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Guys, I need some help. I have an old A5 that requires 2.5" loads. I have a load I use using Longshot but it doesn't cycle the action reliably. Do any of you have a 2.5" load you can share?
Reece

I'd like to use 1 oz of #8

Member Joined: 06 Oct 2007 Posts: 2350 Location: West MI

Can you share the LS load that isn't cycling the A5 for reference?

Have you tried off the shelf RGL's through the gun? Their hulls rarely if never measure 2.75", they range around ~2.6".

Interesting read...

https://parkerguns.org/forums/showthread.php?t=19047

Member Joined: 09 Jan 2013 Posts: 2170 Location: Florida

These cycle my A5s new and old

Use at own risk. Not low pressure.

Ched 2.5" hull
Ched prime 209
16.5grs Geen Dot (OLD BOOTLE WITH BLACK LID) there seems to be some concern about the newer GREEN DOT (GREEN LID I THINK ) BEING HOTTER
Z16 wad
1oz lead
1140 fps

Same as above

but with 17.5grs Unique
1185 fps

Both loads are around 10500 psi

Joined: 08 Feb 2009 Posts: 1310 Location: Western WA

Reece,

My 2 1/2” A5 absolutely loves 1 oz Longshot loads. How many grains are you using now, and what wads?

But before you go down the Longshot rabbit hole, completely disassemble the receiver and bolt down to the pins and needles, and get every little part sparkling clean inside and out if you haven’t done so already.

If the action screws are giving you trouble, use a 20v impact driver with proper fitted bits. It walks out old rusted screws easily and cleanly.

Deep cleaning made all the difference in the world with my A5. Prior to cleaning, it hardly cycled anything reliably. It had 90 years of crud clogging up the action. After cleaning, it now cycles everything perfectly, including light 7/8 oz skeet loads, even with the magazine rings set on heavy. So fun to shoot now, recoil is almost nonexistent.

B.

Joined: 07 Jun 2020 Posts: 229

PM sent.

Most 1oz loads will fit in a 2.5 hull. I have used 1oz data and roll crimped without issue. My only caveat is make sure you put a sufficient roll in the crimp in order to provide the initial crimp resistance.

In order to drive an auto 5 recoil you may need to stay at 1oz 1200 FPS. Also you may need to stay at higher pressures, but I do not have enough recoil experience to know where that cut-off minimum would be.

My load is 21.5 grains of Longshot, 1 oz of #8, a Remington GL wad and a Cheddite hull with a six point crimp. Primers are Win 209s.

Only once did I shoot a 23/4' Black Rem game load in the gun. It was done by mistake. The gun jammed and I had the devil of a time clearing it. .

*Last edited by R J Talley on Tue Oct 10, 2023 3:25 pm; edited 1 time in total*

My load is 20.5 grains of Universal, 1 oz of #8, a Remington GL wad and a Cheddite hull with a six point crimp. Primers are Win 209s.

Only once did I shoot a 23/4' Black Rem game load in the gun. It was done by mistake. The gun jammed and I had the devil of a time clearing it. .

Member Joined: 06 Oct 2007 Posts: 2350 Location: West MI

Got it, need 2.5".

The one 2.5" 1oz LS load on my version of the spread sheets is from BP and uses ~half again the powder you're currently using so not going to share that one.

"...reliably...." you may have seen it debated on this forum regarding poor component fit up specifically with the Ched style hulls and SP16 wad and LS powder. Usually allowing a fair amount of powder migration past the cup and possible gas blowby to a degree. I've experienced inconsistency in LS drops in my MEC gear leading to bloopers and shoulder pounders due to static cling.

Could your reliability issue stem from the poor fit up of components? or inconsistent drops? Theoretically those (bloopers) could cause a incomplete cycle in a semi especially an inertia gun. I've seen it my 48's w/similar inertia actions to the A5's.

Do you have other powders and wads to try?

Joined: 04 Mar 2019 Posts: 1844 Location: Central ND

putz463,

Longshot drops very consistently in my Sizemasters and my 9000's in both 16 and 12 gauge. It drops like every other flattened ball powder, which is very good.

Static isn't going to affect a drop enough to bother with as in a couple tenths of a grain.

I think you have something else going on, if the drops are causing bloopers to shoulder pounders, that is at least a 3 to 4 grain or more difference.

_____________________________________

As far as 2.5" loads go, the easiest and probably best way to do this is to cut the hulls to 2.5" and roll crimp. That gives you the ability to use any 2 3/4" load,

For 1 oz. loads, If you use the shorter SG16S wad you can skip the roll crimp and fold crimp the hull.

Joined: 08 Feb 2009 Posts: 1310 Location: Western WA

Bloopers can have different causes.

Slightly OT here, but while reloading 28ga HS hulls with CB wads, I occasionally felt something funny while levering in a wad. Afterwards I felt a slight bump on the outside of some of the loaded shells.

So I candled the loaded shells (using iPhone light) and saw the wad was skewed inside the hull of the irregular shells. I set aside the shells that had the problem, maybe 4 of them.

At the skeet range later, I shot a couple boxes of the normal inspected shells, no problems. I fired the 4 suspect shells at the pattern board, and all were bloopers.

Should be no surprise I suppose.

B.

I made a huge mistake. My 2.5 loads use 20.5 grains of Universal. The 2.75" loads use Longshot and I don't recall how many grains I use there. Sorry for the confusion. I should clean my glasses before reading small labels.

I made a huge mistake. My 2.5 loads use 20.5 grains of Universal. The 2.75" loads use Longshot and I don't recall how many grains I use there. Sorry for the confusion. I should clean my glasses before reading small labels.

I made a huge mistake. My 2.5 loads use 20.5 grains of Universal. The 2.75" loads use Longshot and I don't recall how many grains I use there. Sorry for the confusion. I should clean my glasses before reading small labels.

Member Joined: 06 Oct 2007 Posts: 2350 Location: West MI

From the spreadsheets via Precision. If the SG16 (stack height) is too tall in the load switch to the SG16S.

Cheddite 2 1/2" 1 oz LongShot 18.0 Win 209 BP SG-16 1200 7,270 Precision

Aside; surprised Precision calls out an SG16 (BP nomenclature) in their data when they offer the same wads as the Gulandi Super G Mini 1816 & 2116???

A few using 20.5 Universal but in 2.75 hulls. From Hodgdons.

Cheddite 1 oz. Universal 20.5 Ched 209 BPI SG 16 1165 7,500 Hodgdons
Cheddite 1 oz. Universal 20.5 Fio 616 BPI SG 16 1165 8,000 Hodgdons
Cheddite 1 oz. Universal 20.5 Fio 616 WAA16 1220 8,900 Hodgdons

MSM2019 & Brewster11, I appreciate your shared experience and insight to a possible problem in my rig or deforming a wad using the LS/Sizemaster combo. A portion of the powder drop would sometimes hangup (cling) in the drop tube and I'd get under or over charged drops. I tried what I could including technique changes, cling free spray and dryer sheets, cleaning the drop tube and even grounding the press all of which only helped to a small degree. I switched to ProReach for that 1oz (Trap) load and any issues regarding LS inconsistencies were solved, all else equal...and without all the Rube Goldberg modifications...

Joined: 04 Mar 2019 Posts: 1844 Location: Central ND

putz463,

Glad you fixed the problem.