Home Forums Reloading Shotshells How many of you guys load your own steel ??

I've been an avid waterfowler all my life..living here along the Missouri flyway has been great for duck and goose hunting for many years.When steel regs came into play we started transitioning our reloading to steel..now I have thousands of dollars of equipment just collecting dust in the basement as none of us care to go to the trouble anymore.Just wondered if many of you are in the same boat??....FLEM

I have loaded steel for at least 15 years. When I first started loading steel, there wasn't alot of data or components designed for steel shot. MEC made a wad and had steel shot available in 10lb. bottles. I loaded a 2 3/4" AA hull with 1 1/8oz of BBs over 25gr. of 800-X. Velocities were pathetic (just over 1300fps) compared to todays fast steel. I rounded up a few 3" hulls and started loading them with 1 1/4oz of BB or #1 over Blue Dot powder. Velocities were a little better, maybe 1375fps. We used to literally watch the pellets bounce off of the geese and if you were lucky and broke a wing you could get them to fall. A lucky pellet in the head or neck would be a DRT, but that didn't happen often! We even gave up on loading steel and bought 3" remington factory loads. Not much better than our reloads.

Then one day the Steel loading gods enlightened me as I discovered Waterfowler.com. There I discovered the virtues of fast steel reloading using the then new Alliant STEEL powder and the RSI "SAM 1" Steel wad. Velocities were in the 1500+ fps range. Many of the members were talking about RSI#XXX or how they were using RSI#XXX. I joined and asked what they were talking about and my steel loading has never been the same. I ordered the RSI loading manual and read in amazement all of the recipies with the unreal to me velocities in both 2 3/4" and 3" loads. Luckily I don't throw away hunting hulls and had the 3" reminton hulls from the factory loads we tried. I heard alot of guys using the RSI recipie #75 with BBs and having great success. I tried it and I learned the most important thing to know about steel shot hunting loads...SPEED KILLS!!! Don't even consider a steel load if it's under 1400fps and I prefer loads over 1500fps. Some guys use loads as fast as 1700fps! I had such good luck with RSI#75 BBs (1550fps) that I haven't found the need to change. I have tried some other loads in the RSI book, but I keep coming back to #75. When it was still ok to sell empty hulls on Ebay I stocked up on a few hundred of the Rem. type VI hull. It's my favorite, but other hulls work for other guys too. There are other companies (ballisitc products is very popular as well as RSI) that sell their version of steel wads and others like those wads as well so you may have to try a few different wads and hull combos to find the one you like the best, but there is only one powder, Alliant STEEL.

RSI components are sold by a site called Bucksrunsports.com.
Check out Ballisticproducts.com also.

Some guys don't think it's worth the time and effort to load steel shot, and there are some good steel factory loads out now. It costs me about $8 to load a box of goose loads. The good factory loads cost about twice that and if you get into the heavy shot type loads it's about $3 every time you pull the trigger. I hunt with a guy that shoots the heavy shot loads and I kill the same number or more birds as he does. I'm not affraid to pull the trigger and he holds off on some flocks because he's shootin' $3 shells. Takes the fun out of it to me if your worried about the cost of your shells, but he swears by them! It's good therapy for me and I like shooting stuff with my reloads wheather it's flying or running on the ground.

I really hope I haven't totally confused you and I apologize if I have. If you have more questions I will be glad to help as much as I can. There are others on this board that are more expert than I am and I hope you hear from them too.

GOOD LUCK,

Elk Country

Thanks for all the great info..probably would start loading again except we don't go as much as before..usually first openings on teal/canadas and snow geese when they arrive.I'm like you I have always been one to shoot reloads whether it be rifle/shotgun or handgun..just something about makin your stuff I guess!..TNX again.....FLEM

Flem,

If you don't get out much then I would just get a box or two of the Rem. Sportsman loads or the Win. X-pert high vel. loads. In the 3" loads get the 1 1/8oz 1550fps loads. Both are in the $10-$12 range and will do all you need for ducks and geese. For teal, get the #4, geese I prefer BBs.

Shoot straight,
Elk Country

The last few years we've been using triple BB's for mallards and geese with good results..patterns aren't as dense as I would like but they have extended our kill range somewhat.

My teal shooter is a Ruger Red Label 3" 20ga IMP/MOD and is deadly over decoys with #6 steel...I know the lead days will never return but boy what hunts we used to have and definitely not as many cripples....FLEM

I'm not being criticle of your shot sizes, but I think the reason you are getting alot of crippled ducks is your shot size. Unless you are shooting over decoys at VERY close range (25yds MAX.) #6 steel is useless. You would have much better results if you used #4 or #2. You won't get the dense patterns of #6 for sure, but the pellet energy and killing abillity of the larger sizes is a big deal especially with steel shot! You only need 2-4 pellets to strike a duck to kill it clean, but those pellets must have enough energy to also penetrate to the vitals.

