Boolits in .356 diameter

[OBIII]

Hi,
My first post, so go easy on me. I understand the difference between 9mm (.355-.356) and .357 magnum (.357). What I am wondering is the possibility of casting bullets in .356 caliber, nominally 124gr HP for plinking purposes, both in 9mm, 38, and .357 magnum. I'm not looking for "match" accuracy, just a round that would work in my 9mm and my .357 magnum. Thanks

Newbie looking for feedback.

OBIII:drinks:

[putteral]

I use the Lee .356-124TL-TC for my 9mm . Mine drops out at about .358 so I can size it for whatever I need.

[DLCTEX]

As long as the size is large enough. Some 9mm moulds will not cast large enough to prevent leading in larger bores. My Lee mould casts a 125 gr. boolit at 258. I size to 357 for 9mm and 358 for my 38. We haven't tried it in my son's 357 mag. yet, but will. He lives in Florida, so opportunities for testing are limited.

[HeavyMetal]

So many things to consider when you want a single mold to do double duty.

Revolver boolits usually have a crimp groove in them Auto pistols not so much, this doesn't mean they won't inter change it just means you need to be more alert when doing crimps and such.

Another thing to consider is the maker of both pistols. In 357 Smith's are usually 357 358 while Colts tend to run a little tighter at 355 356. In 9mm foreign guns are all over the place.

As an example: if you have a Smith mdl 19 and an old Beretta Brigadier you may find .359 works best for both!

Having said all that You may find Lymans current 9mm HP a good dual purpose mold for this senario.

[cabezaverde]

I have loaded the Lee TC bullet in 38's using one of the TL grooves to crimp in.

[JIMinPHX]

I do a lot of crossover casting, using the same mold for .38/.357 & 9mm. In either case, you really need to slug your bore to see what your groove diameter is. On the revolvers, you need to slug your throats too. I've seen old mil-surp 9mm barrels slug out as high as .359". I've seen a .38 spl revolver barrel slug out as small as .356". You generally want a boolit that is about .001" larger than your groove diameter in an auto loader & just about the same size as your throats in a revolver. If the throats on the revolver are smaller than the groove diameter, then you have trouble & we need to have a conversation about that.

It's no big deal to size a boolit down .001" for one gun & .003" for another. You just need two different sizing dies. Now, if you need to take of .006", then we need to have a conversation about that too.

A lot of molds that claim to be 9mm, will actually drop a boolit that is large enough to load in a .38. You need to measure what you actually get when you cast. There are also some tricks that you can pull to make a mold drop a few thousandths bigger.

Welcome aboard

[MtGun44]

You are more likely to have a .357 diameter boolit work properly (accurate and not lead) in
a 9mm than a .355 or .356. Some 9mms will work with .356 cast, many will not.

The main limiting factor is that the 9mm cannot deal with boolits outside of stringent
wt, shape and length limits. It would be far easier to find a 9mm boolit that will work
in a .357 (which pretty much will digest anything) AS LONG AS IT IS BIG ENOUGH IN
DIAMETER.

Try the Lee 356-120-TC conventional lube, not tumble lube, and size to .357 or .358.
Should work for both calibers. Another good possibility is the 105 SWC Lee.

Bill

[nicholst55]

is the Lyman 358311. It is a Roundnose which is listed as both 160 and 158 grain weight. They have data in the Lyman Pistol and Revolver loading book for this bullet in calibers .38 Super, .38 Special and .357 Mag.

I bought mine recently and sized them with a .356" Lyman lube/size die. They cast out at about .3575" and the sizer I got squeezes 'em down to about .3555" which I hope will work in my Colt Custom Shop Bright Stainless Government Model .38 Super.

It is probably a little too long and heavy for a 9MM but I'm no expert.:???:

For years I've been hung-up on SWCs ( read SIXGUNS BY KEITH when I was 12!) and they can be accurate but I don't hunt much and a RN design will still puncture a target or ventilate a beer can well enough that I can take advantage of the versatility of this round nosed design.

