Reply With QuoteI can't answer your question directly, but I'll tell you what I do.
I make a load data sheet for each recipe using M.S. Word. It has a title which includes the date and test number; 100 series for my Howa-1500, 600 series for my 6mm BR, and so on. I keep them in a separate file folder and they're easy to search for later.
The first part has a two column table with 18 important perimeters such as bullet type, powder type, seating depth, COAL, CBTO, neck tension, brass condition, and most all the stuff you might want to know if you try to duplicate the load at a later date. Then I type in some text describing the reason for making this batch of ammo and what might be different from previous loads. After I fire the rounds, I add a "results" section with comments, a table of performance gathered by On Target scoring software and perhaps an Excel graph of things like MOA vs POWDER CHARGE. Finally I print the page and save it in a folder kept in my reloading room.
After I decide on the recipe and load the ammo, I copy the first column of parameters and past it into a Photoshop file, overwriting the previous load recipe. These items are things you might want to know at the range, like what the components are, B.C., predicted MV, and so on. Other information that I don't need at the range is arranged in the second column. In other words, I don't want to put EVERYTHING on my lable even though I do want to save that stuff in my load log.
A few minutes of fine tuning the formatting and changing the colors (I use green for Sierra, Yellow for Berger, etc. ) is quick and easy enough. Then I print the label and attach it to my ammo boxes with clear packing tape.
Unfortunately, Photoshop is far from free; however, I imagine you could cut and paste your data extracted from M.S. Word to most any graphics program which can manipulate text. Actually, various versions of Word or Office have some basic graphics built in and you could use that for your labels. Once you format the first one, pasting/overwriting subsequent load data would be simple, similar to the process I use in Photoshop. I know that you can change the borders and fill colors of text boxes in Word as well as changing the font color, so you could get reasonably fancy with your labels using nothing but M.S. Word. Or you might be able to set up a template in Excel which you overwrite and print with a minimum of fiddling around.
As long as you're going to the trouble of typing up labels, as opposed to scribbling them on a piece of masking tape, you might as well as type up a file with a meaningful title which you can keep on your hard drive and find it again later on. It sure beats the search capability of a hand written note book like the ones many shooters keep.
Originally Posted by MrFurious
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