Getting Ready to start loading 38 and 357

Wogpotter,

Will you explain your second sentence about 38 spl level...? I'm a bit confused.
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I load rounds that perform like a .38 Spl, but in a .357case.
I do not just use .38 Spl data in a .357 case, but work the loads to .38 spl velocities.
 
Skizzums and others say they use 38+P load data for .357. Am I reading this properly? I've never looked closely at +P data so I'm behind the curve on this one.
 
Skizzums and others say they use 38+P load data for .357. Am I reading this properly? I've never looked closely at +P data so I'm behind the curve on this one.
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Or better yet, you can use 357 light load data.
 
I agree with Wodpotter. No need to load .38 spcl if you are going to only shoot them in a .357 chamber. You'll be constantly fighting the crud ring and if you load .357 mag brass too then you'll be going back and forth on your dies. Just use .357 brass.
 
No thanks, ill deal with a crud ring before switching to only 357 brass. That stuff is pricey new and hard to find once fired. Not to mention my 357 needs trimmedeventually, never have lengthening of 38 brass. I first dismissed this as lore, but I was told that my 357 gets strected because of the pulling out of chamber in the lever action, any truth to that?
 
Wendyj check out this site.... https://fsreloading.com/

You'll get better pricing than Midway.

I also load 38 and 357 for both pistol (Taurus) and rifle (Rossi). The 4-die deluxe set is all you need. And if you are thinking about a case trimmer, don't waste your time or money. I've yet to encounter a 357 case that needs' its' length reduced.

Create a few test rounds, i.e. no primer or powder. After 5 you'll have the crimp down. Piece of cake.

Good luck. Happy shopping.
 
Hello, neighbor (well, almost, I'm in Upstate SC).

I've been loading .38/.357 since the early 1980s. I've used RCBS dies and more recently picked up some Hornady New Dimension dies. Both are three die sets that impart a roll crimp. Just right for revolver ammo to my way of thinking. There are some features of the Hornady dies that I prefer over my old RCBS dies, but either will serve.

I have a good friend who swears by Lee dies. He runs 'em in his Dillon press. I did pick up a Factory Crimp Die; I use it to "fix" the occasional out-of-spec cartridge.

Some people like to seat and crimp in separate steps. I don't find it necessary with revolver ammo, personally.
 
skizzums - No thanks, ill deal with a crud ring before switching to only 357 brass. That stuff is pricey new and hard to find once fired. Not to mention my 357 needs trimmed eventually, never have lengthening of 38 brass.
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Allowing for size and more material affecting price, is 357 brass any more expensive than any other caliber? You aren't going to have any times-used tracking or any real faith in your brass integrity until you start with new cases or those that are once-fired from your own bought ammo.

I note that I don't have a lot of Starline but I apparently found 5 bags of Winchester to get my foundation supplies laid in. It has been awhile. I now have all my cases sorted as "Starline only" and not Starline. I also segregate Remington as too thin for adequate tension on a 358 bullet, Let alone 357 or under. Those would be the R-P headstamps. I also have the Armscor segregated because the heads are too thick to fit on the LnL AP shell plate. They do, however, fit on the turret shellholder and will run okay in the guns. When possible, life is simpler with just one headstamp, especially Starline or Winchester. I avoid Hornady because of the confusion of shorter case length with brass that came from FTX bullet loadings. You wind up dealing with Hornady by checking length on every case and buying FTX bullets as necessary, short of discarding the cases altogether.

Looks like Upstate SC should start a club. I am near Clemson.
 
I too have become a fan of just shooting lighter to moderate loads but using only.357 brass in a .357. I just picked up a thousand new cases from Starline for $138.00 shipped, so when considering how many times you can reload these before they are worn out it's a pretty cheap deal. One thing I used to do when I shot mostly .38's was to have a nickel .357 case with just enough flair to scrape the carbon ring out pretty good, saved a lot of scrubbing. I also reamed the inside of the case neck enough to form a fairly sharp edge to help cut throught the crud.
 
