Good evening,
After months of testing in the field, AccuLoad II is finally shipping. For those of you who are current owners of AccuLoad Version 1.x, please DO NOT order the upgrade that is on our web page. That upgrade path is for those that may wish to purchase AccuLoad Version 1 in the future. The full AccuLoad II package will be mailed to our current AccuLoad Version 1.x customers on Saturday morning (11-2-2002) free of charge. It�s our way of saying thank you to all of our customers, worldwide for your faith in our product and us. It also keeps our promises of full integration of AccuLoad and CalcuLoader into a single product and goes far beyond our assertion of free upgrades.
For those of you who purchased CalcuLoader as a stand-alone product, there is an upgrade path on our web page. As promised, your full purchase price for CalcuLoader will be applied to any upgrade product you wish.
Please allow sufficient time for delivery via USPS first-class mail. One of our Yellowknife customers finally received his copy after it was lost for four weeks in the postal nether regions.
We have taken this unusual path of customer notification due to the number of upgrade orders that we have received in the last few days. Our finance wizard really hates to write refund checks!
Regards,
All of us at AEM

HockeyPuck,

That's a great news. I guess that Accuload II will be very complete version which includes alot of new wildcats. Great job.

HP - You guys have delivered in record time. Now if the US Post will do their part! I can't wait to see the finished product. Great work.

Is there now the possibility to switch between the English units and metric?

Thanks for the Info.

Good morning,
Thanks for the words of encouragement.
BER007-You're correct, there are slightly over 1,100 cartridges in the database to choose from now and about 4,300 bullets!
Pecos45-all were mailed Saturday with the exception of one. A prior customer paid for the update at the last hour and I had to wait on our finance guy to write the refund check. It will be mailed tomorrow.
Makalu - No, still doesn't switch between measuring standards. Our goal for this version was to fully integrate the load calculation software into AccuLoad, increase the number of cartridges, bullets, powders, etc. Double the number of cited references (nearly 10,000 now), add several methods of calculating ballistic coefficients, additional terminal ballistic calculations, case capacity estimator, increase the usability of the firearms database so that it now contains all of the reloading data needed (barrel length, weight, etc.) and other useful information as well, such as insurers, policy numbers, phone/fax for insurers, accessories (weight and cost), and the ability to store unlimited digital photographs of each firearm. Also added to the firearms module is a formatted report that is very handy in the event of loss. Oh yeah, you can also list appraised value, date of appraisal and who did the appraisal. Other things were added as well.
Version 3 will eliminate Microsoft's "DLL Hell" by switching to Dot Net. This will enable AccuLoad to run on any OS, including Macintosh, Unix, VMS, Linux, etc. Also in the hopper for that version are suggestions from our customers, such as increasing the size of the printed graphs from the load calculation module, setting a default measuring standard on installation, ability to switch between measurement standards "on-the-fly", adding about 500 more cartridges to the database (hopefully the Ninja and the Overkill as well), expand the reference section to 15,000, and increasing the accuracy of load calculations, especially on the upper end and the lower end of the size "bell curve".
If any of you wildcatters want your favorite cartridge in the AccuLoad database, just send us the dimensions of it and the pertinant data and it will be in the next version as well. We are still in the process of updating the "screen shot" images of AccuLoad on our web page, but I've been assured that it will be complete next week.
The next version is over six months away, however. Stick with us, though. We'll make it what our customers want.
Regards,
Ed

What is the difference between QuickLoad and AccuLoad? I am looking for the actual experience between the two software and not just info from the Internet please. Any info will be greatly appreciated.

Ming,
Naturally, I'm biased, so I'll have to leave it to others to provide you with the comparison that you're seeking. Besides, I don't own QuickLoads.
Regards,
Ed

Mingo - One big difference between Accuload and Quick Load is staring you in the face. Accuload is here with us and HAS been here with us taking member input and WORKING WITH US for many months.

In a very real sense Accuload IS US. Many of us have been beta testers for this new version and anyone here on AR who cared to speak up with a suggestion has been heard.

Where is Quick Load? Do they know you or I exist? Do they care what we think or want? Nope, they are going to give you what THEY want and what's easy to them.

Let me tell you, as one who works in the computer field with many different software companies, you NEVER find a company as responsive and attentive to pleasing its customers as the guys at AEM. These fellows are totally unique in the software industry and in my opinion, there program is the ONLY reloading program worth considering. Feature for feature, it makes ALL the others look silly.


[ 11-03-2002, 20:13: Message edited by: Pecos45 ]

Pecos45,

Amen!
I'll add that Accuload's guys are humble. All the time they listen to their customers to give us the best products ever made. Now, I need to stop compliments otherwise my good friend Ed will kill me

Pecos45,

It sounds like AccuLoad is also a very good software. I was more interested in the content of the software and not so much about the service but if the service is good then it would even be better. I will have to get a copy to check it out myself. Thanks.

