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Advantages/disadvantages of light shotgun loads


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I currently shoot either some new factory loads of 1145fps or some homemade ones that are probably about the same velocity.  Part of my thinking is they will be more likely to go down if I wing the target but I know just about any load should take the target down if it is a good shot.  Curious about other people’s thinking on shotgun loads.  Would like the reason you like a particular load.

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I shoot 7/8 oz handloads with a minimum charge of Extra-Lite.  If I shoulder my shotgun poorly I can still fire the shotgun without hurting myself.  The reduced recoil allows quicker acquisition of the next target compared to clays loads.  I carry two game loads on my shotgun belt for targets that need to be whacked harder.  My wife only shoots Winchester low noise, low recoil shotgun shells (aka featherlights) when shooting smokeless ammo.  Buy a box and try them at a match.  Let your body tell you what you should be shooting.

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3/4 oz of # 6,7,7.5 or 8 shot and the correct amount of Black powder......thats plenty of shot to knock down a target (hell just a wad will knock most down) and black powder is the best way to get rid of recoil pain...its a gentle push rather than a quick slap.
Also, re cutting the cant on the buttstock helps tremendously with recoil pain.

 

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Hi DC, my smokeless loads were always Winchester LNLR until they disappeared.  My reloads are approximately the same with 7/8 oz.  I rarely miss (except trying to slam fire the '97 haha) but I also don't fire that second shot out of the SxS as fast as some folks so I'm aiming more.  You mentioned velocity, but I guess I would ask how much shot are you using, and how often are you having to make up misses now?  Maybe go lighter and see what happens?

 

Just before I started reloading I was buying some Win target stuff that was 1 oz at 1180fps, or 1 1/8 oz at 1145fps.  The 1 oz felt a little lighter than the other but still noticeably stronger than LNLR, and both slammed the targets down.

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I've been experimenting lately and I was shooting a 7/8oz load. I cut that down to 3/4oz and then to 1/2 oz trying to save shot on my practice loads. I have not really seen any increase in failure to drop knockdowns. My original load is only around 850-875 fps and have never had any issues with KDs falling. 

 

I personally don't like when shooters shoot heavy factory stuff at KDs splattering the entire posse and putting stress on the targets themselves.  

 

JEL

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1 hour ago, Lunger Dan said:

3/4 oz of # 6,7,7.5 or 8 shot and the correct amount of Black powder......thats plenty of shot to knock down a target (hell just a wad will knock most down) and black powder is the best way to get rid of recoil pain...its a gentle push rather than a quick slap.
Also, re cutting the cant on the buttstock helps tremendously with recoil pain.

 

This is me, except I use 7/8 oz.

 

Chancy

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3 hours ago, Abilene, SASS # 27489 said:

Hi DC, my smokeless loads were always Winchester LNLR until they disappeared.  My reloads are approximately the same with 7/8 oz.  I rarely miss (except trying to slam fire the '97 haha) but I also don't fire that second shot out of the SxS as fast as some folks so I'm aiming more.  You mentioned velocity, but I guess I would ask how much shot are you using, and how often are you having to make up misses now?  Maybe go lighter and see what happens?

 

Just before I started reloading I was buying some Win target stuff that was 1 oz at 1180fps, or 1 1/8 oz at 1145fps.  The 1 oz felt a little lighter than the other but still noticeably stronger than LNLR, and both slammed the targets down.

This is pretty much my situation as well except I have always used a SxS. Nowadays I don't aim as much per se and knock on wood, they generally fall.

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Recently at the 4 Corners  Regional , there was one shotgun KD that I had to hit 3 times before it went down.This was with my 7/8 ounce load that Ive been using for a while now.This was the first time Ive ever had a KD not go down with this load.

Instead of going back to a heavier , more punishing load for all targets, I think I'll just put a couple of one ounce loads in my belt for the occaisional stubborn target.

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Thank all of you for the replies.  Think I will continue with one ounce loads as I have about eigh5 bags of wads but will likely reduce my powder charge.  Need to get the bushing out first and see what it currently is.  Eventually May go back to 7/8 once I run out of wads.

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I've played around with a variety of loads and come to the following conclusions.

 

The only advantage to a reduced load is recoil and recoil from the 1145 fps loads doesn't bother anyone in my family other than the 12 year old so there's no need for me to do a lot of reloading.

 

I don't like reloading shotgun ammo, it's a PITA, takes too long (a little over a case a month is what I need), and doesn't save much money.

 

Remington Gun Club shucks more easily than any other store bought ammo I've tried. 

 

Load too light and I get unburnt powder clogging things up. 

 

Result - I don't load shotgun ammo as the couple of cases of LNLR I have will meet my needs until the youngest can handle Remington GC. 

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Can't think of 1 reason to shoot heavy loads.

