light 12 gauge loads

[Raymond Dunkum]

This may not be the forum to post in but wanted to share. Finding light loads for our old guns are a challenge with the advancements in powder and higher pressures. Here are 3.

B&P Competition One, 1 ounce, 7.5,8,9 shot 1160 fps (6530 psi)

NSI (Noble Sport Italia] 1 ounce, 7.5,8,9 shot 1200 fps (7200 psi)

Winchester Low Recoil Low report, 15/16 ounce, 8 shot, 980 fps (6200psi)

The B&P and NSI shells are very comfortable to shoot . The Winchesters are very light recoil but some people are turned of by their sound.

Tried the NSI's on the Armadillo intruders in my yard but need to be close for the 7.5's to crack the armor. Oh darn.. Will need to tell the wife I need to buy more reloading equipment to rid the pests.

[Harold Lee Pickens]

Thanks Raymond, will file that info in my reloading notebook. Havent seen any of those around here, but able to find a lot of 12 ga 11/8 oz loads , Feds and Wins, going for $7.50 to $8.50/box. I dont shoot a 12 much but picked up a 1000 rounds of it. I used to shoot the Cabelas/Herters Low Recoil 12 ga 1 oz in my Sterly 12.

[Mark Britton]

A 12ga shell my shoulder likes and breaks targets just fine. I think would be ok in a vintage gun .Clever Competition Mirage 1150 FPS 7/8 oz shot. 7.5 shot I don't know where you can get them I bought them on a gun club order a while back and still have about a dozen flats.

[Harold Lee Pickens]

Mark, wish I could find those Clever shells, heard good things about them, they also made a soft shooting 20 ga 3/4 oz load.
I load 7/8 oz for my 12 and 3/4 oz for the 20's( 3/4 and 7/8 for the 16's)

[John Davis]

The B&P's look good, even the 1 1/8 oz. are just over 8000 PSI. Probably make great singles and doubles trap shells. I tried the low recoil/noise Winchesters and did not like them at all.

[Gerald McPherson]

I didn't like them either John.

[Bruce Hering]

Does anyone think the B&P Competition One, 1 ounce, 7.5,8,9 shot 1160 fps (6530 psi) is suitable for a "checked out" Damascus gun ? 6530 seems to be within the parameters of pressure for Damascus barrels as I understand it.

[Andrew Sacco]

A 12ga shell my shoulder likes and breaks targets just fine. I think would be ok in a vintage gun .Clever Competition Mirage 1150 FPS 7/8 oz shot. 7.5 shot I don't know where you can get them I bought them on a gun club order a while back and still have about a dozen flats.

That's an awesome shell. I had two flats from a local gun store over a year ago, and wish I could find them again. I had them in #8 I believe.

[MattHaney]

I've shot a lot of the NSIs. Didn't know the pressure was that low. Even better!

[Randy G Roberts]

Does anyone think the B&P Competition One, 1 ounce, 7.5,8,9 shot 1160 fps (6530 psi) is suitable for a "checked out" Damascus gun ? 6530 seems to be within the parameters of pressure for Damascus barrels as I understand it.

Bruce I would shoot that in my Damascus barrels for sure. The key as you alluded to is good barrels. I have shot that BP load a lot and liked it. Didn't know the pressure was that low. Now I really like it.

[Stan Hillis]

Bruce, I do shoot the B & P Comp Ones in my damascus guns. They are wonderful shells, with one exception, many hammerless guns will misfire with them. There is a very slight difference in the rim shape/diameter that allows them to sit deeper in the chamber than most other commercial loads. This causes light primer strikes in many guns, not just vintage guns either. They won't even fire reliably in my Perazzi. I finally determined that they will fire reliably in every external hammer gun I own, and have relegated them to that. If I didn't have this problem with hem I'd use them much more.

[Victor Wasylyna]

I can’t get past the foul smell of the B&P Competition One shells. They smell worse than the Herter’s Low Recoil shells.

-Victor

[Raymond Dunkum]

Stan, did not know about the primer issue. Guess I've been lucky. They work in my AJ Aubrey hammerless and my 1885 Parker hammer gun. Have an 1895 GH that has not been checked out. Stripping the oil soaked wood and the barrels will be evaluated. Manufacturers do not readily share their shells internal ballistics. B&P shows all on there web pages and a distributer shared the pressures. Winchester pressures were from a shotgun forum listing of tested shells. NSI would not respond to an email but pressures were listed by an Australian trap/skeet club. They had been solicited by NSI and all ballistics shared.

