what is not going on?

[Bunk]

Has this nasty, wet cold, miserable weather stopped every one from shooting, loading, or anything?
It is quiet out here...too quiet.
A snarky reply at least  please
Bunk

[treebeard]

Bunk— I am using this Icy Kansas weather to reload. Mostly the Winchester dash calibers up to 44-40 plus 45 Colt. Also I am experimenting with my various reloading equipment to see what works best or needing to upgrade. I actually enjoy it and find it rewarding.

[Blackpowder Burn]

Bunk,

Sitting here in the Conroe area casting and loading today.  I might crawl out of my warm bed tomorrow morning and go out to the range for our practice day.  I need to sight in my new '73 for about 75 yards for our new Sharpshooter category.  I'm tired of shooting at big plates just a few feet past my muzzle...............

[greyhawk]

Has this nasty, wet cold, miserable weather stopped every one from shooting, loading, or anything?
It is quiet out here...too quiet.
A snarky reply at least  please
Bunk

Hey Bunk
I am in the mood for a snarky reply - not your fault tho

Been busy trying to rebuild a Chiappa 1886 I bought last week - I just walked in the shop and paid the money - NEXT time I buy a gun I am gonna specify that it is actually capable of cycling a round from the magazine to the chamber and ejecting it before they get my money - this was second hand - sold by that shop - backtraded on another gun cuz the original buyer was not happy - somebody here knew that it didnt work - If I had been at all diligent I woulda took a dummy 45/70 round with me to the shop and when it failed to function I woulda offered about three hundred less and he woulda took it ! (so yeah just a tad snarky with meself!)

Anyway Its a good lookin piece - I dont mind a challenge - have redone the carrier so it will feed - made a new flat mainspring (first one of them I have done ) its got a really good barrel - my first load was a good shooter - and one day when I am in the right mood I will fabricate a new carrier hook for it and that will be the last glitch cured (I hope)

Loaded some boolits last night  new 45/70 starline cases, 66 grains of FFFg, 335 grain LEE (my modifeed version of the 405HB mold)   

I miss the posts here too - this forum is a good place - a feller feels at home here

[scrubby2009]

S'posed to be another storm coming in tonight. Fresh propane cylinder for the garage heater. I'll build some more paper cartridges, maybe cast some .428 RNFP for the '73 and try some Alox on them. Haven't invested in a lubri-sizer yet cuz I'm cheap. Last "snow day" got me 360 rounds of Jand D cast during Rush's program and during Hannity, I built and packaged 100 paper cartridges for the Remmie.

[Bunk]

today is match day and it is 35 degrees and drizzling rain. ansd perhaps sleet.
I think i will stay in the house, perhaps set up my square deal b press and knock out some kindof ammo.
The range will not see this old man out in this weather since i do mot need pneumonia of some other sort of malady.
I have grown old enough to be a real weather wimp (along with recoil)
Bunk

[pony express]

Depends on just how cold it gets. I heat my reloading shop with a "Mr Heater" on a BBQ cylinder, and while it might heat a 10-15 degree shop, it would just use too much gas. Thirty degrees or better, yup, I'm out there.

[Dick Dastardly]

Resupply, all 16ga, 500 primed hulls, OS cards, shot, 40 Factory style boxes and FFg Schuetzen BP.  Had card wads & fiber wads on hand.  Been loadin' 16ga SASS match scattergun ammo.  I do a box or two a day, label 'em and put 'em on the shelf.  I'll be ready to make smoke come April.

DD-MDA 

[Noz]

Snarked out!
A bad thumb got a lot worse so went to two handed instead of Frontiersman. If i'm forced to two handed shooting then it's really kinda stupid to keep shooting the semi-portable Old Armys. Bought New 357 Vaqueros. Stupid to get them so dirty so I went to smokless.  Smokeless? I have no longer an excuse so I bought a Dillon, SDB. Proceeded to make a lotof very mediocre squibs.  All this while doing Prostate Cancer treatments.  My first "real shoot" Comin at Cha. first seven stages had numerous squibs, all exiting barrels so reshoot allowed.  Stage 7 i shot three times.  In embarassment I went to my truck and got some black reloads I was going to use at a side match I did not shoot.Fired first stot on stage 8 and had to ask myself,  "Where have you been".  The smoke and the boom was what I wanted .
Shot up all my smokeless and went back to all black.
Now i was back to black and SDB and squibs.
All fall and winter. Anything loaded was on the old Lee turret.  Good ammo but dammit that's a $400 loader sitting there so when I'd feel a load of patience I'd try again.  I've swept up enough Small Primers off the floor to shoot several matches.