I load with Alliant extra lite with 1 & 1/8oz. Of reclaimed shot and only 9.2 grains of powder.  Don't know what the fps is and don't care.  Knocks down everything except for the ones I miss !

 

 

 

 

Extra lite is very clean and I use it in the pistols and rifle with 2grains. 8lbs goes a long ways at these loads. Oh power factor is 72 in 1 pistol and 69 in the other.

 Hells Comin 

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1 oz of shot & a #43 bushing full of 2F Goex in a AA hull.  Takes down targets with authority.  (As long as I can see 'em)!  Anything heavier is overkill and aggravates my shoulder. 

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3 hours ago, Captain Bill Burt said:

...I don't like reloading shotgun ammo, it's a PITA, takes too long (a little over a case a month is what I need), and doesn't save much money...

 Saving money is all relative, of course, and gets down to how much is your time worth.  When I could buy LNLR for $7.97 at Walmart, then saving a few bucks wasn't worth the effort to me.  At $14 minimum per box now (when you can find it), the savings starts adding up.  Even with current component prices ($70/K primers, $70/25lb shot), I figure a box costs me about $7.50 to reload.  And even with my Lee LoadAll 2, I can do 4 boxes in an hour after sorting through the empty hulls (which is the PITA part of it for me).

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Advantage: tiny wife Bullion Rose has no trouble at all shooting 3/4oz 7.5/8.0 over 14.7gr Titewad and Fed 209A primer.  Recoil is never an issue.

Advantage: it doesn't beat up our old shotguns -- we shoot cut-down Winchester 97s, hers made in 1930, mine in 1934.  Light loads are kinder to the guns.

Disadvantage: none

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3 hours ago, Abilene, SASS # 27489 said:

 Saving money is all relative, of course, and gets down to how much is your time worth.  When I could buy LNLR for $7.97 at Walmart, then saving a few bucks wasn't worth the effort to me.  At $14 minimum per box now (when you can find it), the savings starts adding up.  Even with current component prices ($70/K primers, $70/25lb shot), I figure a box costs me about $7.50 to reload.  And even with my Lee LoadAll 2, I can do 4 boxes in an hour after sorting through the empty hulls (which is the PITA part of it for me).

Good point. The LNLR is much more expensive than Remington GC, and harder to find. Battlehawkarmory has LNLR at $13.78 if you are interested.

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Today I am going to go out and try some lighter loads I made last night.  I am being convinced by the post responses that is the way to go.  I have several boxes of 1145 and of 1185 which are factory new and if I like the lighter load I will shoot the hotter ones in practice and then reload for matches.  I appreciate the responses given to my post.

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I use an inch of 5/8" diameter foam backer rod (found at home depot) to fill in on my ½ oz loads--two rotator cuff surgeries on "strong" side shoulder sorta require loads to be light

 

after ½ oz of shot the rod goes on top.  it will sit proud of the hull but the pre- and crimping dies will push it down below the crimp.

 

cons:  does take a bit of time to load the foam disk but then I enjoy that part of hobby/sport/obsession, too

 

pros:  keeps me in the game

           knocks down all our KDs without a problem

 

link to foam:  https://www.homedepot.com/p/Frost-King-5-8-in-x-20-ft-Polyurethane-Caulk-Saver-C23H/202262332?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&&mtc=SHOPPING-BF-CDP-GGL-D25H-025_004_BUILDER_HARD-NA-Multi-NA-SMART-NA-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-PRO-NA-BuildersHardware_Smart_Q3_Control&cm_mmc=SHOPPING-BF-CDP-GGL-D25H-025_004_BUILDER_HARD-NA-Multi-NA-SMART-NA-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-PRO-NA-BuildersHardware_Smart_Q3_Control-71700000081230576-58700006913855557-92700064312898263&gclid=CjwKCAjwquWVBhBrEiwAt1Kmwi6cUvajYZQfGOA6l0tHlguP3rZ4zxrV81w_GCE15-uqK_Vv15OqrBoC5mMQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

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I use to shoot Winchester AA Lite powder with 7/8 oz shot, AA hulls, and Win 209 primers. When I got down to my last pound of AA Lite powder I started to search for a new load. I went to Alliant Extra-Lite powder under 3/4 oz shot to save a little money on shot, with Rem. STS hulls. I found that I liked this load better than the AA Lite load, and I have never had an issue with any knock down target. I still have that last pound of Winchester AA Lite powder.

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4 hours ago, Dream Chaser, SASS #79316 said:

Today I am going to go out and try some lighter loads I made last night.  I am being convinced by the post responses that is the way to go.  I have several boxes of 1145 and of 1185 which are factory new and if I like the lighter load I will shoot the hotter ones in practice and then reload for matches.  I appreciate the responses given to my post.

