making hot 357 loads

[derf762]

I am getting a ruger sp101 for my b-day and want to try to use existing supply stock to make some hot loads they dont have to be max but enough to know im shooting a 357 not a 38.
I am currently making lee 158 swc tumble lubed that i water drop.
I have unique powder that i would like to use
and reguler small pistol primers not magnum
and mixed range brass

How fast can i push them without extreme leading and what charge and oal should i use to do so i am getting numbers from 6gn to 8gn both at around 1,100 fps so i am a little cautoius going into this any help would be appreciated

[fredj338]

Yeah, Unique qouldn't be my choice for "hot" 357mags, but you can get some good 1100fps loads form the SP101. Work up to 7.5gr & see how she bucks.

[Ole]

I made a coffee can full of that same bullet with 6.5 grains of Unique. They are not H110 loads, but they are a good bit stiffer than the .38's that I make.

[TNFrank]

Even a starting load in 357Mag will be hotter then a +P 38spl. IIRC I went with a 125gr JHP and 8.6grs of Unique with standard primer and you knew you were shooting a magnum without wasting powder. Remember, that short barrel won't burn a lot of powder before the bullet gets out of the barrel so why waste it just to make a fireball.

[youngda9]

Bullet Weight FPS Muzz Energy
3" SP101 22gr H110 125grXTP 125 1420 559.6
3" SP101 125gr lead RNFP, 9.2grs Unique 125 1375 524.7
3" SP101 125gr Jacketed, 9.2grs Unique 125 1325 487.2
3" SP101 7.0gr Unique 150gr LSWC-HP 150 1210 487.6
3" SP101 7.5gr Unique 150gr LSWC-HP 150 1245 516.2
3" SP101 8.0gr Unique 150gr LSWC-HP 150 1246 517.1

Use at your own risk.

[303Guy]

H4227 or IMR4227 - 11.5gr under a 158gr cast. That should yield about 18,000 CUP and 1380 fps according to Hodgdon (no barrel length given). I've used a similar powder and really all that's required is enough powder to burn clean. Hodgdon start load is 10.5gr.

[stubshaft]

I like 14.5 of 2400 or 11.0 of AA#9 behind that boolit. Not max but in the upper range of the envelope.

[ku4hx]

I am getting a ruger sp101 for my b-day and want to try to use existing supply stock to make some hot loads they dont have to be max but enough to know im shooting a 357 not a 38.
I am currently making lee 158 swc tumble lubed that i water drop.
I have unique powder that i would like to use
and reguler small pistol primers not magnum
and mixed range brass

How fast can i push them without extreme leading and what charge and oal should i use to do so i am getting numbers from 6gn to 8gn both at around 1,100 fps so i am a little cautoius going into this any help would be appreciated

My favorite "heavy" .357 Magnum load for your boolit of choice is Bluedot followed closely by 2400. From a 6.5" barrel my Bluedot load clocks 1,490 fps and my 2400 1,475 fps on average.

My source for charge weights is Lyman, but there are other good manuals and web data available.

[PacMan]

Your OAL will be dictated by the single crimp grove.

[beagle]

Go with 2400 and you'll find your load. Not as economical as Unique but it will be safer to use for top end loads./beagle

[Bret4207]

I'm a traditionalist, start around 13.0 2400 in 357 brass and see where it takes you. I believe your TL boolit might not be the bestest choice for upper level loads unless you luck onto one that fits really, really well.

[Jtarm]

I like 14.5 of 2400 or 11.0 of AA#9 behind that boolit. Not max but in the upper range of the envelope.

Ditto the 2400. Ive always gotten great accuracy with cast bullet loads a bit below Max.

Undersized bullets with too hard alloy is the biggest cause of leading in
revolvers. Slug your chamber throats and forcing cone. Assuming the throats are larger, size no smaller than. 001 below throat diameter

[303Guy]

For my information, seeing that 2400 produces higher velocity with lower pressure in the 357, would that be a good powder to replace my H4227 with when it's used up? I'm using it in a 303 Brit. I also keep Lil'Gun for my hornet, which appears to be the top performer in the 357. How would that work for me in my Brit? (A little off topic, I know). But on topic, how does Lil'Gun perform in the 357 (accuracy wise)?

[MtGun44]

As usual, Bret nails it. TL is likely to fail you before you get to max vel. H110 will make
the max vel, even from short bbls, but will have a flash and blast that will be debilitating.

Bill

[cwheel]

Big safety note on using Blue Dot !!! Do not use with 125 gr. bullets. Detonation !!! Go over to their web site for important safety notes on this one. I had to pull down 2K rounds on this one.
Chris

[cf_coder]

I like Lil'Gun for my 357 loads. I use 16.2 grains of Lil'Gun under a Ranch Dog 170 grain gas check and light it all off with a Winchester SPM primer. This load is pretty much in the sweet spot for my 1894 Marlin. I also load 17.8 grains Lil'Gun under a Hornady jword 158 grain XTP. There is absolutely no mistaking you are shooting a magnum load with either of these.

[357maximum]

2400



2400



2400



2400



2400


2400


2400


2400


See a pattern in there anywhere?:kidding:

[DrCaveman]

I loaded that same boolit in front of 13.3 gr 2400, std fed primer, mag case. Last weekend, it shot great, no leading, good accuracy. I am going to raise the charge to 14.5 gr and see how she holds up. BHN tested at 15.4, Lee sized to .358, tumble lubed w/light lee a lox twice (before and after sizing). Shot through a 6" GP100.

