When you load pistol ammo for hunting

[S.B.]

do you weigh or measure powder charges? If you weigh them do you increase by .1 grain at a time or .5 grains or what? Do you separate bullets by weight or just grab some out of the box they came in? How about brass, do you separate by manufacture or weight? Do you trim them often or ever? Do you try several manufactures primers or just go with your old stand by?
Do you chronograph each step of load before you decide on the one you'll keep for hunting? How do you test for accuracy, sand bag or Ransom Rest or other?

[kiddekop]

do you weigh or measure powder charges? If you weigh them do you increase by .1 grain at a time or .5 grains or what? Do you separate bullets by weight or just grab some out of the box they came in? How about brass, do you separate by manufacture or weight? Do you trim them often or ever? Do you try several manufactures primers or just go with your old stand by?
Do you chronograph each step of load before you decide on the one you'll keep for hunting? How do you test for accuracy, sand bag or Ransom Rest or other?

It depends on the type of powder I'm using if it's flake or ball my OHAUS Mod 7200 DUO Powder measure is finitely adjustable and throws exact charges once it's set up however if I'm using certain extruded powders I'll throw a charge and weigh it & if necessary use my powder trickler to get the exact charge that's called for.I buy nosler,hornaday,sierra, cast performance & oregon trail & since I'm not loading for match shooting I don't weigh my bullets or my brass.I use to weigh my cast bullets since they were used in schuetzen matches.I check the brass for specs and damage & if it's ok I  load handgun ammo oblivious of the brand of brass if it's 38 spec,357mag,45acp,45c,454casull,460mag.

[bilmac]

If you are talking loading for a hand rifle like a contender or better that's one thing, but if you're talking an auto or six shooter, then you may want to do some of the stuff you are talking about to find a good load, but once you've done that it's all about volume. Shooting a handgun isn't about precision, it is about you learning to be a good shot, To do that shoot and shoot and shoot some more. Make your bullets fast and easy and shoot them by the bucket full.

[Redhawk1]

do you weigh or measure powder charges? If you weigh them do you increase by .1 grain at a time or .5 grains or what? Do you separate bullets by weight or just grab some out of the box they came in? How about brass, do you separate by manufacture or weight? Do you trim them often or ever? Do you try several manufactures primers or just go with your old stand by?
Do you chronograph each step of load before you decide on the one you'll keep for hunting? How do you test for accuracy, sand bag or Ransom Rest or other?

I think people go to far when trying to work up loads for hunting.

Myself, I find what bullet and powder gives me the best accuracy and consistency. I pick a bullet I want to use, and then try different powders and primers to achieve this.
I use a throw type powder measure,  I don't measure all the bullet weights, I just grab them out of the box and load them up. I stick with the printed load data and never go over or under it.

I shoot the loads at different ranges to see how they perform in my gun. The only people that I think that need to go as far as you described are people that are shooting competition. JMHO

[45-70.gov]

i  have  several boxes  of  matching  brass...had  it for  years....in case  i  ever decide to do  it  right

as  for the  last 20 years  i  have several hundred all  mixed up in a bucket

the  nickle get gas checks  the gold ones are  non-gas  checked

the  ones  that  don't cast  to  good  get  burned  up  on  short range practice

not  too  scientific  but  i am lazy

[Lloyd Smale]

mixed brass loaded with cast bullet not weighted and loaded on a dillon progressive. If it shoot good enough groups at the range its fine for hunting. been doing it for 20 years and havent had a problem.

[warrior1]

i'm probably not the sharpest knife in the drawer,nor am i ready for the trick shot circuit,what i do usually is  weigh each load and use the same  make of brass for each batch. do not ask why i guess it's a habit i've had for
some time.
 

[buck460XVR]

Myself, I find what bullet and powder gives me the best accuracy and consistency. I pick a bullet I want to use, and then try different powders and primers to achieve this.
I use a throw type powder measure,  I don't measure all the bullet weights, I just grab them out of the box and load them up. I stick with the printed load data and never go over or under it.

