Paper 12ga hulls

[Turkey Flats Jack 172]

So my dad asked if I wanted some 12ga hulls to reload. Knowing he mostly ran Winchester feather lites when he played I said sure why not. I stopped by for a visit and he handed me a trash bag of hulls. Well I finally got around to dumping the bag today to sort them. Well there was a few feather lites hulls but the rest were paper. So any advice on these or just trash them? 

 

T.F. Jack

[Cat Brules 515]

I haven’t seen any for a while, but I knew people who liked them and preferred them.  

 

I personally would hang on to them ( at least for a while),  see how you like the reloads, and then ask around to see if they are of interest and value to others.

 

Cat Brules

[Utah Bob #35998 8,507]

I have used them in the past. A roll crimp works better when you reload them. You have to trim the star crimp off. Fun but time consuming. With BP they only last one reload. Not sure about smokeless.

 

[Warden Callaway 2,431]

A year or so ago I wanted a few to load for my old Parker double.  Couldn't find any.  I was in Grafs retail and they had a half dozen boxes of Federal Grand shells loaded in paper hulls.  The price on the shelf was lower than those listed online.  I thought it over and bought all they had on the shelf.  I shot some to get the hulls.  But they were pretty heavy loads.  So I broke down a box and lighted the shot load. Added some cushion and shot them out. 

 

Now I have hulls but not done anything with them.

 

I here they draw moisture and swell. 

[J. Mark Flint #31954 LIFE 1,333]

They can , but they are waxed and if kept in a home with Heat and air, would likely never become an issue.

 

I was able to star crimp when I reloaded them, but never got a second reload out of them due to using BP and not being able to neutralize powder residue without destroying the shell.

 

Found a few boxes last month of new and reloads that have been sitting around for over 10 years.  No problems with swelling and the reload crimps still look good.

 

They are fun to try out the card and wad reloading method, but they do not shuck as cleanly as the Remington STS Hulls.  Still it was fun experience learning to reload them

 

[Jabez Cowboy,SASS # 50129 675]

I started out reloading paper shells for my dad to use to shoot skeet almost 60 years ago ,,,,, This year I loaded some for use in Cowboy matches with Goex ....

 

Jabez Cowboy

[Cat Brules 515]

 

A LOT of people are resizing their reloads again, AFTER they reload them anyway, so the paper hulls might work out.   Plus, if it matters to you, paper hulls would add a measure of smoking authenticity, if you’re shooting black powder.  Since you now have a whole trash bag full of paper hulls, they might last you or someone else,  a good while.

 

Oh, if you decide to rewax the paper shells at any point, I personally would not use a hydrocarbon-based “product,” such as paraffin wax.  Burned hydrocarbons, (including lube oils) combined with burned black powder, creates that gunky bylack powder residue crap that fouls and incapacitated weapons.  Lube your bp weapons with a beeswax lube.

 

Cat Brules

[Duffield, SASS #23454 413]

I use them for hunting loads because the paper will bio-degrade rapidly if left in the field or if a cow eats the empty.

Use the same data as for Federal plastic hulls.

 

Duffield

[Abilene Slim SASS 81783 1,312]

I’ve a box of Sears 12 gauge shells my dad bought in the early 60’s. Look like new and still go bang. 

[Turkey Flats Jack 172]

4 hours ago, Cat Brules said:

 

A LOT of people are resizing their reloads again, AFTER they reload them anyway, so the paper hulls might work out.   Plus, if it matters to you, paper hulls would add a measure of smoking authenticity, if you’re shooting black powder.  Since you now have a whole trash bag full of paper hulls, they might last you or someone else,  a good while.

 

Oh, if you decide to rewax the paper shells at any point, I personally would not use a hydrocarbon-based “product,” such as paraffin wax.  Burned hydrocarbons, (including lube oils) combined with burned black powder, creates that gunky bylack powder residue crap that fouls and incapacitated weapons.  Lube your bp weapons with a beeswax lube.

