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Favorite And Hated Loads


ErikW

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Finishing up a case of AAs and getting into a case of Fiocchi Multisports got me to thinking about the huge difference in shotshells. The AAs are my most-liked and the Multisports are tied for my most-hated. All the others are about the same to me.

Winchester AA Light Target 1.125 oz. #8 2.75 DRAM (AA) :wub:

Rio Sporting 32 1.125 oz. #8 3 RAM 1200 fps :wub:

Fiocchi VIP Light 1.125 oz. #8 2.75 DRAM 1150 fps (VIPL)

Fiocchi VIP Heavy 1.125 oz. #7.5 3 DRAM 1200 fps (VIPH)

B & P 1.125 oz. #8 (3 DRAM?)

Fiocchi White Rino 1.125 oz. #7.5 Handicap DRAM 1250 fps (WRNO)

Fiocchi Trap Light 1.125 oz. #8 2.75 DRAM 1140 fps (TRAPL)

Fiochhi Trap Heavy 1.125 oz. #7.5 3 DRAM 1185 fps (TRAPH)

Winchester AA Heavy Target 1.125 oz. #8 3 DRAM (AAH)

Estate 1.125 oz. #8 2.75 DRAM

Fiocchi Multisport 1 oz #8 3 DRAM 1250 fps (MS3) :(

Winchester-Western 1.125 oz. #8 1145 fps (WEST) :angry:

The AAs are my favorite because they are light, clean, and extract easily. However, I had a bulged AA round I couldn't chamber and my shooting buddy had a misfire. Plus I give the hulls to my shooting buddies who reload.

The Rios are a close second. Less recoil than other 3 DRAM loads. They seem to have the bark without the bite. At $36.99 per case, I'll be shooting Rio ammo.

The Westerns are my most-hated because they are extremely dirty and are reluctant to extract.

The Multisports have punishing recoil and a couple were a little reluctant to extract.

I just bought a case of Estate cartridges. On our recent Sporting Clays trip, one of the Browning O/Us wouldn't lock up with Estates chambered. (The gun closed but the thick rims prevented the lever from centering and the trigger was disconnected.)

I only shot onebox of the high-zoot B&P. They had a little less recoil than some of the similar loads, but they were nothing special (besides the price and classy look). My buddy had one with a bad crimp that wouldn't chamber in his Browning.

Edited by Erik Warren
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Erik,

Count me in on the Fiocchi comment, absolute crap.

Last box had problems extracting from Win 1300. So much so it ripped the extractor thru rim

on several rounds.

For bargain basement stuff Wolf buckshot is great practice fodder.

Trap loads, Win AA or Rem premeir, both from walmart. Good hulls.

Travis F.

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Overall, I would go with the AA for it's good recoil characteristics, breaking targets and the hull reloadability. Over the years I haven't found a bad load from them. Consistent quality overall.

If money was no object, I would shoot Federal paper and never look back.

At least in the old days anyway.

Federal has been bought and sold numerous times and their quality is not always there- IMHO. They own Estate now, which may explain the problems you had- shame!!

Not bad, not great: Remington, for no particular reason.

You don't need a reason to dislike a shotgun shell if you have shot several bad scores with them. It must be the shell!!!

Worst shell- Fiocchi or "Finokeyo" as I call them. Hard kicking and didn't smell good. I could have tried some of their others, but why bother?

There is a ton of imported shells now to try for good prices, but I am too lazy to experiment. I'll just reload AA's.

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I can't comment on the Wolf, but everthing else shoots the same to me. Even the Fiocchi's. FWIW, I have zippola problems with the "Optima" flavor of Fiocchi's. Win AA, Feds, Rem STS are all good. They're all squeaky clean. They all break targets. Damned if I can tell any recoil or performance differences between any of them. Even my crappy reloads with 15 year old Red Dot work flawlessly.

I buy whatever's cheap or on sale and stuff it in my gun and forget about it.

If you're going to reload ever, Rem STS seem to be the best hulls going. Other than that, I can imagine having a preference other than price. If you're getting serious, you will want to find a shell with 6% antimony in the shot for consistent patterning. (Bargain shells might have 3%. 6% is the optimum.)

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I shoot Bashieri&Pellagri. 1 1/8 oz at 1400 for hunting and clays, diamond hard shot, very clean, and will fold a dove at 50yds if you do your part. They also make a 1 oz at 1150 which is great also.

Second choice is Federal Paper. I shoot B&P so my Italian shotgun 682 Beretta will feel at home and not be nervous on the hard shots.

