20 ga reloads

[ga nopro]

Does anyone know if barrel damage will occur if reloaded 1/4" dia. stainless steel ball bearings are fired thru a cut down Mossberg 500 20 ga?...........too much idle time on my hands I guess. thanks

[jaguarxk120]

Think about it, your gonna push hardened steel ball bearings through a barrel with softer steel. Not like sliding a bearing across a steel plate buy rather like when you are using a milling machine.

I tend to think you will wind up with a barrel with straight rifling on the first shot.:barf:
Pushing real hard for a Darwin award.

[GE-Minigun]

While I'm no expert I don't think you would have a problem. The bearings are going to be in the shot cup...so no damage to the barrel.

[williamd]

LOL!!! Use lots of buffering material and let us know.

Rifling? Ridges, buldges, choke reconfigured, and more is my guess.

Darwin Award on the way!!! You get yours right after bHo, Nancy, Harry and other notables.

[williamd]

While I'm no expert I don't think you would have a problem. The bearings are going to be in the shot cup...so no damage to the barrel.

Don't belive it. That thin cup WILL NOT protect the bbl from ball bearings!!! May even increase pressure and damage. Try it in your gun and let us know.

[GE-Minigun]

Explain how it WILL NOT protect the barrel? Also provided the "shot charge" is the same how are the pressures going to increase?

[williamd]

The steel balls have NO give and the thin wall of the wad will offer little protection to the thin wall of the bbl. Go try it. You may have to fire a few rounds. Check around the choke end first ... the cut down may have eliminated that!. Why do you think some manufacturers do not recommend steel shot waterfowl loads in some of their guns? BBL damage. The M500 is strong but ball bearings!!

The real question is, WHY??? Lead will do no damage and give you more energy at the bad guy end. Assume that is why you cut it down. Or, did steel shot loads damage it?

[jaguarxk120]

Look up how a sprag clutch operates, a roller against a smooth wall. In a shotgun barrel you have all the right things happening at the same time a barrel obstruction can occur. Will it happen maybe, maybe not, how lucky do you feel today, "Did I fire 6 or did I fire 5 shots"

[briandg]

I think that the biggest problem will be that those .25 balls are going to be compressed into a mass, and as they jam together, they will invariably press outwards into the steel of the barrel. Obviously, a shot cup offers almost as much protection as a condom against bearings that probably rockwell in the hundreds.

The bore is about .60. It would pass 2 bearings safely, but just 3 of them would be all it would take for them to lodge in the choke and cause a barrel burst because of the pressure caught behind that obturating wad filled with steel. Even without the choke, it would still be possible. You will not have any forgiving fluidity in your shot charge.

It might work just fine. Plenty of really dumb ideas have worked fine, like putting pumpkin into beer. The facts are there, though, that hard balls can and will jam in a cluster, and this is almost preordained to cause tears.

[oneounceload]

Why would you want to do this in the first place? Do you have a published recipe for this load? What hulls, primer, powder, wad?

If you're making this up, then it doesn't matter whether they are steel or not - just make sure no one else is around when you pull the trigger then.

[briandg]

You also bring up another dose of reality there, in that you don't just dump powder into a primed case and stuff a bullet in.

If I had a nickel for every shotgun destroyed by use of the incorrect wad since they were first created I'd never run out of nickels.


Shotgun loading is complicated far beyond what most metallic shooters understand, and the inherent weakness of a thin shotgun barrel is pretty unforgiving of a major pressure spike.

Especially if you have just engraved a half dozen weak spots that run from chamber to choke.

[briandg]

One last thought, and someone do my research for me this time, please, but what is the largest steel shot that is loaded? what is the largest steel shot that you can buy as a component?

[zippy13]

briandg,
Federal sells loaded BBB (.190-inch diameter) steel shot. Ballistics Products sells steel up to size F (.210-inch diameter). They also have special reinforcing liners for shot cups to reduce barrel damage from large steel pellets.

