What did you reload today?

First handloads for the 375 H&H! 270 grain Hornadys over some Varget. Did up a ladder run. Looking forward to testing these out.

Loaded up some “get them on the paper” loads for some new rifles. I picked up a Tikka 6.5 CM from Toby458’s Kitchen Counter Gun Emporium and then found a good deal on a Tikka in 7mm-08.
The 6.5 is loaded with some 140gr Hornady SST’s and the 7mm with 162gr Hornady SST’s.

Because my varget load with 225g Barnes TSX’s works so well in a handful of my 35 whelens I finished up any shot case to fill the ammo boxes for practice this winter/summer.
For straight practice in field positions and sighting in these same rifles a midrange charge of 3031 and 250g Speer hot-cors fit the bill after about 250 of those.

This all for a moose hunt in September in Canada, but last minute I jumped on a deal to hunt Limpopo and so now I’ve got more practice to do!

I was working with a subsonic load for one of my suppressed 308’s using a 190g sub-X bullet. Works awesome but only completed about 50 of those until this Africa trip came about.

Now for another something different. Blackpowder 32 S&W for a S&W #1-1/2 single action break top. 78gr Missouri bullet over 5gr 3Fg Swiss over a Federal 100 in a new Starline case. I was pleased with how the Hornady set dealt with the little bugger. I usually seat and crimp separately but these did pretty good as a single operation.

Why a 32 S&W? Three reasons: (1) I've always liked the line in Unforgiven, "I'll have that .32 Bob."; (2) Smith doesn't make a 33; (3) it's an easy to carry, lightweight backup in case Mr. Cape Buffalo is still coming at you and the double doesn't extract.

2.125 Lapan.
Volume of 3 ounce of Fg.
Equivalent volume of flour.



For Fourth of July salute.


Leave out the flour and use a Rotometal zinc round ball for live fire.


The topic is what did you reload today?

Old school 510gr Winchester SP in the 458 Win Mag. Cheers

Slickshooter said:

Old school 510gr Winchester SP in the 458 Win Mag. Cheers
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You sir, are a steely-eyed missle man. Look at those silos! Did you tumble and anneal those cases?

Unrelated to this post, I shot my 32-20 and 32 S&W reloads over the chronograph today. The 32 S&W average 502 FPS, 34 ES, 14 SD out of a 3-1/2 inch S&W breaktop. The 32-20 averaged 892 FPS, 42 ES, 15 SD out of a 4-3/4 inch Peacemaker replica. I could probably do better with card wads but holy SMOKES it was fun hearing the BOOM and seeing the smoke. Both pistols shot great. Black powder is so much fun loading and shooting - it's the cleanup that takes extra time. I'm thinking about getting a BPE double to add to my enjoyment.

DaddyFlip said:

You sir, are a steely-eyed missle man. Look at those silos! Did you tumble and anneal those cases?

Unrelated to this post, I shot my 32-20 and 32 S&W reloads over the chronograph today. The 32 S&W average 502 FPS, 34 ES, 14 SD out of a 3-1/2 inch S&W breaktop. The 32-20 averaged 892 FPS, 42 ES, 15 SD out of a 4-3/4 inch Peacemaker replica. I could probably do better with card wads but holy SMOKES it was fun hearing the BOOM and seeing the smoke. Both pistols shot great. Black powder is so much fun loading and shooting - it's the cleanup that takes extra time. I'm thinking about getting a BPE double to add to my enjoyment.

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Do you have to clean the cases quickly after shooting black? I’ve toyed around with idea of loading some black powder 45 Colts for my SAA. I’ve never loaded black powder cartridges just my cap and ball Remington replica.

Wyatt Smith said:

Do you have to clean the cases quickly after shooting black? I’ve toyed around with idea of loading some black powder 45 Colts for my SAA. I’ve never loaded black powder cartridges just my cap and ball Remington replica.

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I'm glad you asked because I was trying to explain to my wife today why I don't shoot as much as I would like. Modern BP DOES require quick cleaning. If you watch the experts in BP shooting on YT, they will extract brass and immediately put it into a container of soapy (Dawn) water. As soon as I shoot carts, I put in a plastic coffee can of soap and water. They can stay in there for a long time. Generally, when I'm done shooting, I rinse the soapy out, dry, then go straight to the media tumbler. I don't let BP cases linger in any condition except ready to load. I decap before I media tumble also; I don't mind punching out a kernel of media from the flash hole.

Guns are cleaned immediately after shooting with a 50:50 mix of distilled water and Windex vinegar solution. I keep gallon jugs made up of this mixture then put some in a spray bottle and douse everything except the grips with it, running patches through and wiping until every trace of BP is removed. When that's done, I dry completely with a micro towel then I wipe externally with a mineral oil soaked T-shirt. Don't oil your BP guns except maybe the cylinder pin. Oil, water, lube, lead, BP DON'T MIX! Makes you wonder how the old timers ever managed their BP guns!