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  • 2 weeks later...
"If you're getting serious, you will want to find a shell with 6% antimony in the shot for consistent patterning. (Bargain shells might have 3%. 6% is the optimum.)"

What is antimony??? This is a new one on me, as I am new to bustin clays... I haven't started reloading yet, but I have been told that the Remington STS and Win. AA's have the best hulls. Due to that I only buy them for my shooting. Tell me about antimony and the percentages.

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Triggerpresser,

Antimony is a metal that they add to harden the lead shot. According to B&P (if I remember correctly), 6% antimony is the optimum blend that gives the hardest shot without reducing density too much.

Antimony is expensive, however. The bargain shells typically use 3% (or less) antimony which means the lead shot will deform more easily and your pattern will spread out sooner. (and you'll lose some velocity sooner) Shooting bargain shells, contrary to commonly espoused dogma, will NOT create patterns with "holes" in them any more than high-zoot loads. All shotgun loads disperse lead with a gaussian distribution, no matter what the antimony level. The only difference is how fast the pattern opens up.

For practice, trigger time is vastly more important than an expensive shell with beacoup antimony. Think cheap. If your patterns aren't dense enough, just move up a choke and forget about it.

Your friends are correct about the hulls. STS and AA are the best. STS seems better than the AA to me. I'm not sure that reloading 12 ga. is economical anymore however. For all the other gauges, yes. I do still reload because I have a boat load of components left over. Once they're gone. I'm done.

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Triggerpresser,

Eric is especiall right about loading shotshells of the clays type, if you load something similar

to 1 1/8 oz 3 dram eqv., it's just not worth the effort.

Travis F.

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  • 1 month later...

Anyone shooting Kent Velocity shells??? I have had real good luck with their spreaders and thier Diamon hard shotshells, but don't know how they would compair to the AAs or B&P as I don't do enough of this to have a good handle on shell performance! KURT

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Kurtm

I haven't shot AA for a while now, but it is just because of $$, not that they aren't a good shell. If I got them for the same $$ I spent on the B&P I would shoot AA.

The criteria for me is very simple, they have to be cheap (to buy in bulk), clean, and consistent. B&P does those things, but so do lots of others like the Rios that Erik found, which I am going to give a try. Unless someone is providing your ammo for free, I have no permanent bonds with any type of ammo would shoot most anything if the price is right, and it meets my criteria.

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Kurt,

What TL said...

Most modern ammo is good stuff these days. One idea to try is to call/visit better Sporting Clays ranges. They've generally offer decent shells for sale at a deep discount and have already sorted through the chaff. I think I was paying about $35 a case for Fiocchi Optima's down in Oregon at Mitchell's and was perfectly happy with them.

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  • 1 month later...

I've been shooting the PMC Optima 7-1/2's lately. I think they say 1180 fps or something like that, but they shoot fairly soft, work good, and don't gunk up the barrel. I get them from my club for about $40 a case out the door.

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  • 4 years later...

I shoot whatever is on sale - I usually get the Remington promo 1 oz 12 gauge at Dick's or Bass Pro for bout $3 per box on sale. Academy just has the Winchester 1 oz 12 gauge prmo loads for $3 per box.

I get the Remington Gun Club 12 gauge at Dicks for $4 to $4.50 on sale - I usually use that for tournaments.

At these prices, I quit reloading so I see no value in getting AAs or STSs for hulls.

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Cheaper the better on practice days. When it is a buck a bird AA or Rem Nitro's or Rio's.

Kurt, the Diamond shot is the %6 stuff EricW was talking about. Most of this is moot unless WE (me too)

are hitting patterning board.

My mod choked 870 will bust whatever a 410 can hit with Rio's. Ok, it must be properly piloted but that is another story.

Patrick

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  • 2 weeks later...

Over on Shotgunworld.com a guy came up with a 3/4 oz load for Win AA or Rem STS hulls using Promo powder and the Claybuster replacements for the WAA12L. Load them up with #9 shot and they smoke clays!! These are the loads I use for skeet, 5 stand and most sporting clay shots under 35 yds. I can not tell a difference in my scores between the 3/4 oz and the 1 1/8 oz loads. But there is a HUGE difference in the recoil and the enjoyment of shooting all day and not have that "hit in the head feeling" when your done. It also does wonders for the flinch factor.

BTW..These load do not work in most semi auto guns, I shoot them out of my Browning Cynergy. They are cheap to reload and fun to shoot. Right now that is my favorite load for flying birds.

Scott

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