Cast bullets for .38 practice

[WRideout]

358477 150 SWC was my 38/ 357 bullet for years. Non gas check. You don’t need the gas check for 38 plus P speeds.

I used a hollow point version years ago, and currently use the plain nose. It is exceptionally accurate when loaded down for target use, and would function quite well for defensive use at full velocity.

Wayne

[Boogieman]

I've never found 158-165gr. bullet that shot bad, some were a little better than others

[FergusonTO35]

Any of the Lee designs will be more than sufficient in every way. If you can find one, the discontinued 358-150-SWC is a real dandy. All my .38's are more accurate than I can hold with these slugs.

[dlbarr]

I bought the LEE 357-158 SWC 6-bullet mould. Lyman manual shows several loads..I have Unique & Red Dot so I'll start with those. Appreciate all the input...interesting thread to follow. Thanks all.

[BamaNapper]

I saw this thread last week, read every comment, and I appreciate the info. Then I started thinking about the OP while I was at the range over the weekend. This is a gun with a 2" bbl and is probably for CC or daily carry. If the gun is just used for plinking on Saturdays you've got plenty of good info here already. Have fun with it.

I'm not the expert here, but I took a one-day personal carry course with the sheriff's dept last year and it was an eye opener. They stressed that accuracy was probably the least important part of practice with CC. It should be lots of time with the gun in hand, pulling it without hanging on your clothes, quickly acquiring a target or multiple targets, using either hand, etc. All this can be practiced at home with an unloaded gun, and a couple laser rounds will even show your accuracy improving. Then range practice is mostly for recoil recovery and placing multiple shots quickly. Lots of different drills online. When I first started practicing this way 12" targets seemed really small, even at 5 yds.

With CC, target range is typically 5-7 yds. Shredding a bullseye is less important than control/familiarity since adrenaline becomes the largest factor if a CC is ever needed. Any bullet/load will work for practice, even a 22 in a similar frame. Drill with light loads and at the end of a practice day grab some +P or mag rounds and try a cylinder alternating shots quickly between 2 fresh targets. You'll probably find the recoil slows you down a bit but accuracy will be about the same. I know it's that way for me. For CC practice I'd use a light weight bullet just to save the lead and be able to cast more of them.