Starting to reload shotshells

[bigkyle72]

Have a few questions....
What are all the different wads for? I went to my local sportmans warehouse and there were about 20 diffrent kinds! Im just going to be using 7 or 8 shot for targets and 3 gun. Also going to eventually load slugs. What wads do I need?

[CK_32]

My cousin is the shot shell pro. But from what I understand is slug and shot wads are different.


Then there is difference kinds of wads for different pattern and quality. Basically the most important thing between high end ammo and low end. Other than that they all shoot the same type pellets and about the same power. I'm pretty sure the wad is the most important thing aside from hull quality.


But again my cousin is the expert and at his chicks place tonight. So I'll repost or edit if he has better or more correct info.

[Cheep]

Get the Lyman's shot shell reloading book, lots of load data. This isn't like rifle or pistol loading, you must follow the published data.

[anyracoon]

Ditto, get your self a copy of Lyman's "ShotShell Reloading Handbook." Lots of good info and load recipes. Don't just mix and match hulls, wads shot or slugs, unless you like things to go boom in your hands and face!

[pakk]

The different wads are for different loads 7/8th, 1oz, and 1 1/8oz are your normal options. Then there are strait walled hulls and tapered. Then there are different gauges, 12/20/28/16/410. You can't mix the wads up or you could have pressure issues.

If you are completely lost, get yourself a book and start reading. If you just need specific recipes, you can find them on the net. If you know what you want to shoot, ask. I'll have a recipe for you.

I don't know if you reload cartridge, but one of the biggest difference between shot shell and cartridge loads is recipes are primer specific. You can NOT just use any 209 primer. The wrong primer WILL cause pressure issues.

[AAShooter]

This is a great resource for you: http://data.hodgdon.com/main_menu.asp

As Pakk mentioned, there are many dimensions to wad selection:
* Payload type: Lead shot, steel shot, slug, etc.
* Shot payload: Weight
* Hull type-straight or tapered
* Gauge

Also realize there are often higher quality (more expensive) wads and lower quality wads for the same application. I often use the wad from the manufacturer that makes the hull.

Have you selected a specific recipe you are trying to load? What hulls are you using? What loader are you using? Where are you located . . . you might get a volunteer coach to get you started.

From the website above . . . here is an example load I would commonly load using Clays powder in Winchester AA hulls for practice:
#8 Lead Shot; 12 gauge; 1 oz. of shot; Clays Powder; Winchester 209 Primer; Winchester WAA12SL Wad; 16 grams of powder. This loads give you a 1125 ft/sec load.

[AAShooter]

This site has a lot of products that are difficult to find for some of the more unusual reloading needs. It is not specific to this thread but more general information: http://www.ballisticproducts.com/

[rsrocket1]

If you want to start loading before doing all the research, get the Lyman book (also in the bookshelves at the Sportsman's warehouse) and follow a recipe for the hull, wad, load weight, powder charge and primer exactly to the letter. All the loads listed are safe, but not necessarily ideal. All the different wads are for differing shot weights, powder stack heights and hull design.

First of all: Hull design.
Wads for straight walled hulls like Federal and Estate are wider.
Wads for tapered hulls like Remington and Winchester are slightly narrower.

Next: Shot weight.
12 gauge loads can be anywhere from 3/4 ounce to 1-5/8 ounce with the most common load being one to 1-1/8 ounce. You can usually go up or down a few 1/8ths with the same wad and still get satisfactory results.

Finally: Stack height.
In order to get a good factory looking crimp and proper chamber pressure, you want a proper load height to get a 0.055" crimp depth (about the thickness of a dime). Improper column height will result in a hole in the middle of the crimp, a dished crimp or a bulged crimp with the pedals straight across or worse a crimp that opens up over time and spills shot out of the shell. Crimps can change the pressure by up to 2,000 psi which can mean the difference between a "blooper" and going up to the safe limit for your gun.

The toughest thing is gathering a combination of wad, primer and powder for a listed load. SW does have a good selection of wads now and a few primers to choose from but powder is really hit and miss.

[koehn,jim]

rsrocket is right but get the Lyman book and follow it. A lot depends on the hulls that you are going to use do you have them. If you are shooting skeet consider num 9 shot it works good and more pellets in a load.

[alfred1222]

The lyman book helps, but honestly i found out how to load by first, picking what hull I wanted, then deciding what powder i was going to use. See, the thing that people dont understand is that the powder is way more important in shotshell reloading then in metallic reloading. The powder not only determines the speed of the shot, but picking a powder that runs dirty or burns too slowly can hamper your shooting. I used to load at just the edge of my powders minimum load, and eventually, unburned powder and wad residue started blocking up my chokes. Increasing my powder charge by about 2 grains fixed everything.

The actual loading isnt super hard, charge bars do most everything for you, but your loads must be perfect and consistent in order for your shooting to be perfect. i would figure out your hull, powder and primer combo, and once you get all of those bought, the loads themselves are easy

[bigkyle72]

ok so I got and read the Layman book. I wasnt totally in the dark before I got it. I knew that I wanted to run 7/8 or 1 oz (save a little $) and its just for practice anyways. And I was going to be using a 2-3/4 shell. Ive got almost everything figured out but Im having trouble figuring out how to identify the shotshells. For an example im going to use the Federal target loads I was shooing the other day. How do i know if that is
1) federal gold metal plastic
2) federal plastic with paper basewad
3) federal paper gold medal
*or is it none of them because they are cheap

-It has a paper base wad but 8 crimps and low brass

The pictures im looking at are on pg 32 of the 5th edition layman book

I just dont want to mess anything up so your help is really appreciated. Thanks in advance

[bigkyle72]

And I am going to be using a tapered hull, 7/8-1oz loads. The way powder is right now I am going to see I can get then use the charts to see what charge, primers I need based on powder availability

[alfred1222]

what powder are you using? look on this website if youre using alliant

http://www.alliantpowder.com/reloaders/RecipeList.aspx?gauge=12&gtypeid=3

[bigkyle72]

Whatever I can get my hands on at this point. If a powder is in stock Im going to work my load around it.