I reloaded for quite a while before I weighed any bullets, dunno why, just didn't. When I did weigh some, I too was a little concerned about bullets being "over weight" as per manual load data, but I never went to max. loads so all my ammo was well within safe limits. I continued to use 158 gr. bullet data for my 161 gr LSWC bullets, but kept away from max. loads...
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new guy here
- Thread starter mtinner
- Start date
Here are a number of tips in no particular order EXCEPT the first tip:
When you open a thread, don't title it something that tells us zero about the actual subject at hand. You may indeed be a new guy and that is relevant info, but it isn't the subject. A title such as "starting load for 700x with 158gr LSWC in .38 Special?" would have been better. You will find that if everyone titled questions/subject in that way, you could quickly scan down and click on topics that apply to you directly and you can gain insight from posts already made -- not having to wait for folks to read your thread and respond as they see it. And those with helpful info could click your topic and add their take. There are many folks who spend much of their time doing long distance rifle loading that have never even had a bottle of 700X or Bullseye or AA#2 at their load bench.
Now then... you are making .38 Special loads in shooting them from a .357 Magnum revolver. IMO, this is the world's BEST place to start to learn handloading. The industry standard for a maximum pressure load in .38 Special is 17,500 PSI (a bit more for .38+P) and the SAAMI max pressure for .357 Magnum is 35,000 PSI Max... so double of what a max load in .38 Special is. Beyond that, Ruger has proof-tested your revolver to withstand rounds loaded ABOVE industry standards simply for safety. So while this information is no "get out of jail FREE card" to be reckless, you have picked a place to start that is extremely well suited to SAFETY and tolerances for new guys.
As for making .357 Magnum rounds...
Learning about different powders and how they work, how burning rates matter (a whole LOT) and why it is a risky and not at all good idea to use some powders in certain places really does take time, patience and experience. Without getting too deep in to it, I will firmly tell you that if absolute safety and genuine CAUTIOUSNESS is front and center for you, then make a promise right here and right now that you will NOT fall in to the trap of using fast-burning target powders suited to .38 Special (700X) in magnum revolver rounds that run twice the pressure. (.357 Magnum) If you truly wish to make .357 Magnum ammo (you should... it's awesome!) then you should absolutely get the proper powder for doing that.
Just because they actually publish a load does not make it a good idea to do it. And I honestly do not have a great explanation for that -- frankly, it baffles me that they have rolled back so many loads over the years (seemingly for safety) but they continue to publish bad loads for fast powders in large volume, high pressure rounds. Using IMR-700X for full magnum loads in .357 Magnum is a terrible, terrible idea. Horrendous. It is a trap that new loaders simply do not understand and I don't fault them for this. I was exactly the same way years and years ago.
When you open a thread, don't title it something that tells us zero about the actual subject at hand. You may indeed be a new guy and that is relevant info, but it isn't the subject. A title such as "starting load for 700x with 158gr LSWC in .38 Special?" would have been better. You will find that if everyone titled questions/subject in that way, you could quickly scan down and click on topics that apply to you directly and you can gain insight from posts already made -- not having to wait for folks to read your thread and respond as they see it. And those with helpful info could click your topic and add their take. There are many folks who spend much of their time doing long distance rifle loading that have never even had a bottle of 700X or Bullseye or AA#2 at their load bench.
Now then... you are making .38 Special loads in shooting them from a .357 Magnum revolver. IMO, this is the world's BEST place to start to learn handloading. The industry standard for a maximum pressure load in .38 Special is 17,500 PSI (a bit more for .38+P) and the SAAMI max pressure for .357 Magnum is 35,000 PSI Max... so double of what a max load in .38 Special is. Beyond that, Ruger has proof-tested your revolver to withstand rounds loaded ABOVE industry standards simply for safety. So while this information is no "get out of jail FREE card" to be reckless, you have picked a place to start that is extremely well suited to SAFETY and tolerances for new guys.
As for making .357 Magnum rounds...
