My heavier Mid-range 357

R

Rex

Active Member
Today I had to try some heavier Mid-range loads. 7 grains Unique in 357 case topped with a 173 grain Keith bullet and the same powder charge and case topped with a 150 grain 358477. Thank God for a stout side wind that kinda mask my poor ability. I open the pickup door and stand behind it for a wind break. At 25 yards with my shooting I would be hard pressed to say one bullet out performed the other. Will probably stick with the 477 and use a bit less lead. I think this load will work fine on coon and badger out at the farm. Next I'm going to try the 477 bullet with 6 grains Unique in the 38 special case. If I remember I think it does around 1050 from my 4" 686. This "hunker down" thing is about to kill me but darn it's fun to play with all of these loads. I'm getting old enough that they'll make me quit playing with guns one of these days.
 
CWLONGSHOT

CWLONGSHOT

Well-Known Member
That 173 Keith is a favorite of mine 359429. Shoots great for me with Bluedot.

I was very lucky and picked ip a 358429 HP mold here. It has rapidly become another favorite. My Mag, Maxi and even my Legend shoot it quite well!

CW
 
fiver

fiver

Well-Known Member
I think you'll find there's a number of 477 fans on the site.
I have a pair of them and have shot them in all sorts of guns.
the Taurus copy of the Beretta 92 [in 9mm] I had shot the 477 better than anything else I tried in it.
 
Rick H

Rick H

Well-Known Member
In Michigan we can trap Badgers but not hunt them. Out west they are vermin. In a Taxidermy shop in Lewiston MT. the guy had just finished up a mount of a badger. It was the tanned hide laced in a round willow frame with rawhide. (similar to the old beaver hide hoops)
It was just gorgeous. I always wanted one. Never saw one I was able to take out there. I have seen them an number of times here in Michigan....but no hunting season.
 
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L Ross

L Ross

Well-Known Member
Rick H said:
In Michigan we can trap Badgers but not hunt them. Out west they are vermin. In a Taxidermy shop in Lewiston MT. the guy had just finished up a mount of a badger. It was the tanned hide laced in a round willow frame with rawhide. (similar to the old beaver hide hoops)
It was just gorgeous. I always wanted one. Never saw one I was able to take out there. I have seen them an number of times here in Michigan....but no hunting season.
Click to expand...
Maybe you know, maybe not, Wisconsin is known as the Badger State. Perhaps not so much for the actual Badger the animal, as for the propensity of early Cornish lead and tin miners to live in "burrow' and to dig to mine. Lead was a big deal in the Platteville and surrounding area. Then there were shot towers along the Wisconsin river just north of the mining region where the shot could be transported by water to Prairie Du Chien and the Mississippi River. Lead good as gold then and today!
 
R

Rex

Active Member
The Wisconsin Badgers regularly thrash the Nebraska Cornhuskers but my son-in-law stepped in a badger hole while we were pheasant hunting and severed his achilles tendon. We now go after the local badgers any time we see one.
 
R

Rex

Active Member
Anyone else use the 7 grain Unique load for their somewhat lighter 357 load? Which bullet etc.?
 
Winelover

Winelover

North Central Arkansas
Some of my mid range loads for my 357 LCR. All in magnum (Winchester or Starline) brass. All shoot very low in my Rossi carbine.

NOE 180 RNFP with 9.0 grains of AA#7

Accurate 158 RNFP with 10.5 grains of AA#7

RCBS 158 SWCGC with 4.0 grains of Bullseye

RCBS 158 SWCGC with 6.5 grains of Unique. (extremely accurate)
 
JWFilips

JWFilips

Well-Known Member
Not to be one to hijack a thread......... but since there are some nice mid range loads being covered here.......
I was just wondering if anyone has a nice light 25yd target load for the 357 mag?
When I started shooting 357 mag the guys I hung with all had "magnumitis" and got me into high power loads...so that is pretty much all I have loaded up so I have been slowly blasting them away ( not as enjoyable now that I'm older!) so I could get in the "Low Node" with my S&W's... 19 & Pre-27
Just wondering any of you have some accurate "light loads"?
 
358156 hp

358156 hp

At large, whereabouts unknown.
Hi Jim, are you working with any particular bullet or powders? I have a number of the older manuals and could probably come up with something. 357 target wadcutter loads are often only .1 to .2 grains heavier than the same bullet in a 38 Spl.
 
RicinYakima

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
In the 357 cases, with full wadcutters, I have used 4.0 grains of Bullseye for a target load for many years and been happy, just size them throat diameter. For RN and SWC used either 5.0 grains of WW231 or 5.5 grains of Unique. FWIW
 
R

Rex

Active Member
JWFILIPS, a friend recommends and I also shoot 6 grains of Unique with cast SWC bullets with good results. A heavier load now and then just holds my attention better. Another friend who also stops in here now and then uses 5.5 HP38 with a 358429 bullet in his .357.
 
J

John

Active Member
I shot a lot of the 358477 at 5.4 gr Unique in a 38 before Lyman downloaded their data to 5.0 with 5.5 being plus +. I want to be easy on my Smiths now so have adapted the lower charge. It shoots as well now as the other does but my eyes are 66 yr old too.
 
Brad

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
I tend to use either 38 specials or full snort mags. Mag brass is for mag loads.
That said a 158 swc in the 1000 FPS range would be good too.
 
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