Wads for Lyman 525 gr "Pellet" Slug

[Hanzy4200]

I see multiple videos and sources detailing the use of numerous wads with this slug. However, the only wads listed in my manual are the WAA12F114 and WAA12R. Where do guys get data for the million other wads? Is it safe to use loads from say published field loads of the same weight? Would data for a 1 1/4 oz field load be safe with this slug? I have Fig 8's, MG42, RP12, Versalite Blue, Brush Wads, ect.

[W.R.Buchanan]

These Lyman Pellet Slugs and the Lyman Foster Style Slugs and Lee Slugs were designed to be substituted for shot in field loads. Open the crimp dump out the shot, insert the slug adn reclose the crimp.

Reloads in the same pressure range generated at these levels give you some leeway as to what style of wad you want to use. But a standard WAA12 or Claybuster Clone or close will work just fine.

The Lyman Shotshell Loading Manual has loads for these slugs as do various Manuals from BPI. But as long as you stay below1250-1300 fps loads, you can mix and match to some degree as long as you are cautious and cross reference your proposed loads across various data sources. The biggest spike in pressures we've seen is substituting Federal Primers for others in high pressure loads. Those primers cna spike a load 2-3000 psi which can be a problem.

My Standard Slug loads are all built around Green Dot Shotshell Powder and Unique. My Green Dot loads are 18 gr of GD in my 1 1/8 oz Trap Loads. Those same loads are used with Lee and Lyman Slugs using the same wads and primers etc. So a few grains of payload won't cause a problem and even if there is a slight rise in pressure I am still way below the danger zone.

Other slugs I use are loaded with 23 gr of Unique, and those loads came from the data supplied with STI Sabots, which range from 23 to 27 gr of Unique depending on how hard you want to push the slug. I'm good in the 1250 -1300fps range so I went with the 23 gr load.

All of the loads for STI Sabot Slugs are published on the STI Website www.slugsrus.com. I am using this load which is meant for the lead insert which yields a 495 gr projectile. I use the same load with my Brass Insert Loads which weigh 550 gr and it makes absolutely no difference,,, "Because I am at the lower end of the pressure levels." So there is a built in safety factor here.

If I was using loads that were designed to generate 1500 fps+ with the lead insert with healthy amounts of Blue Dot it could push the pressures too high and then substituting a Federal Primer could push it right out the top. So You've got to understand what you are trying to do and

I highly recommend that you Stay on the Lower End of Slug and Buckshot loads because you really don't need to push things any farther since nothing you are going to shoot will live thru a 500 gr slug at 1300 fps.

Now if you are going to shoot big bears or something that bites, then you might want to load them hotter? But you really don't need to load that many hot slugs cuz you can go down and buy some Butt Kicker Slugs in packages of 5 have more than enough umph to do what you need for <$10.

There are also Brenneke Slugs which run up to the "Mega Butt Kicker" Level, which you will probably only fire once in your lifetime !
A 1.5oz. slug at 1650 fps will take down anything on earth as well as Dinosaurs, and Light Pick Up Trucks,,, but the recoil is devastating. Hence the "once in a lifetime" point.

These slugs are almost twice as powerful as a .458 Win Mag, and most people don't really need that much power. But it's nice to know that Jurassic Park is within your reach if your really need to go there!.

My whole reason for getting into slug loading is that I fired two "Federal Maximum" 11/8 oz. slugs at 1610 fps at two targets in a 3 gun shoot from behind a bale of hay. Me and my 7 lb. Mossberg 500 were not prepared for the recoil from them and dislocated a rib in my chest, which took three trips to my Chiropractor to fix! I immediately looked for less dramatic ways to ring a steel target, which lead me to Pumpkin Balls loaded in my Trap Reloads. A 1 oz round ball is still a pretty formidable projectile even at 1150 fps..

99% of the slugs I fire now are either Federal "Low Recoil" Slugs at 1250-1300 fps, or my reloaded slugs which are even lighter than those. Pumpkin Balls and Lee Slugs top the List.

Here's something you need to grasp. "Nothing lives thru a good hit by a 12 ga shotgun slug."

You are wielding alot of power just showing up with a shotgun in the first place, no need to make a big mess.

Hope this helps.

Randy

[Hanzy4200]

Very informative. Thank you. One thing to note. Recoil is very subjective. My brother in law, who by the way is a 5" taller than I as well as a good 75 lbs heavier, struggles with pheasant loads. I will shoot 20=30 10 pellet 00 buck loads in a sitting. It has a lot to do with experience, form, and confidence. Not saying in any way that you are lacking those. I've fired the Brenneke's. They are no joke.

A fun side note. I was doing the math today. My .500 Linebaugh, loaded near max, will skitter a 500 gr hard cast out at 1,600 fps. That's more energy than a full power 1 oz rifled slug. In a handheld firearm weighing less than 5 lbs. She'll blow your hair back.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Hanzy: The math part of it is the subjective part. The real unit of measurement is not Ft Lbs it is TKO,,,

Or "Taylor Knock Out."

It is a formula that yields a number which facilitates the comparison of different projectile's abilities to "transfer their energy to a target," or "Knock It Down." It tends to favor larger calibers because the frontal area of the projectile is what transfers the energy. And the larger the dia of the boolit the faster it will transfer it's energy.

The Formula for it is,,, Weight of Bullet in Gr. X Velocity X Diameter / 7000

Examples:

Federal Low Recoil 1oz 2 3/4" slug, 437 gr. x 1300 fps x .730 / 7000 = TKO 59.25 .

.500 Linebaugh, 500 gr x 1600 fps x .500 /7000 = TKO 57 Comparable to the Low Recoil Slugs

.458 Win Mag, 500 gr x 2150 fps x .458/7000 = TKO 70 .

Federal Power Shock Maximum 2 3/4" Slug 437gr x 1610 fps x .730/7000= TKO 73.3 This is a common off the shelf round widely used for hunting and is kind of overkill for deer sized game.

Brenneke Magnum Crush 1.5 oz. 3" Slug 655gr x 1604 fps x .730/7000 = TKO 110 !!! This one is good for anything on Earth!

Plenty of other Slug Loads between the Low Recoil ones and the Butt Kicker Loads. Something for everyone and everything and they've been developed over the last 130 years!

The way this works is the .458 Win Mag is moving much faster and in Shear Ft Lbs will appear to be more powerful as it assumes that all of it's energy is transferred at Impact. However it will not transfer all of it's energy on Impact, and in fact it will probably completely penetrate the target dumping the remainder of it's energy into the dirt beyond the target.

Hence more Ft. Lbs. doesn't necessarily translate to energy transfer to the target,, Which is kind of the whole idea!

A Shotgun Slug due to it's much Larger Frontal Area will dump all it's energy before penetrating very far into dense meat and bone. Even if it fully penetrates, it will still have transferred a higher percentage of it's energy (2.5 times more than the .458) due to the larger frontal area of the slug.

Frontal Area of a .45 cal. Boolit is .165 Sq. In. FA of a 12 ga Slug is .418 Sq. In. (+2.5 x )

or 2.5 times greater than the .45 cal. boolit. Hence it is easy to see how the slug works and transfers it's energy more efficiently than a Smaller Diameter Boolit.

This is also why a .73 Caliber 525 gr. Wadcutter Slug like the Lyman can be so devastating launched at the relatively low velocity of 1300 fps. TKO = 71.2 !!! or right next to those Federal Max Slugs that traded Weight for Velocity.

This is also why "Nothing Lives thru a Slug!"


Randy