Home Forums Reloading Shotshells Eagle brand Magnum #7 shot

Spotted some 25 lb bags @ $65/bag in #7 anybody tried this stuff?mb

I’ve literally shot about half a ton of eagle shot in #8’s. Serves the purpose.

I use Eagle in #6, #7 1/2 and I also use West Coast Magnum. They all work just fine.

works fine.

Eagle is good stuff. If memory serves, it's 3% antimony. Lawrence and West Coast are harder running 5-6%.

Eagle tends to run slightly small for size.

I just bought 5 bags but haven't tried it yet. I got 5, 6, 7.5, and 8.5 shot. I'm going to use the 8.5 for shotshell pistol loads in 44mag and 45 lc.

I was just happy to see shot again. I think it was $58 a bag at sportsmans.

Bb

Bought a bag of 7s and load 7/8ths for 20 gauge. No problem on stocked pheasants. Also loaded 1 oz for 12 and 20. Basically skeet loads no faster than 1200 fps. All work and see no reason to load heavier or faster.

Got the idea from Mule Deer here.

7/8ths of 7s over Long Shot is my standard 20 ga. load for huns, sharptails, chukar, forest grouse and early season pheasants. Late season pheasants go to #5s and sage grouse get either 5s or 6s, depending on what I have laying around.

I bought some for some sporting clay 1200-1250 FPS 1 oz loads but have loaded them yet. I could and would load faster if I wanted and not think twice about it.

I've seen posts elsewhere that West Coast and Lawrence shot has dropped the antimony content the last few years, getting closer to Eagle brand. I still try to find 5s and 6s in either of Lawrence or West Coast for hunting pheasants and such, but Eagle 7 1/2s or 8s fill most of my loads for other uses.

I found another bag of eagle at scheels in slc a few weeks ago. They were straight 7's. Year ago I picked up a bunch of 7s and loaded them in 12 gauge for up land. They were great on Hungarian partridge, quail, and forest grouse and also worked well on pheasants at moderate ranges.

For years I mostly loaded 5's but always kept some 7's loaded too. I put my 5's in rem nitro 27 gold colered cases and my 7s in sts cases.

Now that I'm shooting more 20 gauge with the kids and doing lighter loads for them I think I load some 7s for their first pheasant hunts next week.

My neighbor saw the bag of 7s in my garage and lit right up. He couldn't believe they were 7d and not 7.5s.
He wants to start loading for his 28 gauge now and he wants my bag of 7s to start. I still have a partial bag of older US made Lawrence or another brand of 7s so if he gets him a 28 gauge press I'll let him have this bag of eagle.

Bb

Especially in the 20 and 28, #7 is a terrific shot size for quail and grouse, as well as early season pheasants over pointing dogs.

As to loading #7 in the 28 gauge, I have found I get regular “bridging” of shot in the MEC 9000 I use. I still load it, but simply make it my routine to tap the shot tube with a screw driver on every down stroke. Otherwise, the shot hangs up about once or twice every 25 shells.

Gf1 , hell 9's bridge in my 410 600jr. You have to tap the drop tube for all sizes of shot with 410's. Last week I bought a used 600 jr in 28 ga from a friend. Right now I don't have a 28 but sooner or later one will come along. The eagle 7's are going to be used thru that 3/4 oz bar to see how much it throws. The MEC tech guy says the bars are all calibrated to drop their marked weight with 7-8 shot. With 7's I hope it will be around 11/16 oz.. 11/16 oz is the std charge on 3" 410's. Through ballistic products I ordered a 410 short kit and some 410 nitro cards the other day. 11/16 oz is 205 number 7's which should make a better pattern than 152 #6's. Bunch of guys swear by 7's so I'll try them. I don't much care for adj bars they seem damn sloppy to me..mb

MB, in .410 on my MEC Grabber, #8.5 does not bridge, but #8 sure does. As such I stick with #8.5s; I only load 2 1/2” shells. I have a small stash of factory 3” shells in somewhat larger sizes for hunting, although I only use the .410, a Model 42, for preserve birds.

I also agree with you 100% on adjustable charge bars, which I consider to be an accident looking for a place to happen. I will also admit that I don’t check the weight of the shot charges, and am certain that with high antimony shot the charges of shot are light. I just shoot ‘em; birds fall and clays break.

GF1, I was guilty of the same for years . For years I would go by the powder bushing chart as a reference to start throwing charge after charge to get an average then go up or down numbers until I had the charge the load called for. Lot to lot density on powder made this mandatory. I had not bothered with confirming shot charge weight. Couple months ago I thought I would load some short mag 20's with 1 1/8 oz of hard #5's the 1 1/8 oz bar was only dropping 1 1/32 oz of #5's on the average . I think that's too far off, I will say they shoot nice though. Hell of it is I've used that bar for years in my 16 and 12 ga 600 Jr's for other loads mostly 7.5 shot so they were closer to stamped weight. You just don't know until you find out for your self. The hardness of the shot changes its density which changes the hole dia. in the bar then that hole volume is not going to be right as you change shot size. The precision of a guys component weights are strictly up to the guy doing the setup and loading..mb

MB, like you I don’t trust the bushing charts, always check the powder weights the bushing is throwing. I have seen several that were off enough to be dangerous, and as you say, different lots of powder often have different densities.

My single stage Mec 20 bridges with 6s.

I recently got a sizemaster 28 gauge and then put my 20g conversion kit on it. I already had the conversion kit but didn't want to switch my 12 gauge sizemaster to 20g. Instead of just buying a 20g sizemaster I bought a 28 and converted it so if I ever need to load 28 I have the parts to convert back.

I'd like a 410 loader too but the sizemaster 410 doesn't come with a primer feed so I might as well get a 600 Jr. But if shot bridges so easy maybe I should get hand tools since I don't use much 410. I just hate paying $20 a box for those little shells. Probably the only ones that make sense to load with today's component prices.

I used to take empty primer trays and fill some holes with glue until the # of holed I needed was open for larger shot sizes. Then dip the tray in a bucket of shot and shake until each holes filled and ID have the right amount. A 209 tray I had had 27 holes left open for counting 4 buck. Beat counting manually. Might be able to use a small primer tray to make a 4 shot or so counter for 410 shells. Although a hand dipper works too. I made a 410 shell funnel from a cut off piece of brass and then flared the end more. I think it was a 375 ruger case.

Bb