I'm hoping it will feed well in my Marlin 1894C Cowboy chambered for .38 Special only.:grin:

(Which remains unfired and FOR SALE for the right price:wink:)

A lot of people shooting suppressed 9mm use a 158 grain RN bullet for subsonic loads. Such a boolit might not be a bad place to start.

[chris in va]

FWIW, I was getting horrible keyholing and accuracy issues with 356 boolits in my carbine and CZ 75. I tried a 358 boolit and much of that went away. Still working on tighter groups though, but no more keyholing at least.

[mooman76]

It would probably be better to get a light 38 bullet and size dow if you need rather than hope to get a bigger 9mm. The Lee 105gr SWC works well in this situation if your 9 will shoot SWC bullets.

[blikseme300]

I have a combi Ruger .357/9mm Blackhawk. (This is the pistol that comes with 2 cylinders.)

I cast using a Lee 120gr TC 6 cavity mold. This mold has been adapted to drop boolits at .359

I lube-size using a Star and size to .358 The boolits are used in my CZ75's, Stoeger Cougar 9mm, BHP and the Ruger combi. No leading at this size. When I tried smaller in the Ruger, and some of the other pistols, I often had leading problems.

I have not tried to load these boolits into 38spl/.357mag, but it may work.

Bliksem

[prickett]

I just cast the Lee 358-125-RF. Sized it to .357" and shot it, without leading, in my 9mm CZ75. Next step is to try it in my .357 revolver. IOW, cast .357 bullets and size them down to 9mm bullets.

[jbremount]

I just cast the Lee 358-125-RF. Sized it to .357" and shot it, without leading, in my 9mm CZ75. Next step is to try it in my .357 revolver. IOW, cast .357 bullets and size them down to 9mm bullets.

Hello, I am just starting to reload for my CZ-75 9mm pistol. That seems like a good bullet you are casting. What powder and load are you using?

What do you think about the Lee 158-150-1R. It may work in both 9mm and the revolvers.

[prickett]

Hello, I am just starting to reload for my CZ-75 9mm pistol. That seems like a good bullet you are casting. What powder and load are you using?

What do you think about the Lee 158-150-1R. It may work in both 9mm and the revolvers.


I'm using 3.9gr of Titegroup.

IMO, I'd think that bullet would be too long for a 9mm (resulting in too high of pressure).

[jbremount]

I just cast the Lee 358-125-RF. Sized it to .357" and shot it, without leading, in my 9mm CZ75. Next step is to try it in my .357 revolver. IOW, cast .357 bullets and size them down to 9mm bullets.


I ordered and just received my Lee mold (358-125-RF ). I have not cast a bullet yet, but looking at this mold, it does not cast a bullet that looks like the one pictured in the catalogs.

Does anyone have a picture of a bullet made using this mold?

[Echo]

FWIW - it is my considered opinion (worth what you are paying for it) that one should load the fattest boolit that will chamber in their autoloader, and allow the barrel to size it to the correct diameter when the cap goes. Especially 9mm's - their groove diameters are all over the map. Unfortunately, 9mm's loaded w/.358 boolits won't chamber in MY BH convert, and .357's just aren't accurate - in MY BHC.

[jbremount]

I ordered and just received my Lee mold (358-125-RF ). I have not cast a bullet yet, but looking at this mold, it does not cast a bullet that looks like the one pictured in the catalogs.

Does anyone have a picture of a bullet made using this mold?


I did a search and found the answers to my own questions. This site is very good for searching past topics and posts. There are tons of good reloading/casting info here.

[runfiverun]

i use a 125 rnfp sized to 358 in both my 38's and 9mm's.
it is fun shooting in the 38 loads and is accurate enough for squirells.
it feeds perfectly and shoots accurately in all three 9mm's, i don't even cast my 9mm mold anymore.
it even holds a bit more lube a win,win in my book.
unique seems to the best for my 9's but the 38 don't care- titegroup,231, red dot, unique.