[xtimberman]

I have many different reloading references, but two of them are rarely mentioned in threads on any forum - Ken Waters' Pet Loads and Dave Scovill's Loading the Peacemaker:

My copy of Pet Loads is full of my own scribbling and other data I've felt a need to add. Waters goes into great detail about the quirks and No-Nos of handloading each cartridge, and it is the first place I look when beginning to load a new unfamiliar cartridge.

If you like to handload for any of the common SAA cartridges - .45Colt, .44 Special, .44-40, .38-40, .32-20, and +P+.38 Special, and you are tired of looking at the same-ol' lawyered-up reloading charts - then Loading the Peacemaker is the book for you!

This book goes into a lot of detail about choosing gunpowders for the task at hand, matching bullets to revolvers, and even tuning your SA. Lots of "substantial" loads are listed for each cartridge. This one is full of my scribbling, too.

Which of your reloading references are a must for the handloader's library?

xtm

 

[jimg11]

A strong second on Pet Loads. I waited a long time before I bought it but once I had a copy I don't see how I lived with out it.

My other go to books are Lyman's Pistol and Revolver Hand Book (1978) and the Cast Bullet Handbook (1980).

Another Mauual That I really like is the N. R. A. Handloading book by W. Davis (1981)

 

[xtimberman]

I posted this on another thread, but here is another recommendation for handloaders who cast their own bullets or would like to start casting - the NRA publication of Col. Harrison's anthology of articles and Q&As from the Dope Bag of The American Rifleman strictly on the subject of alloys and casting - much good information on this subject:

xtm

 

[carl418_resigned]

After reading this thread, and seeing two people speak so highly of the Pet Loads book, I looked into it a little more..

It took a while, but my copy arrived today! Much bigger book than I expected. About 3 times thicker than my Lyman 48th. This book is crammed with great info!

One thing I noticed when I first started looking into buying one is that it seems there are two styles; a hardbound book and an open-leaf binder. The one I bought is the hardbound style. I'm assuming they both contain the same information?

Anyway, thanks for the tip, guys!

I spent a couple hours just paging through it this afternoon. The neatest part is the notes telling you which is the most accurate powder and load to use. Sometimes, it lists the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc most accurate..

Of course, the first page I went to is my favorite caliber...