I shoot the loads at different ranges to see how they perform in my gun. JMHO

S.B........altho I have only be reloading for a short amount of time, that is basically how I do it. I use either H110 or Lil' Gun for the three calibers I hunt with and because they throw quite consistently outta my powder thrower, I quit weighing each load long ago. Because I don't trim my handgun brass, I do sort my brass as to make and times fired in attempt to keep the crimp consistent. When working on loads I always shoot off bags. Once I have the load/bullet/primer combo down, I practice with and without. Even done this way, I've found my reloads to be much more accurate than most factory loads, which for years were plenty good enough(at least for me) to hunt with.

[Mikey]

Me, Lloyd, and Redhawk1 have the same approach.  I check my charged cases just to see if the powder levels look about the same.  I might weigh a sample slug or two to see what I'm actually shooting but 5-10 gns weight flux doesn't really change anything for me.  HTH.  Mikey.

[irold]

Seems like everyone pretty much agrees for a change....as for me, I do separate batches of brass by make and times reloaded.  ( as someone else said , don't know why..I just do. ) I DO inspect my brass and mic it , I have found several calibers really stretch ( 460 , 357 max , and even the 357 mags ), I like to keep a consistent crimp.  Once I get the powder thrower adjusted with my load , I may throw 20-25 loads to a loading block...with a light , glance at each and every case for a visual inspection of powder. ( esp if using bullseye or maybe unique , very easy to double charge ) After checking the weight of the batch ,then I finish loading the 20-25 in the block and start the process over again , I will weigh the last charge of every batch.  Just the other night , I found I had forgotten to tighten the lock nut on the adjusting thingamajig on my RCBS powder thrower...I dumped that 20-25 batch and started over again.  I have never weighed the brass or bullets...35 to 50 yards mostly , I can put everything into a 4-6 inch circle ( open sight from a open stance )....that's fine for hunting where I hunt at.  As far a working up loads , I've always used CCI primers....I will start with close to minimun load and work up with a moderate load , and usually do a few with max loads, assuming everything looks good on the lesser loads....or pick a velocity and try to load to it , watching for pressure signs as you go.  I usually test for the accuracy of my loads with sandbags...after that, its all offhand or with a mono stick.   Just be careful with the fast burning powders , its awfully easy too screw up.......also , turn the cellphones off...no TV ....keep your mind on what your doing !  OMHO   Good shooting!

[Bigeasy]

For serious hunting loads:
I use once fired brass, same make.
Inspect bullet if it is cast, especially the base.
Load powder charge with RCBS Little Dandy, if possible.  Usually by volume, confirmed with an accurate scale.
Use the same primer / powder charge that proved accurate and consistant in practice / load development.  I like the Lee hand priming tool.
Seat the bullet first, then apply the crimp as a separate step.
Cycle each loaded round thru the gun, just to make sure.

I always use a single stage when loading serious hunting / defence loads.

Larry

[Dand]

For hunting ammo for big game (caribou so far for me), I'm more like Big Easy. I use the 41 mag and try to be sure my brass has been shot less than 5 times all the same make. Trim if needed, clean primer pockets etc. Like Ken Waters warned in his Pet Loads, different brands of 41 mag brass can have significantly different powder capacities and what's safe in R-P brass may be an overload in WW brass. I had a friend lock up his SW 58 with a slight overload in WW brass just like Ken Waters warns about those long years ago. I figure for the 15 rounds I'll carry in the field, its worth making sure they are as good and as uniform as possible.  If I'm at a max or near max load I scale the powder.  Don't weigh bullets  though. So proper case length assures more uniform crimps. This is how I load ammo that might be used for bear defense also. I figure ammo for big or big and nasty animals deserves utmost care.

For light game loads and practice I'm less critical and use a moderate load that is easily thrown from my RCBS measure or more often from my Lee ProAuto disk. I still sort cases by make for reasons as above and since sometimes the brass thickness varies from make to make its easier to get uniform crimps.

For 38/357, 9 mm, and 40 sw I prefer to sort brass by make as I see really noticeable case wall thickness variation and I can get better crimps and better ammo this way. I think Federal brass is often thicker at the mouth than WW so I need to adjust the crimp die from make to make. 

Oh I use Lee crimp dies for all handgun ammo, except a CH taper crimp for the 9mm.

