Shot capsules for the 44 mag T/C hotshots.

[DIRT Farmer]

I have no idea where the proper place to put this but I wanted to use them for hunting so hear goes.

Many years ago I bought a 44 hotshot/44 mag barrel for my T/C Contender for general fun. The loads were expensive, heck the capsules for reloadng were more than I wanted to spend and only held a scant 3/8 ounce of shot but over the years I shot a few rabbits and one dove with it but spending enough to get very good with it was not in my budget.

Enter learning more about paper patching here, and while Iwas resting from cleaning fot Thanksgiving, I noticed a junk AAA battery that was lying around. Having an empty 44 Mag case in my pocket, I wraped it twice with some note book paper and it was a slipfit. Now experminting with something shooting beats cleaning, I was on a mission. It turns out that paper patching a AAA battery gives a capsule that with the end folded over holds 1/2 ounce of shot and enough ends to make a crimp. I resized a few cases primed them, found I had to flare them to get the shot capsule in. I went to my 410 loader, used my normal 410 load of powder (in this case Winchester 820) put in a 44 hard card (used for loading 410 brass cases) seated it with the 410 loader, and use the resizing die for the 44mag to takeout the flare. I did have to use a rod to push out the shot capsule to keep it in the case intact. I used some with glue and some with out glue, fired 6, and the patterns were at least 410 improved cylinder. Now after some thing to shoot later.
Others may have tried this or simular but I was suprised how well it workes, and how long it took me to get the idea to try it.
Alan

[Larry Gibson]

Well done, very good ingenuity!

Larry Gibson

[taco650]

Do you have pics of the process and the final product?

[Crawdaddy]

This is awesome. I too have a contender with a 44 barrel and have wanted to try shot capsules.

Too clarify, it is only the notebook paper holding the shot? My reading comprehension leaves something to be desired.

I would second the request for pics.

Great job

[helice]

Like Taco650 I'd love to see this in pictures.

[DIRT Farmer]

I wish I was techno advanced to post pictures, but.
The cup is formed with the bottom closed, and seated in the case over the wad. I then drop the shot and fold the top sealing it with a drop of glue. The paper is shreded when it leaves the barrel.

[dale2242]

Very clever. Try a gas check in place of the card wad.
What DF is building is a paper shot capsule by wrapping the paper around a battery.

Do you have a Hot Shot seating die or do you seat them by hand? ......dale

[Bad Water Bill]

Many many years ago there were several articles making snake loads with a 357 mag.

IIRC a gas check went in over the powder.

A gel capsule (purchased at your local drug store) was filled with shot and inserted into the brass.

Reverse a gas check and insert over the capsule and crimp in place.

Sorry that I do not remember more but going back more than 30 years is getting harder as the years flash by.

[DIRT Farmer]

I have tried almost every idea that has come up including using a gel capusle that I had for filling with medication for livestock over gas checks, card wads, paper stuffing wads or whatever else I tried. Getting enough shot for a usful load has been the limiting factor.

Dale, I seat them by sliding the empty capsule in with my fingers.

I have used gas checks in the past butI am also known to be cheap, I can get the wads at Friendship for a lot less by the thousand for about 1/4th the cost of gas checks.

[taco650]

How does the inside of your barrel look after firing a few of these?

[Crawdaddy]

I'm off to the reloading room to build some DF Shotshells. As he pointed out you can pretty much build these cups to hold more shot.

DF how much shot have you tried? Is 1/2 ounce the max? Any issues with pressure ?

If you can email the pics to me I can post them for you.

[fcvan]

I used the make shot shells with store bought gas checks and they worked great. Now I make my own checks. I mostly did .357 back when I lived near Mojave and used to enjoy hunting for rattlesnakes. When I moved to Northern California I had a lot of rats and opossum to deal with. Hunting rats at dusk was a hoot on the 3 1/2 acres I owned. I had to switch to a pellet rifle after the neighbors complained about the noise. I still have a half sack of #9 shot I bought just for loading in my pistol. Now I have .45 vaquero and need to load up some snake rounds for it too. Good fun!

[DIRT Farmer]

Crawdaddy I just loaded what was set up in my loader, it currently is set on my skeet load. I bought 4 8 pound jugs of 820 pull down from GI brass and recieved another jug as a prize thinking I had a lifetime supply. It is amazing how fast a 410 burns powder. I would think the proper load for a 3 inch shell would be fine for the gun but more recoil. I am using CCI large pistol and it shows slight pressure, more than 44spl loads but less than 44 mag.

[thebigmac]

Hey DIRT Farmer--- I may still have some Speer shot capsules down in my shop. If you want them, let me know & I'll mail them to you, no charge. thebigmac

[dale2242]

I have tried the Speer shot capsules in my Hot Shot barrel.
They work fine....dale