Quality Reloading Hulls

[M G]

Need to start saving my spent factoring loads as I prepare to begin reloading. Any suggestions for factory ammo that has quality reloading potential for spent hulls? I've been told that most won't crimp well for reloading. I'm interesting in 2 3/4, 3 and 3.5".

Thanks in advance,

Mike

 

[rfwobbly]

Generally speaking, Remington hulls are considered best. Although they come in several different quality levels, all Remington hulls follow the same reloading recipe. The gold Ultra and green STS are considered their best hulls.

In the Winchester line, only the AA hulls are considered reloadable.

Some Federal hulls are reloadable, but I am not familiar with them.

For a full list of the reloadable hulls, buy the Lyman #5 shotshell reloading manual. It's money well spent. Since you must adhere to specific recipes when reloading shotshells, it pays to pick a single brand and concentrate on that one hull type.

 

[gamestalker]

AA's, Gold Medal, STS, and Rem. low base hunting shells, the black one's. I have so many AA's, STS, and Gold Medal's saved up, that I really don't pay much attention to saving them any more. I've loaded a lot of the black plastic Remington hunting shells that have 8 pt. crimps, they load well, but I think they have a paper base which will require a different wad colum. But generally speaking, I'll load anything that is a one piece plastic hull, if it has an 8 pt. crimp.

 

[Waldog]

The only hulls worth reloading are:
Remington STS
Winchestor AA
Federal Gold Medal

Cheap "Dove Loads" are not worth the effort. Most of the premium hulls can be loaded 6-8 times.

 

[blarby]

http://www.remington.com/product-families/ammunition/shotgun-families/target-loads.aspx

I prefer the nitro.

It is a very solidly made hull. It can be loaded in target, buckshot, or slug configurations.

And its gold

 

[M G]

Thanks, everyone. Sounds like there is strong consensus on Gold Medal, AA and STS. And the tip on the Lyman manual and stadardization sounds like a good one. I have a good supply of live ammo in Black Cloud, Heavy Shot and Kent (3" and 3.5"). Anyone have any experience with those specifically? Wondering if they are worth using while I build an inventory in the 3 that have been recommended (maybe not because of the standardization point already made?). Also wondering in case I find it difficult to locate large shot waterfowl loads in the recommended 3.

 

[RainDodger]

I agree totally with Waldog:

The only hulls worth reloading are:
Remington STS
Winchestor AA
Federal Gold Medal

The good thing about shotgun reloading for me is, I reload them until they just look too gnarly to shoot, or they split or something. I'm loading just for trap shooting though, not home defense or anything like that. The Remington STS shells work very well in my 2 semi-autos... those shells are nice and slippery compared to others.

 

[oneounceload]

I'll add the Remington Gun Clubs to the list. While they have steel bases and not brass, they load great and will last many loadings before issues

 

[92GreenYJ]

I only buy, shoot and reload Win AA hulls. But then that's mostly due to info I have heard from every shot shell reloaded I have run across at the range

 

[rfwobbly]

I have a good supply of live ammo in Black Cloud, Heavy Shot and Kent (3" and 3.5"). Anyone have any experience with those specifically?

The Kents I see in GA are low-cost target loads. Typically this type hull is not recommended for reloading. When you read the Lyman #5, you'll discover that shotgun reloading is ultra-precise, much more so than metallic reloading. Example: Use Hull X with wad Y and primer Z and do not vary from that formula.

It's not that they can't be reloaded, it's that no one has taken the time to develop the load for them in a test chamber. Without a way to properly test, you'll have no idea of the chamber pressures. And seeing as how shotguns run chamber pressures about 1/3 that of your average pistol, blowing up a shot gun is really easy.

Bottom Line: Blowing up a $1200 shot gun trying to save 50 cents is false economy. Just stick with the 25 or so hulls that are recommended. They're the only ones you can get in volume anyway!

 

[Winchester101]

I've been lurking for awhile reading posts, finally decided to register and jump into the conversation.

I personally reccomend the STS/Rem hulls for loading. GREAT hull life and more recipes than you could ever work through in a lifetime.

Having said that, because I had/have access to tons of other "cheapie" hulls, I spent many years researching and loading those "promo" and lesser known hulls. Info IS out there, it is just very limited and hard to find. Unless you just enjoy this sort of thing, you're far better served with the STS/AA/GM hulls.

Just my $0.02

W101

 

[M G]

Thanks all. As it turns out, the book I started reading happens to be Lyman 5th ed. It was a hand-me-down from my father and I hadn't noticed it was the one referenced in this thread until I picked it up again. I started looking at the loads referenced in the book and see how things are brand/model and wad specific. Being a brass reloader, this was a new concept to me. Time to go shopping for some STS, AA and GM shells.

 

[oneounceload]

Realize this - while you CAN substitute STS and AA in most recipes, you CANNOT use that same data for Federal GM hulls - it is a different type of hull than the AA and STS.

Stick with the Remington and/or the AA, use tapered wads (and the clones from Claybuster or Downrange), and you'll have plenty of recipes for everything

 

[USSR]

Stick with the Remington and/or the AA, use tapered wads (and the clones from Claybuster or Downrange), and you'll have plenty of recipes for everything

+1.

Don

 

[AFK]

Good info. here. I am new to the world of shotshell reloading as well. I just picked up a used press and I am in the process of gathering info and components. I just bought a bunch of once fired STS hulls. Take a look at Shotgunworld.com I have learned a lot there.

 

[BlisteringSilence]

Remember, if you're reloading AA's, you need to separate the old ones from the new ones. Newer AA's (2004+ or so) are a two piece hull (they have a separate basewad). That's the reason I like the Remington Premiere Nitros or the STS. They're still a one piece hull, so they're easier to inspect.