loading your own slugs

[mspaci]

how hard & expensive is it to load your own slugs? What is involved & what type of accuracy could be expected. Any info would be great, I am tired of paying $12-15 for 5 slugs. Mike

[coyotejoe]

It's about as easy to load slugs as any other shotshell. You will need a casting setup and a mould and the hollow based slugs are not easy to cast perfectly but for any definitive answer you will need to tell us what your are shooting. What gauge, rifled or smoothbore, etc. If you are paying that much for factory slugs I assume they must be fancy sabot slugs for rifled bores. For smoothbores I've had good accuracy from S&B slugs in 12 gauge and Federal "true ball" slugs in 20 gauge. I've about given up on 12 gauge because they just kick the snot out of me. Anyhow, those slug loads I've mentioned run only about $4 per box of five, still a bit pricy but I don't shoot enough slugs to worry about it. I have been handloading a few slugs not to save money but to reduce recoil. I've gotten useful 50 yard accuracy in 20 gauge with a .570" round ball inside a plastic shotcup over 15 grains of Red Dot.

[IOWA DON]

Hornaday pointed sabot slugs and the best Winchester sabot slugs work so well in my 20-ga slug gun for longer ranges (past 150 yards) that even though they are high cost I continue to use them. I simply do not shoot that many per year, and I shoot a lot of deer. I got some of the cheapest Federal slugs, on sale, for a very low price. They seemed to be accurate when I was plinking with them in cold weather. However, I tried shooting them in hot weather and accuracy was terrible, plus they fouled up the barrel with lead. I think Ballistic Products in Minnesota carries all the stuff needed to load your own slugs, either plain or sabot slugs. They have a website and a catalog. I am not sure but think one may have to use a roll-crimp instead of the star-crimp used for modern birdshot loads.

[Tuaca]

I just started loading slugs this year. So far I have not had too much success. I'm still learning though. A couple of links that sell reloading supplies:

http://www.slugsrus.com/
They sell hammerhead slugs. They are a full bore slug. These same slugs are sold as the Hastings Laser Accurate. I get excellent results with them out of my USH. Make sure to order their roll crimping tool. The metal roll crimpers from some other places won't let you complete a roll crimp on full bore slugs.

http://www.precisionreloading.com/
They sell various reloading supplies. Including new and used hulls.


http://www.ballisticproducts.com/
They aslo have quite a bit of reloading tools and components. They have developed sabots that can be reloaded. There are a lot of guys try to work out bugs on these but they show potential.

http://www.lightfieldslugs.com/lightfield/
They sell Lightfield commander slugs which are another full bore slug. I have shot a couple dozen of these as well with about the same results as the SPW Hammerhead slugs. Still a work in progress...

http://gardnerscache.com/index.html
They sell complete Lyman sabot kits except the powder. It's a one man operation there, he fills quota for the week fairly quickly, so if you decide to try them, keep an eye on his website Monday mornings. He will turn off the shopping cart after he has enough orders for the week.

Most slugs can be roll crimped. I use a drill press with the Precision reloading roll crimp tool to finish the shells. I have a Lee Load-All II to star crimp the Lyman slugs. You will need a good powder scale. I would highly suggest purchasing the Lyman Shotshell Reloaders Handbook. You are also going to need some powder. When you order different slugs, they will come with different load recipes for different hulls and powders. Follow these recipes until you find the right combination that works in your gun.