Ammodirect shotshells with Pinnacle

[Abilene]

Grouchy Spike doesn't shoot any more so has been selling a bunch of guns and gear.  At Comancheria Days I picked up a half dozen boxes of Ammodirect shotshells loaded with Pinnacle (made by APP).  Only $5 per box of 12, which seemed pretty good.  Interestingly, these are all loaded in paper hulls.  I don't know how old they are (company web page still up but went out of business in 2011), but they drop in and out of a shell checker and I will keep them dry until used.   Some are very low brass and some are higher, though the labels are the same.  The crimp is pooching out on some.  I might run them through the crimp station on my LoadAll, but there seems to be an overshot card inside so no shot is leaking.  Has anyone ever used these?

[Coffinmaker]

  Abilene 

Great Score.  Almost as good as loaded in All Brass Hulls 

Play Safe Out There

[Abilene]

Yeah if they were loaded in all brass hulls I think the price would have been slightly higher. 

[Professor Marvel]

I have a big box of paper hulls waiting o be loaded..
Has anyone tried to waterproof paper hulls? Shellac, lacquer, whatever?

[Coffinmaker]

  Perfesser 

Unless one were going Water Fowl(ing) in a Wet and Rainey blind, or paddling around in a Wet and Rainey Jon Boat, waterproofing paper hulls would be an activity of diminishing returns.  Unless of course, one were bored out of ones skull and just had to have something to do . . . . .

I may however, have a somewhat jaundiced point of view.  I don't like to be Cold, I don't like to be Wet, and I absolutely WILL NOT shoot inna Rain.  I can also special order Duck and or Goose from my local purveyor of specialty meats.  Pick up same whilst staying warm, dry, and or air conditioned when doing so.

Avoid People.  People are still Hazardous to yer Health!! 

[Abilene]

Well, I finally got around to trying out these shells at today's match.  HUMONGOUS FAIL!  On the first stage, the first two fired fine, knocked over the targets.  Seemed comparable power-wise to my BP loads of 60gr FFg and 1 1/8 oz shot.  But then when I tried to eject the empties, well, they didn't.   Both hulls split and the head of one flexed enough to allow it to slip inder the extractor and require prying out.  Head only came out, so I stuck my finger in the chamber to slide out the body of the hull.  I went ahead and loaded two more and they did the same thing (I knew my match time was already hosed so was going for the clean match).  It was an 87 second stage.  I had fortunately brought another box of my own loads to finish the match.  But then the second stage was 82 seconds due to the 32-20 rifle going down but that is for another topic.

I'm thinking these shells are at least a dozen years old.  Don't know if it was a chemical reaction of the powder with the paper hulls (I would assume that) or what.  I've still got 4 or 5, 12-round boxes of these loads.   I guess I could probably reclaim the shot.  Not sure if it would be worth the effort to empty them out to reclaim the primers.  Heck, if I wanted to go to that kind of effort, I have scads of 20 Gauge hunting shells loaded by a brother who passed.

Also, these were the "low brass" shells.  The "high brass" shells would be likely to do the same thing, but I don't know for sure.  Next time I shoot BP, I should take some of those to try out after the match to be sure.

[Coffinmaker]

  Abilene 

Annoying indeed.  I wouldn't be inclined to jump on the chemical reaction theory, but would suggest lousy paper.  Some cardboard boxes are just petter than others I guess.

Play Safe Out There

[Professor Marvel]

i myself would reclaim the powder, shot, and primers... and reload into red plastic hulls.
I used to get the red AA hulls free.
but then I am cheap frugal.

prf mumbles