Loading #00 Buckshot

[gingerbreadman]

I have some load data but it calls for 20 grains of "BP sdc Buffer", can someone explain what this is??? I just loaded a few rounds without this stuff and it shot fine. Im having a little trouble however getting nice crimps with this buckshot. can i put a card over top of the shot? I cant buy them in canada but i have a handy dandy 5/8 (i think) hole punch that goes through cereal box cardboard like butter... will this hurt anything to try???

-gbm-

[sargenv]

I have some load data but it calls for 20 grains of "BP sdc Buffer", can someone explain what this is??? I just loaded a few rounds without this stuff and it shot fine. Im having a little trouble however getting nice crimps with this buckshot. can i put a card over top of the shot? I cant buy them in canada but i have a handy dandy 5/8 (i think) hole punch that goes through cereal box cardboard like butter... will this hurt anything to try???

Yes, you can load your buckshot without the buffer material and actually, it will cause your pressure to drop a bit. They buffer buckshot loads so that the pellets stay uniformly more round. And again yes, you can add an overshot card without adding to the pressure of the load. If you want to do special loads like this, I suggest you pick up the "Slug and buckshot manual" from Ballistic Products. You can find them on the web by doing a web search on the name above. They sell everything to do with loading shotshells. You will find with an over shot card supporting the crimp that you will make nore uniform looking loads.

btw, the BP sdc buffer is probably manufactured and sold by Ballistic Products (hence the BP).

Vince

[JD45]

Buckshot loading in general is a subject that could use some serious discussion. I always wondered that if you had a total buckshot pellet weight equal to(or slightly less) than a manual listed birdshot charge you might could use the same data. I finally got one powder company on the phone to say that the practice was safe. Meaning that any 1 1/8oz. data could be substituted for the same weight of buckshot. I loaded many shells of nine and also twelve pellets of number 1 buck and found some nice light loads. I'm not trying to talk anyone into trying this without consulting a powder company, but it seemed to be safe. Light buckshot loads, like under 1100fps, pattern tight and knock down steel with authority.

[hoodhazard]

Federal uses buffer in some of their buckshot.Large pellets and slugs behave differently in the shot column than small shot.Consult known load manuals like Ballistic products,Lyman etc first.One can buy a roll crimper for $30 bucks and primed hulls and save a lot of money.Heck,you can buy a mold off ebay for $20 and even cast the stuff.(Time consuming)Shotgun barrels are a wee bit thin aren't they?Exceeding pressure maxinums by just 10% can result in dangerous pressures.Danger Will Robinson?

[Intel6]

JD45, I have been casting and loading my own buckshot for sometime now and have nothing but excellent performance. I started playing with .410 and then moved on to 12 ga loads. I have also loaded "low recoil" OO loads, both 9 and 12 pellet by just weighing the payload, picking an appropriate charge and then finding the right wad that will fit everyting in the hull so I can crimp it.

I make my OO pellets out of Wheel Weights so I know they are harder than regular OO pellets and I think that migh be why they shoot so well. I was testing some loads out of my 1100 (built just like the CM for 3 gun) and I also fired some Federal tactical OO buck and I was getting performance almost equal to the Federal stuff with my handloads. I can tell you a reduced recoil 12 pellet OO buck load that shoot like a 1 oz. target load is awesome and put a lot of lead on target.

Lately I have been playing with a load that has 6 x OO pellets and a load of #9's all in one shell. Takes down poppers like OO buck and can still break clays like a shot load.

Neal in AZ

[sargenv]

Lately I have been playing with a load that has 6 x OO pellets and a load of #9's all in one shell. Takes down poppers like OO buck and can still break clays like a shot load.

This would be known as duplexing. I've done this in the past when loading steel shot, and while the loads worked, I couldn't determine of it was because of the differing shot sizes or just that the bird received the adequate # of pellets needed to bring it down. There is a load that BP makes that is 6-00 pellets and a 7/8 ounce fracture slug. Apparently the idea is that it would be for dangerous game. Maximum damage, and all that. While I've loaded some of these (they have stout recoil) it would be the equivalent of loading 1 5/8 ounces of lead. It was loaded utilizing an Activ 2 3/4" hull, which has about the largest internal capacity of any hull I've ever found in that length.

