38 Super loads with pb

[USARO4]

I just acquired an Armscor 1911 in 38 Super. It's a beauty(in my eyes), I'll post pics when I get my new grips. I have never loaded for this caliber and am seeking any guidance you can offer to raise it the right way on a diet of lead. I plan on using the Lee TL-356-124-TC. Thanks, Teddy.

[Boz330]

I shot a lot of Super in IPSC competition. Does your pistol have the ramped barrel? If so you can get near 357 mag numbers out of it. If not you want to stay pretty docile with the loadings.
I used AA#7 for 148gr and 160gr. There is data on their web site that will keep you safe.

Bob

[MtGun44]

With the right brass hot loads can be safe in some variants of the 1911
design in .38 Super. I shot major caliber with a Wilson Colt comp gun
in IPSC for many years with an UNRAMPED (normal style 1911) barrel.
Ramped barrels were safer and would work with any brass.

That gun is perfectly safe with Rem +P, Midway +P or PMC +P brass, which
was loaded literally dozens of times per case. HOWEVER, ANY Win brass
+P+, +P or whatever would either blow out (NOT good) or come so
close with a hideous bulge that you would really not like it. I had to
be extremely careful after a match, since my friends picking up "my"
brass would inevitably give me a few someone else's Win brass.

This load would only work with one powder safely, which is now
discontinued (HS-7/W-571) sad to say. All other powders tried
overpressured or bulked out before making major caliber with heavy
lead boolits. The load was published as max safe in an older Hodgdon
loading manual. I used the 158 SWC at about 1200 fps. to make the
old 185,000 power factor with some breathing room. The gun has
digested about 70,000 of these and is still tight and accurate, but
very smooth. It would not be safe with a jacketed bullet, either, due
to the higher friction with the bore. Blue dot would make it barely,
but metered far worse than HS-7 so lead to risk of missing major
caliber due to variation in vel.

I have a load that chrono's 1490 fps with a 115 Hornady 9mm JHP
XTP and is accurate. Mine is a comp gun so this load really helps
the comp to work. Bore is .357 so the 9mm JHP lowers pressures
to help get the velocity that high safely. I would not try it with
a .357 bullet, but they were all shaped wrong for semi-auto feeding
anyway. This is close to .357 Mag power.

Generally - with "any old brass" you should stick to book loads which
are about 100 fps better than 9mm Luger in most situations. With
care and the right brass, SOME of these guns will go faster. I had a
reason (making major caliber in competition) back then, would not push
it so far today, since there's no real reason to push the limits that hard
for just normal shooting.

Bill

[Buckshot]

..............You can make 38 Super SUPER brass out of 223 Rem .



I have this Witness in 38 Super (has it's 45ACP slide and bbl on in the pic). It was the first really accurate centerfire handgun I owned. It seemed to do well with most anything. However trying Lyman's heavy 356637 which is listed as a 147gr FN-BB it dropped at 153grs from the WW alloy I was using. It proved to be a tack driver. I'm talking groups running around an inch at 25 yards off sandbags.



This was another good one. The RCBS 38-162 SWC. Load data is on the lid behind it. With these 2 boolits I used a 26# spring and prolly could have used a 28# if I could find one! First thing you need to do is to slug the barrel. My Witness is .356" and I size to .357". Also, pay attention to the brass thickness at the casemouth.

There are nowhere NEAR the folks producing 38 Super brass as 9mm, but it seems each of those who DO make 38 Super have theri own ideas of wall thickness, just like the 9mm. One good thing about it is you can tailor boolit sizing to match your groove or chamber requirements by using thicker or thinner brass. Just be carefull it doesn't bite you in the keester if you're using thinner brass with a fat boolit in a tight chamber.

...............Buckshot

[twotrees]

My first IPSC gun was a much modified Colt Combat Commander with a Barsto Barrel and a HEAVY spring.

It may be blasphemy but I used Unique (Old Stuff, I'm talking 1984) and Rem Brass.

It worked and made major, but you think a Hakim throws brass?!?!

you needed help from the next county to find about 80% of what you fired.

Good Cal.

Good Shooting,

[crabo]

Has anyone tried the H&G boolit for the super? I think the number is 81. It is a swc that is designed like the 68 for the 45 acp. I'd look it up, but I don't want to be late for school.