.380 Loads

[terryt]

Hi:
I have recently pursued a Ruger LCP .380 Auto and I am wondering if anyone has loaded any cast or jacketed bullets for it.

Where is the best place to buy cast or jacketed bullets?

Any load data or any other comments would be appreciated.

Thanks,
terryt

[Marlinreloader]

If I don't cast my own I use:

extremebullets.com for good plated.

missouribullet.com for boolits.:lovebooli

Marlinreloaders

[Sky King]

I was recently given 1000 92gr 380 bullets sold by Dillon that are made by S&S Castings. S&S Castings sells them too. Haven't loaded them yet, but I will for my Bersa. Other than that, I've loaded Hornady 90gr and my will be trying some of my Lee 358-105swc that I load for my 9mm after I use up the 92gr.

[NickSS]

I have loaded 90 gr Hornady XTP bullets, 120 gr TC and RN boolits, and 115 gr FMJ in 380 and shot them all in my PPK and Bersa

[Will]

Lee 356-102RN or 358-105SWC with 2.4gr RedDot or BullsEye. The SWC will require a taper crimp for good feeding.

[terryt]

Hi:

Thank all of you for the info.

Terryt

[curator]

Lee 102 RN cast of air cooled wheel weight alloy, sized to .357, over 4.2 grains of Unique. Accurate, zippy, (1020fps in my Colt Mustang) and very reliable.

[crawfobj]

Lee 102 RN cast of air cooled wheel weight alloy, sized to .357, over 4.2 grains of Unique. Accurate, zippy, (1020fps in my Colt Mustang) and very reliable.

Curator, I just bought the same mold. What are you doing for lube in your load?

[JKH]

I also use the LEE 102 grain round nose (approximately 105 as cast with ACWW), I lube mine with 2 coats LLA and have been using 3.5 to 4 grains Alliant Power Pistol but will probably be switching to Unique for a while.
This little boolit is a dandy, havent put it to paper but I can consistently hit an 8" steel plate at 25 yards using a crumpled Weaver stance, teeny Kel-Tec P3AT sights and 47 year old eyes, works for me!

The Ruger is a Kel-Tec in slightly different clothes, fine little piece and one of the best deals dolar for dollar in the gun world right now, stock up on LOTS of brass! My Kel-Tec has very spirited ejection, I have had cases go nearly 20 feet straight UP :^O and those little buggers can be darn hard to catch (we take turns shooting and catching in my family) and darn awful hard to find!

For jacketed I have used 95 grain HP's and 114 grain HP's and FMJ's (made for 9mm) using the same 3.5 to 4 grains PP, the 115 grain with that load of PP can be pretty stiff but safe (load comse straight from an Alliant tech).
I have also used 100 grain (as memory serves me) Winchester Silver Tips that were made for .357 mag, they are .001" to large n diameter and I used to swag them, now I dont bother as the aluminum jackets are much softer than cast lead and .357 to .358 as cast boolits shoot fine. Only problem with the Silver Tips is the huge hollow point casaues them to have an extremely steep ogive hence a longer nose, so I have to seat them a bit deeper to maintian an OAL that will fit and feed properly through the pistols magazine.

You will find this to be an easy to load cartridge in the Ruger, and the recoil is MUCH lighter than any blowback .380 extent, even with very stiff loads it is a sewwt and easy to shoot handgun.

HTH

Jeff

[JKH]

Nise,

Shoot your LEE's as cast, go with straight wheel weight alloy and dont water drop them, air cooled is what you want so the hardness is lower, to hard and to small and you will get leading and malf's.

My Kel-Tec (the LCP's daddy) will send spent casing's almost 15 feet in the air with some load's! Finding those little buggers is a heck of a job, especially at the R&G club I shoot at which has pea gravel on the line, .380 cases will disapear fast if you dont have an extra pair of eyes looking.

I wouldnt bother with HP's in a .380, not enough velocity for reliable/useable expansion, they will behave much differently when going through clothing, flesh and bone and from studies of cadavars (living before the test started!) it shows that even in major calibers like .45acp a HP will more often than not plug and act just like ball ammo.
When I carry my Kel-Tec it is with ball ammo, heaven forbid that I should ever have to use it, but if I do the sage advice of Col. Cooper is the best way to go, aim for the eye sockets, jugular veins or upper sinus cavities with mouse guns (even 9mm) to get a lethal or debilitating shot. Personally I carry a 1911 99=% of the time and only carry the .380 when I cant hide my Detonics Combat Master.

One last thing, do you own a good set of micrometers? That is what you need to measure your boolits with, calipers will spring to a certain extent and dont do well measuring boolits, if you dont own a set try to borrow one and then compare the two on the same boolit, you will notice several thousandths difference on average in your measurement.

Jeff

[GabbyM]

I tried some loads in my daughters Kel-Tec. WW231 at 2.6 grains under a 100 grain truncated cone boolit. That's a reduced laod but it was plenty for that little pistol. Cases stayed on concrete at the shooting range so I guees that's within ten feet. Light charge of Bullseye may kick less which would be nice. Don't ;have the gun here in Illinois to play with or I'd try a listed start load to see if it would function. It starts to sting your hand after a couple dozen shots.