Last attempt I found a spot where the successful round was produced when a pair of very small springs snapped the primer carrier into position.  Then while watching I discovered that snapping action occurred in about 50% of the rounds. Therefore 50% should be good rounds (multiple primers were not fed). 50% could have no primer, crooked primer (leading to high primer), jerky motion causing improper powder feed and a multitude of nasty options, including misfed bullets at station 3 causing a buldge on the case.

Today I am feeling phisically well, emotionally centered, a volume of non-snark patience on board, a tummy full of exceptionall good scrambled eggs and some good coffee.
Can I become a screaming wreck in a few minutes? Of course but I am starting from an exceptionlly good place.

[Coffinmaker]

WELL ..... I ain't happy.  We here in Pennsyltuckey had about a 3 1/2 day break from the "Freezer" and now ...... Back inna 20s.  COLD. just plain too damn cold.  I could hang meat in my shop.  I ain't going in there until I get a bigger heater.  My little itty bitty DeWalt heater just won't cut it.  Plus I have to find a place to plug the heater into a wall outlet.  Keeps popping the breaker on the Power Strip.  I are NOT happy.

Phooey.

[Baltimore Ed]

I've been rebuilding my reloading room. Redoing my component storage. Added some shelving for my old stereo system. Since I enjoy my big ipad better than the computer my son loaned me I'm going to downsize the big desk that the Apple was on which will open up another corner that I can build more storage in. Also been playing with a nice High Standard Supermatic 103 .22 that I just picked up. Trying to get the front sight of the shorter aftermarket bbl to work with the rear sight with the rear sight correctly adjusted for the long bbl which came on the gun. You shouldn't have to tinker with your rear sight when swapping bbls.

[Yeso Bill]

Compared to the rest of the U.S., it has been a warm, mild winter here in the S.W.  Not a single snow storm yet.  In fact, the country is dry.  But high clouds block the sun and the wind blows almost daily and it has been too cold (or windy, or both) most afternoons for me to shoot.  So, I watch my wind-flags and thermometer that are just off of my porch like a hawk and usually say at sundown....."Maybe tomorrow will be a nice day".

At least the days are now noticeably longer. 

Billy

[wildman1]

Snarked out!
A bad thumb got a lot worse so went to two handed instead of Frontiersman. If i'm forced to two handed shooting then it's really kinda stupid to keep shooting the semi-portable Old Armys. Bought New 357 Vaqueros. Stupid to get them so dirty so I went to smokless.  Smokeless? I have no longer an excuse so I bought a Dillon, SDB. Proceeded to make a lotof very mediocre squibs.  All this while doing Prostate Cancer treatments.  My first "real shoot" Comin at Cha. first seven stages had numerous squibs, all exiting barrels so reshoot allowed.  Stage 7 i shot three times.  In embarassment I went to my truck and got some black reloads I was going to use at a side match I did not shoot.Fired first stot on stage 8 and had to ask myself,  "Where have you been".  The smoke and the boom was what I wanted .
Shot up all my smokeless and went back to all black.
Now i was back to black and SDB and squibs.
All fall and winter. Anything loaded was on the old Lee turret.  Good ammo but dammit that's a $400 loader sitting there so when I'd feel a load of patience I'd try again.  I've swept up enough Small Primers off the floor to shoot several matches.


Last attempt I found a spot where the successful round was produced when a pair of very small springs snapped the primer carrier into position.  Then while watching I discovered that snapping action occurred in about 50% of the rounds. Therefore 50% should be good rounds (multiple primers were not fed). 50% could have no primer, crooked primer (leading to high primer), jerky motion causing improper powder feed and a multitude of nasty options, including misfed bullets at station 3 causing a buldge on the case.

