Red Dot Powder & Cast Bullets

[Total Safety]

Hello everyone
I'm looking for load info for .357 158 gr LSWC & 9 mm 115 LRN bullets using Red Dot powder. I read that 4.5 gr for the .357 and 3.5 gr for the 9mm ar good starting loads. I don't see a lot of info in the guides that I have. Please advise.

[runfiverun]

look at alliants website.

[RayinNH]

Total, I looked in several of my books as well. Not too much info. According to Lee Modern Reloading 2nd Ed. for the .357 mag., 158gr. lead boolit (does not specify boolit type) start at 5.0 grs. for 1115 fps. Max load 5.5 grs. for 1215 fps.. In the 9mm for a 115 grain jacketed bullet, start at4.3 grs for 1114 fps. and max. 4.5 grs for 1150. With a 125 grain lead boolit start at 4.3 grs. for 1101 fps. and max. 4.5 grs. for 1145 fps.

The loads you mentioned sound like good starters. Just load a few though in case they don't work well. You don't want to pull a bunch apart...Ray

[Hardcast416taylor]

Red Dot is one of my favorite powders for pistol loads. I agree with the loads listed above for starters. I use 6.0 gr. in my 45 LC Colt loads of any cast bullet in the 250 gr. range to equal the original factory load of about 900 fps. Besides you can use it to load shotshell loads with.:-DRobert

[Total Safety]

Thanks everyone for the info. Alliants' site didn't have the info you provided.

[redneckdan]

Alliant revamped and doesn't list much data anymore.

I prefer promo, aka cheap red dot.

Check out stevespages for start and max data. He doesn't have pressure data but it at least gives you a range.

[GrizzLeeBear]

I don't currently use any Red Dot, but watch your powder measure carefully when loading these light loads (below about 4 gr.) with RD. Due to it being a fluffy flake powder it likes to "bridge" in some measures, causing a light or no charge, possibly followed by a over charge. I have twice personally seen squibs (little or no powder) fired during rapid fire strings at Bullseye matches. Both cases were in revolvers, resulting in tying up the cylinder with the bullet lodged half in the cylinder and half in the barrel. This isn't a big deal cause you can just push the bullet out with a cleaning rod and continue on. But if the bullet gets pushed halfway down the barrel, another round could be fired behind it. BAD JU-JU.
This doesn't happen in all measures and can be fixed by smoothing up the measures cavity and drop tube. However, RD is a good powder for light loads, just be on the lookout for metering issues.

[Rocky Raab]

Yuppers to all.

I use Lee dippers for much of my pistol loading, because it does eliminate the possibility of a "no-powder" load. But I don't load in large volume, either. If I were loading on a progressive machine or in large volume, I'd use another powder.

Good alternatives that I've personally used are Clays and AA-2. Both flow well, meter on the money and burn very clean. I'm told that Tite-Group does all that, but I haven't used it.

[35remington]

I agree with GLB about the possibility of squibs, but IME the overcharge won't happen. The cavity either contains a full charge of Red Dot or it will not. Since bridging in the drop tube below the measure doesn't happen with small volume charges of Red Dot (I'm thinking of the most likely offenders like the Lee Pro Auto Disk with the smaller diameter round cavities in the charge disk or any other small diameter opening) squibs are the main concern. The drop tube isn't the bottleneck; the small cavity in the measure is the culprit.

When loading ca. 3 grain charges of Red Dot for mild 25-20 and 22 K Hornet cast bullet loads, about 1 charge in 40 to 60 would be a squib. 600 fps instead of around 1100-1200. Which is why for very light 38 Special loads, 380, 32 auto, et. al. that may use light charges, you need to check for metering consistency.

Red Dot is a fine powder for cast bullets and has some utility in both pistol and mild rifle loads. 9.0 grains works great behind the C113F "Soup Can" from Lee, for instance, in the 30-06. A mild 6 grains is a good plinking load with 158 cast in a 35 Remington rifle. 4.5 to 5 grains is wonderful in the 45 Auto - clean burning and economical, and capable of generating standard velocities or somewhat more.

I agree that GLB's cutoff of a minimum of 4 grains Red Dot in some measures is a good approximate "do not go below" level.

[mpmarty]

I've loaded hundreds or maybe even thousands of 45acp 200gr cast with 3.5 grs of RD for twenty years or more for steel matches. My Dillon 550B never seems to have a problem with it.

[35remington]

mp, the operative word is "some measures."

My own personal cutoff of "don't go below" is 3.5 grains, so that may explain some of your results, but that's close enough to GLB's minimum of 4 grains. At least for government work anyway.

I'd never use 2.7 grains Red Dot below a 148 HBWC in 38 Special with the Lee Pro Auto Disk, for one, even if it did and does provide the right velocity for target loads. Improper use of the slides in a Lyman 55 is also a problem - you can't go too narrow with the cavity, so forget the combination of middle and top slides and use the top slide only. You will trade a bit of metering accuracy for proof against squibs.

[Total Safety]

Thanks everyone. I only did a few of the 3.5 for a Browning Hi-Power. Hopefully they will cycle. It seems that with 3.5 gr the case is pretty full. Lets see see what happens the first nice day I can get out.

[dale2242]

5 gr Red Dot and 158 cast in my 357. One of my favorite loads. Fairly mild-1050FPS and very accurate.----dale

[OLPDon]

Much like casting there is no perfect or the holy grail, I always have Red Dot on hand, from wisper loads to fire forming cases it serves well. As stated above the lighter the load with auto feed of powder, it is limited.... The dillon I have works fine for my shooting with general paper and plinking.
Don

[WickedGoodOutdoors]

anyone have a recipe using Red Dot for .44 Mag?

Ill be using my new Dillon Square Deal and shooting them in a Henry Big Boy .44 Mag Lever Action.


Want to make some creampuff target loads for the boy to be able to shoot lots of.

[Total Safety]

Thanks again everyone. Since I'm new to reloading I wanted to start light, but not too light. When loading I was careful and cheacked every other load on the scale. Not hard when I only loaded 10 reounds.

[RayinNH]

New England, data taken from Alliant Powder Reloaders Guide 2002 Ed. Vol.2.

Cowboy Action Load Data; barrel length 5.5", .44 mag., Red Dot

205 gr. RNFP 4.9 gr. vel. 767 --- 5.5 gr. vel. 839

240 gr. RNFP 4.8 gr. vel. 723 --- 5.6 gr. vel. 814

Ray