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My process for making a reduced size, lower recoil 20 gauge shotgun shell

3K views 15 replies 5 participants last post by  randkl 
#1 ·
#3 ·
If we lived closer I think we would be friends. The process looks good but the video drags along a little slow. Example: the overshot card part took a really long time for you to get into the floor and start making them. In reality that part could be edited to a 15 second segment of you saying with a 5/8 hole punch and a cutting board I make the shot cards. Then proceed to punch 2 or 3. I would still subscribe and watch the your videos but I would skim through them and that will negatively effect your YouTube algorithm.
 
#5 ·
I completely agree with your opinion that it was taking too long. I am a bit under the weather and found myself speaking slower to avoid more coughing and wheezing.

I try to keep my videos as brief as possible as it make me crazy when people just keep rambling.

I regret not working from a script as well.
 
#7 ·
I reload 410 shells in a similar manner. Of course there is no Lee Loadall for the 410 so I had to make a loading plate. Easy to do.

When I load them I set up to load 25 at a time. Sort of a little production run. One tip is that I save all my loaded shells to the end and then do the roll crimp on all of them at once. The roll crimper needs to be hot to make the best roll crimps.

For the first crimp I preheat the crimper with my torch. But not so hot it melts the hull. Once I have done the first crimp or two the crimper starts making the nicest crimps and crimps fast. Thats why I do 25 at the same time.

I made a shell holder out of wood that uses thumb pressure to hold the shell from spinning. If you want I will take a picture of it and post it here for you to see. I couldn't hold the shells by hand. You do need a holder of some sort.

I like your video. I like the 20ga the best. I need to order a bottle of #4 buck from BPI. I want to make some buck and ball loads with four #4 buck and a .530 round ball. I already make a two ball load by using a Remington SP-20 wad and two 530 balls. The SP-20 wad doesn't have the internal ridges that keep the balls from going all the way in.
 
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#10 ·
It would seem that you and I came to the same end on making .410. I have been making shortie using three pieces of .358 lead ball. I use a wad that works very much like a sabot. I cut it short so the crimp forms on the top lead ball. They hold very tightly out to about 20 yards.

I also made my shell holder out of wood and lock it in like the .20 gauge. I drilled out some washers and use them to resize the brass. Now I have a friend with a .410 press who sizes and primes the cases for me. They seem to work great in the Judge.
 
#15 ·
It would seem that you and I came to the same end on making .410. I have been making shortie using three pieces of .358 lead ball. I use a wad that works very much like a sabot. I cut it short so the crimp forms on the top lead ball. They hold very tightly out to about 20 yards.

I also made my shell holder out of wood and lock it in like the .20 gauge. I drilled out some washers and use them to resize the brass. Now I have a friend with a .410 press who sizes and primes the cases for me. They seem to work great in the Judge.
Sounds like you got it figured out for you. I like to load a 3 ball load in the .410 myself. I bought a Lee .395 RB mold that cast a 95gr round ball and use 3 in a shortened 410 shell.

I bought a 410 resizer from Mec and use that to drive over the shell and then I use a dowel inside the case to drive it back off in a hole that catches the resized and that also starts the primer out of the case. I use the stump wads from BPI with the 3 ball load.

I found this after I made my reloading set up. Its almost exactly what I am doing except that he bought a crimp folder and refolds his cases. So I guess a lot of us think alike.;)

https://fromthetrenchesworldreport.com/homemade-410-reloading-kit/60500
 
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#16 ·
Few years ago when I was first getting into substitute reloading, I was using a Lee LoadAll 2. I still do but I haven't loaded anything in a few years. Just no need and not much time. I found you can stack three of the Loadall resizing collets onto a hull and trim it and it made a 2 1/4" hull. Crimped, it was then a bit under 2". That number was kind of serendipitous in that if you trimmed a target shell wad, it fit the new hull perfectly and you could then stack SIX 00's and SIX BB shot into the new shorter shell and get a perfect star crimp. The resulting shell was higher velocity, less recoil, shorter and it took pretty much nothing but time to create. I was melting/pouring my own buck and slugs back then but I started buying them off of gunbroker to save the time. The extra birdshot, I was storing in 16oz Coke bottles in my shed. Quite a few of those stashed now.

I found an AA MagLite tube is the perfect size for a cutting aid. When handloading buck and slugs, it opens the hull the perfect size, too.

Get your setup just right once and our kind of reloading is no more difficult than any other.

Great thread, guys!
 
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