I want to make 12 gauge slugs

[Wombat of Doom]

I am wanting to cast them, load them and fire them. I am not opposed to preprimed hulls. I am not opposed to buying brass for it. Ideal usage for this would be in a Selection of a Vepr 12, a Mossberg 930, and a 930 slugster. Slugs are expensive and I would really be using the rifled barrel most I think. I am not as familiar with the anatomy and reloading of shotgun shells. I have done some reloading before of rifle rounds, but while I possess the requisite knowledge, to reload rifles and pistol rounds, shotgun seems to be somewhat unique.

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[Member 34319]

Get a drill powered roll crimp.

Ballistic Products Roll Crimper 12 Ga - MPN: ROLL12

Then some preprimed hulls.

Fiocchi Shotshell Hulls 12 Ga 2-3/4 Primed Skived - MPN: 064121600

That's about the jist of it.

You can hand weigh your powder each go, or get one of these and scoop a charge a lot faster.

Lee Improved Powder Measure Kit - MPN: 90100


You can experiment with wads or use cardboard cuts to get desired OAL I usually just cut the wings off a regular AA wad.

 

[jordanka16]

Rifled shotgun barrels are meant for saboted slugs, the "rifled" lead slugs are meant to be shot through a smoothbore.

Buy a lee mold and some hulls and try it out. When I used to load shot you had to follow the recipe exactly, down to what was and hull you used, not sure if that applies to slugs.

 

[Flymph]

Just pour the shot out of some goose loads and stick some 1oz fishing weights in there!

I am not liable for any damages that may occur.

 

[Certaindeaf]

I've not got into shotshell reloading, let alone slugs.. but if I did, I'd probably go either round ball (I don't use rifled barrels) and or the new Russian mold with proprietary wads..

 

[ageingstudent]

I am wanting to cast them, load them and fire them. I am not opposed to preprimed hulls. I am not opposed to buying brass for it. Ideal usage for this would be in a Selection of a Vepr 12, a Mossberg 930, and a 930 slugster. Slugs are expensive and I would really be using the rifled barrel most I think. I am not as familiar with the anatomy and reloading of shotgun shells. I have done some reloading before of rifle rounds, but while I possess the requisite knowledge, to reload rifles and pistol rounds, shotgun seems to be somewhat unique.

It is a little different. Thinner barrels = less room for error and deviation from a specific recipe. It's not really difficult, you just don't 'work up' a load like rifle or pistol. I was taught NO SUBSTITUTIONS and I've stuck with that, though I know that some substitute more than others. I started when I was 16 and didn't manage to hurt myself or my gun so I don't think you will have a problem. You can save yourself a lot of dough and shoot a lot more if you can find an inexpensive source of pure or nearly pure lead for casting your own. I've never tried with a rifled barrel though. You'd have to do your homework on that.

 

[Wombat of Doom]

Good resources for safe recipes?

 

[ageingstudent]

Good resources for safe recipes?

There is tons of stuff out there but what you choose depends on what components are available since it's more specific. I would make a list of components that are readily available and then base your choice of resource data based on that, otherwise you will be chasing components to match the data and more data to match your components.

 

[Wombat of Doom]

I am liking the look of the Russian slug mold. I am just wondering where to get exact data and the wadding.

 

[oli700]

the Lee Key Drive slug mold comes with good data .


It works good from a rifled barrel or a smooth bore.

 

[gmerkt]

Rifled shotgun barrels are meant for saboted slugs, the "rifled" lead slugs are meant to be shot through a smoothbore.

This.

OP mentioned loading brass hulls. This is trickier than loading paper or plastic hulls. If you're a beginner, don't start with brass. Some fiddly details. Not to mention expense.

My first hand loading began in the mid-1970's with shot shells. I didn't start loading centerfire until ten years later. I bought a used MEC press at a swap meet, had no mentor to show me the ropes. I did okay but wasn't knowledgeable enough yet to be fussy about components. Still, my shells came out pretty good, all fired but crimps on some were iffy.

These days, I don't do much shotgunning. My two 12 ga. I keep for defense. I have two .410 bores and one 28 gauge. I occasionally load for the 28 in order to have specialty rounds. To wit: buckshot, slug and round ball loads. I've been successful at all three. To my knowledge, you can't buy any of these three types in 28 gauge for money. I don't use a press, just one of those little shotshell vises that hold one at a time. I use a roll crimp as somebody suggested ahead of me. Be sure you get adequate wad pressure over the powder or you'll get bloopers. I use a Harbor Freight arbor press to compress the wad. I've rigged the handle so I can put a torque wrench on it.

I screw around with specialty loads in 28 gauge to turn what is basically a grouse gun into something more flexible, like home defense. The round ball loads are like a .50 musket. I used to get the 28 gauge slugs from Ballistic Products, like 15 years ago. A couple of years back, I tried to get more. My inquiry was met with, "We've never sold those." I emailed them a copy of their old catalog which showed they did at one time sell them; but no more, that much they were emphatic about. I haven't found a replacement source yet. Round balls and wads they still sell.

I've had one of my .410's since 1966. One thing I've always known, that is, that .410 shells cost two or three times more than 12 gauge, always have. For that reason, all along I've bought boxes of .410 here and there when they were cheap or on sale, etc. Now I have hundreds of them, likely most I will never fire.

One time, I asked a gun store owner why .410's cost so much more than 12 gauge but were only one third the size. He said something about supply and demand, not many people wanted .410's. I replied, "Have you ever considered that the reason you sell so few .410's is because they cost three times the price of twelves?" That is an oversimplification but there's probably more than a grain of truth to it.