Talk to me about loading the .357 Maximum

[Hanzy4200]

I finally found one. Considering the price they are bringing, I had to be patient when looking for this Ruger Blackhawk in .357 Maximum. A friend at work just happened to offer one for sale, so I jumped on it. Near new, potentially unfired with original box for $800. The tricky part is, I actually want to shoot it. I have read quite a bit and know all about the top strap cutting. What loads should I be working with to best avoid this issue, or is it unavoidable? I was planning to start with a 190 gr FN PB mold from Accurate that I use for my .38 S&W. As it drops at .361, I figure I can powder coat and size down to .358 no problem. Are there certain powders or velocities I need to try for?

Ultimately, if there is no way to accomplish this without damaging the revolver, I guess it will go to Gungroker. It will bring $1,500 easily.

[Daekar]

Don't shoot light bullets like 110 and 125gr and you should be fine. I would err toward 180gr. Bonus points for avoiding Lil'Gun.

[Led]

180g slugs or heavier for full house loads.

Later,
Stephen

[ohen cepel]

Great buy on that Ruger!

Let me know if you want to send it back into the wild after shooting it some :-)

[P Flados]

Top strap cutting will occur to some extent and then will typically stop progressing. I still have my IHMSA special Dan Wesson that I purchased new and shoot when ever I feel like it.

Top strap cutting and barrel face / forcing cone erosion are worse with the hot loads using lighter bullets.

I have a variety of loads for a variety of purposes.

For simple practice shooting / plinking I have loaded a lot nof powder coated 120 Lee TCs. I have used Titegroup (7.7 gr - est 1360 fps), Promo (7.6 grs - est 1422) and Unique (7.6 grs - est 1290 fps).

My light bullet for "full power" is a PC 160. I am currently using a case full of Wc 680 under this bullet.

In the past I have also had good luck with 180s and 200s.

[contender1]

I own & shoot a Ruger .357 Maxi myself, and have for years.

As noted above,, stay away from light bullets,, and fast burning powders,, and you'll be fine.

Your choice of a bullet mold may be fine. But may I suggest something a little different,,, (if you haven't already got the mold?)

Over on the single action forum, owned by Lee Martin,, there's a gentleman who helped develop the .357 Maxi with Ruger. He has one of the very first Maxi's out there. He shoots it a lot. His name is David Bradshaw. Well, a few years back,, he, along with Lee,, designed a bullet,,, JUST for the .357 Maxi Ruger. It's called the "Martin/Bradshaw" and throws a 194 grn bullet. Mountain Molds built the first ones,, but has now retired. I think Accurate may be making the mold now.

May I suggest a bit of studying on that Forum, looking at the posts about the .357 Maxi, and the Bradshaw/Martin mold!!!

I have (2) of the molds and use it almost exclusively now.

[475AR]

Yes, the Martin Bradshaw mold is available from Accurate Molds.
295547
I am planning to order one to try in a G2 357 max barrel I am having built.

[contender1]

Thought so. I was able to get mine from Mountain Molds,, and love the bullet. HIGHLY recommend it.

[Hanzy4200]

I own & shoot a Ruger .357 Maxi myself, and have for years.

As noted above,, stay away from light bullets,, and fast burning powders,, and you'll be fine.

Your choice of a bullet mold may be fine. But may I suggest something a little different,,, (if you haven't already got the mold?)

Over on the single action forum, owned by Lee Martin,, there's a gentleman who helped develop the .357 Maxi with Ruger. He has one of the very first Maxi's out there. He shoots it a lot. His name is David Bradshaw. Well, a few years back,, he, along with Lee,, designed a bullet,,, JUST for the .357 Maxi Ruger. It's called the "Martin/Bradshaw" and throws a 194 grn bullet. Mountain Molds built the first ones,, but has now retired. I think Accurate may be making the mold now.

May I suggest a bit of studying on that Forum, looking at the posts about the .357 Maxi, and the Bradshaw/Martin mold!!!

I have (2) of the molds and use it almost exclusively now.

Thank you for the information. This is the mold I have now. I guess we will see how it shoots. What powders do you prefer for a bullet in this weight range?

[P Flados]

Thank you for the information. This is the mold I have now. I guess we will see how it shoots. What powders do you prefer for a bullet in this weight range?

I like the looks of that 36-190T. It should be a really good choice in the max for hunting or other applications where a large meplat are a plus.

For powders, two of the top performers for velocity are Lil Gun and 296/H110. These two are also noted to be what I call "finicky" and seem more likely to cause unexpected problems than other choices.

Powders just a little slower or a little faster than the two above seem to work pretty good. Anything in the range from say 2400 to 4227 are worth trying.

I tried Wc 680 (Milsurp version of 1680) as H110 was giving me signs of poor ignition. It worked well for my coated plain base boolits and I stuck with it. This is for an IHMSA application, and I was happy with the reasonable cost that helped me justify a sizable bulk order.

[stubshaft]

My very first Sillywett gun was a 10" Tender in 357 Max.. Over the years I have shot tens of thousands of rounds through it using one load. It is an RCBS 357-180-SIL bullet ahead of 20.0 WW 296. It won me 16 State Production Championships.

BTW - It works WONDERS on hogs too!

[NSB]

https://www.shootersreference.com/reloadingdata/357-maximum/

[contender1]

I'm using IMR 4227 in my Maxi. Go read David's postings to get more details.

[Hanzy4200]

https://www.shootersreference.com/reloadingdata/357-maximum/

Thanks! I lost track of that site. They were one of only two pages I found last year in search of data for the .500 Linebaugh.