Ballistic Products does have several good manuals on loading shotshells for specialty applications. I have an older version of the slug and buckshot manual, and I've found that the loading data is the same as the equivalent payload capacity of the finer bird shots. Roll crimping can be helpful to increase velocity as BP states that a roll crimp is less effort to open than a folded crimp and this translates to about 1000-1500 psi of chamber pressure difference. However I wouldn't take any old load and roll crimp it, it may actually not work quite as well as intended and I would still highly reccomend buying the manuals from BP.

Vince

[gingerbreadman]

JD45, I have been casting and loading my own buckshot for sometime now and have nothing but excellent performance.  I started playing with .410 and then moved on to 12 ga loads.  I

Neal in AZ

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Im intrigued, what type of mold do you use for this?? surely its not a single cavity???

where can I get one???

-gbm-

[Intel6]

, I though I might pique your intrest.

I started with a 2 cavity Lee mould as a "proof of concept" to make may own OO buck and load them. Once I found I could load some great rounds I relaized that my pellet making capability lacking. When you start adding up how many pellets you need for a box of 25 9 or 12 pellet loads, the two cavity mould doesn't cut it. I had heard of a mould from a fishing lure company that was for making pellets for slingshots. I investigated and found the Do-It mould company. The mould was two sided and would cast 9 x roughly .38 cal balls and 11 x roughly .30 cal balls. Below is a pic of the mould with a casting in place on both sides of the mould.

The big problem as you can see from the photo is that the mould doesn't have a sprue cutter. The moulds are made to cast the item and then snip off the sprue with cutters. I was immediatly leary of this as I knew it would possibly leave a nub of lead on the pellet. I kept looking and found no other option so I decided to try it to see how it worked. I got the mould and cast up a batch of the smaller pellets and used sharp wire cutters to cut them off the sprue. Most of them weren't as bad as I thought they would be with just small nubs of lead. I loaded them up with the same loads I had worked up for the Lee cast pellets and got some excellent shooting loads. I am pleased with the mould and it sure does help with being able to produce enough pellets to make it worth my while. I now tend to load and shoot my reduced recoil 12 pellet load all the time since I can make them so easy.

Here is the link to the mould, it is item #1152:

Do-it mould

Hope this was informative, if you need any more info PM me and we can discuss off line.

Neal in AZ

[sargenv]

Man,

That's cool. Casting your own Buckshot. Ever thought about casting your own slugs, either foster style or round ball? I believe Ballistic Products sells both moulds for doing just that.

Vince

[Intel6]

Yes I have thought of it I have been making and loading my own slugs longer than I have been doing the OO Buck stuff. I load and cast the Lyman slug that looks like a big airgun pellet and I also cast the two weights (7/8 & 1 oz.) of the Lee slug. Just also started playing with a cast .690" ball. I was going to mention it but that is a whole nuther topic.

Neal in AZ

Man,

  That's cool. Casting your own Buckshot. Ever thought about casting your own slugs, either foster style or round ball? I believe Ballistic Products sells both moulds for doing just that.

Vince

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[Wap wap]

Normally you can get a good crimp by reducing the 00 by one pellet. Be careful not to short a powder load if you are using a progressive as it will bridge the load with 00 feed the next round and if you shoot will bulge the barrel. Pumpkin ball loads as slugs- I use an NEI mould with (wheel weights) regular trap loads works great. cone of fire is about double of a good slug, but very good to practice with.

[sargenv]

Normally you can get a good crimp by reducing the 00 by one pellet.

That's funny. I load these on a single stage press and generally 00 buck loads 3 pellets per level, 9 pellets for 1 1/8 ounces, 12 for 1.5 ounces, and if you really want some recoil, 15 pellets for 1 7/8 ounces. Generally, the 15 pellet 00 is only loadable in a 3" hull however I believe you may be able to fit that many into an Activ hull (BP had 1 7/8 ounce load data available for the 2.75" Activ hull). Maybe I just spend way too much time doing this?

Vince