Trap load powder

[Armored farmer]

Im running out of Promo. I will need some more powder soon.
Any suggestions for good clean powder for light 12ga 1 1/8 trap loads?
Ive used red dot, green dot, clays, promo, etc.
Make some suggestions and i'll research them.
Ive been out of the loop for a while.
Not many shotgun shell reloaders out there anymore. Everyone is shooting the cheapo club loads.

 

[Allen One1]

I always used Red Dot.

 

[nambu1]

I used Red Dot and 700 X.

 

[Jim Watson]

I loaded 700X by choice, 452AA when cheaper.
But IMR 700X is replaced by H700X which is not the same stuff, it is made by Alliant instead of IMR. And 452AA was replaced by WST.
So I don't really know what to get.

 

[Starter52]

Red Dot for the last 30+ years.

And when I reload I use quality chilled lead shot, not that cheap shot found in the bargain loads.I

 

[243winxb]

But IMR 700X is replaced by H700X which is not the same stuff, it is made by Alliant instead of IMR.

https://imrpowder.com/resources/safety-data-sheets/

Hi-Scor 700X is still made in Canada as far as i know? See link. Please , more info.

I always used Red Dot in 12 gauge.
Then someone talked me into using Hi-Scor 700X . It produces more smoke then Red Dot. Now i would buy Red Dot for shotguns.

The 700X works better in 38 and 45 acp target loads , then Red Dot.

 

[Jim Watson]

Looking around, I find that 700X sourcing has indeed been moved back to IMR Canada. It was made by Alliant for a while due to what the trapshooters board called poor quality from IMR.

Clays is now made by IMR, too, ADI is changing their flake powder lineup.

 

[PapaG]

Red dot for close to fifty years. Flirted with 700x and still use some, 452aa, green dot, pbnj for powderpuffs, titewad which was given to me.
To be honest, after several hundred thousand shells fired over fifty years, the 1150-1200 fps loads in aa, gold medal or my current fave, gun clubs, all feel the same to me.
I do shoot 1 oz #8 from 16 to 20 yards, go to 1 1/8 7 1/2 beyond.
Winchester Orange for the heavier, generics for one oz.
Tooling up for a couple hundred seven eighth ounce loads to try.

 

[Armored farmer]

We shot red dot for many years. We always had blackened fingers and shooting shirts by the end of the day. The hulls would get blackened after being reloaded 5 or 6x.
I always thought there was surely something cleaner, but we kept using it anyway.

 

[Armored farmer]

Tooling up for a couple hundred seven eighth ounce loads to try.

We tried the 7/8oz loads for a while, but went back to 1oz. I always had it in the back of my mind whenever I dropped a target. I was confident with 1oz.

 

[mokin]

I've been using Titewad since my supply of Red dot dried up.

 

[Galil5.56]

Claydot might be a good one to look into, as might Solo 1000, Nitro 100 and Ramshot Competition. I always used 700x or Red Dot, but maybe 20 years ago used Clays and International. Clays as I'm sure you discovered is very clean, and makes very fine light 1 1/8 oz loads, good 1 oz too. International I liked too, because it made good 1 1/8 oz target loads, and really nice Hi-Velocity 1 1/8 oz Handicap/Dove loads. Nice and clean too, if you kept the pressure up.

Nice to see you using the best dang hull ever invented; true compression formed, old school AA's... Wear like iron, no damn two piece malarky, good tight crimps, with easy to get components that fit together like butter and toast. I have a stache that I guard like gold.

 

[Armored farmer]

Claydot might be a good one to look into, as might Solo 1000, Nitro 100 and Ramshot Competition. I always used 700x or Red Dot, but maybe 20 years ago used Clays and International. Clays as I'm sure you discovered is very clean, and makes very fine light 1 1/8 oz loads, good 1 oz too. International I liked too, because it made good 1 1/8 oz target loads, and really nice Hi-Velocity 1 1/8 oz Handicap/Dove loads. Nice and clean too, if you kept the pressure up.

Nice to see you using the best dang hull ever invented; true compression formed, old school AA's... Wear like iron, no damn two piece malarky, good tight crimps, with easy to get components that fit together like butter and toast. I have a stache that I guard like gold.

I havent been shooting much in the last 10-15 years. Putting kids through school and getting their feet under them. I would occasionally buy a flat of cheapos, or buy some Rios the shoot the state shoot with. Then i would crunch them through the reloader, and kick them out on the sporting clays range.
Now son #3 is shooting on the HS trap team. The club bought Rios for the kids. I have my son saving them, maybe load once and shoot them in my 1100 on the clays range.

