As I plan to hunt with this rifle in 357 cal.along with my handgun
I am looking for load data using 2400 powder and 180 gr. cast
bullets..Is it ok to use the same load data for 180 gr jacketed bullets??
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As I plan to hunt with this rifle in 357 cal.along with my handgun
I am looking for load data using 2400 powder and 180 gr. cast
bullets..Is it ok to use the same load data for 180 gr jacketed bullets??
I am not very sophisticated and have used jacketed data for cast . It might be wrong, but so far all digits are attached and guns have survived. Of course I do not start at maximum and I run below maximum anyway so I believe I do it safely.
Are you using the 358429 or a similar design? There are several reloading manuals available for free in their entirety on the internet and they would have load data for the 173gr Keith bullet. That will at least get you close. Just remember that by the time you see any evidence of pressure on the fired casings, you have already far far exceeded safe handload levels. This is the rule with handguns, rifle pressures are a little easier to read.
Since cast boolits have less friction than jacketed, I think you're safe using jacketed data.
The reverse, using cast data with jacketed bullets, no.
I use jacketed data for jacketed bullets ... and cast data for cast boolits ...
And to take it a step farther I use rifle data in rifles and handgun data in handguns ...
Might seem foolish to do that but one thing I've learned after 50+ years of casting boolits and reloading both types of projectiles ... Details Matter !
Pick up a Lyman Cast Bullet 4th edition , plenty of 180 gr. cast boolit data in both the rifle and handgun sections . The correct data is there ...Remember , stupid is as stupid does .
My Daddy would tell me "Boy ...don't go acting the fool !"
Use the correct published data ... it's not like it's hiding or hard to find ...
...Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook 4th edition.
Gary
Look on hodgenreloading.com
I got excellent accuracy from 10gr 2400 under a Lee 200gr boolit. I'll see if I can find all the details including the data which came from a very old Lyman book. The actual listed load was for a 38spl using 2400 & a 200gr boolit that I worked up.
Lyman 44 1967Quote:
Originally Posted by Bzcraig
38 Special
Boolit 358430 195gr
Start 8.0 Max 9.5
Out of my Rossi 16" trapper 10 shot group
Avg Vel 1322fps
ES 37
SD 13.6
I somehow didn't record group size when I updated stuff but do know it grouped well. If nothing else it provides you some parameters to start load development for your rifle.
Notwithstanding the advice to always follow published data exactly , there is a rule of thumb :
IF the amount of powder space in the case is the same when seated , substituting a properly sized cast bullet will have lower pressure than Jacketed of same weight .
Standard disclaimers apply, i.e. you're responsible for backing off and working up your own load, yada, yada, yada, but ...
My load for the 180 grain (Hi-Tec) Missouri RNFPs is 12.5 grains of 2400 and a CCI #500 standard primer. IIRC, at some point I determined that the seating depth of this bullet and Hornady 180 grain XTPs was pretty close. That must have helped me when combined with some reloading manual or other, maybe Hornady or Lyman. Don't remember.
I shoot them out of my Henry BBS and out of a 6.5" S&W model 27. Unfortunately, I don't have chrono data for any 2400 loads in the rifle, only some for H110/W296. For the 2400 loads running out of the model 27, average velocity was only 1175 fps (stdev = 12). Probably in the Henry it is over 1400 fps.
Bzcraig
What is your overall length using the 38 Special case?