Life’s Essential Components

Is this my lucky day or what? My weekly Winn-Dixie Internet ad arrived this afternoon.

Boston butt, $1.49! Not bad.

Ground chuck, my favorite type of burger, $1.48!

Hmm…that’s the only exciting stuff this week. Has the gravy train run off the track for good? I certainly hope not.

Reloading is as confusing as ever. First, I was told only to use “published loads.” Then I was referred to websites where any fool can post load data; even to me, that seemed crazy. After that, I found a published load in a reloading journal, and I figured it had to be okay, but a reader is now telling me it’s not good enough that it’s published.

I have been using 5.2 grains of Unique with 230-grain cast round nose bullets, and I said I might like to go up to 6.0. I was told that was a scary amount of powder to use in that load. Okay, no problem. Then I got the reloading magazine, and one of the loads they featured was exactly what I had considered doing. It was 6.0 grains of Unique and the bullet I’m using now. But I’m being warned that it’s not good enough that it was published, and that I should still work up to it. The magazine didn’t publish a minimum and maximum, so I figured 6.0 meant 6.0.

I will never get this stuff figured out.

The Unique thing doesn’t matter, now that I think about it. As things stand now, I think 5.2 is just swell, and I’m not really interested in changing, because it will mean spending more on powder. But I would like to know what I’m doing. In fact, the only change that interests me is trying a new load with HP-38 or Winchester 231, because the reloading magazine guy seemed to like it.

I am wondering if I should get a chronograph. They’re fairly cheap. As I understand it, “reading” cases for pressure signs is a discipline packed with mythology and BS, so I figure the smart thing is to go ahead and find out how fast the bullets go.

The press is giving me fits today. The primers for my .38 Super cartridges keep failing to seat or failing to feed, so powder pours out of the primer holes into the workings of the machine, and it’s just not good. I can’t figure it out. I’m wondering if these cases have smaller holes than the ones I reloaded earlier. I really have to whack the lever to make the primers go in fully, and that’s bad, because it can make a little powder fly out of cases that haven’t had bullets seated in them. Maybe the intelligent thing is to size and prime all of them and then run them through again to add powder and lead.

I am still not happy about the way the press mounts to the bench. It’s bolted down as firmly as possible, and the bench doesn’t flex noticeably, but the press still rises a little in front when I operate it. You would think Hornady would have stuck a third bolt hole on it for people with this problem. I guess I’ll have to come up with my own solution. I want it to be completely solid. Maybe case lube would help, by reducing the force I have to put on the handle.

I found a local range that will rent me a Performance Center 1911, so for twenty bucks, I can find out what all the fuss is about. I think I should do it. If it shoots just like my SW1911, there will be no point in moving to a more expensive gun.

Tomorrow is a range day. Too bad Mike won’t be there. But nobody put a gun to his head and forced him to live in New Hampshire. As far as I know.

In my case, that’s what it would take.