Lyman 35863/358063 questions.

[dhansen]

Hi All. First post for me.

Just getting back into shooting and reloading after a 20 year break. I've cast many different bullets from 22 to 458 and figured I had a pretty good knowledge of what i was doing. :roll: Well, this forum has been a real eye opener and a joy to find. Wish I had it 20 years ago!

A friend of mine just picked up a nice Lyman 4 cavity 35863 mold that we would both like to use with our 357 revolvers. I have found some threads here saying these wadcutters were designed for use in the Smith M52 and several threads about using them in older guns chambered in 38 S&W and even Marlin rifles. Not to many comments though about using them in more common 38/357 hanguns.

I have read here that some of these molds throw large boolits, upwards of .363 yet some are more in the 358 range. Once we cast a few from the mold we'll see what they measure but other than the size issue, is there any reason these bullets shouldn't work just dandy in a newer 357 handgun with light (850fps max) plinking and target loads?

(I know 35863 doesn't have a crimp groove but 20 years ago I never crimped into the groove when loading my 358491 either).

TIA for your thoughts!

Dennis in Maine.

[dubber123]

Welcome to the forum Dennis. I have one of those moulds, and it casts around .360", nothing wild. I doubt their is a wider dimensional variance with this particular mould # than any other Lyman. I have used them with fine results in .38 spl. There is no reason they won't work great in a .357.

[fecmech]

Welcome to the board Dennis. I don't have any particular experience with that wadcutter but it should shoot just fine loaded flush to the end of the case over standard loads of Bullseye (2.7-3.1) or other fast powders. A light taper crimp is all that is needed or if you don't have a taper crimper adjust your die to just lightly turn the case mouth back from belling. I would recommend only filling one lube groove with lube as that's all that is needed with modern lubes. Also based on machine rest tests I did years ago accuracy is better. Another benefit is your gun will not get so heavily gunked up after firing a couple boxes of ammo.

[HeavyMetal]

Glad to have a new member, welcome aboard.

I'll second the statement about limiting lube on this boolit.

Yes it was designed for flush seating and is double ended so it matters not, on paper, which end goes in the case.

For my M52 I seat these flush but no crimp at all other than to remove any flare from the case mouth. In low pressure loads I think it doesn't have the power to straighten out the crimp when fired and now the case might size the boolit on the way out of the gun! I do use a deburring tool to remove any rough edges before loading and haven't had a feeding jam yet!

I nose size through a Star and lube the center groove only and try to seat the boolits with the sprue mark in the case. No reason I just do.

For revolvers I set these out to the first lube groove, lubing the center groove means you still can seat either end in a case, and again no crimp. If these make enough recoil to cause boolit jump you need to look at your sizing die.

Bullseye is the oft spoken of target load used for years and is not a bad place to start if you have some. Other wise look at the new data for Alliant powders and I think you'll see 5 or 6 powders that work in that 2.5 to 3.5 charge range.

As to oversized casting in the 358063? Yes you may find some, I've had two singles and a 4 banger that cast at .363 or so if I used to much tin in my alloy.

[MT Gianni]

I used mine seated flush and seated out with one groove showing. It was developed as best I know, for reloaders wanting a quick loading process and not having to sort which end was front. Mine was a sc and it is gone but it shot OK. +1 on one lube groove filled.

[runfiverun]

seat them where you want and test to see if they are being moved forward.
in many of my crimp type boolits i use none, neck tension will do the job.
especially with target loads it's the slower magnum powders that benefit from a crimp.
and in many of those i try no crimp.
just iron the case flat so they will chamber.

[Le Loup Solitaire]

Hi and welcome to the forum. This design is popular for use in the Smith M52 because it has to be and is seated flush with the case mouth in order for the round to feed properly in that pistol. It can be and is used successfully in various other handguns chambered for the 38 special or 357 mag. It can be crimped or not depending on what your and/or the gun's requirements are. Wadcutters are designed to cut clean holes in targets for more precise scoring and they do that. The WC shape is the worst possible for aerodynamic flow and it'll skid wildly on the wind. It is a good short range bullet and will shoot very well at 25-50 yards. With a good lube you have to fill only one groove. Putting lube in more grooves cruds up the gun, makes for a lot of smoke and turns accuracy/grouping poorly. I've used this bullet successfully in S&W M14, M27, and M28's over the years. LLS

[TCFAN]

Hi Dennis and welcome

I have a 4 cav. mold 358063 and the boolits cast with straight WW drop out of the mold at .358. I don't size and I lube with LLA and JPW mixed 50/50.

These are used in my S&W model 14-6 and a Marlin 94C.This 358063 wadcutter is the only wadcutter that will feed in the 94C.

I seat the boolit so that the bevel is all that is out of the case and do not crimp.They feed through the Marlin just as slick as a round flat nose...........Terry

[Bass Ackward]

Dennis,

The key here is matching the hardness your guns require at the low pressure levels for wadcutters. This tends NOT to be too hard which causes the ultimate problem.

The REAL problem is finding brass that will allow you to seat a wadcutter so deeply in the case that it doesn't size down the base of your soft bullet.

When you meet those requirements, the darn things launch well and try to enter the same hole in the target.

When you don't, you scratch your head trying to compromise on something.

[dhansen]

Thanks for the warm welcome and all the useful comments. We'll see how it all works out.

Never have tried lubing anything less than all the grooves on my RCBS lubrisizer but then that was 20 years ago. Once I have it back and in operation maybe I'll remember otherwise.

This is the fun part!

[HeavyMetal]

A little shot in the lube die holes will cut off the flow of lube to any grooves you don't want filled!

It can be annoying to get out so plan carefully which holes you leave open. Done right a two lube groove boolit can still be done with this set up or you can have a designated lube die just for the DEWC boolits.

Most of my cast boolits have a single lube groove. By adjusting the ram on my Star for different depths I can even select which groove I want to fill on the 358063.

This way one die does it all in .358 diameter.

[Hafast]

I would recommend using 357 brass for your 357 pistol. This will prevent the carbon build up in the cylinders from 38 brass. This will allow you to load your full power 357's without the possibility of them hanging up.