Load for 125 grn conical in 38spec.

[Ron]

I use a cast 125 grn conical boolit in my 9mm Glock and would like to try it in my S&W 586, 6 inch target rev. I use ADI AP70N powder for my 9mm loads but would like to work one up with Win 231 as that is the only other powder I use and have in the cupboard.

Ron.

FESTINA LENTE

[dragonrider]

Hi Ron
My Lyman cast boolit manual shows a conical of 121grns. cast of straight linotype and lists Win 231 loads of 3.5 grns for 765 fps and a max load of 4.8 grns. for 1008 fps. Hopefully they will drop from you mould big enough to size to .357.

[9.3X62AL]

Ron--

I have reversed your order of progress for the last 4 years or so--using Lyman #358242 in the 9mm's I own. #358242 is a shouldered 121 grain RN design originally intended for small capacity 38 caliber revolvers, and it has done great work in my SIG-Sauer 9mm pistols. Dragonrider hit the nail right on the head with his caveat that as long as the 9mm casting has sufficient diameter to fit the revolver's chamber throats--it has the potential to do good work. FWIW, nominal 9mm castings tend to not only be too small in diameter for use in 38/357 revolvers, they are also a little loose in a lot of 9mm barrels. Bottom line--either it fits--or it doesn't.

[Ron]

G'day Dragonrider and Dep. Al,
Thanks for the posts. I think the 3.5 grns 231 would be about right. I have slugged my rev barrel, it is .356 (as is my Glock). My 9mm mould throws boolits at a tad larger that .357 and I sieze them to .357 so I shouldn't have a problem with them rattling down the barrel.
I hope to load some this week end after I compete in the Victoria Police and Emergency Services Games so should be able to post results early next week.

Ron.

FESTINA LENTE.

[9.3X62AL]

Ron--

One of the old "rules of thumb" regarding revolver boolit sizing is to let the throat diameters dictate boolit diameter, rather than the barrel's groove diameter. In MOST cases, revolver throats match groove diameters of are .0005"-.002" larger than the revolver's groove dimension--but there are exceptions to this situation for sure.

A cottage industry has sprung up around Ruger Blackhawk variants in 45 Colt, many of which (like my own) had .449" throats and .452" grooves. Some Colt 38 and 357 Magnum revolvers have a very subtle "choke" near the muzzle that can cause results from barrel slugging to be .001"-.0015" small. A Cerrosafe casting of the forcing cone and first inch or so of the barrel forward from that point is a better way to determine the barrel's dimensions--just don't get the casting too long, or it won't fall free from the frame window.

Leo Reyes--now deceased-- was the mentor for both my sister and I when it came to handguns. He showed me this on an Officer's Model Match in 38 Special that I had some years ago. .358" boolits shot like a house afire--but when sized at .356" to match the groove diameter, things weren't so great downrange. Reminding me of the "throat predication rule", we slugged the throats and found them to range from .3575" to .358". The Cerrosafe casting showed the groove diameter in front of the forcing cone to be .357". Just one of the many things I learned from that fine man. I sure miss him.