Well, what to say about this?

I have Quick Load for some years now. It works, it comes on a disk (unfortunately), if you have some problems you can talk to the guy who developed it: Hartmut G. Broemel from Germany, his phone number is: 0049 6073 688481, he specks good English.

It is nice to talk to him and he will help you, but � yes, unfortunately, there is always a but, he is not very interested to modify his program.

Anyhow, you can enter your one ammunition and easily change any parameter.

Until today it is the best program I know, the calculation is in most (but not all) the cases quite accurate (very often for rifles his speed is within 10 m/s). You can easily work in english and in metric units � this is a big plus! His external ballistic is unfortunately only in G1, but even in that point I have to say it work very good. For me it is much better than shooting lab and other programs I have with me.

I�m looking forward to see something better! Maybe accuload. I would really like to buy accu load just to try it. It is not that I don�t understand the English units I do, it is that I have been growing up with metric and even most of the U.S. solder I know work in metric. It is also much faster to think in metric, so why searching more work than necessary? We will see.

As soon as the program is available in metric, I will buy it. Until that time I listing to you and stay with Quick Load.

I forgot to say:

Quick Load its also listed bullets and powders form the US and other countries!

[ 11-03-2002, 23:13: Message edited by: Makalu ]

"After months of testing in the field, AccuLoad II is finally shipping."

Do you have versions that I can post on my site for download?

I'd say go with AccuLoad but I'm definitely biased. I went through a similar dilemma a little while back and finally settled on Accuload. I've only seen QuickLoad via their web page but I cannot see that it offers more than AccuLoad. What I have found is that AEM is a very unusual company. I have corresponded with them many times to offer suggestions or request additional features. I was quite surprised, in a good way, by the quick response and genuine interest in my ideas. The idea of free upgrades is another big plus. There's nothing like shelling out $80+ on software only to have to shell out another $50+ for an update that makes the software compatible with your PC. I think you'll find it has all you need. If it doesn't give them a holler. YOu might be surprised and get it included with the next update.

i have been using quickload for about 1 year and find it useful and accurate. Since i am an engineer and use to modeling/simulation programs, quickload allows changes to just about any modeling variable/constant (powder ignition characteristics, case weight,barrel friction, moly coated bullets, on and on) so it is very good for doing "what ifs", ie it does not restrict the inputs like some programs (load from a disk). The results from the simulations can be exported to excel for further processing. The manual is detailed and good section on the internal ballistic calculations and program's limitations. Finally, i am amazed at the default accuracy of quickload when compared to published data (both velocity and pressure).

I plan to buy Accuload next, i think mainly for the cartridge/base database and if it can do the "what ifs" that i need, then i will compare with quickload.

Any updates beyond 1.61 for CalcuLoader?

Russ

Russell,
We are writing a new installer for CalcuLoader to eliminate the problems caused by Microsoft's latest dll files. When complete (about 2-3 weeks) we'll recompile the CalcuLoad executable and use the latest AccuLoad II database. Then we'll put the new executable up on our web page as a download.
This will correct some case capacity errors that have been pointed out by our customers, too.
Regards,
Ed

OK. I'm sold. Been on the fence for load software for 6 months. This thread convinced me that Accuload is the way to go. Pretty slick marketing, Hockeypuck.....<grin> Jim R

Another question for those who use the two: I have been told that Quickload has "issues" with (nearly) straightwalled cases. Since I load for a Whelen, how does Accuload do with cases in that shape?

Second question: Does Accuload model newer powders (such as Ramshot, and Rx10 and Benchmark?). TIA, Dutch.

How does accuload do with the short fat cases? Where did you get your powder burning rate data? Powder companies are notorious for not sharing. Quickload I have used for 2 years. It is abysmal with the short magnum cartridges and many wildcats. Many of their powder burning rates must be way off as well.

I'll try to answer as many of the questions as I can in one fell swoop.
Steve, we don't have a demo (wish we did) for downloads. We do the CalcuLoader updates via web page downlods because it's small, but it's non-functional without the installation program and serial number. I hope to have a demo soon, but we're already working four different projects now for ourselves and a powder/bullet manufacturer.

