BallisticianX

Solo 1000 is a relatively fast powder so take alot of care if your gonna push the max. You will get alot of pressure fast causing primer cup piercing not to mention some sharp recoil. If your having problems getting your velocity than you should try a little slower powder like HP-38. Also makes a softer felt recoil with a 158gr than hot loads of faster powders.

Check your mag followers for forward play. If they are easily rocked forward then they can get cocked in the tube allowing the front of the follower to stick out past the tube. That will definetly hold up the mags release from the gun in slide lock because the last round stripping off grabs the loose follower dragging it forward. I had CMC mags and dont like them for this reason, not to mention the flimsy lock back tab on the follower that doesn't always catch the slide stop. As far as how to fix it, you could try to adjust the follower to remove play being careful not to break the brittle steel. You could also call CMC and try to get a new follower. But I found that it will do the same thing over time. I permanetly fixed the problem by getting some Metalform Elite mags and never looked back. I hope you have better luck with fixing them than I had.

If your gonna shoot a "K" frame sized gun I would strongly suggest not shooting a major PF. To achieve Major you would have to run a 158gr. bullet at 1044fps. That is .357 mag velocity and constant use will surely beat up and loosen up the gun prematurely. This will affect accuracy badly. So keep to minor and prolong the accuracy of your gun. As far minor PF goes, Titegroup would be a great choice for lighter bullets like a 125gr. Very accurate and is not case position sensative. In a heavier bullet like a 158/160gr I like a little slower powder like HP-38/WW-231(HP-38 and WW-231 are identical powders)it has proven very acurate with most bullets Ive tried it in. Recoil is milder with a slower powder versus fast powders like Titegroup with the heavier bullets of 150gr and up and is easier on the gun. Ive also had some good luck with HP38/WW231 in the lighter 125's. In my 5.5" ported 686 using a 148gr coated lead bullet with 4.8gr of HP38 I get 825 fps. for a PF of 122 for ICORE and 1" 5 shot groups at 25yds. Just to show you how accurate HP-38/WW-231 is for me. Before you use my load take into account It is a low +P load. I use a light taper crimp (to prevent lead shear of the bullet) which reduces the hold back of the bullet. So it needs a little more powder to achieve velocities than if using a tight roll crimp that holds the bullet back.

Ive had the best luck with Metalform Elite mags. The round steel follower always feeds and lock the slide back reliably, even with SWC. I dont care for the chip McCormick flat follower for feeding and especially the flimsy lock back tab that always needs adjustment, if it doesn't break. Wilson are pretty good but I dont like the polymer followers. They wear and will effect the feed angle.

I vote for keeping the slide lock enabled on SS or Limited 10 guns. If I run the gun dry I want a visible indicator, I dont want to have to guess when Im out and waste precious time. If your gun has a premature lock back problem it is commonly caused by your grip locating a thumb to close to the underside of the slide lock. Although I have also encountered it due to cheap mags and/or a weak plunger spring. Also an aftermarket slide stop installed without proper fitting.

My preference is to see everything my hands are doing. When I eject Im watching the spent shells clear, then I look to my fresh ammo as Im grabbing it and follow it to the gun seing it drop in. At that point I move my eyes to the target at the same time closing the cylinder and bring the sights to my eye. I dont trust not looking at my reload like some guys have told me they do. I want to make sure spent shells clear before committing my free hand with a fresh reload if I need it to clear spent shells. I want to see the reload in the cylinder and not miss etc. Another big help is using a round nose projectile. It will allow you to be less perfect with the ammo because it will self align and drop right in. Flat nose need to be nothing short of perfectly indexed because they wont self align and will cost you time while your helping them to. Hope this helps!

Hello all, Just want to introduce myself to everyone. Im a lifelong shooter and hunter thats all about everything shooting, love to do it, talk it and continuesly educate myself about it. Im an avid reloader for precision benchrest, pistol, and anything else I need to feed. Im an active competitor in USPSA, ICORE, Steel Challenge, an IBO(3D archery). I look forward to helping and being helped here, see you in the posts!