Learning about different powders and how they work, how burning rates matter (a whole LOT) and why it is a risky and not at all good idea to use some powders in certain places really does take time, patience and experience. Without getting too deep in to it, I will firmly tell you that if absolute safety and genuine CAUTIOUSNESS is front and center for you, then make a promise right here and right now that you will NOT fall in to the trap of using fast-burning target powders suited to .38 Special (700X) in magnum revolver rounds that run twice the pressure. (.357 Magnum) If you truly wish to make .357 Magnum ammo (you should... it's awesome!) then you should absolutely get the proper powder for doing that.
Just because they actually publish a load does not make it a good idea to do it. And I honestly do not have a great explanation for that -- frankly, it baffles me that they have rolled back so many loads over the years (seemingly for safety) but they continue to publish bad loads for fast powders in large volume, high pressure rounds. Using IMR-700X for full magnum loads in .357 Magnum is a terrible, terrible idea. Horrendous. It is a trap that new loaders simply do not understand and I don't fault them for this. I was exactly the same way years and years ago.
You are starting out with great choices and a wide margin of error, that will be hard to get into trouble with. Also .38 is probably the easiest round to reload and a great place to start.
Typically, you should always start at the starting load, and work up, but when loading 38's to shoot from a .357, any published .38 load will be way below starting 357 pressures, so there is no need to work up. If you were shooting these from a .38, starting at the minimum would be necessary and important.
After you fire a half dozen, check your barrel for lead deposits. Depending on the hardness of the bullets you are using, you might need to adjust your charge, but not very likely for that load.
Never load below minimum. While it might "seem" like it should be safer, other failures, some dangerous can be associated with loading too low.
Typically, you should always start at the starting load, and work up, but when loading 38's to shoot from a .357, any published .38 load will be way below starting 357 pressures, so there is no need to work up. If you were shooting these from a .38, starting at the minimum would be necessary and important.
After you fire a half dozen, check your barrel for lead deposits. Depending on the hardness of the bullets you are using, you might need to adjust your charge, but not very likely for that load.
Never load below minimum. While it might "seem" like it should be safer, other failures, some dangerous can be associated with loading too low.
Thanks for the advice guys.
I've got another question. For the hell of it, I put one of the 158 grain SWC that bought on the scale to weigh it and if my measurement was right, it came out to 162.5 grains. Is this a normal thing or should I be concerned? I weighed 8 random rounds that I have loaded and using 3.1 grains of powder, each round averages around 232 grains. Any thoughts? Remember, I'm new at this so be nice to me.
It is not uncommon for bullets to not weigh out to exactly the published weight, particularly lubed lead cast bullets. In this situation, I would not be concerned about the weight difference. That being said, a variance of 4.5 grains seems high to me. Weighing loaded rounds is unreliable and not a good way of checking bullet weight or powder charge. Too many variables. Try weighing a handful of bullets, by themselves, individually and see what you get. What type of scale are you using? Are you sure it is properly zeroed and or calibrated? It could be that your scale is off. What brand bullet are you using?
I've got another question. For the hell of it, I put one of the 158 grain SWC that bought on the scale to weigh it and if my measurement was right, it came out to 162.5 grains.
Did you zero your scale? Set it for zero.zero and see that it balances/use check weights?
I don't have the numbers in front of me, but most every lead slug I load is a little over the published grainage. And the 161gn figure sounds about right for a 158 from my experience. And yes, there's going to be some variance. 3 grains is less than 2%, in the above example.
Cast bullet weights can and often do vary from their "designed weight". If you used the same alloy, cast that alloy at the same temperature, using the same method (ladle or bottom pour), you might get bullets the same weight as the mold is designed for. My alloy, with my methods usually produce heavier than manufacturer's specs. Plus, I believe some will just "name" the mold by the approx. weight using "standard" weights; a company's 158 LSWC may always drop bullets at 155 gr. or 159 gr., or a 250 gr. LSWC may always come out to 255 gr. (mine do).