I'm not trying to ignite an argument. I'm just giving my opinion and experience of 15 years of loading and shooting steel shot. We shoot 125-150 geese a year (there are 5 guys in our lease, 4 of us shoot my fast reloads, the 5th guy is the guy mentioned above shooting heavy shot). We also shoot a few dozen ducks both over a cut corn field and along a river that is fast enough it doesn't freeze unless it's way below zero. It's hard to find in factory loads, but #3 steel is proving to be the deadliest for ducks. I load a 1 1/8oz load at a little over 1600fps. I am the first to admit I've never loaded steel for 20ga, that's why I recomended the #2 or #4 in the fast factory loads. I assume you don't load for the 20ga. either.

Please take this as friendly advise, everyone has to figure out what works for them.

I miss the good ole' days of lead shot too!

Elk Country

I found information somewhere that stated something like 1.5 oz of #4 lead was equal in number of shot and pellet energy as 1.5 oz of #2 steel. so if one were used to #4 lead then #2 steel is the load to use. I use #2, some guys swear by #3's. Either way it works on ducks.

Don't worry won't be any argument on my part I'm always interested in other opinions.Probably wasn't clear in my OP we have used all shot sizes over the years and with regard to the #6 on teal they are unbeatable at 15 yds which is about where we shoot them over decoys that's why I use my 20..my O/U 12 just doesn't swing as fast ..when shooting my 12 we ususally use #2 and BBB on geese and big ducks because we aren't over water and the shots are usually 25-30 yds.Yep I think we all miss the good ole lead shot days..one of our most devastating lead loads in the 3" 12 was with Bluedot and 1-3/8oz of #2..man- o- man wish we could still use that one,sounded like a rifle going off..very high velocity and not much lead to put on 'em !!! Good talkin with ya!!!!...FLEM

I often wonder if the birds that are lost from poor steel load performance out weighs the birds lost from supposedly eating lead shot..who knows..either way, we will never see lead for waterfowl anymore and it will soon be phased out of all hunting and fishing

8up,

Steel is about 2/3 the weight of lead. 1oz of steel #4 has the same pellet count as 1 3/8oz of lead #4. The energy of the steel pellet vs. the lead pellet going the same speed is less. The lead pellet carries it's energy down range due to it's mass. The steel pellet loses it's energy due to it's lack of mass. It's like throwing a golfball and a ping pong ball against a wall. There are two ways to make up for the lack of energy in steel pellets. Go bigger and/or go faster. When I was loading lead goose loads, #2's at 1250fps was good enough to knock geese out of the sky. Now with steel, in order to knock them out of the sky we need to use a size or two bigger pellet and increase the speed. There is a reason all of the factories are loading fast steel loads. My 520gr. steel BB load has the same pellet count as a 1 5/8oz. lead BB load. They have the same number of pellets, but to be as effective as the lead load, I have to shot the steel at 1550fps.

Elk Country

You're right, it's called a fad that is banking them lots of money. Any standard steel loading at around 1300 fps is lethal to 40+ yards. The onus is on the shooter to get the pattern on the bird where it will do the most damage and that is the head and neck area of the bird.

If you are shooting at going away birds, I don't care how fast or what size of shot you have, you're simply going to wound more birds than you kill, ducks, geese and pheasants. You need to put the shot into the head and neck or you're going to have problems, no matter the speed or size of shot.

This theory also works with lead, look at all the new loads out that are stupid high speed. History shows that all you need with lead is 1100 to 1200 fps and a hit in the head or neck and you've got dead birds.

But hey, in the end, it's your money, do what you see fit with it.

I loaded steel loads in the 1300fps range and I can't tell you how many birds were unimpressed even solidly hit. Many of our geese around here are the larger canadas and shells in the 1300 range are all but useless and very ineffective. We have on more than one occasion heard the pellets hit a bird and watched it fly away. We called them "coyote bait"! Immediately after I started loading fast steel loads, our wounding rate dropped to virtually zero. If we hit them in the head, neck or body, they fall to the ground. They may not be DRT, but they don't fly away for the yotes, to enjoy. I would love to hit every goose in the head and that is where I aim on every bird. If I don't hit them there, I still want the pellets to penetrate to the vitals...our experience has taught us that 1300fps isn't enough to do that.

