Handloader April-May 2024

These days, prices for goods have drastically increased from items in the store to vehicles and housing. With no end in sight and 2024 being an election year, the hopes and dreams of saving money on ammunition may seem to be nearly hopeless. While some handloaders may laugh at the statement of saving money, it can be a viable reason to handload your own ammunition. There is no doubt that it can save money. The main issue in the savings department is that we tend to shoot a lot more whether it’s for load development reasons or simply because we prefer to burn that savings in the form of more powder and lead. ...Read More >

As a burn rate, Winchester’s 680 snuck into the consumer market as a military surplus powder after World War II. Why the government had a surplus is a pretty easy guess. One of the few cartridges this new spherical powder was well matched with was the American military’s 30 Carbine. The canisterized version, W-680BR, would join the civilian market as one of seven new spherical powders released by Olin in 1968. The powder had notable fouling problems. Once Winchester overcame those issues, the company dropped the BR suffix from the propellant, releasing the improved product as W-680. ...Read More >

Several years ago I purchased a Ruger M77 Hawkeye chambered in 300 RCM. Soon thereafter, Ruger discontinued chambering rifles, so it must not have sold very well. I noticed that Hornady still offers factory loads. I have very much enjoyed my rifle, as it offers magnum performance from a handy 22-inch barrel and its compact size is preferred in the brushy, dense timber where I hunt elk here in Northern Idaho. I have been handloading 165- and 180-grain bullets, but want to develop loads with the 200-grain Nosler Partition or AccuBond for better penetration on elk when they are quartering away. Can you offer load data that will give top velocities? ...Read More >

The Austro-Hungarian army’s first cartridge gun was a muzzleloader conversion known as the “Waenzl” (or Wanzel or Wanzl) of 1867. It was a “trapdoor” affair like the American Allin conversion. The cartridge fired was the 14.5x32.5mm rimfire. The thin-walled rimfire case quickly proved unacceptable for military use so a centerfire version was created. Hard use showed the Waenzl to be a bit fragile so the Werndl design was adopted in 1868. Its large rotary breechblock was pivoted on an equally large pin. An improvement? Perhaps. ...Read More >

Springfield Armory has introduced a U.S.-manufactured copy of the famous Browning Hi-Power pistol that they are calling the Model SA-35, which is very well-made, accurate and reliable. This new pistol is offered because the design is so good, so proven and easy to shoot well that it remains in high demand. Also, despite being 89 years since its introduction, it compares favorably against the plethora of new, high-capacity, striker-fired 9mm pistols. ...Read More >

In my youth, when my father gave me a chore I didn’t want to do he said, “And, don’t just give it a lick and a promise.” After some years of being a rather mediocre scorer in my chosen competition – NRA’s Black Powder Cartridge Rifle Silhouette (BPCR) – the fact dawned on me that I was giving cartridge case preparation a “lick and a promise.” ...Read More >

Soon after the 8mm Magnum was introduced by Remington in 1977, I necked the case up and down for bullets ranging in diameter from .257 to .458 inch. All gathered dust on the shelf for several years, but eventually rifles were built around several of them. The 7mm Shooting Times Westerner that is more commonly known as the 7mm STW, was introduced in 1988 and it was followed in 1992 by the 358 Shooting Times Alaskan or 358 STA. Then came the 6.5 STW in 1998 and it was followed by the 257 STW in 1999. ...Read More >

There’s a lot to be learned from reading old magazines. Just about the time Dave Wolfe (our founder) was contemplating a magazine devoted solely to the art, science and practice of handloading, a guy named Robert Hutton was handloading columnist for Guns & Ammo (G&A), the first of the specialized gun magazines to spring up after the second World War and make it big. ...Read More >

In the vast world of rifle cartridges, versatility is a prized trait. While usually something I consider when building a new rifle, the current shortages and often ridiculous prices being asked for components in the last few years had me considering factors that I had not before. I was in the market to build a new “plinking” rifle but given the current component climate and longer lead times for barrels, I wanted something that could serve more than one purpose. On top of versatility, I started heavily considering powder consumption, which I had not given much concern about in the past. ...Read More >

Sitting on a lonely southeast Alaskan lakeshore awaiting floatplane pickup after a successful brown bear hunt, my longtime friend and Alaska resident, Tom Drumme, invited me to burn a couple boxes of Smith & Wesson (S&W) factory 460 Magnum loads. The heavy, scope-equipped S&W revolver had served in faithful tow as backup to the .54-caliber muzzleloader Tom carried and the recurve bow I hunted with. Tom needed loose brass to handload some Swift A-Frame hollowpoint bullets better suited to Sitka blacktail deer and caribou – opposed to the heavy “Mono-Metal Lead-Free” factory loads on hand. ...Read More >

The 44 Magnum was developed as a joint effort between Smith & Wesson and Remington and initially produced as a sixgun cartridge beginning in 1955, with production underway in 1956. This was primarily the result of Elmer Keith, an Idaho cowboy and gun writer (along with others) that prodded both of the above companies to offer a truly modern and powerful 44 sixgun and load. In the decades since, many handgun manufacturers have chambered double- and single-action sixguns, auto-loading pistols, single shots and derringers. It has enjoyed huge success with handgun hunters and guides, has been carried extensively for personal protection, has proven itself in target competitions, served for recreational shooting or anyone that needs a powerful handgun. ...Read More >

It’s safe to say that, more than any other single individual, Richard James Lee put handloading within easy reach of the average guy – easy to do and, more to the point, easy to pay for. ...Read More >