Lee 105 SWC in the .380?

[Texas by God]

Have any of you tried this bullet in the .380?
I’ve used it in 9mm but I’m new to .380 loading.
My .380 is a Ruger LCP.


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[Larry Gibson]

I size it .356 and load over Bullseye for use in my AMT Back up.

[pworley1]

I had to play around with the seating depth to get it to feed properly in my Sig but it is a good shooter.

[Finster101]

Using it in a .380 EZ for the wife. I did have Doug throat the barrel for reliability but it fed well before hand.

[Kosh75287]

The molds that throw this particular bullet are machined to turn them out .358" diameter, so you may have to size them smaller. I have an old Lyman Reloading manual that shows data for 115 gr. bullets in .380 ACP, so a 105 gr. projectile doesn't strike me as unreasonable.
If I could not find data that I sincerely trust for this exact bullet, I would look seriously at data for a 100 gr. jacketed bullet. The 5% difference in bullet weights, plus the (usually) higher lubricity of the cast bullets over j-words will likely keep you from getting into too-high pressures, especially with usual starting loads.
I can imagine that the "not intended for pocket pistols" shape of the bullet might not be the easiest to get to navigate the feed ways of many .380 caliber pistols. Careful adjustment of cartridge overall length can often fix most of these problems. Once in a while, particularly in pistols made in the 80s and before, a little polishing of the feed ways will be needed for the most reliable function.

[LAGS]

I too use the Lee 105 for the only .380 that I still have.
I powder coat them and too use Bullseye in a AMT Back Up like Larry.
I have also loaded them with Unique.

[Texas by God]

Thank you all. I’ll try them the next time I cast some. They work well in the 9mm.


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[Iowa Fox]

Larry G has sound advice. I just use Lee alox and shove them thru the Lee 356 sizer. It doesn't take much Bullseye to make the LCP run.

[Larry Gibson]

Try 2 - 2.5 gr Bullseye under them. I mostly use the 2 gr load as it functions both the AMT and the wife's Ruger LCP. BTW, she mostly shoots them....I just get to cast, load, pick up the brass and clean the gun......

[LAGS]

My AMT does like a little heavier load like 3.1 of Unique because it is a stiffer Self Defense pistol.
But my Ex Wife's LCR liked the 2.0 Bullseye loads better.
So did my Beretta 82 .
More reliable , and accurate.

[jdgabbard]

I have used this boolit in the 380. I don't own the mold, but had a member send me 500 of them about 10 years ago. They shot fine, but I did get some leading with the lube I used at the time. They were cast 50/50 Pb/WW. They shot accurately, and I have some load data somewhere. I wouldn't mind shooting more of them if I had a mold, but I'm not buying more Lee molds at the moment.

[MostlyLeverGuns]

It was my go to bullet in a 1971 Browning 380(target sights, longer barrel to meet 1968 Gun Control requirements). Very accurate, walked up on a prairie dog at 180 yards, hit it with the fourth shot, might be the best handgun shot I ever made, had a witness.

[gwpercle]

Play around with seating depth . I had to go to just a "Thumbnail Thickness" of top band showing . Most newer , smaller , semi-auto's have little or no throat ... the boolit isn't very long so it can be deep seated .
I seat it the same way in 9 X 19 for light loads ... I bought this mould for use in light 38 special loads but seldom use it there ... 9mm Luger and 380 get a lot of loading with it !
Gary

[whisler]

I use it in .380 ACP and .38 Special loads.

[LAGS]

I use that Boolits in some of my 9 mm loads.
It is a little short for some model 9mm's and does cause some feeding issues.
But they shoot great.

[Iowa Fox]

2 grains of Bullseye is what I use

[KCcactus]

Tried a few 105 swc in .380 with 2.8 gr Unique. Should be a good practice load for my better half's M&P shield EZ.

[6thtexas]

I have shot 300-400 from my LCP sized .357" with 2.9 gr, HP-38

[rintinglen]

I had some trouble with feeding in My Walther PPKS, and never tried it in any of my other 380's. I have a 356-242 that works perfectly in my practice loads and have never tried the LEE since.

[Alferd Packer]

I second what Larry Gibson said!
I also have a home made brass catcher that comes in use very handy. Also have a Caldwell brass catcher.
The .380 is fun to shoot with the 105 gr. Over 2.1 grs Bullseye and the same using 700x powder.