Handloader April/May 2022

No one knows that we live in difficult times like the handloader does. The pandemic and disruption to the supply chain has caused shortages in every aspect of our pastime, from reloading tools, cartridge cases, bullets and primers to propellant powders. The shortage of powders has brought more correspondence from the readership of Handloader, asking about the feasibility of alternative uses of some powders in non-traditional applications. ...Read More >

Q: I have thoroughly enjoyed Handloader Magazine for nearly 30 years. There is no other journal that even approaches the information that you and your writers provide. And I especially appreciate the technical information and new handloading data that you provide. I have always found your insight and data to be spot on and that is why I am writing to you today. ...Read More >

Given the proliferation of 6.5mm, medium-capacity cartridges over the past few years, it would seem that the caliber had just been discovered. It was as if some faceless bureaucrat in a secure, undisclosed location had been running a secret algorithm on the most powerful supercomputer in existence. After a few weeks’ time, the machine spit out dimensions for the perfect rifle cartridge. ...Read More >

The immense popularity of the Model 1911 .45 ACP pistol is a testament of its timeless and worthy design that has proven valuable in many roles, from combat to the target range. While it may have many virtues, it is neither small nor lightweight. With the huge (and still growing) demand for lightweight and easily concealable pistols, multiple companies have been building a scaled down version of the Model 1911 that are commonly referred to as sub-compact variants. One of the most outstanding versions is the Kimber Micro 9, which as its name implies, is chambered in 9mm. ...Read More >

As I write this in the month of December 2021, I’m celebrating my 55th year of handloading. There has been so much change in that time! My first complete reloading setup for the .38 Special consisted of all Lyman equipment. Naturally, then I’ve always had a soft spot for Lyman’s dies. Back then, they came in black cardboard boxes. Opening my first black box, I found three dies: a sizing die with a decapping rod, a case expander/mouth belling die and a seating/crimping die. A long time passed before I heard of such things as carbide sizing dies, micrometer adjustable seating dies or taper crimp dies. Having a steel resizing die in that first set and being ignorant as to how easy they become embedded with grit, within a couple years, it was ruined. It scratched every case lengthwise. Those scratches turned to splits within a few more reloadings. ...Read More >

By developing an extensive line of wildcat cartridges for the Contender, J.D. Jones of SSK Industries did more than anyone outside of Thompson/Center to promote Warren Center’s single-shot pistol. While the Contender handles rimless cartridges such as the .223 Remington and 7mm TCU without a hitch, J.D. has a passion for rimmed cases. Best known is his family of cartridges made by necking down the .444 Marlin case and fireforming to a bit less body taper and a 40-degree shoulder. Among those, my favorite is the .309 JDJ (.308-inch bullet), although I also enjoy hunting with SSK barrels chambered for the 8mm, .358 and .375 littermates. ...Read More >

There was a time – and newer shooters may have difficulty believing this – when the 6.5mm caliber, as a class, was widely condemned in the U.S., and every attempt to change American minds failed dismally. ...Read More >

As a teen, I relentlessly pursued desert mule deer, aoudad sheep, elk and the occasional pronghorn with a decent degree of success. I used utilitarian rifles chambered for cartridges that would be deemed “highly marginal” by today’s standards – especially for elk. I shot a lot of generic softpoints fished from factory boxes, though I started handloading when elk entered the equation because the only rifles I owned were decidedly marginal for the species, and the outdoor magazine gospel I consumed so greedily indicated Nosler Partitions were the solution. Partitions were not available in factory ammunition in the late 1970s and early 1980s. ...Read More >

In spite of the .45 Colt dating back to 1872 and being formally adopted by the U.S. military in 1873, it is just as modern and useful today as it was 150 years ago. Although it is no longer a state-of-the-art cartridge for military applications, it remains widely popular for recreational shooting, defense, competitions, big game and is offered in a variety of excellent single- and double-action sixguns and rifles. Its effectiveness is based on its large caliber and heavyweight bullets that offer reliable penetration and bone-breaking virtues. While sources often conflict on the ballistics of the earliest ammunition, by 1880, UMC offered ammunition with 40 grains of black powder behind a 250-grain bullet. This was a potent load that produced an honest 1,000 feet per second (fps) and helped the .45 Colt (technically not .45 “Long” Colt) earn an outstanding reputation when used in gunfights, to stop a grizzly or any other situation where a powerful sixgun was needed. ...Read More >

Sometimes handloaders like to do things the hard way. In mid-June, I found an older British 12 gauge side-by-side at Capital Sports in Helena, Montana. The price tag stated it had 2.5-inch chambers, which somehow jump-started a desire to handload 2.5-inch 12-gauge ammunition. ...Read More >

One of the satisfactions in handloading is reproducing an obsolete cartridge to get an old gun shooting again. Sometimes, however, there is absolutely no reliable load data available and I’m left scratching my head on where to safely start. ...Read More >

When I set out to write about a 97-year-old cartridge chambered in a 70-year-old rifle, I had to temper my expectations. Between today’s routine claims of half-inch groups from factory rifles, and expectations measured in megatons from anything called a “magnum,” modern shooters tend to regard anything that falls short in either area as quaint or useless. ...Read More >