Today I am feeling phisically well, emotionally centered, a volume of non-snark patience on board, a tummy full of exceptionall good scrambled eggs and some good coffee.
Can I become a screaming wreck in a few minutes? Of course but I am starting from an exceptionlly good place.

I've been having the same prob with an SDB. I've been loading 9mm and did about 1800 of them when the primer carrier started snapping into place like you said, only did it on one of the 4 holes in the shellplate, always the same one. Tried readjusting the set screw for the primer carrier to no avail, When I got the offending hole to be lined up properly another one would be out of line. Its going back to Dillon when I go up to WR.
wM1

[Bunk]

Well dog my cats it seems that people were busy reloading and being frustrated by loading presses to write.
I just finishes about 300 9 m/m Lugers on my Rockcrusher single stage with nary a hickup. Since i want to load more the SQDB is coming out of retirement and will finish the next 200. That should feed my Browning High Power through some practice.
I was using AA#2 and a 115 grain bullet for my loads any body got a suggestion for a better powder for target loads. In deference to forum rules I don't care about amount because I can check that in my manual, just a powder name.
Yr' Obt' Svt'
Bunk

[Coffinmaker]

TightGroup

[Bunk]

got it

[Arizona Trooper]

Well, here in the sunny South it was actually a beautiful day yesterday, so went out with some friends to the range. Took a "new" H&P 1816 musket, 50-70 '66 short rifle and Burnside carbine. The 1816 shot surprisingly well for a smoothbore. Can't wait for the first skirmish thus year! The '66 shot well (they usually do) 1.5" groups at 50 yards and rang the gong at 100 very consistently with full power loads. The Burnside is my problem child, but I just can't give up on it, it's too much fun to shoot. The new ammo was doing 3.5" at 50 yards, which is better than it has been, but nothing to write home about. Lots of smoke, lots of fun, shoulder is sore today, but it's worth it! 

[Dave T]

I have 3 Square Deal B presses. I hate changing calibers so I have one for 45 ACP, one set up for 38-44, and one for the 45 Colt. The 38 caliber one is old (an early SDB) but it keeps on turning out ammo. The 45 ACP is 10 years or so in age an it just works too. The newest one is the 45 Colt so I wouldn't expect any problems from it.

Were I to have the problems you guys are describing I would pack up the offending SDB and ship it back to Dillon. They are good about standing behind their stuff and will fix what ever is wrong for nothing.

I won't mention the cold weather we've had where it got down in the 50s for highs. BURR! (smile)

Dave

[Fingers McGee]

Funny (or tragic) you should ask Bunk:

Weather around here (Lake of the Ozarks) has been for the most part terrible.  While we have only had a couple dustings of snow, the temps and wind chill has made me stay indoors.  Only one of the clubs I shoot with schedules matches through the winter. But, even then more matches are canceled due to weather than actually happen.  I've had trouble with my fingers working at temps below 50 degrees that I attributed to too many years in the Army working around combat vehicles.  Now that I've been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease, it is possible that the PD is the actual cause for the manual dexterity loss.  Past winters were spent reloading for the upcoming years matches, shooting with three clubs and doing out of state 3 and 4 day matches. So far, the only thing I have reloaded is a couple hundred shotgun and 3 hundred 38s for the conversion pistols.  That, and the left over stuff loaded last year will probably last me through this year as well.  I wont be shooting much if any of my cap guns, just too much trouble.  Again, attributed to the Parkinson's.  Besides, I traded the Tahoe in on a Cadillac XT5 and now don't have the room to haul the Rugged Gear cart and all the supplies required to shoot Frontiersman.  The Truck Vault is still for sale & taking up room in the garage.  Hopefully the weather will hold long enough to shoot the Old Coots match this coming Wednesday.  Temps supposed to be close to 60 for a high.  Keeping my fingers crossed.  I've got a new to me pair of Uberti RM conversions' that need to be baptized in BP loaded .38 smoke & fire.

To the reloading process.  I do all of mine on a Hornady L-N-L Progressive.  It's never let me down.

[Jake C]

Weather in my neck of the woods (Cincinnati area) is either cold & snowing, or cold & raining (except for a weird few days of 50-60+ degree weather). I should be reloading, but this weather puts me and the wife into a bit of a funk or something. I'll try and get a batch of .44-40 smokeless and BP rounds done this week.