Newbie ammunition and reloading question...

[Blackface Charlie]

32 minutes ago, Badlands Bob #61228 said:

I'd recommend finding the load and cartridge size that works best in your rifle.  Some rifles like 357 length cartridges.  When you find the sweet spot for the rifle, just shoot that round in your pistols too.  It keeps things simple.  One load for everything.  And don't worry about shooting 38's in a 357 rifle or pistol.   None of my rifles or pistols have ever seen a 357 cartridge.  Just clean them once in a while and you'll be fine.  Hopees #9, a cleaning brush and a few patches is all you'll need.

 

I just hate cleaning guns----I run my semis till they won't cycle!   I guess now that I will be shooting my first match in two weeks (newb) maybe I will have to be more diligent in cleaning my guns----unless I can find someone like my buddies wife who loves to clean his guns---luck SOB

[Three Foot Johnson]

Not only is shooting someone else's reloads a bad idea, it's an even worse idea to reload for someone else, even though virtually every one of us has probably done it. Not only is it legally sketchy* to reload for someone else, the liability is enormous. Imagine a kaboom, someone loses an eye, a finger, or their life, and it turns out you, as the unlicensed and uninsured friendly neighborhood ammo manufacturer, are to blame.

 

*BATFE Website says you need a manufacturers license if you "engage in the business of selling or distributing reloads for the purpose of livelihood and profit."

The wording would seem to indicate reloading for someone for FREE is kinda sorta OK... maybe...

 

I blew up a revolver 2 1/2 years ago with my OWN reloads, and I trust me!

I'm not shooting someone else's reloads unless they're a licensed, insured, commercial reloader.

[Griff]

5 hours ago, J Bar Binks, #47015 said:

I'm not shooting someone else's reloads unless they're a licensed, insured, commercial reloader.

And, probably not even then.

[Croc Holiday]

Thanks again for all the input.  I’ve never really shot enough to consider reloading.  I had no idea there was that much to it.  I thought - get lead, powder, brass, find friend with press, make bullet, have fun shooting bullet, repeat haha.  Looking forward to getting into it and dreading it at the same time.  I’m very prone to obsession.  Combinations of bullet weight, type, etc. is definitely the type of thing that’ll trigger that.  My poor, poor bride...

 

I saw another thread about loading .38 where folks used something called Trail Boss, tite-group or Red Dot.  What is this?

[Three Foot Johnson]

Three different kinds of smokeless gun powders. Trail Boss and Titegroup are commonly used for handgun reloads, while Red Dot is probably used more for shotgun loads, but works very well for many handgun loads too. Trail Boss is a very bulky powder (a standard 1 lb can only holds 9 oz) developed for use in large capacity cases such as .45 Colt, .44-40, or .38-40. These cases were originally developed for full cases of black powder, so the greatly reduced amount of smokeless powder used in them leaves a lot of room in the case. Trail Boss fills up a lot more of the case making combustion more efficient and greatly reducing the chance of an inadvertent double-charge. There are a LOT of suitable pistol powders available that all work more or less equally well in the revolver cartridges we use.

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

OP-In all honesty. I you 'play' any type of a gun game. You really need to reload 

Those items you ask are the names of different powders used in reloading. 

EXAMPLE-.38 Special, I load 4.0gns of Unique powder, with a 158gn RNFP(Round Nose Flat Point)lead bullet for SASS and general 'plinking' load.

You can load all of your SASS ammo(rifle-pistol-shotgun)with Unique powder. It's the oldest powder on the consumer market for reloading.

PLZ-Use GOOGLE for searching out reloading sites and such.

Lots of reloading videos on you-tube.

OLG

 

 

[Croc Holiday]

1 hour ago, The Original Lumpy Gritz said:

 

PLZ-Use GOOGLE for searching out reloading sites and such.

Lots of reloading videos on you-tube.

OLG

 

 

 

I will for sure now that I know it’s not as strait forward as I originally thought.

 

I’ll also scan that other thread and see if I spot a “typical” loading combination to get me at least started.

 

it’ll be a while before I get my own equipment.  Gotta replenish funds a bit first.

 

 

[Edward R S Canby, SASS#59971]

Try these reloading sites:

• Hodgdon Reloading Center
• Alliant Powder Reloading Cowboy data
• Accurate Powder Load data

Also buy and read the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook.  Not only will it get you more reloading recipes, it has information on safe, reliable loading practices for the type of ammo shot in CAS.

[Lead Friend, SASS #53635]

15 minutes ago, Edward R S Canby, SASS#59971 said:

Try these reloading sites:

• Hodgdon Reloading Center
• Alliant Powder Reloading Cowboy data
• Accurate Powder Load data

Also buy and read the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook.  Not only will it get you more reloading recipes, it has information on safe, reliable loading practices for the type of ammo shot in CAS.

 

This was the last reloading manual I bought. I wish it had been the first.

