homemade buckshot shells

[doug66]

Any of you guys ever loaded 12ga with buckshot?

I got a trash bag of AA empties. Need to get a set of round ball molds and try to figure out what wads I will need. Might be fun.

Anyway I am looking for tips and pointers.

[Old Sarge]

Several years ago, I re-loaded several 410 shells with fishing split shot, for self protection. (#4's is the largest shot in a normal shell) Never had to use them, and later found that IF I HAD resorted to that, I could be charged with using "more heinous" methods, and is a much more serious charge.
At any rate, I'm sure it would have done the job, should it have come to that.

[doug66]

Wanting to buy Lee round ball mold, they sell .311 and .319. Anyone know what size these would be in buckshot terms?

[Tony22-250]

Here hope this helps!

Its between No.1 and No.0 buckshot.

[doug66]

Thanks Tony,
I could only find diameter up to BB. LEE list .319 mold and then it jumps to .380. I am going to order the the .319 diameter mold. I found a recipe on Hodgdon's web site, and I happen to have the components to load it. Thanks again.
#9 00 buck
W209 primer
WAA12F114 wad
30 gr HS-6
1250fps

[glocknut]

Originally Posted by Old Sarge

Never had to use them, and later found that IF I HAD resorted to that, I could be charged with using "more heinous" methods, and is a much more serious charge.

Sooo... with that logic...if a person has a pit bull that likes to "violate" the intruder before it eats the intruder whole...would that could be considered a "more heinous" defense dog?

Yes, i know...my mind works very differently than yours....

mike
gn

[doug66]

I bought a mold on eBay that casts 20 OO buck pellets at a time. This thing works great. $34.95

I loaded a few up this morning and headed to the range. Tight pattern out to 30' out of a 18.5" cylinder bore. This is gonna be fun.

30 gr. HS-6
WAA12F114 wad
(9) OO buck pellets
AA hulls

[polishshooter]

Look up Ballistics Products http://www.ballisticproducts.com/on the internet and send for their catalogue and their manual on loading slugs and buckshot, you'll learn more than you ever thought there was to learn from them, and they sell all the components, including different buckshots of different hardness for whatever you want to do.

I've loaded and experimented with a lot of buck, and buck and ball, and bird and ball, and bird and buck, and even buck and ball buffered with bird, that incidentally was a pretty interesting load to play with.

Basically, if you don't buffer and don't use any kind of wrap (teflon or mylar) and just randomly dump the buckshot in the hull you are just making a very close range load that will give pretty inconsistant results at any longer range, which will work for home defense at "Living Room" range, but buffering, careful stacking of the different pellets, in patterns that vary with the size you settle on, and using a gas seal base wad with a mylar wrap (I haven't tried the teflon yet) will impress you with the range you can get with a usable pattern, with different chokes, as well as the consistancy of the loads.

With a good load and practice with it you will know the pattern at all ranges with your gun, so much so head shots with a hostage target covering half of the bad guys head at 25 yds is not that tough of a shot by holding off enough to one side or the other...believe it or not.

John Shaw used to impress people with that "trick," but it's really not that hard once you know what you are doing, And NO, don't try it with MOST factory buck loads...


Keep in mind that ONE pellet of OOB hitting the target at 20 yds or so is about ballistically equivalent of hitting the target with one .32acp bullet...Buck is only "impressive" if you get multiple hits at once on the target.

[aa1911]

bump bump.... old thread, but if anyone is looking to do home buckshot or slugs, there's lot's of new molds now!

been using my 00 buck mould (18 cavity) from lee, very happy with it so far, casted roughly 10-12 lbs with it as well as my 7/8 oz slug mould from lee. plan on getting the 1 oz from lee as well as the new #4 buck mould (also 18 cavity). the #4 buck will be a bit more tedious but I imagine it will work just as good as the 00 buck.

9 pellets with a WAA12F114 wad and hull/powder of choice seems to be the best combo for me for both crimp and velocity/spread. Universal powder worked best for me. I have been cutting the pedals off also to make them chamber easier and it really didn't hurt the pattern that bad. Reliable 9 pellet hits on torso size cardboard out to a good 30 yds plus with a skeet choke.

I've been a fan of CircleFly Wads, they are based out of my homestate Pennsylvania and have great stuff. I also use the gas seals from Ballistic products.

Bottom line on this though (for me anyway) is that factory Federal buckshot rounds is all I will use for actual defense, as good as I can get my home loads, I only use them for practice/fun. Someone above touched on the subject of 'making deadlier rounds' and the legal after effects, plus factory ammo is new hulls and very consistent.

so who else is makin' buckshot? time to update this thread with the new products/load info out there...

[JLA]

Ill send you a tool box full of '00' buck for your trashcan of empties.

*edit* dang, just realized its an old thread..

[aa1911]

Yeah, sorry; resurected an old thread to 'update' some new stuff that's out there now...

lee now has OOO and #4 buck molds in the 18 cavity flavor! going to pick up a OOO buck and try it out with some .410's and 12g

MidwayUSA has 'em pretty cheap, the OO I got is still going strong with about 20lbs cast so far of WW lead

[jack404]

3 buckshot then 9 x no 6 shot a few drops of parrafin wax dripped in to hold when settled and repeat

[aa1911]

sweet! I have not tried mix buck/shot loads yet, need to experiment... Buck and ball (round slug) sounds like fun too...

loaded some 1 1/4 oz BB today in some once fired Fiocchi hi-brass hulls, turned out beautiful; going to try them out this weekend to see what they can do.

[aa1911]

casted 9lbs of OO buck today with my Lee 18 cavity...

[JLA]

nice