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.38 Special... major?


matteekay

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Howdy! I did search, but couldn't get the right terms to find what I'm looking for.

 

Has anyone shot .38 Special loaded up to major PF out of a .357 revolver? It doesn't seem like it would be too hard to make it - a 180gr bullet only needs to go about 925 fps - but I couldn't find any published data. There's plenty for .357 but I'd rather not try to eject/reload those cases on the clock.

 

Or would this be too much case pressure for .38 Special? 

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7 hours ago, perttime said:

Vihtavuori data gets into that ballpark with slow burning pistol powders: https://www.vihtavuori.com/reloading-data/handgun-reloading/?cartridge=41

 

Published 38 Special data is for much lower pressures than 357 Magnum. Modern cases can take more. Guns made for 38 Special, maybe not.

 

That's been my issue. It seems like the data for .38 shows a case pressure that's about half of .357.

 

6 hours ago, Hi-Power Jack said:

Don't know re: .38 Special in a .357 gun, but with 9mm and .40

most people use  fast powders  and  heavy bullets.

 

Don't know why a shorter case would be a problem  -  as long

as the gun is rated for magnum loads.

 

Which gun are you using ?

 

I was thinking a 180gr bullet over Titegroup, Autocomp or Sport Pistol. The gun is a S&W 686

 

1 hour ago, jcc7x7 said:

Starline Brass

Col 1.550 or longer

Slow burn powder

Starting 357 load and CAREFUL work up.

?in why but it's your choice

 

Trying to eject and reload a moonclip of .357 cases while moving is significantly harder than it is with shorter brass.

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This a pic of Hornady vol. 2 it looks like you could make power factor using this data. I used this same vol to load 125 gr jhp using 7.3 grs of unique which was a very good load. I bought this manual in the mid seventies. This data used a model 14 the same gun that I had at the time.

image.jpeg

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1 hour ago, perttime said:

Sure you can score Major with a Revolver. As long as you reload every 6 shots and actually make PF.

 

That's kinda the trick, lol. I previously was using a 240gr RNFP in a .44 so it made major just by existing; 180's will need a little more juice.

 

That's the funny thing about the Revolver division rules – you're actually allowed to use a 7 or 8 shot gun in Major provided you only ever have six booms before a reload. It's a dicey proposition as the seventh would kick you to open.

 

28 minutes ago, Dwbsig said:

This a pic of Hornady vol. 2 it looks like you could make power factor using this data. I used this same vol to load 125 gr jhp using 7.3 grs of unique which was a very good load. I bought this manual in the mid seventies. This data used a model 14 the same gun that I had at the time.

image.jpeg

 

That's awesome, thank you!

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39 minutes ago, Hi-Power Jack said:

I would think the WAC is too slow for what you need    :)   

 

You might be right. I was thinking more of a medium burner to build some pressure but maybe that's too slow. I think I have HP38 and WST kicking around too - those would be a little slower than Titegroup but still on the faster side. 

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Try this: use .357 Mag data, loading to the correct magnum OAL. You have the same internal capacity, which gives you the same pressure, but with the benefit of ejecting shorter cases. 

 

This works as long as you’re not shooting a really light bullet that’s not long enough for the shorter case. You may need to use a taper crimp die. Or some bullets have a second crimp groove in the appropriate location, such as the XTP .357/180 or .44/300. 

 

5lOZLZR.jpg

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Genius!! I taper crimp right now (as I use grooveless coated lead) so that’s an easy experiment to try out. It should get me in the ballpark and then I can start adjusting COL and charge. Thanks!


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19 hours ago, jcc7x7 said:

What gun game is going to score you Major? Not uspsa or icore with a 35 call bullet. 

Unless you want to shoot open with your revo in uspsa

 

18 hours ago, matteekay said:

You sure?

Screen Shot 2018-10-15 at 8.42.32 AM.png

I stand corrected.

Honestly thank you for the correction!

Neil

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I stand corrected.
Honestly thank you for the correction!
Neil


The funny thing about that is I thought the same thing until recently. There’s no minimum caliber for revo in the 2014 rules so I have no idea where I got that from either.


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  • 4 weeks later...

So I'm not a revolver shooter but I am curious as I've pondered trying it out...

 

If you are reloading 38 brass to 357 COL then that might fix the eject problem but isn't the reload problem going to remain?

 

Perhaps the case mouth being a little farther "south" will help?

 

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13 hours ago, ddc said:

So I'm not a revolver shooter but I am curious as I've pondered trying it out...

 

If you are reloading 38 brass to 357 COL then that might fix the eject problem but isn't the reload problem going to remain?

 

Perhaps the case mouth being a little farther "south" will help?

 

 

You're not wrong. Ideally I could stick close to a .38 COL - with good 160gr round nose bullets, they tend to find the holes. That being said, even at .357 COL, having the ejector clear the brass completely out of the cylinder is a big deal on the clock.

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