Well, I took the plunge and bought a .500 A2, and now I have to shoot the darn thing without killing myself in the process. What I'd like to do is create a series of loads that generate recoil in 10 lb increments. That is, I'd like to find a recipe that generates 50 lbs of recoil energy, then 60 lbs, then 70 lbs, and so on.

Obviously, these loads should be well below maximum in the A2, but I was concerned about using very slow burning powders in reduced loads. I have also found that Hawk carries 500/450/400 gr. .510 caliber bullets, which seem ideal for reduced loads, but again, where would I find reloading data? When I look around for reduced loads, I see loads that move 600 gr bullets around 1600 fps, and the odd load at 2100 fps, but that's it. I'd prefer something a bit more systematic.

Since I can't find anything like that available on the web, will Quickload enable me to generate these recipes?

Thanks

QL will certainly generate plenty of numbers. Whether they do just what you want is the question.

QL predicts charges at any pressure for the full range of powders. It estimates free recoil as well. However, the simulation is less accurate at low pressures, and you certainly are asking for low pressure loads.

From what I've read, slow powders--say 4350 and slower--are only a problem if you are running lowish loading densities. As long as the case is kept completely full, you'll have better odds.

QL will predict lower density charges for the H-4895 and Re15 class powders, and these are often used successfully for low LD loads, even if a filler must be used for consistent ignition.

Another choice is to use a bulky powder such as 4759 or 5744. QL does not handle these bulky powders, and reloading data for this is a bit scarce unless you're shooting lead bullet loads. Since you have a strong rifle, you could consider scaling data from other cartridges for which 4759 data is available, but take care and keep an eye on fps.

Edit: I pulled my copy of the A-Square manual off the bookshelf, and I find the .500 A-S uses H-4895 and Re15 for even the 600 gn bullets. You can often reduce these powders to 60% of the full power charge, which will give you a pretty good range of speeds. You can also reduce fps for the 600 gn by simply filling the case with ever slower powders, but be sure to keep the case full. For lighter bullets, you'll be safe with H-4895 and Re15, of course, but you might want to speed up to 3031 for these bullets. You'll get by on trial and error; QL is a good tool, but for your purposes, you don't need it.

Thank you very much for your suggestions. This is new territory for me, and I prefer to err on the side of caution in these matters.

Slow powders are safe in reduced loads when load density is high. OTOH, you waste most of the powders propellant capacity because only a small part burns within the barrel.

Thus, I dare say that for reduced loads faster powders are better because 1. they burn completely, 2. use less powder, 3. burn cleaner because of the higher pressure involved, 4. create less muzzle flash and 5. are safer if you avoid double loads.

I am not familiar at all with that cartridge but would bet that with either N110, Blue Dot or similar you can achieve exactly what you want. If you want to have higher velocity/performance, go for slower powders.

In order to simulate these relations, QL is indeed a great tool. It is NOT a data manual and does NOT subsitute a carefull approach.