A few years ago, I picked up a great deal on a MEC 650 progressive shotshell reloader. Now I've been reloading metallic cartridges for decades, but shotshell reloading is a whole nother animal.
That MEC 650 will flat crank out the shells, but the downside to it is that it doesn't size them. Not a big problem for me since A) I only own and shoot pump-action shotguns and B) the MEC Supersizer will make fast work of sizing the hulls. Yeah, it's another step, but time spent in my reloading shop is like Calgon time.
So, back to a very useful tip on shotgun shells. It's called "cut shells" and what it does is effectively turns the standard number eight shot dove load into a devastating 70mm Glaser type slug.
Barry explains it on the video and the demonstration--and after effects--are hard to argue with.
6 comments:
He killed a perfectly good Remington STS hull!!
If you're going to "cut" a shell, please cut up a cheap-o hull, like the Federal game loads.
I remember my grandfather doing this.
My father showed me this years ago during one of our upland hunting trips. I never thought about it for years until I was a college sophomore paying my own way.
Things were tight, I'm talking beans and pintos tight. A local gentleman, feeling sorry for me, loaned me the use of his old 16 gauge H&R break single and gave me a couple boxes of 7 1/2s. Couldn't find slugs locally, even if I could have afforded them. That single 16 and cut shells kept me fed on white tail deer all the way through graduation.
Now that could come darn handy in certain situations. I would imagine changing shot sizes, would alter post impact effect somewhat too. Might have to see what a couple buckets look like, after a cut load of #2 shot, and #4 buck look like.
Years ago, we used to call these "ringed loads" or the "poor man's slug". And the size of the shot makes no difference, as they arrive inside the unopened front end of the shell - sort of like a slug that is plastic coated. The _weight_ of the load will make a difference, such as 7/8 ounce as opposed to a one ounce or larger load (3 and 3 1/2 " shells, 10 gauge, etc.)
Also known as the "field expedient slug", when you need one and don't have one with you at the moment.
Some years back, my uncle had the machine like this, they used to cut the Ammo from this machine.
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