Your pick for one .45 and .357 handgun mold

[wildchild2010]

If you had to only pick one mold for and all-around mold for the .357 and one for the .45. What would it be?

[Bohica793]

358477 for the .357. You did not specify .45ACP or .45Colt so I would have to pick the 454190 for use in either, though not my favorite for the ACP.

[runfiverun]

all around to me means revolvers, pistols, and lever guns, and is used for everything from hunting and plinking to making holes in paper.
it would also cover a range of velocity's from about 650-700 fps up through 1600+.
that indicates [to me] a rnfp with crimp groove.
a 225 rnfp would do double/triple [whatever] duty as a 45 acp and/or a 45 colt, 45 schofiled, or 45 Auto Rim boolit.
and a 158 rnfp with a decent lube groove and a plain base would fit the bill in either the 38 or 357 case.

[detox]

RCBS 358 caliber 158gr Cowboy and RCBS 45 caliber 235gr Cowboy

[fivegunner]

I would have the Lyman 358156 ,for .357 and .38 spl. H&G 292 for the .45ACP. I sure would hate to give up my other molds, :coffeecom:lol:

[StrawHat]

For the small bore, any of the double ended wadcutters is all I need. Cast soft for target and harder for hunting and defence.

In the 45, the Lyman 452423 is a pretty good all around boolit. I have loads for it in ACP, AR and long Colt. I will be working up loads for the S&W (Schoffield) cartridge this summer.

[georgerkahn]

My favorite .357 boolit comes out of the Hensley & Gibbs #51, their 160 grain boolit designed for this caliber. Re the .45acp, I have a long love of the Hensley & Gibbs #68, their 200 grain target offering. Re "other than .45acp" boolits for this caliber, my choice is still another Hensley & Gibbs design, their 230 grain round nose #34.

[oger]

For the 45Colt 452423 Lyman as a plinking bullet it also works well in the 45acp, but there really is only one good plinking bullet for the acp the H&G 68. The bevel base is easier to cast and load but I think the plain base my be a touch more accurate.

[MT Gianni]

For the handguns 358156 pb and 452460. These are both LY designs that have held up well for a long time.

[MtGun44]

357477 and 452460 or H&G 68.

Bill

[Shooter973]

The Lee 225 gr. Truncated for 45acp, and the Lee 158gr. RNFP for the 357....

[alfloyd]

"I would have the Lyman 358156 ,for .357 and .38 spl."
What fivegunner said ^^^

Lafaun

[kingemandigger]

Lee 300-452-rf GC and lee 158-358-swc GC. These are my favorite because they are the only boolits I can use undersized with any mystery lead/ hardness I can find (i.e. old dive weights) and get zero leading. Only problem is you have to buy gas checks. Thanks Vulcan

[kevmc]

I'm really starting to like the XXX640 style boolits!!!

[3leggedturtle]

Already did that a few years ago. Saeco GC 180gr RNFP for 357 and Lee 255gr RNFP for 45Auto and 45 Colt carbines.

[Walter Laich]

Lee (cause they have them in 6-gang molds) .45: 200gr RNFP 38: 158 gr RNFP
.
mainly cause I shoot cowboy

[Green Frog]

For the handguns 358156 pb and 452460. These are both LY designs that have held up well for a long time.

Amen and amen! :mrgreen: If I were just going to shoot those two rounds (or four if you count it as 38, 357. 45 ACP and even 45 Colt in a pinch :2gunsfiring_v1:) then I would add a Lyman/Ideal 313445 or 311316 for my thirty twos :Fire: and feel completely set for minimum number of moulds... of course I wouldn't want to have to cut down to just these three, but we're just speculating here, aren't we? :coffee com


Froggie

[357maximum]

I have very few toys that were not originally aquired for the purpose of killing a deer.....that being said my pick for an ALL AROUND 357 BOOLIT would be the Glenn Larsen designed Lee C-358-180 WFN-GC that has been cloned by other makers here. I do not own a 357 that will not shoot this boolit well and I have aquired a ton of confidence in it's ability to turn deer into venison. I shoot it from several revolvers, a 357 contender, an encore 357max, a sleeved 38special H&R topper, and a Marlin Cowboy 357.....it is "THE PREMIERE 357 BOOLIT" in my opinion. The plainbased version of the same boolit also makes an excellent plinker/mild velocity killer in 357/38. I shoot more Larsen 180's than all other designs combined.....I could live with just this one mould if I wanted a boring life with the 357. :lol:

I have never seen a boolit that did not work resonably well in the non demanding 45's...so I have no "fav" in that arena.

[jonp]

This is a good education