grkldoc and Dutch,
We make every effort to keep our databases up to speed as new bullets, powders and cartridges come out. SAAMI keeps us updated on the cartridges and bullet manufacturers are especially forthcoming. Powder manufacturers, on the other hand, act as if their data contains the Yahoo map to El Dorado. If we aren't supplied with bulk densities, we buy the powder and make our own measurements. Without a burning rate, we generate a computer model and test it out in the field. An expensive way of doing things, but works well.
As with other load calculating programs, AccuLoad's accuracy falls off at the extreme upper and lower ends (like a bell curve). It doesn't handle pistol loads or small capacity, low pressure cartridges well. The big difference here is that we don't ask you to increase the estimated load by 10% and we don't ask you to fire it at the range and then input a fudge factor to make the program work. After all, the purpose of the software is to give you a safe starting load to get you up and going and then you find the best load for your particular firearm at the range, not the other way around. Rather than give you data we don't believe in, we just won't compute the load.
We are working to eliminate this limitation and we will succeed in doing so. And when we do, all of our customers will get the upgrade.
I'll make you both a deal, email me at ed@aement and give me the data on your favorite cartridge, caliber, bullet manufacturer, bullet weight and barrel length. I'll run it through the load calculating module and email you back the output in pdf format.
One thing to keep in mind, AccuLoad is a whole heck of a lot more than just a load calculating piece of software. It does more than any three other products combined, in my opinion, of course!
Regards,
Ed

the quickload manual has 2 page description of the ignition characteristics of straight wall cartridges vs bottle neck and concludes by saying that quickload under estimates velocity and over estimates peak pressure for straight walls, such as 45-70.

i am looking at the 458 lott for my next rifle, so was interested in Ross Seyfried article in the Nov. issue of Rifle. So, i ran quickload with the following results: 24" barrel, 500g Hornady FMJ,

code:

---

  
powder,wt.(g) Data(ft/sec)  quickload
h-4895  ,64.4   1900          1888
        ,74.2   2150          2128
rTAC    ,65.1   1900          1983
        ,77.0   2200          2266
imr-4064,65.1   1900          1889
        ,75.5   2150          2157
imr-4320,64.2   1900          1832
        ,73.6   2100          2076
rl-15   ,67.6   1900          1939
        ,76.6   2150          2173
h-335   ,67.1   1900          1963
        ,79.3   2200          2258

---

This was "out of the box", with no tweeking to any of the quickload variables. i do not know if this is good simulation accuracy, given all the unknown variables in the actual data (primer,throat, brass weight, etc) or just coincidence.

Anyhow, one can never have to many simulation programs, as each one has its own value and limitations.

[ 11-05-2002, 19:23: Message edited by: steve505 ]

HockeyPuck,

Do you have any intenetions of adding Cast Performance Bullets of Wyoming to your bullet list? They make cast bullets that perform extremely well in my firearms. I believe they are used extensively by handgun hunters and in the .45-70. Their website is http://www.castperformance.com/ and the contact is Terry at info@castperformance.com.

Thanks!

Shark Bait,
Thank you for the link to Cast Performance Bullets. I have contacted them and requested the needed data. It will go into AccuLoad on receipt.
Regards,
'puck

Hey HockeyPuck! Is that you, Ed?

I got a "thank you" note today about your receiving some of my old original "Barnes Ammo" cases in the mail. My pleasure, in gratitude for your article on the www.aement.com web site. You alone could tell me "pre-1949" for the Barnes Supreme line of cartridges.

The 416 Barnes Supreme and 450 Barnes Supreme rifles were my first two "gunsmith built" rifles, by Willis Fowler in Anchorage, AK, in the mid eighties.

Did you say that my 416 and 450 Barnes Supreme dummies and fire formed brass would be used to add to the Accuload II database regarding case capacities, by your "actual fill to the mouth" measurement technologies?

Well, I am decided, time for me to step up to some real tools: Accuload II.

[ 11-06-2002, 07:02: Message edited by: DaggaRon ]

HockeyPuck,
I tried to order Accuload II and the shopping cart would only show Accuload as the item to be purchased, at the lesser price of the two, though I repeatedly tried to select Accuload II.

Is it on my end, or is the shopping cart not updated yet?

DaggaRon,
Yep, this is Ed. I did take the case capacity measurements of the cases you supplied and averaged them with a case received from a nice gentleman in Virginia and that's the water capacity listed for the .450 Barnes Supreme. The capacity of the .416 Barnes Supreme is strictly from your cases. And I'd like to thank you again for supplying the source of that data for us and our customers. I even photographed the case headstamp (Barnes Ammo) and have placed it in the "Case" master database as a choice of component.
I checked our web site after reading your email and you are 100% correct. Another poster here tried to email me yesterday and said that our email server was down. It was up when I checked, so I assumed (there's that word again) all was right with the world. Evidently not!
I called Mad Mike, our finance guy and web guru, and he had it fixed before I could finish editing this post. Should work for you now.
Regards,
Ed

[ 11-07-2002, 01:42: Message edited by: HockeyPuck ]

Ed,
My AccuLoad II arrived while I was out of town. Thanks. Now I will see what it will do, after deer season!