[Bret4207]

I use a 90 gr FN in an Astra Constable. It's taken some varmints up to coyote size and worked rather well. I forget the load as I only made up one batch, but it was right out of the Lyman book IIRC.

[JKH]

Will,

How senstive is Red Dot in your loads? I recently aquired some Red Dot for .45acp and might try it in .380, at 2.4 grains it seem like one or two tenths could acount for a large pressure/velocity swing, or am I overthinking that?

Curator,

How about your Unique load? Unique is a bit slower and less spikey pressure wise (which makes me more comfortable), have you found it to be a consistent perfomer?

Jeff

[jimb16]

95 gr cast plain base with 2.5 gr bulleye here. I use this load in the Keltec, Colt Gov. and the Erma "Baby luger". It works well in all of them.

[JKH]

jimb16,

Any chance you could post a pic of that Erma? :^ )

[jimb16]

Gotta take one first.....

[JKH]

Thanks! Not many of those sweet little pistols around :^ )

[A J]

Use anything you like for practice. In real life, if you use anything but factory ammo for self defense, a whole new can of worms opens up for the prosecuting attorney. Also, in a civil suit that will follow, the plaintiff's attorney will try to paint you as looking for the opportunity to shoot somebody with your "killer handloads". Just something to think about......

A J

[daschnoz]

Use anything you like for practice. In real life, if you use anything but factory ammo for self defense, a whole new can of worms opens up for the prosecuting attorney. Also, in a civil suit that will follow, the plaintiff's attorney will try to paint you as looking for the opportunity to shoot somebody with your "killer handloads". Just something to think about......

A J

This has been discussed ad nauseam on all of the boards that I post on. There is no case where this has ever been brought up. Even if it were, the ballistics analysis should determine that your handload performed no different than the equivalent factory load would have. Factory 1200fps, or handload 1210fps makes no difference to the outcome - a couple of holes in the heart or a lung = dead attacker.

Personally, I carry handloads. You may prefer to carry factory ammo. The choice to carry factory or handloads is yours.

[jimb16]

Ok, here we go, I hope! The parents and the kids.....1918 DWM and M1911A1 Remington Rand/Erma Baby Luger and Colt Gov. .380.
http://s343.photobucket.com/albums/o463/jimb16/002-1.jpg

[JKH]

very nice indeed!

I had a Colt Govt. .380 once, very nice pistol, traded it for an M1 Carbine. My favorite .380 besides my Kel-Tec was an early FI Model D, it was from the first 100 that were made for Colt to be marketed as the original Pony, COlt backed out and they marked the slides FI but the frames had theoriginal Colt block of serial numbers, it was a real beauty with deep & gorgeous hot blue finish (very highly polished inside and out) and very nice checkered walnut grips, it even had a swinging link like a full 1911 (actually the barrel was identically made with the exception of a single locking lug in lieu of two). If they had made the slide stop and safety like the Llama .380 it would have been a dead ringer for a 1911.

Anyway, the Erma is a very nice piece, how old is your particular speciman?

Jeff

[jimb16]

I don't really know. I never dated it....(cut the wise cracks!) I've had it for years. Its as reliable as any .380 I've ever had.

[JKH]

I like the "looks" of the LCP, having said that I would be loathe to part with my Kel-Tec oweing to its perfect functioning with everything that's been put through it and its accuracy, if I do my part it is no struggle to repeatedly hit a 10" swinging steel plate at 25 yards using a crumpled Weaver off hand hold.

The Ruger is basically a copy with some changes that are primarily cosmetic, there has already been one re-call and I have read of numerous owners having a variety of problems, the should have stuck to the tried and true Kel-Tec format! I love Ruger rifles, never cared for their pistols, I think since old man Ruger and his son passed away that the company may be slipping a bit on new designs, Bill Ruger wouldnt have been to happy about a firearm going out and then having a recall issue within months of release!

I am getting ready to load 1K for my little .380, I have been using Alliant Power Pistol but am going to switch to Red Dot & try some first, I will be sticking to the LEE 102 grain round nose, they are perfect for the .380

Kel-Tec's rule!

Jeff

[Bret4207]

This has been discussed ad nauseam on all of the boards that I post on. There is no case where this has ever been brought up. Even if it were, the ballistics analysis should determine that your handload performed no different than the equivalent factory load would have. Factory 1200fps, or handload 1210fps makes no difference to the outcome - a couple of holes in the heart or a lung = dead attacker.

Personally, I carry handloads. You may prefer to carry factory ammo. The choice to carry factory or handloads is yours.

Got to this a bit late-


"But, but...... but the professional witness/gun writer/rent a cop said!!!!!!...................."

[mtgrs737]

My load for the Ruger LCP is: Lee 102 gr. RN boolit, Lar's 50-50 alox lube, sized to .357" diameter. I like Bullseye powder and find that 2.7grs. is a pleasant loading to shoot but have loaded 3.0 grns. with excellent results. Always check a couple of reloading manuals before loading to make sure the info here is in the ballpark safety wise.