Sounds like a plan to me.

If I may I am currently going backwards from you. I started lightening up the SG for my wife about 5 months ago in an attempt to convince her to shoot with me. She has bad wrists from a long ago auto accident. While going through the load development I found I liked the minimal recoil myself. For me, I found that I had developed bad habits with my shotgun shooting, mostly lots of edge hits due to poor aiming. So, for now, I use the light loads for practice (forcing me to center hit) and the heavier loads for match (still working on aiming) until I get it together and learn to properly sight a shotgun at a ground target. Easier on the body in practice and still have a lot of umphhh going downrange for the match. Eventually I hope to get to where I only use one load but for now....

YMMV

Regards

:FlagAm:  :FlagAm:  :FlagAm:

Gateway Kid

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Shot placement is usually the key to knockdowns using light loads.  Last match had one stage with up to four rounds.  Two knockdown tombstones side by side in front of two knockdowns, also side by side.  Front to rear plates were spaced so that the only way to knockdown each front to rear group was to hit each with pellets.  Two rounds of Federal 900 fps knocked down all four. 

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1 hour ago, Cheyenne Ranger, 48747L said:

I use an inch of 5/8" diameter foam backer rod (found at home depot) to fill in on my ½ oz loads--two rotator cuff surgeries on "strong" side shoulder sorta require loads to be light

 

after ½ oz of shot the rod goes on top.  it will sit proud of the hull but the pre- and crimping dies will push it down below the crimp.

 

cons:  does take a bit of time to load the foam disk but then I enjoy that part of hobby/sport/obsession, too

 

pros:  keeps me in the game

           knocks down all our KDs without a problem

 

link to foam:  https://www.homedepot.com/p/Frost-King-5-8-in-x-20-ft-Polyurethane-Caulk-Saver-C23H/202262332?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&&mtc=SHOPPING-BF-CDP-GGL-D25H-025_004_BUILDER_HARD-NA-Multi-NA-SMART-NA-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-PRO-NA-BuildersHardware_Smart_Q3_Control&cm_mmc=SHOPPING-BF-CDP-GGL-D25H-025_004_BUILDER_HARD-NA-Multi-NA-SMART-NA-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-PRO-NA-BuildersHardware_Smart_Q3_Control-71700000081230576-58700006913855557-92700064312898263&gclid=CjwKCAjwquWVBhBrEiwAt1Kmwi6cUvajYZQfGOA6l0tHlguP3rZ4zxrV81w_GCE15-uqK_Vv15OqrBoC5mMQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

I've been using these cork spacers from Ballistic Products https://www.ballisticproducts.com/Cork-Wad-20ga-1_4-250_bag/productinfo/1222420/

for my son's super light 12ga load. To first develop his load I started out by cutting cardboard discs using a 1/2' copper coupling and a 5lbs sledge hammer on a sheet of thick cardboard and I needed something easier when I got the recipe correct, so I found those. I also cap with their 1/16th wad since the 1/4 in isn't quite tall enough and it crimps to a tiny whole just big enough for shot to fall out. But, since seeing your post I'm gonna stop at Home Depot and give this a try. It's Waaaay cheaper and you can cut to the exact length you need to avoid another step in the long loading process. 

 

Thanks for the idea CR!

 

JEL

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On 6/24/2022 at 3:42 PM, Edward R S Canby, SASS#59971 said:

I shoot 7/8 oz handloads with a minimum charge of Extra-Lite.  If I shoulder my shotgun poorly I can still fire the shotgun without hurting myself.  The reduced recoil allows quicker acquisition of the next target compared to clays loads.  I carry two game loads on my shotgun belt for targets that need to be whacked harder.  My wife only shoots Winchester low noise, low recoil shotgun shells (aka featherlights) when shooting smokeless ammo.  Buy a box and try them at a match.  Let your body tell you what you should be shooting.

What is your load data if you don't mind sharing.  Just got my hands on some Extra-Lite powder.  Thanks!  SB

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1 hour ago, Shepherd Book said:

What is your load data if you don't mind sharing.  Just got my hands on some Extra-Lite powder.  Thanks!  SB

Here is some of Alliant's Load Data:

image.png.eaeefae024b77105cc7818f6fe7a8770.png

 

I load 15.1 grains of Extra-Lite in an STS hull with a CB 0178-12 wad, 7/8 oz of birdshot and a Cheddite 209 primer (readily available right now).  Others have reported that a grain or two less than the above load works for CAS.  BTW, I really like Extra-Lite.

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i load a 3/4oz load in 12ga , i dont think there is a disadvantage to light loads in our game - the targets are close and a good hit will take them down , i do see a disadvantage to heavy loads - it beats you up and wears you out even tho we dont shoot that many shotgun typically why would you wish to subject yourself to that ? 

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