Wad Size in Shotshell question

1
Hey, so I'm going to have some downtime from work over the Christmas holiday, and I thought I'd try my hand at putting together some steel shot loads for my 20 gauge. THIS IS JUST FOR THE HELL OF IT SO YES I KNOW IT'S NOT PARTICULARLY ECONOMICAL. :thanks:
I have some Fiocchi (Cheddite) 2.75" primed hulls, some BP 7/8oz steel shot wads and a few pounds of #5 steel shot.
Here's my question: The load data that I have shows a load for these same components, but uses 3/4oz wads and #3 shot... can I use 3/4 oz of any size shot for a load like this? I know that 3/4 oz of #5 will be a little lower in the cup than #3, and that a 3/4 oz load will be a little low in a 7/8 oz wad, but can I just put a filler wad under the shot and a overcard on top of it to achieve proper crimp height?
Like I said, I'm new to shotshell reloading, so I want to make sure I'm doing things safely. But supplies are mostly sold out everywhere and I have this stuff on hand.
Any advice is appreciated.
thanks,
Crow
Minute Of Average

Re: Wad Size in Shotshell question

2
For shotgun low pressure target loads using Lead shot, a little freedom in substituting one very similar component for another will not get you into trouble. Steel shot loads, never do this. Higher pressure hunting loads, never do this.

For Steel shot loading, pressures are usually within spitting distance of the danger zone. I change nothing on published data when loading such. There are bold mountain climbers, there are old mountain climbers, but there are no old bold mountain climbers.

Actually, you can save a lot of money, loading steel shot loads, over factory steel shot loads, and you can get better performance at the same time. I can load 3/4 oz of #2 steel shot to 1850 fps for about $5 a box, much cheaper than factory steel, and about 200 fps faster than any steel shot factory loads. Reloading Specialties and their Sam1 wad comes with reloading data, using Federal Gold Medal cases, produce an incredible effect on a duck.

Re: Wad Size in Shotshell question

3
NuJudge wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 8:44 pm For Steel shot loading, pressures are usually within spitting distance of the danger zone. I change nothing on published data when loading such. There are bold mountain climbers, there are old mountain climbers, but there are no old bold mountain climbers.
Hey thanks for the reply! I actually talked to the dude at Ballistic Products and he said absolutely NOT to run loads any hotter than what's in the manual- I guess all their loads are MAX, which would be a smart thing to note in their load data... He said to load the wads with 3/4 oz loads and use a filler wad to bring the shot up to the top of the 7/8 oz wad. Like I said, totally new to loading shotshells, but I live in Cali so everything has to be steel shot and ammo is hard to get, especially since we are prohibited by law from ordering online.
Crow
Minute Of Average

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