3" 410 bore reloading ???

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Pickaway Mick

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A friend just got his son a 410.Right now the little guy is shooting 2.5" ammo.It wont be long till he is onto 3" ammo.He will be hunting with it and probably a lot....and shooting a lot.I suggested his dad getting a press so it will be a little less painful on his wallet.

(1)Is there a good 3" hull for reloading?

(2)What to do in the transition time between 2.5" and 3"?

His Dad and I have been reloading centerfire for quite a while.

I have been loading shotshells for a long while ,first with a MEC 650,and currently with a MEC600 Mark5 JR.I started out with 12ga as a youth and know little about 410.
 
Originally Posted By: Pickaway MickA friend just got his son a 410.Right now the little guy is shooting 2.5" ammo.It wont be long till he is onto 3" ammo.He will be hunting with it and probably a lot....and shooting a lot.I suggested his dad getting a press so it will be a little less painful on his wallet.

(1)Is there a good 3" hull for reloading?

(2)What to do in the transition time between 2.5" and 3"?

His Dad and I have been reloading centerfire for quite a while.

I have been loading shotshells for a long while ,first with a MEC 650,and currently with a MEC600 Mark5 JR.I started out with 12ga as a youth and know little about 410.



(1) The Winchester "AAHS" hull is the ONLY hull to load for the .410. There are some who use Remingtons, but the vast majority use the "AAHS". DO NOT confuse the new HS hull with the older AA compression formed hull. They are 2 totally different animals.

(2) Don't understand the question about "transition time".
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You already have the ultimate loader for the 410 ... the MEC 600JR. The progressives are "finicky" with the .410 and unless you're shooting 1000's of rounds a month, it isn't worth the trouble. My son is shooting 15,000+ yearly across 4 different gauges and I'm managing to keep up with four 600's.

Just a few pointers........

Once-fired AAHS hulls for the .410 are EXTREMELY expensive. My best advice is to purchase a flat of WW AA Target loads and then use those 250 hulls as a starting point for reloading. You can plan on using a hull for 10 or so loads before it starts to unravel. BTW ... the Winchester "value packs" and other factory offerings are NOT the hulls you will want to reload. If the box doesn't say "AA" on it, it isn't the HS hulls. If push comes to shove, the best place to purchase hulls is GunBroker. They are offered on there regularly, but they run 18 cents or more.

Get a good loading manual and FOLLOW IT EXACTLY. The .410 operates at extreme pressures and a slight over-charge can cost you DEARLY. No substitutions on primers or wads. Never ever. It's a small hull. Don't let it fool you. Smaller capacity = less room for mistakes. Not trying to scare you, but just passing along info.

Don't buy the Winchester wads. There are better and cheaper alternatives. DownRange and ClayBuster both offer wads that are replacements in any load that specifies a Winchester wad. (notice I said replacement ... not substitution
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Lyman makes a good manual for shotshell reloading. I suggest you get one if you don't have a current one already.

I'll be more than glad to help in any way that I can. Keep that kid shooting!

Steve

 
Originally Posted By: flashholeGood info Hidalgo but where did you get that picture of my monther-in-law?

I look like your mother-in-law???
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She's a handsome devil, ain't she?
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Thanks for the reply Hidalgo.So there is not really a good 3 inch hull for reloading,thats ok I reckon.

Transition time was the boy shooting 2.5" to 3" shells.It rocks him a little from what I understand shooting 2.5" shells.I suppose they will kill a squirrel soundly enough in range.

Yep...love the 6ooJR.Makes some nice shells.I like custom ammo.The 12ga shot well at a hog roast/trapshoot in summer heat yet stiff enough to work the Browning in cold weather rather efficiently.

Already told the Dad about the flat of AA`s.Saw that on an older thread on Rem/AA hulls.He will be able to read this thread tomorrow.

Don`t have a current shotgun manual but have haunted the Hodgdon site and understand completely on the pressure generated by the 410.And yep...no substitutions.

Lil Gun seems like a top choice as far as powders go in the Hodgdon line.However I already have a bunch of H110.What do you think on that?

Mick
 
Originally Posted By: Pickaway MickThanks for the reply Hidalgo.So there is not really a good 3 inch hull for reloading,thats ok I reckon.


In all reality ... from what you just said about the recoil effecting him, I'd load 2.5" hulls for a while. The MEC can be adjusted for either length hull.

Originally Posted By: Pickaway MickLil Gun seems like a top choice as far as powders go in the Hodgdon line.However I already have a bunch of H110.What do you think on that?


Lil Gun is OK. H110 is also a good powder. We load H110 for our skeet loads. If you've already got it I would definitely use it.
 
Well us Buckeyes around here tend to be a little ..uh... less attractive than Hidalgo`s photo.I usually just stick my face in the water and stun the fish around here,then I net them.That is when I want a batch of fish.

Purty good at deer hunting too.When I see one I generally hide behind a tree,then go "blaaaaaaaahh",stick my head out from behind a tree till the deer sees me,and let unpurty hydrostatic shock do its job.

All true.
 
I just recently bought my first 410 and have been doing a little research on reloading for it.

I don't know if you can buy them as components, but Winchester dose make a 3" HS hull. I picked up a couple boxes of Super-X 3" magnum game #6 shells that were loaded with the HS hulls. It says right on the side of the box they only recommend using Winchester HS wads with their HS hulls for reloading.

I also hear that it is a real pain to adjust the MEC loaders between 2.5" and 3". Something to do with getting the crimp just right. You can order a MEC 600 Jr. factory preset for one or the other, that would save a lot of headache.

I plan on getting a MEC 600 Jr. and loading 3" Winchester HS hulls exclusively.
 
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I just recently bought my first 410 and have been doing a little research on reloading for it.

I don't know if you can buy them as components, but Winchester dose make a 3" HS hull. I picked up a couple boxes of Super-X 3" magnum game #6 shells that were loaded with the HS hulls. It says right on the side of the box they only recommend using Winchester HS wads with their HS hulls for reloading.

Then go for it ... if you think you have to spend the extra money for WW wads. I've been doing this for many years, and I will safely tell you that WW wads are not required. There are better alternatives.

I also hear that it is a real pain to adjust the MEC loaders between 2.5" and 3". Something to do with getting the crimp just right. You can order a MEC 600 Jr. factory preset for one or the other, that would save a lot of headache.

No, it's not a pain to change a MEC from one length to another. Takes about 5 minutes. You are correct that you will need to make crimp adjustments, but that's not a big deal either.

I plan on getting a MEC 600 Jr. and loading 3" Winchester HS hulls exclusively.
 
Originally Posted By: justin10mm
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Justin, don't be:
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If I sounded abrupt I apologize. I'll never try to intentionally embarrass anyone on here. You hang in there and keep asking questions. That's the best way to learn.
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