Hollifer A. Dollar

Started loading shotshells with a Lee Load-All, upgraded from that to a MEC Grabber, but recently got a PW 800 - best money we ever spent. Not only is it faster than the MEC & easier to use, it makes better shells. I just loaded 28 boxes of 12 ga in about 6 hours total time over 3 days. That would have taken a week with the MEC & about 20 years with the Lee. I gave the Lees (we had 2) to new shooters several years ago. We still have the MEC, we use it for BP shells & other small quantity loading. The PW is set up for 3/4 oz light loads, which are the vast majority of what we use. Holler

Words can't express how badly Kay Sadeeya & I feel about Deed's passing. We are both heartbroken. Holler

This is my hand holding my 1872 open top, shooting BP. Happens every time I pull the trigger, apparently. Holler

I use separate seat & crimp dies for everything, whether on the 550s or single stage for hunting rounds. Never had any luck at all seating/crimping in 1 step - buckled/bulged cases & inconsistent OAL. Crimp dies aren't that expensive. YMMV. Holler

This reminds me of an annual match we attended a few years back. During the posse marshal walk-thru, the starting position for one of the stages was "Shooter standing fully erect". Well, being a smart ass, I couldn't resist. After the MD read through the stage, I said I had 2 questions about the listed starting position. First, who was going to check the "fully erect" part & 2nd, what about the lady shooters? The MD looked at me like I was from Mars, then an obvious "ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh" look came across his face. All the other PMs were laughing & the lone female PM was just busting a gut. If I remember right, the MD took out his pen, scratched through the word "erect" & wrote in "upright". Holler

I created this chart a few years back. I weighed the charges dropped from (4) different bushings (the data points shown with triangles show the charges that I weighed for those bushings) then extrapolated the line through those points. It should be close enough for government work for the bushing sizes shown at the bottom. MEC bushing data BP capacity.pdf

I have shipped long guns to FFLs a few times. First time I did it, the local postmistress was really helpful & showed me all the applicable rules. She said that a lot of USPS counter employees don't know the process, so they just come up with some kind of obscure rule so they didn't have to handle the shipment. She also told me about shipping direct to another person within the same state & recommended insuring the package for more than the value of the firearm inside, said it was pretty cheap insurance. She was one of the few that was always helpful & courteous. That's one of the nice things about living in a small town. Holler

We load 32-20s on a Dillon 550 with Goex 3FG - first time we tried it, the same thing happened. I got an aquarium air pump & bungee-cord it to the powder measure - problem solved. When I first started loading BP on the Dillon, I used dippers & a Lee powder-thru expander die because I was using filler. I found a funnel at Dollar General that fit the top of the Lee expander die perfectly. The only thing that was tough was getting the Pull/Dip Powder/Dump/Dip Filler/Dump/Push rhythm down. I finally decided to go full case of powder & started using the powder measure. 32-20 is the only round that has given us any problems since then. Holler

It is for me as well - we have (2) 550s & like 14 toolheads set up, but we only have (2) powder measures. We also empty the measure when done loading for the day. Loosening the 2 clamp screws wasn't all that big of a deal, but the spring-loaded setup is better because it doesn't require a tool. Holler

I made my own - drilled & tapped the saddle & put a bolt in for a pull handle, then put long screws with springs in place of the short saddle bolts. Works in the same way as that one & was a lot cheaper. Sometimes it's nice to be a DIY'er. Holler

Several years ago I got a good deal on a 24" 44-40 Uberti 73. I had a local gunsmith cut it to about half an inch past the magazine tube mount, like Three Foot Johnson did above. Doing it that way meant that he could trim the back end of the magazine tube & didn't have to worry about threading for the magazine tube plug. If I remember correctly he charged me around $125. It came out great & swings easier than it did with the longer barrel. It is my main match rifle. At the time I had a 20" 45 Colt that I later sold (& regret selling it to this day) & the 24" octagon barrel gun felt heavy in comparison. If I ran across another bargain 24" gun, I would do the same thing. It's all about the feel. Holler

I have been shooting a Turkish-built Charles Daly 512 (tuned by Lassiter) for several years & love it. Bought one for Kay Sadeeya as well. Best shotgun I have used by far & I have had a Stoeger, a couple of Johnny Meadows Baikals & an SKB. The one weak point is the firing pin design - the factory firing pins lasted about 8 months. Replaced them with Shotgun Boogie firing pins & haven't looked back. I do carry a spare set & they are very easy to replace. Holler

I started loading shotgun ammo with a Lee Load-All II as well. When it was just me shooting, it was fine, I could load a box of shells in about an hour. When Kay Sadeeya started shooting, & we were shooting 3-4 matches every month, I suddenly was spending a LOT of time loading shotshells. One afternoon I was on the phone with a friend, we had been talking less than half an hour & he suddenly said "well, there is a box of shotgun shells done". Of course, I asked what machine he was using & he said a MEC. Then he said that another friend had a rebuilt Grabber for sale, so I bought it! 2nd best equipment buy ever. Once it is set up & you know how to use it, you can do a box of shells in about 25 minutes. It is VERY quirky & takes a bit of effort to push down on the handle, but makes damn good ammo. Invest in a Ballistic Products crimp starter - they work better than the MEC starter die. One thing I did notice right away - the shells that I had loaded on the Lee Load-All would not drop into the shell checker I was using, but the Grabber shells would. The MEC "turkey feather" collet sizer does a much better job than Lee's ring sizer. I recently got a reconditioned Ponsness-Warren 800 - THAT is the best equipment buy ever. The design makes the Grabber look like a Rube Goldberg contraption. When I was using the Grabber, I would load in the afternoons after work til I got 20 boxes done - it would take me 4-5 afternoons. With the PW, I can load 5 boxes in an hour without getting in a hurry. Holler

I hate to be a PITA but I don't see Panhandle Cattle Company - range address is 1963 Hard Labor Road - Chipley FL. The club is in the list on the affiliated clubs page but not shown on the map. Thanks Gunner! Holler

I have a question: what was the justification from the TO to call it a miss? Overlapping targets that didn't allow a clean miss? Something had to prompt that call. Per your description it is clearly a P on the surface, but... The TO has final call on procedurals & if he says no P, then no P. Like you said, the spotters did not call a miss, so no miss. The proper call, if the TO says no P, is clean. There had to be a reason to make the call that was made. Holler