gun dreams

[Mortblanc]

Trail Boss is designed to fill the case and seat the bullet just like black powder.

That is good from a safety standpoint but increases the powder per shot cost greatly. A .38spl case will use 20 gns of powder while the Clays powder will be 1/4 that weight. Powder being sold by weight, that means a good deal more expense to reload with Trail Boss.

I have been loading Unique in rifle loads for more than 40 years with no ill effects to the firearms I have used. I also have the Lyman cast bullet reloading manual that is full of loads listing Unique as a safe powder.

The basic danger is that Unique charges are so small that one can easily double charge a rifle case and not realize it. That could spike pressure to dangerous levels.

Using Unique as a cast bullet rifle powder also cuts down on that list of powders I must keep in inventory. I can reload rifle, pistol and shotgun with one powder.

Clays comes close to doing the same thing and if I were starting up my reloading all over, clays would be one of my logical choices.

I used to claim that all I used was Unique for pistols and shotgun and IMR4350 for rifles, but times have changed. With our supply problems over here I now use what I can find and make substitutions when necessary, sort of like one would do in a SHTF situation.

Long term, if you know what you can substitute, and when, you will be shooting long after others have let their firearms go to rust.

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Midnitemo, the Lee reloading die sets in 38/357 and .44spl/44mag come with a .10" spacer ring that allows one to set the die in the press and lock the set ring to .38 spl or 44spl setting on the die.

All that is needed to change to the magnum reload is to place the spacer under the lock ring when screwing the die into the press.