38 S&W results

[LeadThrower]

I had the opportunity to shoot my dad's 1941 Enfield No2 Mk I this week and thought I'd make a quick post about it. Some old factory Winchester loads he had averaged 580 fps with es=41 fps. These were a 145 gr round nose lead bullet over 2.2 gr of a small flake powder. It looked like Bullseye... anyone have knowledge about the powder used in these factory loads? A photo of the boxes is attached. Judge their age by the label and price. :p

I also loaded up some Lee 358-158 RF boolits over 2.3 gr of Salut ("Russian unique"). These powder-puff loads produced 435 fps.

Accuracy was as good as I can produce, which doesn't say a whole lot.

[NickSS]

I have one of those revolvers and like shooting it. I generally shoot loads made with 158 gr Lee flat point bullets at around 700 fps which are hotter than current factory. I also have an old colt police positive but I shoot milder loads in it as well as an old Iver Johnson break open. The enfield fired a 200 gr bullet at 700 fps for the military load.

[Mk42gunner]

No real provable knowledge of what type powder was used; but judging from the boxes, it would not suprise me that they were both loaded with non-canister grade Bullseye.

Robert

[9.3X62AL]

You may have lost some velocity via loose boolits. Throats in the Webley 38 S&W revolvers can run a little wide--mine are .362"-.363", same story in my S&W M&P chambered in 38/200. My Colt Police Positive has .359" throats, and shoots factory 38 S&W ammo far better than the other revolvers have. "Nominal" bullet diameter for the 38 S&W runs .360"-.361", per the books and data. How closely the makers adhere to that standard can be.......well, poetic.

[LeadThrower]

I've thought about getting a Lee die and opening it up just for this revolver. I'm sure you're on the mark, 9.3. I haven't yet slugged the bore or cylinders.

I'm generally unfamiliar with this cartridge. With such low velocities (and published pressures in reloading manuals) I'm guessing something close to pure lead is an appropriate hardness?

Thanks for the comments!

[BCall]

No need to open up a Lee die, buy a set of 9mm Makarov Lee dies, they work just fine when using .361+ size boolits.

Pure lead is probably best. but I use WW as that is what I have most, and I haven't had any problems as long as the boolit is fat enough. Billy

[44man]

The only experience I have with a .38 S&W was when I was young and lived in Cleveland. I fixed a S&W for a friend and test fired it in my dad's car so there was no outside noise. I stacked a bunch of 2X4's on the back floor and shot into them over the front seat.
I was amazed that every boolit only went halfway into the top 2X4. A heavy coat would stop that thing! :lol: Fun--yes, useful--no.

[9.3X62AL]

I use a combination of RCBS dies sets to reload my 38 S&W ammo, depending upon revolvers that use the lot and the boolits involved. These sets are the Cowboy 38 S&W set, and the tungsten-carbide 9mm Makarov die set.

Sizing dies--the 38 S&W steel die sizes about .0035" smaller (.386"-.387") than does the 9mm Mak sizer (.390"-.391"). Case wall thicknesses vary in this caliber, and on a few occasions I've found that Mak-sized cases won't be touched by the expander spud, or support boolits very well--even boolits sized at .363". So, be prepared to adapt to conditions found.

Expander dies--the expander spuds in the Cowboy set have working surfaces too long for the caliber. These can be pressed into service with the 38 Special or 357 Magnum nicely. I've resorted to use of the Lyman Multi-Expand system--its hollow spuds for 38.357 work well with the Colt's .359" boolits, and the 9mm Mak spud is perfect for the .363" boolits intended for the Webley and the S&W. Being able to charge powder in this same die saves a die step in my Ponsness-Warren turret system.

Seater/crimping dies--the 38 S&W seater die will not admit a bullet larger than .361" into its alignment sleeve. My boolit for the fat boys (Webley and S&W) is NEI's #169A, and its shape is such that its full-diameter portion never gets into the alignment sleeve. It is seated into the case, then the smaller nose portion can enter the alignment sleeve without issues, and a proper roll crimp can be applied. The Colt's favorite bullet--#358477 @ .359"--seats and crimps without issues in the 38 S&W die.

I have used the 9mm Mak seater die for the fat 38s, and the taper crimp it applies seemed to work all right in this caliber. I DO NOT LIKE to apply a taper crimp while seating bullets--overall lengths have varied for me in the past when I've tried this, and I believe the practice mars cast boolit sidewalls excessively and runs the risk of diameter reduction. I am no great fan of taper crimping in general, so I'll cop to that prejudice here and now. Perhaps the Lee Factory Crimp Die might be a good idea here.