Well, they worked!

[astrowrench 9]

Hi Guys iv'e got a brand new 12 ga loadall on wts $40.00 check it out

astrowrench

[Klassy Kalashnikov 1,393]

Here's some pictures of the Silicone ones. I'll be testing this batch of 50 out late next week at the range.

 

[psl sniper 963]

i did the same thing with a homemade mold. but i left the crimp on. just opened them up dumped the birdshot popped in a slug then recrimped. mike from lonestar arms has afew that he's hording. ive got a rather lareg ammo can under the bed frame full of them. ive never really had to many issues with relaibility and accuracy was pretty good. if you check in my pics gallery you will see a telephone pole that was shot 3 times from 30 yrds. all 3 where right on top of eachother. the slugs went right through the pole.

[eseaton 2]

I have a .69 caliber (12 gauge) Lyman mold in the WTS section in classifieds if anyone is interested in trying this with a ball round or buck and ball. Here is the link:

 

http://forum.saiga-12.com/index.php?showtopic=60143

 

Thanks

[psl sniper 963]

lee makes one for 18.99.

[AJ Dual 43]

Hi Guys iv'e got a brand new 12 ga loadall on wts $40.00 check it out

astrowrench

 

Yes, it's SO CHEAP... you'd make the price back on making your own slugs pretty quickly from bulk pack ammo.

 

The only thing holding me back is I just don't like the glue or silicone for sealing. Or cutting away the factory crimp. I'm stewing on it, but there has to be a quick and easy way to pull the factory crimp open so the loader can just put a proper crimp back on the shell.

[psl sniper 963]

Hi Guys iv'e got a brand new 12 ga loadall on wts $40.00 check it out

astrowrench

 

Yes, it's SO CHEAP... you'd make the price back on making your own slugs pretty quickly from bulk pack ammo.

 

The only thing holding me back is I just don't like the glue or silicone for sealing. Or cutting away the factory crimp. I'm stewing on it, but there has to be a quick and easy way to pull the factory crimp open so the loader can just put a proper crimp back on the shell.

umm... i just used needle nosed pliers. opend up the crimp dropped in slug, pushed crimp back dow with a peice of dowel rod, they ran fine in my saiga. in fact if you watch my full auto vid with lonestar arms, the reduced recoil buck shot was some federal rounds i reloaded in this same manner. recently ive found it much easier to reload from scratch. more fun too.

[preparehandbook 326]

Ok, I know this is an old thread, but.....

 

I process tons of wally world bulk pack this way. The only real difference is that I use a drill mounted roll crimper. At a recent training facility I didn't have access to a reloading bench, had limited pack space, and had to run a hundred plus slugs a day minimum. No way I could afford to trot down to the local gun shop and buy 600 slugs. So I packed my little ladle and lee slug mold, a propane torch and a cordless drill. During lunch runs I bought cheap 100 round birdshot packages. While everybody sat around the picnic tables smoking I sat there casting slugs.

 

They're not the best, but showed decent accuracy and power. I experienced no malfunctions in the saiga 12 bullpup I wqas running, or in my buddies select fire saiga 12 bullpup.

 

My cost per slug? .22

[Zeroselect 3]

I just don't understand why you wouldn't want to start from scratch?

 

I was pressing my own birdshot, buck and slug but i wasn't casting anything so i felt i wasn't saving anything. Now i'm getting all the supplies to cast my own slugs. I figured i could make 1000 lead alloy slugs for $50.

Edited December 2, 2010 by Zeroselect

[psl sniper 963]

after getting all the tools needed, i much prefer to start from scratch. but if you dont have tool there are alternatives. not to mention when you get free ammo frome friends and such.

[bigmegina 3]

how about a chop saw for cutting off the top of the shell?

[AJ Dual 43]

Hi Guys iv'e got a brand new 12 ga loadall on wts $40.00 check it out

astrowrench

 

Yes, it's SO CHEAP... you'd make the price back on making your own slugs pretty quickly from bulk pack ammo.

 

The only thing holding me back is I just don't like the glue or silicone for sealing. Or cutting away the factory crimp. I'm stewing on it, but there has to be a quick and easy way to pull the factory crimp open so the loader can just put a proper crimp back on the shell.

umm... i just used needle nosed pliers. opend up the crimp dropped in slug, pushed crimp back dow with a peice of dowel rod, they ran fine in my saiga. in fact if you watch my full auto vid with lonestar arms, the reduced recoil buck shot was some federal rounds i reloaded in this same manner. recently ive found it much easier to reload from scratch. more fun too.

 

Good to know.

 

I'm looking to get a Lee load-all, melting pot, and a slug mold for Christmas.

 

I need a cheap supply of slugs because my range is slug-only, we have shotgun shooting, but you can only shoot shot at clays or the patterning board. I figure buying components in bulk will be cheaper in the long run, but reworking bulk-pack birdshot seems like a good way to start, and still some significant savings.

