Ballistic products will have all the Bismuth (or steel) loading specific information you would need. They literally wrote the book on the subject.
The densities are different, but standard lead wad components and field powders are used according to the limited bismuth data I have.
I have loaded steel shot, and it really isn't that difficult, just time consuming and requires a few field expedient modifications. I go through a lot of steel shot in the average waterfowl season, so the pricing of other shot options are a non-starter for me. The differences in loading steel vs lead are as follows. You NEED steel specific wads (ditto for some of the other hard alloy non-tox such as tungsten, hevi shot, etc). Your drop tube will likely not be long enough to properly seat steel wads, you'll need to shim the shell base with quarters or similar. Alliant Steel doesn't meter well, all charges should be scaled. I did not invest in steel shot dropping equipment (charge bars and bushings), rather fabricated a dipper and scale checked charges to dial it in. New or once fired shells should be used for proper crimps in deference to the powder burn characteristics and cold weather usage. I originally began loading steel for improved performance until factories figured it out and improved their velocities. I have been using store bought steel loads since, but may be forced to revisit reloading for same with the new normal.