[Constable Nelson #11784]

Not only does shooting 38 Special not "damage" your revolver...  neither does shooting 38 Short Colt...lol...  WAAAY shorter case....   and Ive had no problem with them in my Vaqueros with CAS type loads....OR my 686 with IPSC Major PF loads.   (Kinda fun making 175 pf with a 160 gr bullet from what is - essentially - a rimmed 9x 19 case!)

[Three Foot Johnson]

On 1/5/2019 at 1:24 PM, Doc Shapiro said:

 

Respectfully, I would disagree with you.  Here's why:

 

Imagine, for the sake of discussion, that your gun/ammo shoots 4inch groups at 5 yards.  That means that if you're aimed within 1 inch of the target edge when the bullet leaves the barrel, there's a reasonable percentage that you'll miss the target.  If you're aimed at the edge of the target when the bullet leaves the barrel, there's at least a 50% chance of a miss (depending on target shape).   Essentially, you've shrunk the effective space of target.

 

Essentially, you're relying on chance to hit that target if you're less than 2 inches from the target when the bullet leaves the barrel.

 

Tight groups are more important than most folks realize.

Bigger bullets help too.   

[Doc Shapiro]

16 minutes ago, J Bar Binks, #47015 said:

Bigger bullets help too.   

 

Yup

[Jabez Cowboy,SASS # 50129]

Here lies Lester Moore 3 shots with a .44 ,,,, No less No more ....

 

Waste of ammo only need one .45 Colt ... Or a better shot with da .44 ....

 

Jabez Cowboy

[Carolina Gunslinger]

Realistically you can load 4.0 to 4.5 Grains of Clays or Titegroup under a 125 grain bullet and have all you need for CAS. Nothing difficult about reloading the .38 Special. Lot of experts out there that should spend their time holding their breath in lieu of giving advice. Get a Lee loader kit and have a fun time learning about reloading with minimal investment and space taken up. Then you can move up to a big blue dillon machine and crank out thousands of rounds once you have an understanding of the process. 

[Tyrel Cody]

3 hours ago, Carolina Gunslinger said:

Realistically you can load 4.0 to 4.5 Grains of Clays or Titegroup under a 125 grain bullet and have all you need for CAS. Nothing difficult about reloading the .38 Special. Lot of experts out there that should spend their time holding their breath in lieu of giving advice. Get a Lee loader kit and have a fun time learning about reloading with minimal investment and space taken up. Then you can move up to a big blue dillon machine and crank out thousands of rounds once you have an understanding of the process. 

 

This ^

[Cowboy Junky]

I have never shot a 357 round though any of my SASS guns since I bought them...…..and since they are SASS specific guns I never will. 38 brass is cheaper, less volume in the case to fill which is better for the loads we shoot and the carbon ring would be there if I were shooting 38's in a 38 so for me that's not a factor either. 

 

The only thing 357 brass does for me is sneak into my press once in a while and screw me up while loading...…….lol. There are certain rifles that might be easier to use 357 brass in......but that's another can-0-worms. 

 

Last I think many people put way to much value in power, loads and bullet weights. Any combination that gets you a good mid range to upper mid range load will be fine for what we do. Sure some burn cleaner, some are less snappy, some might be more consistent etc but it's all very subtle and in a SASS match you would be hard pressed to feel it or see any difference IMO. 

 

Welcome to the game. 

[Blast Masterson]

1 hour ago, Cowboy Junky said:

 

Last I think many people put way to much value in power, loads and bullet weights. Any combination that gets you a good mid range to upper mid range load will be fine for what we do. Sure some burn cleaner, some are less snappy, some might be more consistent etc but it's all very subtle and in a SASS match you would be hard pressed to feel it or see any difference IMO. 

 

Welcome to the game. 

+1

I have spent most of my reloading time for CAS trying to overcome the effects of "Light Loads". It's not just about using less powder.

I have solved all of my problems with a recipe that is not in the reloading book, I will not even consider sharing it, for safety concerns. But there are powders out there that are intended for light, low recoil loads for some shooting sports. Some powers have been around for centuries, are consistent and efficient, but can still be improved upon. No two guns really shoot the same cartridge the same way. The great thing about reloading is that you can tweak things if issues arise. 

 

Slower bullet loads lead to unburnt powder clogging up your guns. Gas blow by leading to tight chambers (shotgun extraction issues), burning the outside of SG shells. Primer issues. Moisture issues affecting consistency of the burn rate. This was evident at this weekend match. During the first stages before things got warmed up, several top shooters (been reloading for a long time) had very inconstant reports as they shot.  Here in the mid-south we load a lot during high humidity weather conditions. There is a lot of air in sparsely filled cartridges. When the ammo sits around for a while (not so much shooting in the winter), ammo loaded in warmer weather sometimes shows issues when the weather cools down in winter or heats up in summer. Some powders are more prone to this than others.

 

A the distance we shoot this is not a real issue for most, as long as it doesn't effect the operation of your guns. But it can be distracting when it sounds like a squib.

 

Aside from reloading data, some guns work much better simply because of their overall length. This may change with bullet shape/design. Reloading lets you fix this stuff.