Anybody have any thoughts on using a touch of cotton batten on top of minimum loads? I know people were caught unaware a while back using dacron which blew a ring into their chamber. I figure that a touch of cotton on top of my minimum starting loads will help give me more consistant ignition by keeping the powder from rolling around loose in the small air pocket and also keep it out of the grooves on the Barnes TSX bullets.

What cartridge??
I believe the jury is still out on useing fillers. I`d post over on the cast bullet board, they might use them with reduced loads and have a answer for you.

In the past, I and the guys I shoot with have used alot of fillers with some success. Cotton has been used and seems to be free from the fouling problems of some other fillers. You can buy large rolls of it at local vet supply houses. The sheets work better than cotton balls. When shooting the 458 Lott of the 45-120 and cast bullets, it is a must to fill the case. I have seen oatmeal, corn meal, and corn starch used. One guy thought he would use a cardboard disk between the charge and the filler. Lets just say that he and his rolling block rifle will never be the same again. Bad idea for sure. you may have to try a few different amounts of cotton until you start to get everything consistant. Use just enough to keep the powder at the bottom of the case. Good luck and good shooting.

Joe

Guns and Ammo article on Loading the 243 lite used dacron, it would burn up in the barrel, and said if to use plain old cotton it would not burn as well.

My experience with fillers is pretty limited, using Dacron in .45-70 with cast bullets and medium-velocity loads (about blackpowder equivalent.) Dacron doesn't melt or burn in these, either, and blows around as fluff after firing.

I've used it through the years without much success. I was able to start a small grass fire once. No joke. roger

I shoot a lot of cast bullets and prefer Dacron. I once had a multi-lifetime supply of kapok, but it, along with a lot of other stuff got lost in the move from Nevada to Arizona.
I don't much care for the idea of using cotton as a filler. Too much chance of it's smoldering and potentially starting a fire.
I go to Walmart and buy Dacron batting. I pick on two different sizes, 1/4" and 1/2". I lay it out on a table and cut a strip 1/2" wide. Then I cut the strips into 1/2" pieces. Weight is about one grain average. For cartridges like the 45-70, I cut the strip at 3/4".
For gallery type loads, I'll cut a piece of toilet paper into fourths and stuff one of those into the case. A gallery load for say the 30-30 is 5.0 gr. of Unique the TP wad, and a 110-120 gr. cast lead bullet.
I strongly do not recommend cereal fillers in any bottlenecked case. In playing with cream of Wheat in the 45-70, I had to break down some cartridges that proved to be a bit too hot. That C.O.W. was packed so solid, I had to dig it our with a screwdriver. You can imagine what would have happened had I done that in, say a 30-06. I won't even use cereal fillers in straight walled cases any more.
You're talking about using minimum starting loads. If these are for what will be a workup to a full power hunting load, I don't recommend any filler at all. Body parts are easily broken and difficult to replace. You don't say what round you're loading for and at what level, so I'll have to say, be very careful.
Paul B.