Also loaded some with lil gun, and they were awesome. Got as high as 16 gr. Also shot those through a 4" model 19. I figure pressure was under 26kpsi, or thereabouts. I love the way the 2400 shoots but it seems like lil gun has more upward potential.

[ku4hx]

Big safety note on using Blue Dot !!! Do not use with 125 gr. bullets. Detonation !!! Go over to their web site for important safety notes on this one. I had to pull down 2K rounds on this one.
Chris

Yep, got that printed out and taped to my cans and large font notes in my load database. Fortunately I never used it with the 125 grain bullets.

[Tinbender]

Big safety note on using Blue Dot !!! Do not use with 125 gr. bullets. Detonation !!! Go over to their web site for important safety notes on this one. I had to pull down 2K rounds on this one.
Chris

Well Chris they hide it well......never did find it?

I have been using 14 grns bluedot 125 grn JHP in .357 8" Dan Wesson since the seventies........Guess I found out about this just in the nick of time:coffee:

Dave

[cwheel]

I had been using 14 gr. of Blue Dot under a 125 jhp forever. Used in mostly rifles, a Timberwolf pump and a Martini single shot. Seamed like a hot load to be sure. Chrono in the timberwolf was 1975 fps. That is hot. Glad I never loaded the max load. Guess this warning has been out for more than 10 years now. Had 2000 loaded, ended up pulling all down and reloading with Unique. Eye opener was to fire these in a 2 1/2" model 66 Smith at night. Fireball is a foot in dia and almost 3 ft long, Lots of failed firearms reported with this load. I was just lucky.
Chris

[Pete P]

It's been a while since I shot any, but to me, a hot load was and is a 158 grain boolit propelled by 2400.

[ColColt]

I thought I had read that the problem with Blue Dot was with bullets lighter than 125 gr...like 115 gr, for instance...not 125 gr JHP's.

[Tinbender]

I did notice no 125 gn loads on the alliant site for blue dot....guess I'm lucky the DW is a strong revolver!

We didn't shoot that many anyway as the muzzle blast was horrific........just for showing off to the girls;)

Thanks Dave

[gwpercle]

derf762

The Speer reloading manual #8 shows 357 mag. , 158 gr. swc or rn , plain base, with cci 500 standard primer, speer cases, tested in S & W model 27 with 6 inch bbl.

starting load : 7.0 grs. Unique for 1149 fps

maximum load : 8.0 grs Unique for 1252 fps

I split the difference and load 7.5 grs in my 357 mag. loads. The only difference is I use a 158 gr swc with a gas check. The first time I shot this load out of my Ruger Blackhawk it made one ragged hole. 4 shots touched and the other 2 were only 1/4 inch from touching the main group. Thats been my load ever since.

2400 and other powders will give higher velocities but you did mention Unique. If You experience leading with the 7.5 gr. load give the gas checkedbullet , Lee C358-158-SWC, a try.

Good Luck...gary

As far as overall length, just crimp the case into the bullets crimping groove, give it a nice firm crimp but not so much as to buldge out the case, don't worry about OAL, in revolvers its not that critical...they can shoot anything that fits in the cylinder like 38 specials can be fired in 357 mag.. But try one in cylinder first to make sure it's not too long, never had problems with 158 gr. SWC in my guns.

[Bullwolf]

The Alliant Powder Safety Notice, regarding Blue Dot usage in .357 Magnum with 125 grain projectiles can be found below.

The link is from the Alliant Powder site.

http://www.alliantpowder.com/getting_started/safety/safety_notices.aspx

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Safety Notice

At Alliant Powder, we take safety seriously. That’s why we periodically test our products in different situations to be sure our use recommendations stay current. Check here for any safety notes or recall information. Stay safe and keep accurate.

Alliant Powder periodically reviews and tests their published reloading data to verify that our recommended recipes have not changed over time.

During the latest review Alliant Powder discovered that Alliant Powder's Blue Dot® should not be used in the following applications:

* Blue Dot® should NOT be used in the 357 Magnum load using the 125 grain projectile (Blue Dot® recipes with heavier bullet weights as specified in Alliant Powders Reloading Guide are acceptable for use).
* Blue Dot® should NOT be used in the 41 Magnum cartridge (all bullet weights).

Use of Blue Dot® in the above cases may cause a high pressure situation that could cause property damage and serious personal injury.

We apologize for any inconvenience that this may cause and appreciate your understanding and cooperation in this matter.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The warning was also sent out via Email apparently.


- Bullwolf

[cwheel]

That warning 10-12 years ago caused me to pull down 2000 loaded with 14 gr. Blue dot under a 125gr hp. Don't think it would make a difference if it was a cast boolit. That sure was a accurate round in a rifle though, havn't been able to duplicate with another powder yet. Very uncomfortable in a handgun.
Chris

[Shiloh]

My experimentation with max loadings were with 296 and 158 jacketed.
Cast were with 2400. My upper range loads were retired about 15 years ago or more. For me, midrange loads are as hot as I get. That with 2400

SHiloh

[Boolseye]

I use that boolit with a variety of powders and it's always accurate. Might I recommend: 8.8 grains of Blue Dot or 5.3 grains of Bullseye. both around 1000-1100 fps, you know it's a .357 but it won't beat on you or your gun.
Oh, I just noticed you wanna use Unique. 1973 Hornady Handbook, 158 gr LRN or SWC (8" barrel): 5.1 to 7.4 grains Unique, 900-1200 fps.
6.0=1050 fps, 6.8=1150 fps.