 

Is the 12ga/.68 cal slug a drop-in fit to the Federal bulk-pack shot cup/wad? I'm guessing you do, but is there a special slug wad you need instead?

 

Also, what do I need for a release agent in the mold, and do I need to preheat the mold on a hotplate or something?

[psl sniper 963]

Hi Guys iv'e got a brand new 12 ga loadall on wts $40.00 check it out

astrowrench

 

Yes, it's SO CHEAP... you'd make the price back on making your own slugs pretty quickly from bulk pack ammo.

 

The only thing holding me back is I just don't like the glue or silicone for sealing. Or cutting away the factory crimp. I'm stewing on it, but there has to be a quick and easy way to pull the factory crimp open so the loader can just put a proper crimp back on the shell.

umm... i just used needle nosed pliers. opend up the crimp dropped in slug, pushed crimp back dow with a peice of dowel rod, they ran fine in my saiga. in fact if you watch my full auto vid with lonestar arms, the reduced recoil buck shot was some federal rounds i reloaded in this same manner. recently ive found it much easier to reload from scratch. more fun too.

 

Good to know.

 

I'm looking to get a Lee load-all, melting pot, and a slug mold for Christmas.

 

I need a cheap supply of slugs because my range is slug-only, we have shotgun shooting, but you can only shoot shot at clays or the patterning board. I figure buying components in bulk will be cheaper in the long run, but reworking bulk-pack birdshot seems like a good way to start, and still some significant savings.

 

Is the 12ga/.68 cal slug a drop-in fit to the Federal bulk-pack shot cup/wad? I'm guessing you do, but is there a special slug wad you need instead?

 

Also, what do I need for a release agent in the mold, and do I need to preheat the mold on a hotplate or something?

light a match and let the smoke fill the mold. personally i dont use a release agent of any kind. your molds will start to cast more evenly as they get warm. this is especially true with smaller cal projectiles( such as buck) with my single .68 round ball mold it doesnt matter if you start cold, but once it heats up to much the balls start to defrom when dropped. good choice on the load all, i picked one up a few months back, and its already more than paid for itself several times over. the slug mold i was using for the federal bulk was special made by myself, just for those rounds (cause they where so damn cheap)

 

recently my favorite slug, has been a handload i make. heres the data

a single. 685 ball

winchester superlight wads (waasl 12)

30 grains of longshot

federal 209 primer

and federal tactical 00 buck hulls (our range uses them for qualifying)

so far its been the most accurate slug ive used in awhile. (and its cheap to make.)

 

any ?'s just pm me

[AJ Dual 43]

I've been shooting for years, but the price savings on slugs finally has me getting into reloading. I always figured I'd get into handgun or rifle reloading first

 

Thanks for the info, I've read a lot about mold heating, but maybe that was just important for rifle or pistols for target loads, for more consistency, or because they're so much smaller than shotgun slugs. And the bigger slugs and lead volume might just heat the mold up pretty quick I imagine.

 

So just a little match or candle smoke is the release agent? (is it the carbon? I think most mold release sprays have some graphite in them... so that would make sense I guess..)

 

Do you smoke the mold every time, or just every X rounds, or once a session?

[psl sniper 963]

I've been shooting for years, but the price savings on slugs finally has me getting into reloading. I always figured I'd get into handgun or rifle reloading first

 

Thanks for the info, I've read a lot about mold heating, but maybe that was just important for rifle or pistols for target loads, for more consistency, or because they're so much smaller than shotgun slugs. And the bigger slugs and lead volume might just heat the mold up pretty quick I imagine.

 

So just a little match or candle smoke is the release agent? (is it the carbon? I think most mold release sprays have some graphite in them... so that would make sense I guess..)

 

Do you smoke the mold every time, or just every X rounds, or once a session?

like i said, ive never really needed to smoke my molds (yes its the carbon). i tried it a couple of times and did not see any differance. youll need tio do it every 10 rnds or so (youll notice the black is gone)as for the mold heating itll happen automaticly as you cast, youre first couple casts may come out a little odd, just remelt them and go again. my biggest issue has been over heating ( 20 lbs of lead 1 68 mold, 1 buckshot mold, and 1 slug mold) just keap rotating the molds while one cools down enough to use again. great for converting every piece of scrap lead you can get youre dirty little hands on. also dont use any kind of metal objest to knock the bullets out of the mold use a an old wood handle or somthing. round projectiles tend to fall out easier then the slugs. any way goos luck to you, but be careful....its addicting.

[AJ Dual 43]

What molds do you use? Maybe the Aluminum Lee ones don't need lube/carbon/smoke as much.

