357 Magnum plinking loads. Any favorites?

[Jaak]

I'm toying with the idea of buying the 105gr mold that Lee Precision offers with the intent of using it to make a plinking load for my S&W 686 Plus. My thought process is that a light bullet will need less powder to drive the bullet, in turn won't need a heavy magnum primer, and in turn it would make for a relatively quiet and recoil light shooting.

I'm thinking of a small charge of a position independent fast burning powder like W231 or titegroup, or H110. This way I think I would be able to get away with using the bare minimum of power to get the bullet out and hit the paper.

Have any of you tried something like this?

[Misery-Whip]

Lighter bullets usually need more powder in order to create enough pressure to seal the case to the chamber. You will also notice soot marks on your brass when it doesnt seal.

They will strike the target lower too. I tried the 95rf from Lee and it was about 8" low in 50'.

I recommend the Lee 358-125-rf. Will put your impact on paper, load data is easier to find, no dirty chambers. Recoil is still light. I have an extra 2 cavity If your interested.

H110/Win 296 dont play nice in small amounts.

[nikonuser]

perhaps that MAY work in one or two powders, but in the online loading data, lighter bullets need more powder to get to velocity

[nikonuser]

if you want a light plinking load .5cc scoop of red dot in a 38 special case is really like shooting a 22lr. And .5cc scoop of Bullseye in a 357 case with a 158 grain speer swc actually feels the same.

And plinking loads that can shoot through a 2x4 are FUN.

[robg]

7gn of true blue 158gn lee plain base boolit in 357case.nice light load

[tazman]

Lee 125 rf loaded over 2.8-3.0 grains of Bullseye, Titegroup, or WST in a 38 special case gives me a light, accurate load that shoots to point of aim for me in my revolvers.
It achieves this because it is spending more time in the barrel. Definitely not a high velocity load.
The Titegroup and WST loads are cleaner than Bullseye, but all three are very accurate.

[dverna]

My plinking load was (soon to be changed) 2.7 gr of Clays with the 130 gr RNFP. Very accurate (about 1" groups at 30 yards in the rifles) and light recoil in the pistols. .38 Spl cases.

The only reason I am changing is to get a more powerful load to get the fiancé used to more recoil. I like to have only one load to keep things simple. With 4 pistols and 3 rifles, I am not going to tailor a load for each gun.

[Norske]

My plinking loads for my S&W M19 and M28 are 38 specials or equivalent if I use magnum cases.

[725]

.357 mag w/ 358627 boolit & 8.0 grs. of 2400.

[Froogal]

My favorite .357 magnum plinking load is a 158 grain, .358 diameter lead bullet, over 4 grains of TrailBoss, in a .38 Special case.

[NSB]

148g cast with 4.3g 231 powder in a .357 case. There's no reason in the world to use a 38spl case and end up getting a crud ring in the chambers. I used this load for competition and at 25 yards shooting off bags it would shoot five shots with all bullets touching. Extremely mild recoil and great accuracy.

[ubetcha]

148g cast with 4.3g 231 powder in a .357 case. There's no reason in the world to use a 38spl case and end up getting a crud ring in the chambers. I used this load for competition and at 25 yards shooting off bags it would shoot five shots with all bullets touching. Extremely mild recoil and great accuracy.

I believe that is the same load I used when I was shooting in a Bullseye league many years ago. Nice load

[Divil]

My Very preliminary testing showed that 6.9 gr. of Winchester 572 with a 135gr. to 140gr. Pill was a pleasure to shoot in a steel framed .357.

[Rcmaveric]

Unique and Tightgroup makes good plunking loads.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

[Jaak]

148g cast with 4.3g 231 powder in a .357 case. There's no reason in the world to use a 38spl case and end up getting a crud ring in the chambers. I used this load for competition and at 25 yards shooting off bags it would shoot five shots with all bullets touching. Extremely mild recoil and great accuracy.


I believe that is the same load I used when I was shooting in a Bullseye league many years ago. Nice load


I think I'll try to replicate what the two of you are recommending. What Lee mold would you suggest? There is a 148g wad cutter and semi-wad cutter.

