Drop tubes

[kyreloader]

What drop tubes do you guys use for a load that may be compressed?

I use a RCBS Chargemaster and most of the drop tubes that I see have adapters to attach to a powder dispenser. With the Chargemaster, I pour from a pan into a funnel into the case and was wondering if anyone can point out a good drop tube that would work for this.

I would be using it both in 6mm and 6.5mm if that matters.

Thanks for the help in advance.

 

[BoydAllen]

In short range benchrest, where thrown charges are still in common use, we have learned that a long drop tube, combined with a very slow pour, can make a huge difference in how much powder you can fit into a case. I did an experiment using the same case, and the same exact powder, catching any overflow on paper and reusing the exact granules of powder for each test. Photos of the results were run as a bulletin item on this site. http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2012/12/how-case-filling-method-can-alter-powder-column-height/

 

[LawrenceHanson]

I just ordered a 10 inch drop tube and funnel from 21st Century. They have a good selection of tube lengths and cartridge adaptors.

 

[kyreloader]

I just ordered a 10 inch drop tube and funnel from 21st Century. They have a good selection of tube lengths and cartridge adaptors.

Thanks Lawrence, that is exactly what I am looking for.

 

[Down South]

I just ordered a 10 inch drop tube and funnel from 21st Century. They have a good selection of tube lengths and cartridge adaptors.

I have one, works well and is 1st class equipment as is all his stuff.

 

[Martin52]

I just ordered a 10 inch drop tube and funnel from 21st Century. They have a good selection of tube lengths and cartridge adaptors.

Thanks Lawrence, that is exactly what I am looking for.

Something to check - the 21st Century clear drop tube appears wider that the long drop tube from Forster. As BoydAllen has stated above, for compressed loads, a slow pour is needed as produced by the thinner diameter tube that Forster uses. You may not get the same effect if the tube is wider, you obviously get the long drop but it's not a slow pour and this may not fully deliver what you need if you're dealng with compressed loads.

Martin

 

[BoydAllen]

The slow drop that I referred in not controlled by the ID of the drop tube, and being able to see the powder as if falls is an absolute requirement. I have not tried the 21st Century setup, but if I was weighing charges, I would certainly give it a try. This is not to say that for some applications that the Forster is not a good option, just explaining in more detail what I was trying to say. For my tests, I taped a RCBS funnel to the top of a 10" .22 cal. Harrell drop tube, that I use on my measure. I know...real high tech.

 

[Martin52]

The Forster long drop tube is very narrow compared to that on a standard funnel, to the extent it needs a small bell shape at the end to fit over a .308 case mouth. Using a Satern funnel (a nice product btw) my loads then to be higher in the case. As I don't use the Satern anymore, when I get some time I will cut off the current tube and replace it with a longer one, this will remain wider than the Forster tube, and will see what effect this has. I usually drop my powder into the Forster funnel in a slow circular motion and it takes a little longer to go through the tube and into the case compared to the Satern but this seems to settle the powder nicely in the case and I don't get much, if any, powder crunch on seating.

 

[savageshooter86]

So is there any reason not to go with a 10" over the shorter drop tubes? Seems like you would get the longer one as it would not hurt anything but allow slightly more powder in a compressed load right?

21st looks top notch. Think I am ordering one this weekend

 

[Martin52]

I agree, go with the longer tube but I also think that a narrower tube with a slow pour would assist even more with compressed loads.

 

[LHSmith]

I agree with Martin in Aus, I get slightly better compaction when I use Harrells smaller ID tubes for a given length.

 

[82boy]

You can modify a short tube so that it acts like a long tube. One popular method is to stretch out a spring and fit it into the tube. I have heard of others using a special type of drill bit, and cutting a swirl down the tube, and this works as well.

 

[BoydAllen]

I have played with the spring thing, and found that I had to make sure that I did not overlook powder that would hang up on the spring, shorting one drop, and making the next one heavy. I would like to try one with a pattern cut into its interior that caused swirl. Does anyone know of a source?

 

[fatelvis]

The Forster long drop tube is very narrow compared to that on a standard funnel, to the extent it needs a small bell shape at the end to fit over a .308 case mouth. Using a Satern funnel (a nice product btw) my loads then to be higher in the case. As I don't use the Satern anymore, when I get some time I will cut off the current tube and replace it with a longer one, this will remain wider than the Forster tube, and will see what effect this has. I usually drop my powder into the Forster funnel in a slow circular motion and it takes a little longer to go through the tube and into the case compared to the Satern but this seems to settle the powder nicely in the case and I don't get much, if any, powder crunch on seating.

I would be very interested in the outcome of that experiment. Has anyone else tried thick and thin bodied tubes, or long and short, to draw a conclusion? I'm looking to try a drop tube for the first time, and am trying to get a handle on what length/width to buy. It will be primarily for Varget/.223, but also Varget in anything else! Lol

 

[ClassCat]

What drop tubes do you guys use for a load that may be compressed?

I use a RCBS Chargemaster and most of the drop tubes that I see have adapters to attach to a powder dispenser. With the Chargemaster, I pour from a pan into a funnel into the case and was wondering if anyone can point out a good drop tube that would work for this.

I would be using it both in 6mm and 6.5mm if that matters.

Thanks for the help in advance.

The right Drop tube to accomplish the task at hand. Notice some are fat, inside diameter and some are narrow. Bruno's has them all. I use them on 6PPC and 308

 

[jds holler]

I'm a bow shooter, and have carbon and aluminum arrow shafts that I can usually hit for the correct diameter for various caliber cases. Any archery shop could fix ya up for probably nuthin. Drop tubes are great. jd

 

[Dusty Stevens]

I have a 14” one for a harrels drop, and used to use a forster blue ribbon funnel for weighed charges until i got the area 419 funnel kit. You can make it 4’ tall if you wanted and with the caliber specific adapters it works very well

 

[Dusty Stevens]

You can buy acrylic tubing off ebay and make your own thatll fit anything if you need clear

 

[BoydAllen]

There is no particular disadvantage to a narrower longer tube. I have both narrow and wide. The reason that I prefer clear is that like many short range group 6PPC shooters I drop charges directly from my measure to my cases, and in order to do a very slow pour, I need to be able to see the powder fall. Carried to the extreme, it involves carefully approaching the point where the powder will start to drop and then slightly reversing the measure handle when it does, to create a series of small dumps into the case. There is also nothing new about any of this. There are only people who are newly learning about it. Some time back I did an experiment to illustrate the different effects of various fill techniques putting V133 into a PPC cases. You might want to keep in mind that the same exact granules of powder were used for each method. When the result was an overflow, those grains that did were caught on a piece of paper that the case was sitting on so that none were lost. http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2017/04/powder-column-height-varies-with-case-filling-methods/

 

[butchlambert]

I never personally go more than 30.5 grains of VV133 in my PPC. I use a short tube that I ran a tap through. I do have to drop it very slow.