What do You load in .357Mag & Why ?

Walks

Well-Known Member
What are your Favorite .357 Magnum Loads ?
Do you tailor loads for a specific gun or purpose ?
Heavy Loads for a NM Blackhawk or M27 that would make a M19 sit up and Roar ?
Do you shoot .38Spl plus P loads in a .357Mag that you Would NOT shoot in a Revolver chambered for .38Spl ?
 

Cherokee

Medina, Ohio
Most of my rip-roaring 357 Mag shooting days are over, although I still have some. Now days its 38 Special level or +P in 357 Mag cases. I like the Lee 125 FN & 158 FN and the NOE 357135 FN. Paper and steel are my prime targets now days. Why...age has taken its toll. My loads for 357 have always been for all my so-chambered guns - Python, Smith 27 & 686, Ruger. 38's get standard or target loads. Don't shoot special cases in 357 chambers.
 
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Mitty38

Well-Known Member
A certain fella' here, gave me a round nose mold, that I cast soft and load up over H-Universal as .38 spcl+p. WITH ALOX THEN BLL seams they like that best. I shoot it out of my .357 Taurus 66, 6 inch.
They are great for RINGING A GONG AT 100 YARDS. Plus they will mutilate a Shasta bottle.:)
 
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462

California's Central Coast Amid The Insanity
I'm strictly a target shooter, so my shooting criteria is based strictly on accuracy, and not velocity.
I have three .357 Mag. handguns: 6 1/2" New Model Blackhawk, 5 1/2" New Vaquero, 2 1/4" SP-101

The SP-101 trigger guard smacks the middle finger hard enough, with full-tilt jacketed loads, that the shooting fun is quickly over. The gun has taken up permanent safe residence.

Other projects have kept the Vaquero's load development toward the bottom of the list. Well, that's not exactly true, as there is a mild Herco and the 358-158 RNFN load that is pretty accurate, but it doesn't shoot to point of aim.

The Blackhawk's cast accuracy load consists of Lee's 358-158 RNFN and 13.0 or 13.5-grains of 2400, and is an all day shooter load.
Its jacketed accuracy load is Hornady's 158-grain JHP/XTP and 15.7-grain of H110/W296. Again, it's an all day shooter load, and though it's not a screamer it'd do some serious damage.

I'd have to look up loads for the Rossi/EMF Hartford Sporting Rifle, but they are more sedate than screamers. Unfortunately, its preferences do not coincide with those of the Blackhawk.
 

462

California's Central Coast Amid The Insanity
Emmett,
I'm glad the bullet's working for you!
 

Mitty38

Well-Known Member
Emmett,
I'm glad the bullet's working for you!
Ever Grateful brother.
learned how to cast with it.
Took me a while to get it tuned in, to where it likes one of my guns. But I have found,that 160 grain loves to go fast, and loves a longer barrel.
Makes me smile every time that 100 yard gong goes ding. And there is a young man dressed in tacticool at he next bench looking over to see this fat old man holding a Taurus with factory open sights.:)
 
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CZ93X62

Official forum enigma
What Cherokee said, plus......

My all-time favorite load in 357 Magnum combines Lyman #358156 atop 13.5 grains of 2400 and sparked by CCI 500 primers. It duplicates my agency's old service load (W-W Super-X 158 grain JHP) at about 1235 FPS from my 686 x 4" and about 100 FPS faster from the 7.5" BisHawk.
 

fiver

Well-Known Member
the 357 is the smallest revolver I own [oh wait I have a 30 carbine too] as such it gets everything from 2.7grs of fast powder up to H-110 just cause I got the powder and the bullets.
I think my favorite load A.T.M. is 6grs. of bulls-eye and the 358091 wad cutter in starline 357 cases..
 

oscarflytyer

Well-Known Member
mine are jacketed loads/not yet worked up cast... But jacketed 158 with 14.0 grns 2400 was accurate. Followed by 14.5 grns 2400 and 15 grns H110 (virtual accuracy tie). All of this is with almost zero work-up - pulled data from HL and Waters....

I have PB and GC 158s - just need to cast/load/test. And just picked up a Lyman 357446 (~165 grn) and ~195 grn RN (Lyman 358430av) that I need to get pot/load/shooting time with!
 

Winelover

North Central Arkansas
I too like 13.5 grains of 2400 with 158 SWC 's in 357 brass. I shoot mostly, full power loads. That's the reason for a 357, have thirty eights for lighter loadings. Only exception would be 6.5 grains of Bullseye, 357 brass, 158 SWC for the light weight LCR.
 