 

[rsrocket1]

I shoot with 3/4 oz in 12 gauge. It breaks the clays with authority on the skeet field and 16 yard trap line. With 1-1/8 oz there are so many good powders out there just about any of the fast ones will be fine but you are wasting a lot of money on all that extra shot unless you are a 27 yard shooter.

At 3/4 oz, you want as much pressure as you can get in order to get a good clean burn and consistent muzzle velocities.

At 9/8 oz, if you were happy with Promo there is no reason not to keep using it. If you can't get it any more, look into Titewad. It's cheaper than the main line powders like Red Dot, Clays, 700-X, but a little more expensive than Promo. For your Mec loader, you definitely want to get the red plastic powder baffle to prevent the Titewad flakes from leaking onto the top of the charge bar. I couldn't find one new online anywhere so I got one used off ebay at almost the new price, but it worked perfectly. If you don't use the plastic baffle, you'll leak a few dozen flakes on each drop. Not enough to make a difference in the load, but enough to make a mess after a few boxes worth of shells.

Armored farmer,
The Rio's use european sized primers like the Rio primer. It's a little wider than the Fed/Win/Rem primers so you can't use them in the same hulls. You'll end up with blow by in the primer hole which can flame cut the bolt face of your gun.

 

[entropy]

700X or 800X are smokier, but leave less residue than Red Dot. (As you have noticed, AF.) I haven't loaded shotgun shells since about 1985, so I haven't tried Titewad and the rest of the newer ones.

 

[Armored farmer]

I have settled on an 'all-around' load of 1 1/16oz of 7.5s over a sub 3dram dose of powder. I shoot this same load for 16s, 27hdcp, dbls, sporting clays, ......everything. When i get my loader set up, it stays that way until im out of powder.
I cover it with a pillowcase and leave it on the bench.
The stars must have aligned, because im running out of powder, shot, wads, and primers all at the same time.
Does anyone have a one-stop online supplier to recommend?

 

[jaguarxk120]

I'm using 700X and 7/8 ounce of shot. The clay birds don't know the difference.
My shoulder does and I get 4 extra box's out of 25 pounds of shot.

 

[entropy]

Maybe he's shooting yardage.....I always liked 1 1/8 oz. of 7 1/2's. I shot from 22 yards usually.

 

[Charlie98]

My 1 1/8oz AA heavy load is with WST, which I like very much, but it's a heavy load.

 

[springer99]

The word "light" and "1 1/8oz." loads never seemed right to me; especially for 16yd trap. Mostly I shoot 7/8oz loads or for Sporting Clay, 1oz. at most. Powders I've had great success with are 700X and ExtraLite. In particular I've found ExtraLite to shoot extremely clean at light load levels.

 

[Armored farmer]

I have been ATA AA since around 1980.All-state team in '81. My current ATA yardage is 25, but I don't shoot hdcp anymore.
Like I said, I just load one all-purpose load.
I don't have to keep track of what shells are what. They're all the same.
I've also been known to pour some #6 shot in the shot bottle and hunt pheasants with the same load.

 

[Armored farmer]

Dbl post

 

[PapaG]

A number of years ago I went into a slump. I tried different barrels, powders, chokes, shot sizes, and even stocks and drove myself and my team nuts. My dear wife, one evening, asked me what worked so well for so long and what was had changed.
I had always shot my future choke 870TB with a AA equivalent load and 1 1/8 oz of 7 1/2s. Loaded up a case, dusted off old Tibby and shot my old 48/50 average the rest of the season. And since.
When I had back surgery I shot my 1100 and one ounce of eights and did fine to twenty.
For fun I shoot lighter charges of shot but for league and games it is the old standby Red Dot, AA, and 7 1/2s. Tried Clays and it did not work for me. Probably mental. I can overanalyze.
BTW, my team got bumped to top division this year, and first week took first place in standings by ten birds. At the cost of shooting 26 yards next week.

 

[Armored farmer]

My trapshooting has pretty much been on hold for a decade. Life took priority. But now my youngest is on the high school trap team. I am coaching. We are all fired up again.
Son is shooting my dad's second 4e. Yesterday I shouldered his favorite 4e and it came up perfectly. Hmmmm. My wheels are turning.
I don't know if I can leave my old 870 competition at home and try the 4e. I shot it with the kids one evening last week and broke 25x25 (thank goodness).

 

[entropy]

Trap is the one shooting discipline you can not do for even a long time and not lose too much ability. I went over ten year without shooting from 16 yards or more, just the odd hand trap and not much of that, then shot at a family reunion with a rented BT-99. Tied my uncle at 23, and he shoots leagues. Leagues started this week, I will see if I can get in late, maybe there's a team that needs a fifth.