colt snake loads when there was no plastic capsule.

Load a light charge of 231, seat a gas check over the powder. Fill the case with shot and seat another gas check, upside down and crimp in place. Works great, kills snakes dead, never had any primer problems and I always used my odds and ends brass for this.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?77286-Revolver-shot-loads-that-WORK!

[15meter]

I have read where some are spraying the shot with Hornady one shot. I am wondering if anyone has tried thinned out alox or some of the floor waxes to be of any benefit.
Jeff

Getting the shovel out for this one, first, I did have success with the 45-70 cylinder length loads. But they were for a buddy and I didn't write down the particulars. And he retired and moved 5 hours away. Need to call him and have him read what I put on the box of loaded ammo.

I'm going to load up some 45 ACP loads in 308 brass, I have the same question about lubing the shot, I'm thinking something along the lines of Ben's Liquid Lube. Batch of shot in tub, add BLL and swirl.

Sound plan of action? Or waste or time?

Haven't been able to find out if anybody else lubes shot for pistol loads.

[257X50]

I’m finishing a 480 RedHawk
Going to cut it for moon clips and use 284 brass blown out.

[littlejack]

Old thread I see.
I've been building shotshells for my Uberti 45 Evil Roy, and my Winchester 45 Colt AE Trapper. Using cut down 460 S&W cases. To keep the shot from leading the barrel, I make a paper tube (tracing velum) inserted in the case to encase the shot. These cartridges carry what the 2.5" 410 shotshell carries, with a few more pellets. 220 grains of #9.