Handloader August/September 2020

March of this year marked 50 years since the purchase of my first Colt Single Action Army. A letter from Colt a few years ago stated it was shipped as a .41 Colt to El Paso, Texas, in 1908. Since it was a .38 Special with a 4.75-inch barrel and the frame was blue, it is fair to assume it was converted sometime after Colt offered .38 Special barrels and cylinders to replace obsolete calibers sometime after World War II. ...Read More >

Bullets have become longer through the years, to the point that many of them do not provide gyroscopically stable flight from traditional rifling twist rates and shooting conditions. Because of this, ballistic coefficient (BC), accuracy potential and performance on impact may be degraded. ...Read More >

Q: I am handloading for a Ruger New Model Super Blackhawk .44 Magnum with a 10.5-inch barrel. In selecting loading components and data, I would like to use Oregon Trail Laser-Cast, 240-grain SWC bullets with a target velocity of 1,000 to 1,200 fps. ...Read More >

It has been written that really serious riflefolk are those who own more rifles than they need. That’s fair enough, because “need” is a moving target. One never knows when the opportunity may come to hunt a species of game not native to the local area, or try a new form of target competition. It would be terribly embarrassing to meekly admit to not having a proper rifle – what would the neighbors think? ...Read More >

Most mechanical products designed and patented around 1910 have long since become obsolete, museum pieces or discarded in favor of more modern designs. However, John Browning’s amazing Model 1911 pistol seems to be timeless. ...Read More >

There exists a cartridge that has maybe been fired in greater quantity than any other centerfire handgun round except the 9mm Parabellum. It’s the Soviet Union’s 7.62x25mm. The word Tokarov is often added to its title, indicating the semiauto pistol which it was introduced with. Also, as compared to the 9mm Parabellum, which has been chambered in an incredible number of varying firearms designs, the 7.62x25mm was only used in a few types of handguns and submachine guns. ...Read More >

Just about every article, column and reloading manual cartridge introduction written about the 8mm-06 wildcat has basically the same beginning. It was created due to the great number of Americans owning military surplus 8x57mm Mauser rifles and the lack of ammunition to shoot in them. Reaming out the chambers of those rifles for the readily-available .30-06 case necked up for .323-inch bullets solved that problem. I have long been a bit puzzled by this explanation. ...Read More >

Well, it’s time to get around to it. Get around to what, you ask? Well, get around to all those things for which you never could find the time because you were too busy grocery shopping, attending a town hall or watching your kid learn to tap dance. ...Read More >

For years, Federal Cartridge offered its proprietary bullets only in its factory ammunition. Several years ago, Federal realized handloaders represented a sizeable market for its bullets. The company began offering bullets, such as its Fusion, Trophy Bonded Tip and more recently the Edge TLR and now its new Terminal Ascent, as components for handloading. Speer Bullets, Federal’s sister company, also recently introduced a line of Gold Dot rifle bullets for handloading. ...Read More >

The 7mm Remington Magnum seems to be a somewhat contradictory cartridge. Its first contradiction occurred when introduced in 1962. Remington promoted the round as a superb long-range, big-game cartridge – yet one of the two original factory loads featured a 175-grain “roundnosed” Core-Lokt at a claimed 3,020 fps. Why load a ballistically inefficient bullet in a long-range round? ...Read More >

The Alaskan fall weather was wet and cold which, along with freezing rain, made it difficult to walk on rocks, so my guide and I chose to wade in the middle of the river. After days of tough hunting, we finally caught a glimpse of a suitable brown bear in the willows and alders half a mile upstream and began our stalk. ...Read More >

It’s tempting to say that it’s a cartridge that deserved much better – a fine round that was not appreciated in its day and allowed to fall into obscurity through no fault of its own. Tempting, but hardly true. The only good reasons I can come up with for attempting to load the .28-30-120 are (a) you are a masochist, (b) you love a challenge, and the trickier the better, or (c) you have acquired a fine old .28-30 rifle that is too nice to alter, but you still want to shoot it. ...Read More >

Today, there is talk of safe spaces for overstressed college students and even giving out teddy bears or live puppies to soothe their nerves. My last semester of college, January to May 1972, was extremely stressful. Because of a lackadaisical attitude in my freshman and sophomore years, every hour of my senior year was necessary for graduation. Furthermore, every one of those classes needed decent marks to get my grade point average above the minimum needed. My “safe spot” was a rifle range and my “puppy” substitute was wood and steel. ...Read More >