sixgunluvr

Dump dirty brass in tupperware...add 30%vinegar, 70%water and a squirt of dish soap. Shake/rattle/roll for a few minutes. Dry and wipe clean, allow a couple hours to dry next to the wood stove.....ready to load with a single stage press and carbide dies. Use fine steel wool for any exceptionally dirty or stained brass.

Sir, Yes the resized case by itself reads the same depth as the dummy with a bullet @1.107 I'm now pumping them out at 1.10 w/ 6.5gr of HS-6. Seems to be a shorter OAL range with these 'xtp type' hollowpoints. Hornady 4th Edition lists down to 1.050 i believe for the xtp. The MG(FMJ HP)/xtp profile bullets seem to need deeper seating than the CMJ or TMJ's...

Hmm... ok will give it a shot and see what it looks like............. UPdate: Tried it.. got the same exact depth measurement.

Hmm... ok will give it a shot and see what it looks like.

Like i mentioned already, recoil is a complete non issue, ... pf? Is this an issue for my backyard practice sessions?

That's what i used....a resized case with bullet seated increasingly deeper....a 'dummy' round.

RTP, Yep the 'plunk' test was illustrated in the pics above. 1.107 was a micro hair below flush as shown in the next to last pic above. I checked a couple factory of the same weight and profile(xtp's)at the same time and they looked exactly the same. I settled on 1.102 OAL at 6.5gr of HS-6. If it cycles the action consistently i'm good. If not i'll bump it up a 1/10th of a grain or so. I normally like the MG TMJ's but i guess it wasn't a big deal to switch to these. Just needed to check seating depth as discussed and change the seating stem in my press.

Ok, Thanks Jack, your using words like comp..and minor...? I don't think this applies to me. Again, i do not shoot any type of competition...ever. My cases are coming out clean and recoil is what i consider extremely mild. That's probably because most of my shooting is done with the .44 mag which i consider to be mild to moderate with standard 240gr factory ammo out of my 10.5 Super BlackHawk. Saving a few pennies, recoil, excess smoke or flash are completely insignificant for my purposes. My main concern is the OAL. I'm wanting to know specifically if i should start loading at the longest OAL(flush with the shroud), which is 1.107 or if there is ANY reason i should go shorter.... say 1.095 Ok..loaded up a batch and compared to some factory xtp's. Looks good final load to try is 6.5gr HS-6 at OAL of 1.102

Montana Gold 115 HP Non Expanding Decided i better check with my barrel to be sure. I've learned enough now to know i'd better, especially after reading about nose profiles in relation to bullet seating depth and after loading some xtp's. Good thing i checked...here are the results. Pic #1 1.14 OAL Pic #2 1.13 (My typical oal with MG FMJ 115gr and 6.7gr HS-6) PIc# 3 1.107( seats a micro hair below flush) This was in my Astra A-70 and seating was exactly the same in the Star BM9 Thinking i'm gonna start at 6.5gr. of HS-6 due to the deeper seating depth. Experts... any input? No i don't have a chronograph..

I'm a novice reloader and backyard outdoor shooter. I have been very happy with my preferred load recipe of 115gr MG FMJ over 6.7gr of HS-6 at 1.13 OAL out of my Astra A-70 and Star BM 9. I recently ordered a bunch of MG bullets thinking they were FMJ but turned out to be the non expanding HP's. So now i'm gonna switch,....can i start with the same load or do i need to start from scratch by checking seating depth in a removed barrel like i did when i loaded xtp's. Reason i ask is the MG HP looks very similar to the xtp's and they needed to be seated a little deeper. I believe i loaded them to 1.1 to 1.12

I loaded up some 250 Keith style bullets with a moderate charge of HS-6 according to my manuals. Have yet to try them though. I researched and others seem to agree that HS-6 is good for light 44 mag loads.

Decided to load up another 40 rounds...brass on the 3rd reload specs with almost no signs of wear, no need to tumble and only slight brushing needed on some of the primer pockets. Gonna try 4.6 gr of HS-6 under 147gr MG CMJ again at 1.14 OAL.... this time making sure my crimp is .377 instead of .379 and see if i can avoid any FTFeed due to the bullet getting scuffed by the prior case head exctraction. This was a seemingly low powered round with this OAL and seems easy on the gun with empty cases falling directly next to me. This is fun.

Hmm, maybe this is why i had a recent FTFeed. I noticed the top of the bullet was scraped/scuffed on the top. I mistakenly thought i may have the OAL slightly too long but that didn't jive with my max Magazine depth testing that showed i should have had plenty of leeway and didn't seem to explain the heavy scuff that was along the front 1/3 of the bullet rather than just the tip. Based on your info./experience....... i bet the base of the extracting round hit the next bullet in the mag as it came up........my .379 crimp needed to be closer to .376-.378 Thank You! I'm learning. This was with a recent load of 4.6gr of HS-6 under a 147 MG CMJ and nickel brass with OAL of 1.14 Crimp was .378-.379 I had no FTFeed or scuffed bullets from the same load(4.6gr HS-6) using .376-.377 crimp at OAL of 1.125 and standard brass.

Was wanting a jacketed bullet that acted more like a solid. Minimal expansion/max penetration Mostly though i just wanted to know that HS-6 is at least feasible, it's all i have right now. Max load from the Lee 2nd Ed shows HS-6 as only 111fps less than the H-110 load with a 300xtp. HS-6 is listed as #30 on the powder burn rate chart with H-110 at #39 and Alliant 2400 in between.