DaddyFlip said:

You sir, are a steely-eyed missle man. Look at those silos! Did you tumble and anneal those cases?

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Lmao, yessir they do look like missile silos. Anything within 100 yards is in big trouble! I do wet tumble and anneal the cases.

DaddyFlip said:

I'm glad you asked because I was trying to explain to my wife today why I don't shoot as much as I would like. Modern BP DOES require quick cleaning. If you watch the experts in BP shooting on YT, they will extract brass and immediately put it into a container of soapy (Dawn) water. As soon as I shoot carts, I put in a plastic coffee can of soap and water. They can stay in there for a long time. Generally, when I'm done shooting, I rinse the soapy out, dry, then go straight to the media tumbler. I don't let BP cases linger in any condition except ready to load. I decap before I media tumble also; I don't mind punching out a kernel of media from the flash hole.

Guns are cleaned immediately after shooting with a 50:50 mix of distilled water and Windex vinegar solution. I keep gallon jugs made up of this mixture then put some in a spray bottle and douse everything except the grips with it, running patches through and wiping until every trace of BP is removed. When that's done, I dry completely with a micro towel then I wipe externally with a mineral oil soaked T-shirt. Don't oil your BP guns except maybe the cylinder pin. Oil, water, lube, lead, BP DON'T MIX! Makes you wonder how the old timers ever managed their BP guns!

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I’ll probably never get around to it, as the smokeless loads are still pretty fun. As you mentioned I would have make a new bullet lube and get a new lubri-sizer as to not have to clean it out every time.
I’ll have to remember the windex vinegar trick I’ve always just used hot water and Dawn.
There’s just something about that “Boom” of black powder.

Closest to reloading for muzzleloaders is bullet casting. Working on casting another 100 or so 54 cal Minies for my M 1841 Mississippi rifle

First test loads for a Colt Single Action Army that’s making its way through the shipping process. .45 Colt of course!

ARHinAK said:

First test loads for a Colt Single Action Army that’s making its way through the shipping process. .45 Colt of course!

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I just put 100 through my SAA 45 today. Sweet guns.

Loaded up 50 rounds of smokeless 32-20 for my Peacemaker with the Lyman tongs- 25 each of Titegroup and Win 231 to see which ball powder I hate the least. Don't like ball powders; they cling and hop around like a flea circus. Love loading with the tongs- I'm looking for a good 44-40 set even though I have three sets of press dies.

DaddyFlip said:

Loaded up 50 rounds of smokeless 32-20 for my Peacemaker with the Lyman tongs- 25 each of Titegroup and Win 231 to see which ball powder I hate the least. Don't like ball powders; they cling and hop around like a flea circus. Love loading with the tongs- I'm looking for a good 44-40 set even though I have three sets of press dies.

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I have switched to Vihtavuori powder for 9mm, but I still have 3+ lbs of Titegroup that stares back at me every time I open the powder storage bin. I don't want to waste it, but the nightmares about it clinging to the sides of the hopper and jumping around the press still cause me to break out in a cold sweat.

I made dummy rounds for 300 H&H and I'm glad I did. I have two sets of dies; brand new Lee I got on sale for $35 (unbelievable value!) and a early 1990's Hornady set I bought on GB that's basically brand new. Point of information: the Hornady set is impossible to run in the Co-Ax; there just aren't enough die body threads for the internal configuration- especially the seater die. Had no problems with it in the Lee Hand Press; the Hornady set requires a standard ram press. On the other hand, the Lee set worked wonderfully in both presses and made great cartridges. The micrometer really makes a difference in getting to the right seating depth quickly. In the Hand Press, both die sets produced equal quality cartridges.


Thought I would 'chase the lands' and see just how far out I could seat a 190gr Sierra MatchKing (these are the old moly coat version- I got a bargain on 800 awhile back). I didn't worry about relieving the neck, so when I seated the bullet it nearly made a Weatherby out of it! Second one I don't know what happened; it just bulged for no apparent reason. Third one was good until I pushed the Lee FCD a little to far. Four and five are Lee and Hornady in the Hand Press; perfect. Six is Hornady back in the Co-Ax; I overshot the seating depth; otherwise, it was fine but I had to wing it and seat and crimp by feel. Last one is Lee in the Co-Ax- perfect.


Hornady cases just chamfered with as-received length of 2.838 inch. Sierra MatchKing 190gr moly bullet. COAL 3.655 by Sierra manual.

520 grain gas check lead 458 2050 fps

DaddyFlip said:

. I didn't worry about relieving the neck, so when I seated the bullet it nearly made a Weatherby out of it!

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If you shoot #1 will the brass return to standard shape? Or do you need to dismantle it and resize it?

Ray B said:

If you shoot #1 will the brass return to standard shape? Or do you need to dismantle it and resize it?

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Here, where the tubes have been deformed, they will weaken so much that some of them may even burst. I suggest you resize them first, and if there is no white line where the deformation was, then try