[ga nopro]

Well, it looks like Michigan comes wins First Place with California coming in a close Second in THE ABILITY TO READ BUT NOT COMPREHEND CLASS!
The very siimple question was, "Does anyone know if barrel damage will occur if reloaded with 1/4" stainless steel ball bearings are fired thru a cut down Mossberg 500 20 ga?"..........too much idle time on my hands I guess. thanks" The fact is that I would never do such a foolish thing! I was simply wondering out loud for others opinions. My point is proven. Darwin indeed! Thanks for participating!
========================================

"Think about it, your gonna push hardened steel ball bearings through a barrel with softer steel. Not like sliding a bearing across a steel plate buy rather like when you are using a milling machine.
I tend to think you will wind up with a barrel with straight rifling on the first shot.
Pushing real hard for a Darwin award."
_________________________________________________________
"Rifling? Ridges, buldges, choke reconfigured, and more is my guess.
Darwin Award on the way!!! You get yours right after bHo, Nancy, Harry and other notables pushing real hard for a Darwin award."
______________________________________________________

[williamd]

Does anyone know if barrel damage will occur if reloaded 1/4" dia. stainless steel ball bearings are fired thru a cut down Mossberg 500 20 ga?...........too much idle time on my hands I guess. thanks

ga nopro: I think everyone read what you asked ... and answered without saying what we really thought of the idea. I am sure you will try it so, again, let us know.

[ga nopro]

What "we" thought of the idea was that-- "I deserve a Darwin award" for doing this after clearly stating that I'd "never do such a foolish thing!" but, no comprendes! Come on California! Second Place isn't all that bad. It's just that the scenery never changes.

______________________________________________________
ga nopro: I think everyone read what you asked ... and answered without saying what we really thought of the idea. I am sure you will try it so, again, let us know

[snuffy]

GE-Minigun
Member

Join Date: September 26, 2008
Posts: 69

While I'm no expert I don't think you would have a problem. The bearings are going to be in the shot cup...so no damage to the barrel.

GE, shotshells have to behave like a fluid, instead of a solid like a rifle or handgun. Hardened steel balls could wedge, even in a straight barrel without a choke. The forcing cone that brings the larger diameter of the chamber down to inside diameter of the main barrel, would be where they would jam/wedge.

Steel shot loads use a very dense plastic, that is 4 times thicker than the wad used for lead loads. An awfull lot of barrels were ruined by early steel loads that didn't use the thick hard plastic wads. Also there's no cushion section in most of them. The powders are special as well, mostly coarse slow burning powders are used.

Modern steel shot is very soft steel that's annealed and air cooled. It has to be or it would STILL break through those heavy wads and score the shotgun barrels.

[oneounceload]

Sound like a child troll now ga pro..........

You were given advice - go ahead and do it and then report back how successful, or not, your test was.

[ga nopro]

"You were given advice - go ahead and do it and then report back how successful, or not, your test was. "
_____________________________________________
Ok, one more time. I wasn't asking for "ADVICE"!
I was instead asking for OPINIONS and clearly stated that I would "never do such a foolish thing!"
There was never a mention of a "Test", only your words!
The list is growing longer in the "ABILITY TO READ BUT NOT COMPREHEND CLASS"
which most third graders are taught.
Unfortunately, the public school system has once again failed.

Think I'll just go dig some red wigglers.

[VaFisher]

First time seeing the post and I too would like to know the out come. I for one can't think of any way there would be no damage, I believe that was the question asked.

[snuffy]

20 ga reloads
Does anyone know if barrel damage will occur if reloaded 1/4" dia. stainless steel ball bearings are fired thru a cut down Mossberg 500 20 ga?...........too much idle time on my hands I guess. thanks

That's your original post. Looks like you're asking for advice to me.

The fact is that I would never do such a foolish thing! I was simply wondering out loud for others opinions. My point is proven. Darwin indeed! Thanks for participating!

It wasn't until post #13 that you said, oh BTW I wasn't actually going to do it! Kinda like OOPS I guess I lit the fuse, didn't mean to--------!

[ga nopro]

It was in post #14 and I was looking for Opnions--Opnions!
I never inferred that a test was being planned either so, To the head of the class!
and shhhhhhhh, I'm digging worms.

[briandg]

This is the silliest damned thread I've ever read.

BTW, for anyone who might think that a test of this information imparted here is needed, remember that the consensus her is that your shotgun will be messed up. Keep those .25 inch slingshot bullets for your slingshot.

[ga nopro]

briandg; This is the silliest damned thread I've ever read.
BTW, for anyone who might think that a test of this information imparted here is needed, remember that the consensus here is that your shotgun will be messed up. ===========================================

Finally, a direct opnion! Just what I've been looking for. That's all!
And Sir you're right, it probably is the silliest thread but
it was made that way due to the over-inflated egos of
certain negative, know-it-all respondents who STILL
can't seem to Read AND Comprehend!
Thanks a lot!
Now, back to my worm digging.

[Johnny Guest]

CLOSED