[Jaak]

My favorite .357 magnum plinking load is a 158 grain, .358 diameter lead bullet, over 4 grains of TrailBoss, in a .38 Special case.

Is there any reason I can't use a .357 Magnum case? I hate using .38 Special in a cylinder meant for Magnum.

[LUCKYDAWG13]

148g cast with 4.3g 231 powder in a .357 case. There's no reason in the world to use a 38spl case and end up getting a crud ring in the chambers. I used this load for competition and at 25 yards shooting off bags it would shoot five shots with all bullets touching. Extremely mild recoil and great accuracy.

is this with a DEWC

[RU shooter]

I'll second or third the 148 wc and a light charge of fast powder for plinking . My load is the Lyman 358495 and 3.5 gr of Bullseye in mag case, I use the same load in 38 spl brass with the bullet seated to the same mag length

[Rodfac]

148g cast with 4.3g 231 powder in a .357 case. Yep, a great load in my guns as well (M19's, M66's, M60, 2 Ruger FTBH's and a Smith M27). I use Lyman's 35891 (wadcutter) at 145 gr cast from ACWW's, and lube with 50-50. I size to 0.358-9" for all guns. If you've got Bullseye on hand, 4.0 grains is just as good or better...NRA Bullseye Competition level accuracy from a good gun.

The above loads work very nearly as well with Lyman's 358156 without the gas check and sized/lubed the same.

YMMv, Rod

[Tracy]

I'm toying with the idea of buying the 105gr mold that Lee Precision offers with the intent of using it to make a plinking load for my S&W 686 Plus. My thought process is that a light bullet will need less powder to drive the bullet, in turn won't need a heavy magnum primer, and in turn it would make for a relatively quiet and recoil light shooting.

I'm thinking of a small charge of a position independent fast burning powder like W231 or titegroup, or H110. This way I think I would be able to get away with using the bare minimum of power to get the bullet out and hit the paper.

Have any of you tried something like this?

You got some good advice from several different people. I personally agree with Tazman, but some other good loads were mentioned too.
I would just like to add that it would be difficult to imagine a worse powder for what you want to do than H110. If you try that, I can pretty much guarantee you will be driving the bullet back out with a cleaning rod.

[nueces5]

I have a brass mould no marks, 113 grains 359 WC boolit. works great for plinking
load with 4,6 of 231 and is a sweet load to shoot

[ubetcha]

I think I'll try to replicate what the two of you are recommending. What Lee mold would you suggest? There is a 148g wad cutter and semi-wad cutter.

My load was with a wadcutter because I was shooting paper, but for plinking purpose, either one should work fine. I have both lube grooves and tumble lube Lee designs and both worked great. The tumble lube design would be the easiest to make. Just cast,tumble ,load and shoot.
When I was shooting Bullseye, Richard Lee was on the League for a season, and he had asked me what I was shooting. So I explain my load and also stated that the bullet was one of his designs. He asked if I had ever tried a lighter wadcutter bullet than a 148gr. I stated that I didn't know if there was anything lighter than 148. The next week, he brought me a single cavity 116gr mold and said give it a try and see how it works. If it doesn't work ,I could just toss it out rather than hand it back. I though to myself, even if it doesn't work, I'm not tossing it because as far as I know, it is a one of a kind mold given to me by Dick Lee himself. Any way,it worked better in a fellow shooters 38sp with his load than my load in a 357 case load. I still have the mold. My brother is using it in his 38sp case loads.

[Froogal]

148g cast with 4.3g 231 powder in a .357 case. There's no reason in the world to use a 38spl case and end up getting a crud ring in the chambers. I used this load for competition and at 25 yards shooting off bags it would shoot five shots with all bullets touching. Extremely mild recoil and great accuracy.

If there is a crud ring, it is easily removed when cleaning the revolver. Even a .357 cartridge will leave deposits in the cylinders.

[swheeler]

Right now I'm using 6.0 grs of Unique and the Lee 158RF powder coated in mixed 357 brass, mild and accurate. As to the original post wanting to use a small charge of H110 I wouldn't do that.

