shotshell reloading question...

[borrowedtime69]

i am a bit of a survivalist so i am always looking to have what i need and save money.

currently i own a Springfeild Armory M6 22/410 combo gun. .410 shells are getting a little pricey for what they are compared to 12 & 20 gauge shells. I want to save money and reload my own ammo for this caliber.

What im looking for are devices that will allow me to carry some of the appropriate gun powder, shot, primers & wads with me in my pack, and re-crimp the shell when its reloaded.

are there any small devices that i can carry afeild that will let me re-prime the shell, measure powder, measure shot, and re-crimp the Winchester HS shells im using in the field?

it would be similar to black powder/muzzle loading that i would be carrying my supplies separately but loading a shell instead of the barrel. by doing this i can carry a certain amount of powder, primers, wads and a bunch of factory loaded ammo and re-use the shells if the SHTF or TEOTWAWKI.

im asking this cause i read about doing this in a book called ,"The Five Fingers" . can this be done? Thank you! -Eric

 

[loadedround]

"Time" I tried to do some research for you and struck out. I thought that Lee Precision made a 410 shotgun loader in their Lee Loader, but it's no longer listed in their catalog. The smallest and cheapest way would be with their 410 Lee Loadall, but that's a small bench press. However with a little bit of ingenuity you could load your own with simple tools. Decap with a nail and block of wood with proper hole drilled in it. Doubt if you would have to size hull for a break open single shot. Prime with the block of wood and a dowel rod Make a powder measure out of a cut down rifle or pistol to dump proper weight, and seat the wad with the same dowel rod. Same for shot, or just eyeball it. Set crimp with crimper from a MEC tool. Primitve, but should work under your conditions. Total cost, under ten bucks. Another thought would be to contact Lee Precision and see if they could modify their 45 Colt Lee Loader to load 410 shells. Good Luck

 

[gbair]

borrowedtime69,

Here's a solution that works for me. First, I read the following.

You could probably use a hand press and powder dippers once you arrive at the load that works for you.

http://www.endtimesreport.com/410reloading.html
http://www.4-10.freeuk.com/reloading303.html

Thens, here's what I did:

First, I ground off the base of the shell with my belt sander to allow the case to chamber properly. The 303 brass base is a little wide to chamber properly in most 410 chambers. (You can also buy 410 brass from Midway. The brand is Magtech. ( I don't know if the Magtech brass will fit in the #5 shell holder) I used a number 5 shell holder and a universal decapper from Lee to decap the shell. I used a number 5 shell holder in my Lee hand primer to seat the pistol large pistol primer. Then I started with a beginning load of around 10 - 12 grains of 2400. I primed the British 303, loaded the powder, placed a small wad of newspaper over the powder with a wood dowel, filled the case almost full with shot, and capped the shell with another wad of newspaper. That blew out the case. (Not pretty or perfect and some necks didn't make it.)

I sized it with a 44 mag sizing die (optional, as the fired case will fit back into your chamber). Then I loaded again using the same primer, 13 grains of 2400, a win plastic wad, and filled the case with shot and covered with a cardboard wad cut with a punch. You can use white glue or a glue gun to seal the top.

It might sound like a lot of work, and it is at first. But I have lots of 410 brass shells to load over and over. My load patterns well. I found that you can use any 1/2 oz load from the manuals for a 2 1/2 shell.

I can shoot lot of 410 shells now.

I hope you find this useful.

 

[borrowedtime69]

Thank you !!!

you guys are truely gurus of the gun! thank you so much for your research and taking the time to get all this info! -Eric

PS, LOADEDROUND, im not familiar with a MEC tool... is that just a Multi tool with a special accessory tool for crimping? thanks

 

[Steve C]

Here's a classic Lee loader for the .410 on E-bay. http://cgi.ebay.com/VINTAGE-LEE-LOADER-KIT-410-GUAGE-SHOTGUN-RELOAD-SHELLS_W0QQitemZ250041883478QQihZ015QQcategoryZ31825QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Sale ends in a couple days.

 

[loadedround]

"Time" MEC is the trade name for Mayville Engineering Co, probably the largest manufacturer of shotshell reloading presses in the country. They use the name MEC in selling and advertising their presses. Check GOOGLE for their website. LR

 

[Plastic Cowboy]

Make sure that you inspect your .410 hulls closely before you reload them too because many factory offerings in this guage use inexpensive plastic not well suited to reloading.