[Harold Lee Pickens]

Somewhere in my reloading notebook is a note on the now unavailable Herters Low Recoil 12 ga shells . The pressure was a little over 9000 as I recall, so I didnt want to shoot them in my WW Greener 12 sidelever from 1875, and shot them thru my SW pingun, yeah I know it has 2 5/8" chambers. I didnt notice any strange smell. I usually shoot 7/8 oz reloads with AA Lite powder in Gun Clubs.

[Bruce Hering]

Bruce I would shoot that in my Damascus barrels for sure. The key as you alluded to is good barrels. I have shot that BP load a lot and liked it. Didn't know the pressure was that low. Now I really like it.

Bruce, I do shoot the B & P Comp Ones in my damascus guns. They are wonderful shells, with one exception, many hammerless guns will misfire with them. There is a very slight difference in the rim shape/diameter that allows them to sit deeper in the chamber than most other commercial loads. This causes light primer strikes in many guns, not just vintage guns either. They won't even fire reliably in my Perazzi. I finally determined that they will fire reliably in every external hammer gun I own, and have relegated them to that. If I didn't have this problem with hem I'd use them much more.

Randy and Stan: Thanks for the reply's. I am going to give them a test go on all my Damascus guns.

[Harold Lee Pickens]

Stopped at local gun store today to pick up a 22 rifle that I won on a tip board.
They had about 10 cases of B&P Competition 1 for $99/case. They all were #9 and 8 1/2 shot, OK for SC I guess, but would prefer 7 1/2 or 8s. What have you guys been paying for them--I didnt pick any up yet.
The gun I won was a Henry Silver Boy 22 with our clubs logo on the frame. Really dont care too much for it. Throw the gun up and you literally have to put your chin on the stock to be able to see the sights, talk about a low stock, Im going to measure the drop. I need a new 22, but this just isnt what I want.

[Bruce Hering]

Stopped at local gun store today to pick up a 22 rifle that I won on a tip board.
They had about 10 cases of B&P Competition 1 for $99/case. They all were #9 and 8 1/2 shot, OK for SC I guess, but would prefer 7 1/2 or 8s. What have you guys been paying for them--I didnt pick any up yet.
The gun I won was a Henry Silver Boy 22 with our clubs logo on the frame. Really dont care too much for it. Throw the gun up and you literally have to put your chin on the stock to be able to see the sights, talk about a low stock, Im going to measure the drop. I need a new 22, but this just isnt what I want.

Harold: If you are looking for a really good shooting 22 check out the CZ bolt guns. I have two right now. One is a stock 457 with the sport barrel
(referred to as a pencil barrel) and the other is a 455 with a swapped out Lilja barrel in 17 Mach II. They both make one-hole groups at 25 and stay on out to 100. Like most good 22's you need to find the ammo it likes. The 457 shoot right with my my Cooper Jackson Squirrel.

If you want more info PM me....

[Andrew Sacco]

I have fired about 6-8 flats of BP Competition one over the past 3-4 years in all sorts of guns and haven't had one misfire or any stinky smells. Harold, that's a decent price for sure. I would have bought all they let me take. As far as the .22's, I have two CZ's (a 452 and a 452 Lux). They shoot up there with the best of them, mine digest CCI standard LR just fine, with perhaps an edge on one of the Ely's (I'd have to look in my notes). Got them back when they were about $250 each.

[Kevin McCormack]

Before the pandemic really put the screws onto the target shotshell ammo supply, I found 2 flats of Fiocchi Shooting Dynamics 7/8 oz. 12 ga. loads at $70 per flat. I bought them both and really grew to like them, but have not been able to find them since! They are a relatively high velocity load, 1290 fps., but noise and recoil are minimal. I think they are loaded for International Trap (Olympic or bunker trap), and I would love to find a ready supply of them. I have no idea of what the pressure reading of the load is.

Prices per flat for 12 gauge target loads at our local gun show, mostly 1 or 1 1/8 oz., have slowly crept up from $90 to $95 to now $110 since just before the holidays last year (right before Thanksgiving @$90). The 2 or 3 largest ammo vendors usually have less than 10-12 flats per vendor each show and it goes fast; small gauge prices are shameful; $20 per BOX for 20 ga., $225 per flat for 16 ga., $27 per BOX for 28 ga., and $30-35 per BOX for standard 2 1/2" .410 skeet loads! By mid-day of the second day of the show, all of the 12 ga. stuff is gone.