Rolling up some money.

That is a neat old reloading set, I have a roll crimper like that and an old Herters hand loader, kind of like the Lee.

I've been looking for a roll crimper like that in 10ga I converted a yard sale Mec 600 20ga to load short 10's. I have an 1870s English 10ga upland game sxs, lightweight, 28" barrels and straight English style stock. I've loaded some 1 1/8 oz NP BBs over BP in short brass hulls to try for a coyote.
 
Never got too fired up about reloading shotgun shells. Never did that much scattergun shooting because it messed with my rifle shooting (trigger control). I did load quite a few shells for the old Remington because it was my favorite shotgun.
I was 5 or 6 years old when the war broke out and dad did a lot of goose hunting. When he could get shells he'd buy whatever shot size he could find. Ammo was scarce and I remember him sitting at the kitchen table breaking down shells and dumping the small shot, replacing it w/BB's and folding the crimp back by hand. Funny, I don't remember him ever mentioning a shortage of BB's.
When I was a teenager one of dad's friends gave me that old loading kit and I was into reloading.
 
Old shotguns are the greatest. I have an old lefever on the way now. Never really thought about coyote hunting with it. Maybe ill stick with quail for now!
 
I am not the last of the great bear hunter's. Only ever killed one and that was long ago. Got a shot at one at about 50yds with my 7mm Rem Mag and a 140gr Sierra. Bullet went in the chest, between the legs, and blew up in all the fat. That was the last time I uaed anything lighter than a 160 Speer HC in the 7mm mag! when I opened up the chest there was a huge amount of fat that stopped the bullet. But the bear only got about 50 yds and layed down. Second shot behind the head finished it. I like easy expanding bullet's but only on varmint and coyote, don't hunt a lot of them anymore either! That shot was about the first I'd taken at game with that bullet in a mag rifle. Happened in mid fall so bear had spent all summer putting on his winter fat, I think that makes a big difference. I wouldn't use a shotgun on coyotes either. I believe a well placed 100 gr bullet from a 243 will do a better job. What's more I think you have a shot at even 50 yds and it turns to leave, I think odds are the shotgun with buck shot could be real disappointing. You have no opportunity to direct a piece of shot over than over there! Take instead a Cf rifle and there's only one projectile coming out and you should know pretty close where it will hit. Then again if a coyote is coming in and hangs up at 100 yds, you pretty much don't have a shot. Then of course if the coyote is attacking you and 10yds off, yep , I'll take the shotgun and buck shot then. Of course I wouldn't want a shotgun with slugs at all, just lacking in accuracy. If I went out for coyote's today least rifle I'd take would be a 243, Much more accurate at much farther range than any shotgun. If I were in Grizzly country hunting them I'd take my 30-06 loaded with 200gr bullet's, you know, just in case it's needed.
 
I also think that using a shotgun with buck shot could be real disappointing. A 1-1/2 oz load of TSS # 3 shot has 59 more pellets per shell than 1-7/8 oz of number 4 buckshot has. 1-1/2 oz of TSS #4 shot has about 83 more pellets per shell than 12 ga 3" number 4 buckshot has.

For shooting running coyotes at 60 yards or less in thick cover or high grass, using a shotgun with TSS #3 and #4 shot will kill more coyotes than using a rifle on running coyotes at 60 yards and less.

Some of the ranches I hunt coyotes on only about half of the acres on these ranches are good for calling coyotes with a rifle. By using a shotgun it gives me thousands of more acres to hunt coyotes with a shotgun.
 
Back
Top