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Thread: Your Favorite 38 Special Load

  1. #1
    Cast Boolits Owner



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    Your Favorite 38 Special Load

    Title says it all. Post your favorite 38 Special load!
    "The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion."
    - Albert Camus -

  2. #2
    Boolit Master
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    My favorite load is the Lyman 357466 SWC over 3.5 gr of Red Dot. I have shot multiple thousands of them with complete satifaction

  3. #3
    Boolit Master justingrosche's Avatar
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    Ideal 360344 with 3.0gr of Bullseye
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails DSC07325.jpg  

  4. #4
    Boolit Master
    Shooter6br's Avatar
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    H & G #50 4 banger with 3.6 Unique( i know Bullseye shoots better) or Lee 158 SWC with 4.7 -5.0 Unique In a Mod 10 4in HB

  5. #5
    Boolit Master

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    Favorite target load: Lee 148 TL wadcutter with 2.5 grains of International

    Home Defense load: 158 grain lead bullet (Lee RF for practice, Magnus #515 SWCHP for real) with 4.5 grains of American Select

    edit: I recently upped the International load to 2.8 grains and it works better
    Last edited by zxcvbob; 11-16-2011 at 01:54 PM.

  6. #6
    Boolit Master
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    RCBS 150-KT over 4.0gr of red dot for general use. NOE 360429 HP over 11.0gr of 2400 for social purposes. These are used in a smith and wesson model 15 4".
    Some where between here and there.....

  7. #7
    Boolit Buddy
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    5.0 Unique behind Lee 158 RNF. I shoot them in a rifle.

  8. #8
    Boolit Mold WDS's Avatar
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    3.5 Bullseye pushing a 158 g RN

  9. #9
    Boolit Master

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    5.0 grs of Unique pushing a 150gr SWC.
    Mtgrs737
    Still Learning!

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    Life long OZ resident

    Personality type: Compulsive/Excessive - I don't know what that means, all I know is, if I like something, I want a lot of it!

    Pray to put "One nation, Under God" back in our country! We will never be a Great Nation without HIM!

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  10. #10
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    358477 over 5.4 gr Unique. It is higher than current manuals but has been a shooter in my guns since the 70's.
    [The Montana Gianni] Front sight and squeeze

  11. #11
    Boolit Grand Master
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    I've used a load very close to Gianni's for many years. Another is 6.0 grains of Herco under Lyman #358429.....this one is a mite warmish, and gets used in post-war K-frames.
    I don't paint bullets. I like Black Rifle Coffee. Sacred cows are always fair game. California is to the United States what Syria is to Russia and North Korea is to China/South Korea/Japan--a Hermit Kingdom detached from the real world and led by delusional maniacs, an economic and social basket case sustained by "foreign" aid so as to not lose military bases.

  12. #12
    Boolit Buddy dnotarianni's Avatar
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    4.0 bullseye with a 147 gr 9mm head. Works great for steel plate matches and the 9mm head has a nice point for fast reloads in moonclips.
    Dave
    The only part of the metric system America has embraced is the 9mm.

    Remember incoming fire has the right of way

  13. #13
    Boolit Master 357shooter's Avatar
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    3.6 grains of Unique under at 158 SWC or 168 SWC, in my snub-nose.
    Last edited by 357shooter; 09-01-2011 at 07:35 PM.
    Rossi M92 Lever Action
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    http://357shooter.blogspot.com/

  14. #14
    Boolit Master jmsj's Avatar
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    2.8 grains of Bullseye of and a Lee 358-105-SWC

  15. #15
    Boolit Master

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    I've burnt up 15K or so of 125 gr rn over 3.5-3.8 grs Bullseye doing action shooting.
    I use a heavy crimp to ensure smooth loading.
    These are fired in one of several .357 mag revolvers as the shorter .38 spl case ejects more certainly than the longer .357 mag.


    Now I've had fellows kind of look down their nose at these light loads.
    I can hit a row of soda cans at 10 yards about as fast as I can pull the trigger of my 686 or GP100 and the revolvers have never failed to function.
    The fellows with the high capacity bottom feeders are hard pressed to equal that kind of performance.

    I shot the steel challenge matches a few years ago and had a nagging doubt about the accuracy of this load when I made a few misses. I took a bunch of the same load and fired at 25yards from a rest with my Contender. It was easy to keep all the shots in less than an inch group. That removed all doubt and forced me to concentrate on improving my shooting technique.

    I still enjoy shooting the revolver with .38 Spl loads and don't feel at the least disadvantage when competing against the autos.

    Jack

  16. #16
    Boolit Buddy
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    A Lee 158gr SWC TL over 4.0gr Win 231. Shoot thousands of them.

  17. #17
    Boolit Buddy tuckerdog's Avatar
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    4.5 grn unique 155grn swc
    It don't make much sense that commonsense don't make no sense nomore

    If you died today would you have lived your life or have you simply existed

  18. #18
    Boolit Master waco's Avatar
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    lachmiller 158gr swc over 3.2gr titegroup
    The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
    Proverbs 1:7

  19. #19
    Boolit Buddy GH1's Avatar
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    158 gr RNFP on top of 3 gr Bullseye. Works great in the revolver as well as the levergun.
    GH1

  20. #20
    Boolit Master roverboy's Avatar
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    Hornady 158 gr. swaged swc with 5.0 gr. Herco and CCI 500. I use Herco because I've got a lot of it.
    Mrs. Hogwallop up and R-U-N-N-O-F-T.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check