I usually sort my cases when I deprime after tumbling a big batch. I have several large plastic peanut butter jars stationed so I can just pop each case into a different jar.

I test loads over sand bags, some times chrono, and for all but the 41 stay within safe powder limits as listed in my books ( I have LOTS of books and compare loads a lot before settling on one to test).  I have been known to exceed some max loads in the 41 mag due to long seating some bullets, and I have some bullets for which little or no data is published. I only shoot those in my Rugers and Marlin.  Since Corbon and Buffalo Bore make some real sturdy loads I don't make Max+ loads very much any more. Never did like it, but its also frustrating to see the max load for some powder that worked really good, get steadily dropped over the years in the same brand of load book - as in some Speer and Lyman books.

On a side note, for years I wanted to try Blue Dot in the 41 mag. Finally I bought a pound and less than a year later the warning comes out that Blue Dot shouldn't be used in the 41. I'll live with that as the few loads I tried didn't seem all that exciting anyway.

[TommyD]

I load primarily 45 Colt. For my plinking and practice loads I use a Dillon 650 progressive. At the beginning of each session I cycle the volumetric powder measure a couple of times and then verify the charge weight on several rounds to make sure they are consistent and the charge that I want. I have found that if the press hasn't been used for a couple of weeks, some settling may occur and the first charge thrown may be a tenth or so high. After that I have found that the charge weights with large flake powders like Universal and 231 are consistent within a tenth of a grain.

When filling the powder measure, I always put a card with the powder type written inside the measure, so I always KNOW what is in there. Also, since Universal is a tan clay color and W231 is black, there is little chance of mistaking which powder is in the measure.

When making up my hunting loads with H110 I alter the procedure. My Dillon sliding type powder measure has trouble with the fine granular structure of H110. It tends to leak powder enough to make me cautious.

I do the hunting loads in 3 steps.

First, I empty the powder measure and pull the pins to drop out the separate seating and crimping dies. Easy to do the way the Dillon 650 is set up. then I run a bunch of clean brass through it to size, prime, and flare the case mouth. Each case is inspected for damage and uniform primer seating depth.

Second, I charge the cases using an RCBS Uniflow powder measure. The first few rounds are weighed to ensure that the charge is correct and that they are consistent. I find that it is good to a tenth of a grain. At random intervals I will also check charge weights again. After the batch of cases is charged with powder in my loading block, I perform a final inspection in good light to make sure the powder heights are uniform.

Finally, I replace the separate seating and crimping dies and manually load each charged case through the Dillon for the separate seating and crimping stages. I no longer weigh my bullets because I have found that, if they pass my visual inspection, the minor variations in grain weight don't make any practical difference in the accuracy of my hunting bullets.

To weigh my powder charges I have both the RCBS electronic scale as well as a much older balance beam scale. At least once a season I have been cross checking to make sure that they both agree with each other using a set of Lyman calibration weights. Perhaps I am a little OCD on this last part, but I don't trust spring or electronic scales as much. It is possible that they could "drift" a bit over the long haul. But a balance beam should, if kept clean and corrosion free, give you exactly the same measurements from now to the end of time. But the electronic ones are very attractive because of the ease and convenience. So far so good.

Tom

[bilmac]

I use a Dillon also, and have the same problem with their measure. I tried a Lee disc measure, which I kind of like, it has preset cavities so there is no adjustment to get out of whack, but it leaks worse than the Dillon.

[Glanceblamm]

Steve, Whether it be ball powder or flake, my old Lyman #55 dinosaur with it's three slides makes it easy (even with the flake) to throw charges so consistant that I cannot resist using a trickler to finish of the last .2 grains or so. When working up loads I pretty much stick to the (graduation) guide lines as said by the manual. There are some applications with my fixed sight guns and specific bullet weights that make me vary the charge by + - .3 tenths in order to regulate the initial sighting in distance that I want but never over the max charge and often well under it.

My cases (for hunting) were bought for this purpose and tend to be lightly used because of a large lot size (read 100) which has become a thorn in my side because I have around 500 of them in two diff calibers.
I need to reduce these into 50 round lots just so they dont sit around too long but they make up but a very small part of my total inventory. The only good thing that I can say about this is I have plenty to use as basis for comparison when trying to come up with a new loading that will beat these out on accuracy with the velocitys being comparable. I think that this is the name of the game for us reloaders anyway.

