Shotshell Pressure Question?

[Mike Stahle]

Any idea as to what the pressure level would be on these Federal 12’s?

[Labowner]

My guess from the speed and Dram equ. lite to moderate depending the gun your using. I would save them neet box are they paper?

[Mike Stahle]

Originally Posted by E Robert Fabian

My guess from the speed and Dram equ. lite to moderate depending the gun your using. I would save them neet box are they paper?

I actually bought a few boxes, just for the boxes. Thought they would be great to store my BP brass shotshells in. The shells that came in the boxes are unfortunately plastic. I was just wondering if they would be safe to use up in my Damascus barreled Parker shooting clays.

[Roundsworth]

Wow! That box isn't even scuffed. It appears as if it was just removed from the original case. Too bad the original cartridges are missing. As I am sure others will tell you, 'low brass' does not always equate to 'low pressure'. Most folks here load their own. I, and many others, do not load shotshells, but purchase RSTs or Polywad Vintagers. The latter two are loaded to lower pressures to save wear and tear and keep older guns 'on face'. Cheers!

[Roundsworth]

This may be a stretch, but.....I am puzzled by the reference to velocity. Only in the past 10(?) years or so have I seen velocities on shotshell boxes. Plus, the cartridge illustrated on the box matches the contents. Also, the shooter is dressed in a fashion that, to me, pre-dates plastic shells. Is that Federal box some sort of a 'retro' product designed to coincide with an anniversary of some sorts?

[Mike Stahle]

Originally Posted by Mark Landskov

I am puzzled by the reference to velocity. Only in the past 10(?) years or so have I seen velocities on shotshell boxes. Is that Federal box some sort of a 'retro' product designed to coincide with an anniversary of some sorts?

I have no idea, but they had ten box cases of them for $79.90 a case.
The boxes I got, I picked right out of one of the open cases in the store.

[Ed Blake]

I have seen these shells at the local Gander Mountain, and have used their equivalent from Remington in a heavy #2 frame GH damascus 12 gauge. I would say at 1145 fps the pressure would be on the low side. Minimum wall thickness on the GH is around 50 thou so I am confident the gun can handle these loads, but I would hesitate to shoot anything much more potent because the gun is circa 1892.

[Mike Stahle]

Think I will just stick to my BP brass shotshells.
Just seems to be way to much uncertainty for me.
(though gut feeling, these old guns were built like tanks:-)
But then there is RST's and a few others doing it with smokless.


http://shootersforum.com/showthread.htm?t=4385

http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Shotsh...le)-a059281213

http://community.discovery.com/eve/f...8/m/3661910099

http://www.shotgunworld.com/bbs/viewtopic.php?t=3338

[10ga Hammer]

Mike, you'll find some helpful info here concerning Drams and velocity.

http://www.tbullock.com/bpsg.html

[Researcher]

The "Drams Equivalent" business came about as the various dense smokeless powders began coming into use in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Prior to that both black powder and bulk smokeless powder (E.C., Schultze, DuPont, etc.) were measured by dram (volume), as black powder had been in earlier times to pour down the mouth of your muzzle loader. Shooters of the day had a warm fuzzy feeling for how their favorite load of 3 1/4 drams of powder and 1 1/4 ounces of shot (or whatever) performed. Then along comes dense smokeless powders such as Laflin & Rand's Infallible, Nobel's Ballistite and Walsrode, which are loaded by grains (weight). Joe Nimrod goes to the gun store and sees boxes of UMC Nitro Clubs loaded with 24 grains of Infallible and 1 1/4 ounces of shot, and he doesn't have that warm fuzzy feeling of how that load performs. So, the manufacturers came up with Dram Equiv. to put on their shell box which means this shell is loaded with enough dense (or after the early 1920s progressive burning) smokeless powder to give the same velocity as a 3 1/4 Dram load of black or bulk smokeless powder and thereby to give Joe Nimrod his warm fuzzy feeling and product loyalty. This this Drams Equiv. business should have gone away with WW-I and the companies should have began just putting the velocity on the box, but shooters are a hidebound lot!!

Just because you pick up some low brass shells at Wally World and they are listed as 2 3/4 drams equiv. and 1 1/8 ounces of shot (or any other load), doesn't mean they are any lower pressure then a 1 7/8 ounce 3-inch Magnum load. To produce lower priced shells the manufacturers use a lesser amount of hotter powders to give the desired velocity at a cheaper price. All they have to do is stay below the SAAMI spec. which for 2 3/4 and 3-inch 12-gauge shells is 11500 psi.