.38 S&W cast loads

[Meterman07]

Anyone have favorite loads for a solid frame S&W, I have 170 and 200 grain boolits. Thanks

[olafhardt]

I just got an Enfield tanker but have not reloaded any yet. I found that the lee wadcutter unsized fits the chamber throats. You might want to check your boolits as the 38 S&W is a skootch fatter than the 38 special.

[Al_sway]

Sorry, I have an S&W, but I only shoot 130 and 150 or 158 grain in mine. I had difficulty in loading even these very fast, as the pressure built up pretty quickly. I have a couple of nice loads, using the starting loads from the Speer manual, with Bullseye and Winchester 231. I never had a need to speed the loads up and I get around 650-700 fps with the loads. Seating depth is critical, as it is such a small case. My heavier bullets are loaded out, often using a lube groove for crimping.
As for bullet diameter, I use .358 without a problem. A swaged bullet, such as the Hornady or Speer 158 grain, has worked well, crimping on the soft side of the bullet.

[I'll Make Mine]

You might look for loads under the ".38-200" designation -- that was what the British called their version of the .38 S&W as loaded for the Webley Mk VI, with 200 grain lead bullets. In a round nose, that was one fat little pill, and pretty anemic by today's standards, but the British military used that revolver and load through WWII.

[Meterman07]

Sorry, I have an S&W, but I only shoot 130 and 150 or 158 grain in mine. I had difficulty in loading even these very fast, as the pressure built up pretty quickly. I have a couple of nice loads, using the starting loads from the Speer manual, with Bullseye and Winchester 231. I never had a need to speed the loads up and I get around 650-700 fps with the loads. Seating depth is critical, as it is such a small case. My heavier bullets are loaded out, often using a lube groove for crimping.
As for bullet diameter, I use .358 without a problem. A swaged bullet, such as the Hornady or Speer 158 grain, has worked well, crimping on the soft side of the bullet.

Thanks for the info, Im going to try those 150 Gr, you have loading info to share?

[Piedmont]

You might look for loads under the ".38-200" designation -- that was what the British called their version of the .38 S&W as loaded for the Webley Mk VI, with 200 grain lead bullets. In a round nose, that was one fat little pill, and pretty anemic by today's standards, but the British military used that revolver and load through WWII.

The British military used the 178 gr. jacketed load in WWII unless you have documentation otherwise.

[rintinglen]

I loaded some 358-430 200 grain RN loads for a S&W Victory model. Somebody, I believe Century Arms, Imported a Bunch of WWII surplus 5 inchers from Australia, IIRC. For a 1991 C-note, I bought one.
Reading that the Brits had used 200 grain bullets in their 38-200 ammunition, I scoured the manuals for load Data. The closest thing I could find came from The RCBS Cast Bullet Manual No.1. They listed loads for a 175 grain RN GC boolit. I used the recommended starting load -10%. I tried 1.6 grains of Bullseye and 1.5 grains of Red Dot, neither of which shot very close to POI. I eventually converted that gun into a 38 Special, because of its mediocre accuracy and because I had enough junk cluttering up my bench. 9mm Largo, anyone?

[ironhead7544]

Unique was the best powder for heavy bullets in my Webley. Use the start load and work up in .1 gr increments until it starts hitting the point of aim, or you hit the max.