The cases all get trimmed with further enhancements being a uniform primer pocket and flash hole (read Sinclair tools) and a primer seated to just touch the bottom of the pocket (read Lee autoprime).
Testing is done with a wrist only rest upon the sandbags. Documentation is kept by the actual targets which are placed on finishing nails which have been pounded into a handy wooden header in the loading room.
The targets have the load data & range printed on them of course but this whole buisness seems to be spiraling out of control as I have several nails and multiple targets with some of the data on some of the loadings being incomplete!...I had to take 8-9 months off due to illness starting in the early part of '08 but these targets can be fun to look through and let me know where I have been and where I need to go.
They also provide me with the drive and purpose to try to exceed what I have on hand already...Again, I think that this is the name of the game for us reloaders.

[bilmac]

Glance

I also keep every serious target I shoot. I use 3 ring notebook paper for targets and stick a targ dot in the center as an aiming point. Write all the load info on the target and then stick it in a 3 ring binder.

[Glanceblamm]

Glance

I also keep every serious target I shoot. I use 3 ring notebook paper for targets and stick a targ dot in the center as an aiming point. Write all the load info on the target and then stick it in a 3 ring binder.

bilmac, Thanks for the great tip on the 3 ring binder as I need to get those targets down from the nails before they start to curl too badly. They are definately worth saving and I would like to pursue Lloyd Smale's good advice
(as told on another thread) of working them over again with different primers to see if the accuracy can be enhanced any more.

[TEXXAS]

S.B.

I load for volume, speed, and savings. My handgun ammo is loaded on a Dillon 550 or a SDB. 

As I do not load my ammo to the top edge of sanity so I do not weigh anything but to check as I set up or if I have any doubts about what is happening.

Brass gets used untill it splits. If I am going on a big hunt or shoot I may grab new brass (I keep plenty on hand) for the trip then throw it in will all others as it gets used.

Triming, weighing, sorting, ect. has not helped in the tests I have done. I do a visual inspection of the bullets as I cast/size/load them and look at the brass as I load it. The finished ammo is looked over as I bucket/box/bag it.

I cronograph when testing to help learn the pressure range the powder wants with the bullet/brass/primer combo I am using.

I have never used a load that if I increased the powder charge by a grain or two it would put me in danger of blowing a gun. When testing I will up the powder charge a grain or more at at time.

I have found that my 500 Linebaugh will shoot bullets from 400 grains to 468 grains with the same powder charge of 2400 verry well. A 454 will do the same with bullets from 260 grains to 325 grains, and a 44 will with 240's to 320's.

I use CCI 350 primers for almost every thing as I buy them 20K at a time.

I use HS-6, 2400, and H-110 for almost every thing with 2400 used WAY more than anything else.

With 2400 the case on most handgun ammo is near or over 1/2 full. A under, over, or double carge is easy to see. I have a mirror mounted on my Dillon's so I can see each powder charge as I place the bullet in the case.

I test loads sitting with my hands between my knees at 25, 100, and 300 yards. Some loads that shoot well up close will not shoot good at long range, but all of the loads that have shot well at long range also shoot good up close.

I do alot of testing, with good record keeping. Shooting 1,558 rounds of 500 Linebaugh to find "my" load. The better loads were shot hundreds of times to learn how they shot and how I liked them.

TEXXAS/Chad

[corbanzo]

I'm looking for "good enough" when I'm loading.  If I get a load that I can keep under 4 inches offhand at 50 yards, that is a hunting load.  I am by no means a target shooter, though with rifle, I do like to strive for sub moa accuracy off a bench.

If I was going to do a long range load with one of my big bores, then I would put a little more work into it, try and get my 4" group out to 100 yards, rested.  - But I haven't really handgun hunted enough to need it. 

I use a bullet I like, the same case and primer always, and there are only a couple powders for hunting loads which I switch between, I just keep a speed range in mind and load my powder in that range while getting the best (good enough for me) accuracy.