[psl sniper 963]

.68 is an antique steel model. buckshot mold is an aluminum model i got of ebay. makes 20 pellets at a time. the slug mold is custom model made by myself from an aluminum block.

[eseaton 2]

If anyone is interested, search the classifieds and you will find a lead ball mold for 12 gauge 'punkin balls I posted some time ago.

 

eseaton

[mike12345 18]

you could have gone to walmart and picked up a box of winchester 15rds 2&3/4in 1oz slugs for $8.00 thats like $0.53

Edited December 15, 2010 by mike123456

[NSR500 2]

How safe is this?

 

I was ready to do this and asked the question on the reloading section of another forum. Everybody told me I was going to blow myself up and that I should get a proper reloading manual, and reload from scratch. Their argument is that the load is calibrated for 1 1/8oz birdshot and the wadding/cup are for shot, not slugs.

I know that reloading is a science, but if 1/8oz of the mass is being cut when the shot is converted into a slug, does it give you some safety?

 

Obviously, none of you have blown up. I'm just looking for more of a technical answer for "Why it safely works", even though you've all presented visual evidence of success.

Edited December 15, 2010 by NSR500

[AJ Dual 43]

Yes, the mass is 1/8th oz less, and the pressure is even lower, when these Federal bulk-packs aren't exactly barn burners to begin with.

 

The only real downside to converting Fed. bulk pack birdshot (aside from your time and labor) is that as slugs go, it's not a very powerful load, but that's not the point. We're looking for cheap range/blasting fodder to feed the 10 and 12 round mags and drums, and for those of us who have ranges or clubs that forbid shot on the rifle and pistol ranges.

 

My club has trap shooting, but that's birdshot only obviously. We do have a patterning board, and you are welcome to use that, but the patterning paper is not cheap, or if you use a bulk roll of butcher paper, a pain to hang, and not very fun, and you're not supposed to sit there all day, just do a few rounds to actually check your pattern.

 

My club isn't some Fudd club or overly PC either. Hell, you can't get on the ranges half the time because they're always doing USPSA, IPDA, and other tactical type matches. The reason for slugs only is that we're not an endless font of money, materials, and labor, and we don't want the target stands and backer boards shot up faster than they need to be.

 

you could have gone to walmart and picked up a box of winchester 15rds 2&3/4in 1oz slugs for $8.00 thats like $0.53

 

Yes, but (last I checked), the Fed. bulk packs were $24.99 for 100. (sometimes less on sale) That's a quarter a shell, a little less than half that price. I figure my investment in a Lee Load-All, lead melter pot, and Shotgun slug mold is about $150. I'll make that back in six bulk-packs. (With 20 round drums, it won't last long...) Even faster if I source lead, primers, powder, and wads in bulk once I get more confident in reloading.

Edited December 15, 2010 by AJ Dual

[NSR500 2]

Thanks for the assurance AJ Dual!

[mike12345 18]

here they have a case of 250rds federal game load 6, 7&1/2, and 8 birdshot for 46.00 at walmart thats $.0.18 per round. if you want to continue doing this... cheaper than the value pack.

 

 

I still think its a waste of time, it dosent give you any realistic practice verses the full power slugs. you may as well shoot birdshot.

Edited December 16, 2010 by mike123456

[psl sniper 963]

here they have a case of 250rds federal game load 6, 7&1/2, and 8 birdshot for 46.00 at walmart thats $.0.18 per round. if you want to continue doing this... cheaper than the value pack.

 

 

I still think its a waste of time, it dosent give you any realistic practice verses the full power slugs. you may as well shoot birdshot.

well lets see one solid mass of lead traveling at 1290 fps vs a bunch of tiny little pellets traveling the same speed. last time i tried, birdshot would not go thru a telephone pole, where as that same shell replace with a slug of equal weight will pass clean thru, at 30yrds no less. look at the pics in my gallery, that pole was shot with 3 slugs of this type. so yes a 1 0z slug tarveling at 1290 fps is a real nasty little present. (.45 acp is lucky to push a 300 gr at 900 fps).

[Kliegl 304]

Please be careful when melting lead to have proper ventilation. This forum does not need you any crazier (politically)

[psl sniper 963]

Please be careful when melting lead to have proper ventilation. This forum does not need you any crazier (politically)

yes always use proper ventalation, it much easier to get lead poisining from the vapors.

[AJ Dual 43]

here they have a case of 250rds federal game load 6, 7&1/2, and 8 birdshot for 46.00 at walmart thats $.0.18 per round. if you want to continue doing this... cheaper than the value pack.

 

 

I still think its a waste of time, it dosent give you any realistic practice verses the full power slugs. you may as well shoot birdshot.

 

Wow. Thanks for the heads upon the even better deal.

 

You just have to remember that some of us HAVE to shoot slugs due to our range rules.

 

I'd be happy to shoot the birdshot for break-in and basic function testing, but I can't.