 

Cat Brules

I pretty much only shoot BP. But I have a couple hundred brass hulls. I haven't decided what I'll do with these yet. I've heard if I load them with black powder it's one and done. 

[Cat Brules 515]

So it is.  I don’t reload shotgun shells or use black powder, but a guy I used to shoot with did, and I watched him and discussed it with him a few times.

 

He had a never-ending supply of paper hulls too, that he received from a couple relatives.  He also used black powder, fired them only once and then tossed them. 

Cat Brules

[Big Sage, SASS #49891 Life 516]

Started reloading shotgun in the early 50's with my Dad. He had an heated iron shaped like a shotgun shell, only slightly smaller that plugged into a wall outlet. I slid the empty over it and it heated the empty and resized it. As UB mentioned, crimping can sometimes be problematic. We used to melt some wax and paint the crimp. After 3 or 4 reloads, the paper started to get pin holes just above the brass.

 

Crank em up!

[Alpo 3,080]

I'm not saying y'all're wrong, because I've never loaded paper, and I've never loaded black powder shotshells.

 

But

IF in the 1880s all there was was black powder, and

IF all there were was paper shotshells, and

IF you can only shoot black powder out of paper one time,

 

Then why did they invent shotshell reloading tools back then?

 

It don't make sense.

 

[Capt. James H. Callahan 510]

I haven't even SEEN any of those in a coon's age. If you load 'em give us a range report. I remember them as a kid. Roll crimped with the shot size printed on the overcard (or whatever you call it.)

JHC

[J. Mark Flint #31954 LIFE 1,333]

Alpo. . .  Brass shells.  You can reload more than one time with BP I suppose, but I wouldn't want them to sit around for years.

[Warden Callaway 2,431]

I was given a boot box of odd shotgun shells.  Many were paper and not too good of condition.   I was able to trade away a few unusual shells like a couple of 8 guage industrial shells.  I gave a cardboard box to a collector friend. It wasn't in collectable condition but a unique example. There were a couple of dozen high brass shells loaded with heavy shot I managed to despose of at a gunshow. Some were reloads and many in poor condition.  I just opened them up to recover the shot. 

[St. Louis Suomi SASS #31905 167]

I have a couple hundred Federal paper shells.  My friend just got sever4al hundred Winchester paper shells in an auction.  I have reloaded mine with standard white powder (red dot etc) several times from 1976.  They work quite well.  I have never loaded them with black powder - that could be problematic methinks on a reload.

 

STL Suomi

[Yellowhouse Sam # 25171 180]

Fired paper shells just smell better!

[The Blarney Kid 32]

I shoot BP in paper and I get two or three reloads before they start to pinhole.

[Palouse 8]

On 10/10/2019 at 7:57 PM, Cat Brules said:

... I personally would not use a hydrocarbon-based “product,” such as paraffin wax.  Burned hydrocarbons, (including lube oils) combined with burned black powder, creates that gunky bylack powder residue crap that fouls and incapacitated weapons...

 

... I don’t reload shotgun shells or use black powder, but a guy ...

Cat Brules

Cat,

 

I'm confused. 

 

Beeswax, paraffin, sheep tallow, bear fat, lard, white grease, axle grease, Crisco, olive oil, CVA Grease Patch, SPG, WonderLube, Lucas Red 'N' Tacky, et al.,  are all hydrocarbons, give or take water or additives. If you don't use black powder, how is it that you know that some hydrocarbons create fouling that incapacitates weapons, and other hydrocarbons do not? Just tryin' to understand.   

 

 

TF Jack,

 

If you decide to use the paper hulls for black, and are worried about swelling, don't try to heat them in the stove to drive off the water before reloading.  The wax in the paper is all that is holding the hull components together.  Imagine shooting your previously un-tested ammo in a match where the still smoking brass heads extract nicely, and you have to use a knife to pull the rest of the hull tube ...  I knew a guy that did that. Once.

I'll pay for UPS, if you don't want them.

Edited October 21 by Palouse