Opinions please on this .357 load

[Kermit2]

I have a Lee 358-125-RF mould. It casts a round nose flat point boolit. I'd like to create a light .357 magnum load using this boolit for use in my Ruger Blackhawk. These boolits have been sized and lubed on my Lyman 450, and they make a nice looking boolit.

The load I'm considering using is the 125 grain round nose flat point boolit in .357 magnum cases, standard small pistol primers, and 6.0 grains of Alliant Unique powder. My loading books offer very little guidance for 125 grain cast lead boolits. Is this load too light? Will I need to increase the powder charge? If so how much for a nice light or medium load? I figured someone on this forum has used a load similar to this. As always all information will be appreciated. Thanks!

[jblee10]

My old cast bullet handbook shows a 121 gr RN bullet with a starting load of 6.2 grs of Unique in a 357 case. It looks like you have found a good place to start with room to move upward.

[JohnnyFlake]

My Lyman 49th Edition shows a starting load for a 120gn Cast RN with Unique at 6.9gn for 1088fps and a max load at 9.1gn for 1409fps.

It shows a starting load for a 120gn Cast SWC at 7.2gn of Unique at 1134fps and a max load of 9.4gn for 1482fps

I Hope these loads help.

[stubshaft]

It'd be a good starting load. Unique does not exhibit any SEE properties when downloaded.

[fecmech]

That load should work out just fine for you. I shoot the same bullet over 5.3/231 (which is just a tad faster powder) and it's extremely accurate out of 3 rifles and one Ruger GP 100 pistol. It groups under 3"@100 yds out of the rifles. Best 10 shot 100 yd group to date is 2.14" with 9 shots into 1.3" out of a Rossi 92.

[Ole]

I have used 6.5 grains of Unique in a .357 case with the Lee 158 grain SWC/TL bullet.

I think you'll do fine with that load.

[Wally]

I have a Lee 358-125-RF mould. It casts a round nose flat point boolit. I'd like to create a light .357 magnum load using this boolit for use in my Ruger Blackhawk. These boolits have been sized and lubed on my Lyman 450, and they make a nice looking boolit.

The load I'm considering using is the 125 grain round nose flat point boolit in .357 magnum cases, standard small pistol primers, and 6.0 grains of Alliant Unique powder. My loading books offer very little guidance for 125 grain cast lead boolits. Is this load too light? Will I need to increase the powder charge? If so how much for a nice light or medium load? I figured someone on this forum has used a load similar to this. As always all information will be appreciated. Thanks!

I am of the same mind frame---I use the 125 RNF in the .357 Mag and 5.5 grains of Red Dot---I get 1,060 FPS MV....very accurate and fun to shoot.....and economical. One doesn't need to shoot heavier bullets in this caliber for plinking IMHO..just a waste of lead.....

[smkummer]

While you will save lead and your load sounds comfortable to shoot, my experience with the 125 grain bullets in either 38 or .357 is the point of impact change. Usually lower. In .357, we are shooting about 7 grains of unique with a Lee 158 TL SWC bullet and getting about 1100 FPS. These bullets shoot very close to the point of aim when shooting 5.2 grain unique and the 38 special case with the same bullets. So if you stay with that bullet, all should be fine but switching to 158 grain bullets generally will require a sight adjustment.

[GRUMPA]

Using Unique I've gone from 6-9gr with the 125 boolits(air cooled WW), while the 6gr of unique works just fine I was working my loads up to find out at what point I was getting leading issues, I stopped at 9gr. For 6gr of unique it wasn't brutal to the user at all and a real fun to shoot load.

[HodakaGA]

FWIW, I sometimes load a 357 case with a Missouri RF 180 with 6 grains of Unique. If I remember right it runs about 1000fps in a 4" Security Six.

And I run 6 grains of Unique behind a J word 115 JHP in 9mm. It's a hard topend load running about 1150fps if I remember right. It's slightly over max in some references, just under in others. I had to go that high to insure power factor in a Glock 19C......effectively a 2.5" barrel with the ports. Of course you have a lot more case which lowers the pressue in a 357 case.

Your load definately will be below max pressure and likely pretty dirty burning.