[SurvivingMike]

Hi everyone! I've seen a few youtube videos debating this but I wanted to get some input from experienced reloaders. Lee makes a pretty cool mold that you can pour melted lead into and it makes you a nice little 1 oz slug that is designed to be pressed into a birdshot cup in a 12ga shell. I've seen a few people claim that melting the bird shot from a cheap target load and converting it to a slug gives you very poor performance compared to using a purpose made slug.

Federal value pack birdshot is 1 1/8oz and claims 1200fps for approx $28/100rnds
Remington Slugger is a 1oz slug that claims 1560 fps for approx $20/15rnds

I'm well aware that quality ammo is expensive for a reason, and shouldn't be skimped on in things like your home defense gun and concealed carry handgun, but if you're storing ammo for a potential long term disaster, it seems to me that having 100 slugs with slightly less performance would be a world better than about 25 slugs that don't seem like they would be moving that much faster.

I'm not a reloader by any means, which is why I'm asking you guys for your opinions. I've got enough quality ammo around that I feel comfortable I won't have to break into the cheap stuff in most conceivable disasters, but this seems like a really good option for stocking a large quantity of slugs without breaking the bank. Or am I just missing something glaringly obvious to a seasoned reloader?
Any and all advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Illini Warrior]

you're ahead of the pack by not bringing up a wax load or a cut shell .... you have promise as a prepper

 

[Medic33]

well that there bird shot will do just fine around the house for clearing out critters both 2 a 4 legged.

 

[PatriotFlamethrower]

My favorite is 00 buckshot.

 

[paraquack]

I think you'd have to do your own testing with home cast slugs. Make sure you keep accurate notes on the reloading and the weight of your cast slugs. You might want to adjust their weight to one particular size.

 

[SecretPrepper]

I think that this is the heart of the mater. Comparing a purpose made to cast. The lead should be almost spot on for casting. But a cast round preset in a bird shot cup compared to today's manufactured slugs? without doing any resurch my first thought would be poorer trejectory and larger group sizes. Now depending on your intended use of this cast round. It could be more than acceptable. Lots of people using cast rounds for target shooting to save cash.

 

[Camel923]

I agree that if you are going to go this route, testing is in order. See what you get from a box of manufactured slugs from a major brand and what you reload at home for accuracy, velocity and penetration. Then decide on what is best for your needs.

 

[LunaticFringeInc]

I have the same mold and I shoot them often. Out of my fully rifled 12 gauge NEF Ultra Slug gun...its minute of paper plate at 100 yards. It has a tendency to flatten out like a silver dollar on impact and this is more pronounced as the velocity increases. It does make a HUGE freaking hole in the process though! Penetration with soft lead and high velocities can leave a little to be desired. Last time I checked typical lead shot had about 5% antimony (or how ever you spell that word...yeah I suck at spelling), if high velocity is a over riding priority I would suggest adding a little bit more, just don't hard cast like you would for a 44 mag 300 gr Kieth Wadcutter. That would be too hard and brittle to likely preform well. Personally I have found the reduced recoil loads with its milder velocity level to give much deeper penetration but still open up and expand well and provide a reasonably flat trajectory inside 50 yards making it about the perfect "hammer" for a bad guy in typical shooting situations. While I have tested them on live stock (goats and Cows) I haven't tested it on a human yet. The only reservations I have had in using slugs from a 12 gauge is on things that weigh more than 500 or so pounds that can bite back or stomp you into the ground. The wound channel was very nice and quite caverness, but penetration started to become a bit lacking for something that size and of that sort of Bone/Muscle structure. YMMV...

 

[LunaticFringeInc]

btw...I am getting my lead from a 2600 lbs sail boat keel that was salvaged off a sailboat that had seen better days that the Marina next door was breaking a part and filling up a dumpster with it to be disposed of. It makes for some nice 240-260gr semi wadcutter 44 mag bullets at moderate to moderate-high velocities for hogs just the way the lead keel is without adding anything to it. Oh and it was much cheaper than going to the scrap yard to buy scrap lead I might add...about 1/2 the cost as a matter of fact.

 

[SurvivingMike]

Thanks for the great advice guys. I tested out the cut shell and wax methods and in my opinion both suck. It gets hot enough here in NC to melt a candle if you leave it in the car so I wouldn't want wax to leak all over the inside of my KSG if I left it in the trunk on a shooting trip. Also cut shells are a fun trick to show friends and could work in an emergency, but aren't a real solution to storing decent ammo.
My slug mold came today in the mail so hopefully I'll get a chance to make a few and check weights for consistency, but so far my research leads me to believe they would function best from a rifled barrel, but will still put big holes in whatever they hit out of my smooth bore. I'll make sure to give you guys an update when I can.

 

[Stick]

I seem to remember reading an article in one of the gun mags, maybe twenty years ago, that, given the same ammo, a fully-rifled shotgun barrel with slugs was no more accurate than one with a rifled choke. I dunno. I shoot all kinds of stuff out of my Rem 1100 3', including round balls set into a shot cup. I've never really targeted these loads or chronographed them. It's fun to lob them a couple hundred yards in this dusty desert onto Tonka trucks and model cars and little green army men, mop up with a .22. And they do not kick as much as factory slug loads, which I've found to be rather unpleasant from the bench. Not so bad standing.

 

[Mad Trapper]

40 years with an Ithaca 37 , they still DON'T run any farther or faster. Rems or Feds work best for me.

 

[bigwheel]

Did you get a good version of the slam fire perfected?

 

[Mad Trapper]

Why waste a round on a one shot kill?

Or are we on to handloads in M1s?

 

[Medic33]

a 40 year old Ithaca= proper battle cry when wielding that is "SUCK MY BOOM STICK" lol, they sure don't make them like that anymore.

 

[bigwheel]

Nope...they had a big hue and cry back in the late 70's seems like. Right after this fellow putting on a training class on the natures of the beast blew a hole in the ceiling of the nearly new hypo office. He was showing us not to let that happen of course. They could either send them off to get the trigger diconnect fixed for 80 bucks a gunor knock them n the head for new 870s..which they did. Never seen another past that time. Guess they still make the gun maybe..but bet it dont work like those we had.

 

[PaulS]

In an attempt to answer the original question:

Yes you could take the shotshell apart, remove the lead shot and melt it down and cast a slug out of it.

The only way to find out if it would shoot well in your shotgun is to try it at 50 or 100 yards to see what kind of groups it made.

I used round balls in my 20 gauge but the accuracy sucked. I found a way to stabilize the round ball and shot consistent 2" groups at 100 yards. That was an inch smaller than the best group I got with factory slugs.