Elk Country

A steel #2 at 1400fps muzzle velocity has good retained energy to kill ducks out to 40yds. A steel #2 at 1560fps muzzle velocity is better. With modern shotguns and chokes, very good patterns are normal with 1 1/8 - 1 1/4 3" steel factory loads. I load 1 3/16oz 3" 12ga loads with #1 steel at 1500fps and 12ga 1 1/8oz #3 steel loads at 1475fps. Both will kill any bird in the effective range of each load. Faster is always better with steel. I use the #3 steel load exactly like i used to use 1 1/4oz of cheap #5 lead at 1250fps. The #1 steel load i use exactly like an old 1 1/4oz #4 lead load. To hunt geese i pack the 10ga most days. Shooting 1 3/8oz of BBB steel at near 1600fps. Exactly like i used to use 1 3/4oz or 2oz of lead #2. I kill more birds with steel than i did with lead. The old cheap lead i used to be able to afford was not very good ammo. The steel shot ammo you can buy today is a better product.

I'm looking at just starting reloading shotshells, and steel will be one of them I will do since I'm getting back into duck/goose hunting. what set ups do you guys recommend? I'll likely be using 12 ga 3"

If your buying new, the mec steel master. Search here for all the tricks to steel reloading. It has been discussed a lot over the years and it is available by looking.

If anyone is interested I have a couploe 10 pound bottles of BBB steel that would make great goose loads. Make me an offer!

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I had a similar exp to elk hunter but started with some BPI data that was smoking hot using Steel Powder and active hulls. I had also bought the MEC wads from a local outfit that was selling it.
I found a guy who was talking fast steel and bought the RSI wads from Bucks Run.
I hunt mostly ducks esp. costal divers in the late season ice. Fast birds with thick fat and feathers and mostly crossing shots.
Early on I found the work Tom Roster did with his CONSEP program using shot birds that were laser sighted for distance and then xray checked for what killed them.
This was published in a multi part article in Sporting Clays Magazine. His pellet energy table and min pattern count requirements have never failed me. ESP ducks but also goose(I dont shoot lots of honkers)
I load 12 and 10 ga.
All my duck loads for 12 ga use a 2 3\4 inch hull. I only look to kill birds inside 40 yds. If they are outside that I dont have a high chance of centering the bird and admit my shooting limitations. If I center any duck with a pattern of over 100 number 3 steel pellets inside that range it is dead! Three pellet strikes in the head,neck,center mass kills birds.
For small ducks like buffies, teal, and even goldeneyes a smaller pellet works well to fill the pattern and holds up easily to 35 yds which is where I want decoyed ducks to be anyway if I hid properly and set a good spread.
The steel is so light for its volume you just dont need as much in a good wad to get the pattern counts you need. But you must pattern and you do have to choose a few parameters that guide the load requirements. Geese are not the same target as teal or even mallards.
I like reloading and patterning. I dont fault anyone for using the very good factory steel out their now. The estate loads are highly reguarded and very reasonable in cost.
I dont shoot a lot of wide open mile away passing sets. This is where the 3 inch load would be at an advantage to get a 100 pellet pattern, but the shooter has a real challenge to center the bird at that long range. The faster speed does help here with a shorter lead required. I shoot a lot of targets and I dont know many guys who can score over 40% past 49 yds. on crossing presentations thrown from different machines.

Most steel shot failures on ducks, if really checked out, I think come down to Centering the shot and keeping the range to where the pattern can still do its work.

I too have reloaded Steel for a very long time.. I started reloading steel when BPI only had the BPGS-BP12 Tuff and the original 10 gauge BPD10-tuff. In fact, I just replied to a thread I started back in 2008.. and looking back to what I was doing them compared to now was kind of refreshing.

One thing I've done over the past was upgrade to a 10 gauge Gold.. I started loading for it about a month before the 2011-2012 season and after using it the first day and limiting out on Geese, it proved it's worth immediately. My blind partner was dumbfounded at how effective it was in bringing down geese. 1 3/8 of BBB steel @ 1525 fps. It was the first time I could ever remember getting a limit of ducks in the morning and a limit of geese (6 snow, 2 specks) in the afternoon in over 20 years of hunting opening day.

Something that struck me as odd, was that I picked up the 4 different kinds of wads that BPI makes for the 10.. and on a whim picked up a single bag of the brown precison wads.. It turns out that after testing patterns and chrono'ing, the precisions turned in the best pattern @ 40 yards and also the most consistent velocity over the BPI wads.. not to mention the highest velocity for the given load. I used precision wads exclusively and had a pretty good season. The 10 ga Gold didn't feel any worse recoil wise than the kent fast steel felt in my 12 ga Gold.. but appeared to be more effective on the larger birds.