Unique & 357 cast loads for a rifle???
Okie dokie...
I've got a young nephew (Dustin) just getting into shooting and hunted his first year this year with a Winchester trapper in 357. We all exchange names for Christmas and my boy Jacob drew his cousin Dustin. I talked to Dustin's mom and asked if she thought he would like to reload some of his ammo for the 357 and of course she said he'd probably love to so I bought a Lee Loader in 357 for my boy to give him as a gift.
I'd like to get a little database of info to give to them in addition to the little load chart that comes with the Lee Loader. I thought Unique powder would be a good choice but it's only listed under one bullet on the chart and that is the 158gr jacketed. I have a friend who casts a LOT and could get some cast boolits for him to get started but I'm not finding data for Unique and .357 ammo. The Lyman cast bullet loading book only listed it for one or two bullets also. I'm new enough to casting that I have not loaded much but was under the impression that Unique could be made to work with just about any bullet of any caliber. The dipper that comes with the Loader is a .7cc dipper and it throws 6.4gr of Unique.
What I would like would be some good data on 6.4 grains of Unique with various weight boolits that I could copy and pass along to my sister. In the event that 6.4gr of Unique is not a good choice across the board, some alternative powders that work with the .7cc scoop would be my next choice. I don't want them to have to buy multiple bottles of powder and spend $20 a pop doing it just to get the kid started. One powder that will do the most variety would be the most economical deal. The real intent here is to get some mild loads that compare to a 38 special in recoil, are safe and accurate for target practice all summer long. Then maybe a hotter "hunting load" to use next fall.
In the interest of providing all possible info to the guru's of cast boolits, I'll throw out the other powders listed on the Lee Loader charge table and the grain weights the .7cc scoop throws with each. Here we go:
Accurate #7.............10.7gr
Accurate #9.............10.7
Blue dot.....................8.1
Green dot..................5.5
Red dot.....................5.0
Herco........................6.2
Herculese 2400..........9.4
H110.......................10.7
H4227.......................9.1
HS6..........................9.8
HS7........................10.3
HP38........................7.6
Powerpistol...............7.9
Universal..................6.4
Unique......................6.4
v-N105......................7.8
v-N340......................6.6
v-N350......................7.2
Bullet weights listed are anywhere from 110grains to 200 grains and each bullet weight lists only one to five of the above powders so they are not good across the board.
Accurate #7 seems to be listed for the greatest number of bullets on the lighter end of the scale. It is shown for the 110gr, 125gr, 140gr, and 150 gr jacketed bullets. Accurate #9 seems to dominate the heavier end of the scale being listed for the 158gr and 173gr and 180gr lead, then the 170gr jacketed and 180gr Barnes X.
Hmmmmm looks like maybe I'm answering part of my own question....
But still, I'd LOVE some good experienced input on this.
Thanks,
Dave
