.38 Special wadcutter loads?

[Tedly]

I'd really like to get an appropriate mold and get a good .38 Special wadcutter load. I imagine that these should be w/o gas checks. I used to buy real accurate reloads at a local shop years ago...just WC...accurate and mild...any thoughts?

[subsonic]

A lot of people (including me) have great success with the Lee 148gr lube groove (not TL) 6 cavity mould. It will make a lot of boolits fast! I have tumble lubed my with LLA in the past, but it's messy enough that I'm looking at other options.

I load mine over 3gr of Rex 3 powder that you can't get anymore - but the common load is 2.7gr of Bullseye. At 7yds it's often hard to tell where they go - because they all go through the same fuzzy hole!

[wallenba]

I've had a problem with my Lee six cavity throwing too large to size in one pass. Stepping it down in stages resulted in an out of concentric issue. Not the usual experience of most, just thought I'd give a warning. I switched to the Lyman 4 cav SWC G/C.

P.S. My S.M.L.E. you guys rebarreled a few months ago is in MUCH better form these days...thanks.

[L1A1Rocker]

I'd really like to get an appropriate mold and get a good .38 Special wadcutter load. I imagine that these should be w/o gas checks. I used to buy real accurate reloads at a local shop years ago...just WC...accurate and mild...any thoughts?

You might see if Miha has any of the hollow base wad cutter molds left from the last group buy.

[rintinglen]

A Lyman 358-495 4 cavity, or an H&G 50 makes for some sweet shooting when loaded over 3.0 grains of WW-231. These molds come up for sale all the time on ebay. The 358-091 and the 358-063 are also nice, but I prefer the button nose-plain base wadcutter designs. Well cast, in a good gun, you can expect to shoot machine rest groups at 50 yards under 2 inches.

[Bodydoc447]

I am going to get in on it. In the mean time MidwayUSA had a case of 2000 Remington swaged WCs for a good price and I'll probably be through that about the time the NOE mould is on my bench. I like a mild load of Promo (Red Dot). Usually about 2.8 grains is sufficient for my needs. And a keg lasts a LONG time.

Doc

[zxcvbob]

I use the Lee TL 148 wadcutter, lubed with a mixture of paste wax and Lee Liquid Alox. Best target load I've found is 2.5 grains of International. I haven't tried using Bullseye yet cuz I'm pigheaded. :)

I also shoot them in .357 Magnum with 7.0 grains of WSF powder, but I get some leading with that load.

[azrednek]

I use the Lee 148 tumble lube double end wadcutter on top of 2.7 - 2.9 of Bullseye. I shoot them as cast and thin the tumble lube pretty thin. Probably the most accurate I off all I cast. I can see a little but pretty much insignificant improvement in the shot to shot accuracy shooting store-bought swaged hollow based. It is a mild, pleasant shooting load you can spend hours shooting with little or no fatigue or flinching.

[Angus]

I use Lee's TL DEWC over 3.2 of titegroup, tumble lubed with JPW. My best group has been one inch at 15 yards out of my 5" model 60 shooting standing. I can't imagine needing anything better for a 38 load.

[subsonic]

I've had a problem with my Lee six cavity throwing too large to size in one pass. Stepping it down in stages resulted in an out of concentric issue. Not the usual experience of most, just thought I'd give a warning. I switched to the Lyman 4 cav SWC G/C.

P.S. My S.M.L.E. you guys rebarreled a few months ago is in MUCH better form these days...thanks.

My Lee mould also throws them between .361 and .360". I ram them through a .358" sizer in one pass after lubing with Hornady One-Shot spray lube with no issues. Need to do this soon after casting if you water drop them so they don't get so hard they won't size easily.

[EDK]

358432 is a great design, but I haven't found a four cavity used mould for it yet.

Scored a four cavity H&G #50 with handles on eBay for $50...great boolits.

Got one of the MIHEC 148 grain hollow base wadcutter moulds and have been cranking it up pretty regularly.

Any of the above with 3.0 of TITEGROUP is pleasant and accurate shooting with 5.5 inch RUGER VAQUEROS...talk about handicapping yourself with sights! I dip lube them with LLA and JPW and then run them through a .358 sizer on my STAR.

:cbpour::redneck::Fire:

[Hardcast416taylor]

Over the years I have cast up umpteen Cazillion(?) of Lyman #358495`s using every type of lead I came across from straight WW to 50/50 alloy. I sized them .359" then lubed them with Javalina or some other alox lube then put them in a case with 3.5 gr. Win. 231 or HP-38 powder over a Fed. small pistol primer. I shot them out of a S&W M14 in PPC comp. Must have been a accurate load combo cause it got me a trophy or two back when I competed.Robert

[thegreatdane]

I have had excellent results with the the lee wc too. I load mine over 3-something of titegroup.

[StrawHat]

For several years I was able to feed a PPC schedule with boolits I cast from two 2 cavity Lee molds, 358-148. If I were to try it again, I would opt for the six cavity of the same shape. My load was 2.8 grains of Bullseye and lube in one groove only.

If you cast them harder and load them to 900 fps, they make a great small game load that hits with plenty of wallop.

As for casting too large to size in one pass, that is a problem of the wrong sizing die. Buckshot can machine a proper one to size them.

[Sapper771]

I like the Lee 105gr SWC over 3.8gr of Bullseye. It is minute of can accurate at 15 yards out of my Smitty 438. That may be a little hotter than your looking for, adjust as needed. I have shot a few Lee 140gr SWCs, but not enough to give them a thumbs up just yet. Been using 4.5gr of Unique as a baseline.

[9.3X62AL]

With a flush-seated 148 grain wadcutter, the classic load for many years has been 2.7 grains of Bullseye or 3.0 grains of WW-231. These ran about 735 FPS from my 4" service revo, and roughly 775 FPS from 6" barrels. Accurate as all get out, and very capable on varmints to 50 yards.

[Dale53]

Tedly;
I currently use an H&G six cavity mould for the dbl ended cast wadcutter. The Lee should work just as well in a revolver. I much prefer the conventional lube design. However, I have a Star sizer so that is a natural choice for me. If you do not have a lube/sizer you might want to go with the tumble lube design. If so, I would seriously consider using the "Recluse" method:

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=67654

By all means, if you go with a Lee bullet mould be sure and get the six cavity mould. It is a much better design than their two cavity moulds and production is considerably faster, as you might imagine. They can be bought at a serious discount from F&M Reloading or Midway.

Solid wad cutters (as opposed to hollow base wadcutters) seem to do better with slightly heavier powder charges. Instead of the classic 2.7 Bullseye (or equivalent) I up the powder charge to 3.2-3.5 grs of Bullseye (or equivalent).

These loads will consistently group under 2" at Fifty yards. That will win most matches if the shooter is up to the task.

I have found the wadcutter to be excellent for edible small game.

Dale53

[beladran]

i have been using 4.2gr of trailboss lately on my HG50 and my mihec HBWC both shoot tigth groups and low recoil

[bearcove]

38 wadcutters and bullseye go together.

[Bret4207]

I lucked onto an H+G #50 10 cav some years back. Using the standard 2.7 grs Bullseye and sized at .359 these have done very well in my Smiths. I think the hing to do is to get a mould you like the design of and play with your fit and seating depth, crimp, charge until you get the best load you can. Then just shoot and be happy.

BTW- I've taken those WC up around 1K in the Mag and they seemed to work pretty good too.