Reduced 38 special loads

I have 38 Special dies from Lee, Lyman, and RCBS Cowboy and all of them are stamped 38/357. I thought it curious that the OP somehow bought 357-only dies.

A second thought is that little guns, even with light loads, could generate enough recoil for crimping to be a concern, at least for me.

Next, I was reminded of Winchester's latest ammo line wherein they have one round for practice and another for self defense. I have those and like them.

Lastly, for a couple reasons I would suggest a lighter weight bullet for a small gun than 158 gr.
 
38/357 the standard crimp is a role crimp
the 380 bullet I use does not have a crimping groove
so I taper crimped them ( 380s use a taper crimp )
the recoil is so light that there is no problem with bullet
movement like the normal 38 SPL loads with not enough crimp

38/357- 357 bullet diameter
380- 356 bullet diameter

Corbin makes a tool that puts a crimping groove in bullets
it cost about the same as an RCBS die
I just got one to try on my next batch of powder puff loads
 
I don't understand. She has the grip strength for a snub's trigger but not enough to operate a slide? And you think standard .38 loads are too much for her?

What you're basically saying is that you're choosing a snub for her before she have sufficient handgun experience. Snubs are the worst handgun to start a beginner with.

Have her shoot a full size auto/revolver, then let her decide. Going the current route, you may sour her on handguns.

I've taught my wife to rack an auto slide(like said above, it's technique) and she's quite petite. She can't run a DA with any real accuracy though.

To answer the load question, I've used light loads of unique under 158gr SWCs and I wasn't comfortable loading any lighter after firing those. Used a standard roll crimp as I do with ALL of my revolver loads.
 
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If you are looking for just a single die, Ebay frequently has one for a fraction of the list price. People who buy up estate sales often list reloading die(s). I once bought a set of Lyman .38 special dies "as new" in the box for $5.00 plus $3.00 shipping.
 
Someone suggested trying match wadcutter factory ammo. That's not a bad idea. Recoil is quite mild and the load easily duplicated with a 148 gr. cast bullet and 2.7 gr. of Bullseye. If I had a dollar for every one of those loads I could buy another very nice gun. The load I prefer for most practice is the 148 gr. wadcutter and 3.1 gr. of W231. Serious social intercourse loads use a 158 gr. semi wadcutter and 5.0 gr. of Unique. Recoil does get noticeable in my S&W M60 but is about all my wife can handle comfortably.
Paul B.
 
A friend loads very mild .38 Special for his wife in CAS.
A 125 gr cast and a light load of Clays lets her ding the steel in comfort.
I won't give his "recipe" from memory but think it is somewhat above Hodgdon's starting load but nowhere near maximum.
 
A friend loads very mild .38 Special for his wife in CAS.
A 125 gr cast and a light load of Clays lets her ding the steel in comfort.
I won't give his "recipe" from memory but think it is somewhat above Hodgdon's starting load but nowhere near maximum.
Click to expand...

2.8g Clays or 700x under a 125g cast or poly coated bullets is a very pleasant load and is what I shoot in CAS.
 
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