CWLONGSHOT

Well-Known Member
My "favorite" load is with a Nickel casing, a Cast 160g swc HP bullet Powder coated seated on top of a heavy load of Blue Dot powder.
Two of my 357's really like this load. One Colt Revolver shoots it better then any other recipe I have found.

The velocity from the 8" Colt is just 1400 fps and in the 18" Marlin its almost 1800 fps.

cw
 

abj

Active Member
158 gas checked SWC, over Blue Dot(I think 9.5) I am at work, so no load notes. Super accurate in a 6 inch colt Trooper. Going to try that load in GP-100. My Uberti Cattleman I keep a little softer. Factory level loads just seem a little hot for fun shooting.
Tony
 

dannyd

Active Member
For my dozen GP-100's and Blackhawk's I use 158 Saeco SWC over 4 grains of 231 or HP-38. It's easy on the equipment and me. That's about 66,000 rounds last time I checked.
 

Petrol & Powder

Well-Known Member
I don't shoot that many magnum rounds so I don't load many magnum rounds. In fact, I don't have a tool head for my Dillon 550 set up for magnums, I use a spare set of dies in a single stage press when I need to load a few rounds.
I use two different bullets, One is a factory component bullet of 125 grains and is a semi-jacketed hollow point and the other is a 158 grain SWC cast.
There's only one powder for magnum loads and that is H110.
I will not list the loads here but they are within published data ranges and are unquestionably - Magnum loads.

As for shooting 38 Special +P loads in magnum revolvers that I wouldn't shoot in revolvers chambered for 38 Special? Several of my revolvers are magnum revolvers that are chambered in 38 Special, such as a GP-100 chambered in 38 Special rather than .357 magnum. So there's a huge margin of strength there.
I do NOT create +P loads that exceed 38 Special +P levels.

Full disclosure here: Years ago I did load some 38 Special casings to levels that exceeded 38 Special +P pressures and shot them exclusively in magnum revolvers.
I came to the realization that the practice was: 1. Incredibly irresponsible, and 2. Incredibly stupid. I discontinued that nonsense.

No matter how much control you exercise over your own ammunition there is always a possibility of a mistake. It is easier and a whole lot smarter to just confine magnum loads to magnum casings. There are enough problems in the world, No need to create problems.
 
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CZ93X62

Official forum enigma
My 38 Special loads NEVER find their way into 357 Magnum revolvers or the rifle. I retired from cleaning charge hole/chamber crud rings years before I retired from law enforcement.

Only one of my three 38s is +P-capable, and any +P 38 Special is given 125 grain JHP bullets for clear ID as such. The rest of the 38s are loaded at mid-range to standard pressures for my late-40s Colt OMT x 6" and early-60s S&W M&P x 5". The older revolvers get an all-castings diet.

I do put up "38 +P" loads, but they are built in Magnum casings. #358429 at 900-1000 FPS is a pleasant, useful field load for most of my handgun varmint hunting. About 75% of my 357 Magnum shooting gets done with these loads, and they are VERY ACCURATE well past 50 yards.

About 4-5 years ago (not sure exactly when this switched) my shop ended its 20-year love affair with the W-W Super-X 158 grain JHP loading as the Coin Of The Realm in 357. It was replaced by much-celebrated Federal #357B loading, a 125 grain JHP that steps out at 1425-1450 FPS from 4" barrels. From my 4" 686, they average about 1425-1430 FPS. I load a practice/duplicator using 17.5 grains of 2400 under 125 grain J-words. This works well, I only have to buy one size of 38/357 J-words to load practice ammo for two calibers. This could imply thought and planning on the part of range & training staff, but I limit my leaps of faith to more fundamental venues.

Currently I have some shotgun powder-loaded 125 grainers to test out, since their powder weights are just slightly more than half of what 2400 requires to get a given velocity level. Waste not, want not. I will also be trying WW-231 for the same rationale, and hoping it survives the onset of WW-244. I think the jury is out on that question. 231 has been a friend for 40 years, I hope it stays in print.
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
My 357 is mostly fed 38s. I tend to load the 357 with WC820 and when it is gone will turn to AA9 or H110 til i run out of them. I may use some 2400 too.
I am not real picky on powder For 357. Bullet wise it will be largely the NOE 359160 WFN or the MP 359640 HP.