[MT Gianni]

At one point I had a 113? gr 38 lee wc single cavity mold. It was so marked. I think I gave it away as a prize at a shoot. It did OK but I am beyond sc revolver or pistol molds. I don't know when it was made but am pretty sure it was factory and before Lee went to their numbering system.

[Walks]

Lyman #358477 cast of COWW in a tired .357Mag case over 3.5grs of Bullseye.

Just the thing to fit in the short Cylinder of a S&W M27/M28.

[ubetcha]

At one point I had a 113? gr 38 lee wc single cavity mold. It was so marked. I think I gave it away as a prize at a shoot. It did OK but I am beyond sc revolver or pistol molds. I don't know when it was made but am pretty sure it was factory and before Lee went to their numbering system.

Maybe I don't have one of a kind mold. I will have to try and find some bullets and try and post a picture. My brother is in Arizona right now visiting their daughter, so cant get the mold back until they get home.

[KCcactus]

I have the Lee 105 swc and the 125 fp. Both work well for plinking loads. I've been using 4.8gr Unique with the 125 in 38 cases in my 20" Rossi 92. The same load with the 105 is louder and has a sonic crack that the 125 doesn't. Soots a little, but it's an easy clean-up. The 105 really stretches your lead supply. My Rossi likes the 125 better so I'm using it more lately.

[Low Budget Shooter]

One of the best plinking loads for me, after trying many things, is the old-fashioned wadcutter over about 3.0 grains of some fast-burning powder like Red Dot or Bullseye in a 38 Special case. That kind of thing has performed consistently well for me in every 38 and 357 gun I've had.

[blackpowder man]

Lots of great loads listed here. One of my favorites in both revolvers and lever guns is the Lee 125 grain rf with 4.4 grains of Bullseye in a .357 case. It is quiet, mild in recoil, accurate in my guns, and pretty quiet in a rifle.

[nueces5]

At one point I had a 113? gr 38 lee wc single cavity mold. It was so marked. I think I gave it away as a prize at a shoot. It did OK but I am beyond sc revolver or pistol molds. I don't know when it was made but am pretty sure it was factory and before Lee went to their numbering system.

This mold was two cavity, but I think it was a copy (probably from that Lee) made by a local manufacturer

[GhostHawk]

I'm with lowbudgetshooter.

125 gr bullets keep the lead costs down. 3-5 grains of Red Dot gives good accuracy and enough power to ventilate anything you want holes in.
Low recoil, low noise.

My .357 Handi rifle is one of my most accurate with 4.6 gr of Red Dot and a Cast bullet sized .358 or larger lubed with 2-3 light coats of BLL.
I started out with 158 gr round nose but quickly switched to a Lee 6 cavity 125 gr rf. Thrifty to load for and stacks them up nicely, puts them where you want them.

[chutesnreloads]

Thanks to a post some time ago by Mr.GhostHawk, I experimented with Red Dot.Found 4.6gr. behind the Lee 120 TC in a .357mag case is not only very accurate but also hit in the same place as my full power 158 gr .357 loads.At least as far as 25 yards.Talk about a convenient pair....

[Greg S]

I use two, a Mihec 124 HC wad cutter over 2.8 bullseye and a Lyman 358665 with 6.0 of Unique in a 357 case.

[Winger Ed.]

For what you want, I'd just load up medium power .38Spec. wadcutters.
For them, I'm a big Unique fan.

I've always had a large enough supply of Lead and wheel weights, that I didn't need to conserve enough to
use the real light boolits instead of 148s.

[PAndy]

Best accuracy with my Henry .357 rifle has been a 140 gr Missouri flat point bullet over 5.8 grains of Shooters World Ultimate Pistol. It makes under 1300 fps from a 20" barrel . Other good loads were 5 grains +/- of American select, WST, and Cleanshot. And Titegroup. I'd prefer to load the bulkier powders, but ultimate gets the nod in my case because of consistent accuracy. It is very fine and 5.8 grains is less than 0.5 cc of powder.