Safe load for shotgun

Dupont

Have a box of eley alphamax there 36gm BB. It says 70mm but can't find any other info on the box. Just wondering are they safe to use as I've to fairly old shotguns. An aya no4 it says 12/70 on the barrels which I presume is 12 gauge and 70mm catdridge length. Other is a 1973 browning but not sure of the marks on it at all.

tac foley

If in doubt, leave it out.

Usually shotguns are proofed for a particular level of load, and shooting excessive loads will quickly take the gun off the face, requiring $$$$$ work to get fixed.

Since the Alphamax range of cartridges was only introduced in 2011, and your guns are both pretty old, I'd take advice from a shotgun maven before dropping one in any chamber. The description does not actually read 'Magnum' but the blurb talks about them in glowing 'hardest-hitting, most powerful in their range' - IOW, there is a little alarm bell going off behind my head where a forty-something year old gun is concerned.

You really need to pay some close [magnifying] attention to those figures that are hard to read right now, and see if you can actually read them.

tac

Dupont

tac foley wrote: »

If in doubt, leave it out.

Usually shotguns are proofed for a particular level of load, and shooting excessive loads will quickly take the gun off the face, requiring $$$$$ work to get fixed.

Since the Alphamax range of cartridges was only introduced in 2011, and your guns are both pretty old, I'd take advice from a shotgun maven before dropping one in any chamber. The description does not actually read 'Magnum' but the blurb talks about them in glowing 'hardest-hitting, most powerful in their range' - IOW, there is a little alarm bell going off behind my head where a forty-something year old gun is concerned.

You really need to pay some close [magnifying] attention to those figures that are hard to read right now, and see if you can actually read them.

tac

900 Kp/cm2

Nekarsulm

I have a box of Aphamax here, and printed on the side it stipulates that 70mm cases cartridges (2 3/4 inch) with up to 1 1/8 oz. loads not to be used in guns proofed for less than 850 bar. pressure.
You would need to check further, but I think 850 bar is the same as 850 kp/cm2.

cavan shooter

tac foley wrote:

Since the Alphamax range of cartridges was only introduced in 2011.

Was putting alphamax into a single barrel baikal in the late 1980's..size 4 to be precise. As for heavy loads in an old gun. How tight is the action, it's not the barrels I'd worry about it would want to have some serious shooting to thin out the barrels to make them unsafe. It's the action I'd worry about.

Dupont

Box

Dupont

D

Dupont

cavan shooter wrote: »

Was putting alphamax into a single barrel baikal in the late 1980's..size 4 to be precise. As for heavy loads in an old gun. How tight is the action, it's not the barrels I'd worry about it would want to have some serious shooting to thin out the barrels to make them unsafe. It's the action I'd worry about.

Yeah the action on both guns is real tight. No play. I never thought of this before but Would the barrels ever have been bored out to remove pitting etc

Nekarsulm

Take a look at the print on the ends of the box. Should give guidelines on the pressure the gun must be proofed to for each cartridge length.

Edit. Just saw your photos of the ends.

Dupont

Nekarsulm wrote: »

Take a look at the print on the ends of the box. Should give guidelines on the pressure the gun must be proofed to for each cartridge length.

There's only a picture on the other end. And nothing underneath... or the inside

tac foley

If in doubt, take it to a shotgun gunsmith.

Else we are all blowing smoke here.

tac

Bad_alibi

If in doubt leave it out.