doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com 10 Gauge 2-7/8 Inch Low Pressure Loads

Can anyone suggest a source for 10 gauge, 2-7/8 inch low pressure loads? I'm looking to start handloading for my Darne and my Hollis hammer gun. If possible, I would like to find something in the 1-1/8 ounce range for the Darne (weighs under 7-1/4 pounds, fluid steel barrels) and up to a 1-3/8 ounce load for the Hollis (weighs 8-1/4 pounds, Damascus barrels). I'd like something I could use for waterfowling (ducks with the Darne, geese with the Hollis) as well as for pheasant (Darne) and turkey (Hollis), so safe non-toxic loads would be greatly appreciated as well.

Thanks very much.

I use 31 gr. 7625 with 1 1/4 oz of Lead. Great load and
low pressure . One of the loads as recommended by Sherman Bell.
I am using Federal and Remington cases cut down to 2 7/8 with
plastic base. I roll crimp

PM me your email address, I can send you an Excel spreadsheet of 10 ga loads.

If you don't want to reload, look at rstshells.com . They have a full range of ten gauge low pressure loads and will sell you a mixed case of shells that would fulfill all of your needs. Yes, I use them and they are wonderful.

High$trap: PM sent. Thanks.

Eightbore: I've been shooting the RSTs, but at $1.10/shell for lead and $4.00/shell for non-tox, they are a bit pricy for regular use, particularly as I occasionally shoot skeet with both guns.

Stallones: Where did you get a roll crimper?

Thanks.

Rem

Old style bench roll crimpers are available on ebay and the drill press mounted ones are avaliable from precision reloading. http://www.precisionreloading.com/2004catalog.htm scroll down on the left to roll crimpers.

R40X,

I handload for my 10 gauge DARNE, weight 7lbs 2 oz with 73mm chambers. Start by cutting down primed (with the hot primer) Federal 3-1/2 inch hulls. Have used both Bismuth and lead in 1-1/8 and 1-1/4 oz of #2, #5 and #7-1/2.

With the usual disclaimers, I use Hodgdon Longshot, 35 grains for 1-1/8 oz, and 32 grains for 1-1/4 oz of shot. Add buffer for the bismuth (pm me for details). Use a .125 nitro card overpowder, and then just enough lightweight wad so that I can add an SP10 shotcup to get the right column height to roll crimp. For the 1-1/8 oz loads I put a .125 fiber wad in the bottom of the shot cup so the shot load fills to the top of the cup. Then a .070 overshot card and roll crimp on an antique Brit handcrank tool.

Imagine your DARNE 10 gauge is triple proof so this load would work. BUT, STRONGLY urge that you put five shells together in each 1-1/8 and 1-1/4 oz and send them to Tom Armbrust for pressure testing.

I assemble these loads by hand as I cannot use 10 gauge shells at my local sporting clay hangout. Instead, a pair of gaugemate gold chamber reducers from 10 to 12 gauge serves so that I can buy inexpensive 12 gauge loads to shoot skeet and sporting clays. Have also used the gaugemate golds in the field with 12 gauge loads for upland birds. They work fine but the key is NOT to lube the reducers so much that they extract completely with your Darne and fall into the sand ...

REgards

The British cartridge company Gamebore load them if you can obtain them there. Lagopus.....

Rem40x,

I have the compilation and expansion of Bells data that was put together by Jerry Lape on this board a few years ago.

If I can find it by Monday,(not unpacked yet) I'll photocopy it and bring it along for you.

Mike

I've never seen a Gamebore 10 gauge shell here in the US. Kent UK also loads short 10 gauge in their line of tungsten matrix waterfowl loads but you can't buy them here either. Was going to buy some to bring back when I was over there shooting the last time but with the exchange rate they were about $5 a shell so I passed.

DLH