If you plan on loading .38 Special get the die set for .38 Special. & .357 Magnum. The die set for .357 Mag is too tall for expanding, or crimping of .38 Special. The crimp die is the same, but the expander and seating die are taller.
 
I'm just lucky I guess.:)

There's a guy at my club that shoots .357 all the time & never collects his factory new brass.

He only shoots factory, not even commercial reloads & when I talked to him a while back he just told me he can't be bothered to collect or reload so I could help myself.

He even leaves the boxes & plastic inserts! I currently have 1,393 cases I've not even cleaned & deprimed yet.
:cool:
 
If you plan on loading .38 Special get the die set for .38 Special. & .357 Magnum. The die set for .357 Mag is too tall for expanding, or crimping of .38 Special. The crimp die is the same, but the expander and seating die are taller.
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I don't quite follow that. To start, to what brand of dies are you referring?

Hornady expanders are fixed, but RCBS has expanders that can be swapped out. Lee also has separate powder-through expander inserts. I have no knowledge of the others. My only Lyman set is stamped specific to 327 Federal Magnum, but there may be a 32 H&R expander insert in the box that I forgot about. That caliber has its own RCBS Cowboy die set.
 
I'm not a fan of downloading 357 cases to 38 levels; particularly down to light target levels (which is what I usually shoot). The 38 Special case is way too darn big for the application to begin with; much less, adding another .130" of case length to only exacerbate the problem. IMO

I solved the whole light loads in a .357 Mag case thing by getting a K-frame S&W 38 Special (model 67). Best move I ever made. I shoot it far more than any other gun now. Used it in IDPA today, in fact. I digress. Anyway, I no longer have to deal with the 357 cylinder fouling ring from shooting 38's.

There's a guy at my club that shoots .357 all the time & never collects his factory new brass.

He only shoots factory, not even commercial reloads & when I talked to him a while back he just told me he can't be bothered to collect or reload so I could help myself.
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Yeah, I had this same thing happen to me once. That was 1985 :D.
 
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Real Gun raises a good point about the Hornady expander die being fixed, that is, the only adjustment for the amount of expansion is by screwing the die body in and out of the press.

I experienced a bit of an issue using the Hornady dies on my LNL-AP to load .38 Special. I load lead bullets which means that I need to bell the case mouth slightly. I was unable to get sufficient expansion even with the expander die at the lowest possible setting in the press (making hard contact with the shellplate.

I broke out my old RCBS expander die which has a much larger range of adjustments with its threaded expander plug. I ended up sending the expander die back to Hornady with a couple of expanded cases. The modified it (I assume they removed some material from the very bottom of the die) and sent it back pretty promptly.
 
For the dies i mentioned I meant the Lee dies. I have both sets. That way I can have one in each turret so all I have to do is set the powder measure, and go.
 
Real Gun raises a good point about the Hornady expander die being fixed, that is, the only adjustment for the amount of expansion is by screwing the die body in and out of the press.

I experienced a bit of an issue using the Hornady dies on my LNL-AP to load .38 Special. I load lead bullets which means that I need to bell the case mouth slightly. I was unable to get sufficient expansion even with the expander die at the lowest possible setting in the press (making hard contact with the shellplate.

I broke out my old RCBS expander die which has a much larger range of adjustments with its threaded expander plug. I ended up sending the expander die back to Hornady with a couple of expanded cases. The modified it (I assume they removed some material from the very bottom of the die) and sent it back pretty promptly.
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I don't use any of the standard expanders because they aren't meant for progressive presses, unnecessary when using a powder through expander on a case-activated powder measure, progressive or turret. Exceptions are M-dies used to accommodate lead bullets, when the powder measure expansion is not enough to get a bullet to stand straight for seating without the risk of pinched fingers. The way to get a station open for a die like a powder check or M-die is to eliminate the standard expander die.
 
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