Loading some HOT 158g .357 Magnums

A couple of weeks ago I sized a bunch of .357 Magnum cases and seated magnum primers, which made it quick and easy to reload 50 rounds tonight on my Lee turret press. Even though light loads are fun to shoot and easy on the hands, from time to time a real ass kicking load is even more fun.

I checked my bullet inventory and discovered that I had 50 Hornady jacketed hollow point bullets that I think should be just right for a hot load. Lead bullets have a limited velocity because all kinds of bad things happen to them under extreme pressures. As an example, the maximum load for a 158g Hornady lead bullet is 950 feet per second, but with a jacket, the velocity can go way up to 1250 FPS.

To get the Hornady GR XTP bullet up to 1250 FPS, I decided to use 16g of Winchester 296, which was achieved by using a 1.02 Autodisk. I have a feeling my buddy Dirk will tell me that he would load the round even hotter, but it's my policy never to load above the bullet manufacturer's published specifications. I'm looking forward to finding out how well this combination shoots in both the SP101 and the Henry rifle. I was asked by someone recently in the BRShooting Journal's facebook group if the Henry rifle could handle a high pressure round. I contacted Anthony Imperato, the President of Henry Repeating Arms and he said that the brass alloy they use is stronger than steel, so I take it that means that the revolver has nothing over the Henry rifles. I'll let you know the results when I test this load at the range. Once again, use any info that I post on this page at your own risk, especially when it comes to hot loads. Always verify any info you read against the latest manufacturer's load data.

Starting to reload some .357 Magnums

I shot well over 100 rounds of .357 magnums at the range last Friday, so I finally freed up some cases to reload. As usual, the cases went directly into the tumbler when I got home, making it possible to examine the cases for cracking and defects.

As you can see, it really doesn't take a lot of equipment to get into reloading. In fact, you can start with a lot less than this. A Classic Lee reloading kit goes for only about $30, and all you'll need is a rubber mallet, a scale, brass cases and bullets. For well under $100 you can step it up to a single stage press, which speeds up the process considerably. For not much over $100 you can move to a Lee turret press as the one I'm using, and that makes the process move even faster. For the price of about 4 boxes of cartridges, you could be up and running.

Tonight I started by changing the die adjustments from .38 Special to .357 magnum, which involves backing out the bullet seating die and crimp die two full turns to account for the .357 Magnum's increased case length. I wasn't in the mood tonight to look up load data, weigh powder and the rest, so I decided to just focus on the first die; resizing the cases, knocking out the spent primers and reseating new.

Note that I have my Maximum Eyewear goggles on. When I'm seating primers, my face is very close to the case, so for safety I usually wear goggles. I've never had a primer go off in this press, but there's always a first time and it only takes once.

On the left are the tumbled cases with spent primers still seated. On the right are the resized cases seated with fresh primers. I'm using a Lee Turret Press.

This is what I'm looking for when I examine my cases, and why I always tumble the brass prior to reloading. Dirt and soot can sometimes mask a defect, and a split case like this could prove disastrous. It's my usual practice to scrounge around for spent cases on the ground while there's a target change. You never know how many times a case lying on the ground has been reloaded, and if it has been abused with high pressure loads. Many people refuse to use found cases like this, but I think it's OK as long as the cases are closely examined. In total I found 3 cases that I ended up tossing tonight. This was the worst. One case was slightly crushed at the neck, and likely could have been used but why take the chance. Another had a small split at the neck, likely caused from over crimping which thins and stretches the brass. I picked up at least 50 pieces of brass at the range, so discarding three was no big deal. Considering the price of brass, cases picked up at the range can often offset the price of that day's range time and will save me a trip to the gunshop to purchase another bag of brass. Finding good brass is like coming across hidden treasure, and I find it fun in itself to do.

Later this week I'll be deciding on load data and getting down to business reloading. I'll post more as that happens.

Reloaded 150g cast lead bullets

Today was a vacation day and it's pouring out, which limits my options for fun things to do. Most small game hunker down in lousy weather, so that option was out. I've been needing to do some reloading, especially since I just installed the new Skinner Peep Sights on the .44 mag. and .357 mag. Henry rifles and they need to be sighted in soon. Dirk had given me a bag of 150 grain round-nose lead bullets that he cast, so I decide to reload them today. These are .38 Special cartridges charged with Bullseye powder. Dirk suggests using 3 - 3.5 grains, but the last time I loaded these bullets, 3 grains proved to be too light. This time I loaded 3.4g using a .37 AutoDisk. I only have Winchester small pistol magnum primers, but Dirk said that they will work fine in the .38's, especially as the temperature outside begins to drop. These cartridges look quite beautiful, don't you think? I'm looking forward to putting some down-range via the Henry... if it ever stops raining. When that happens, I'll bring a camera along and post a report on the ammo and the new sight system.

Reloading 150g cast lead bullets

My buddy Dirk cast a batch of lead bullets recently and gave me around 70 to reload. I went through my Lee reloading manual but couldn't find any load data, so I emailed Dirk for info and he sent me the following pages from some old manuals.

I'll be loading with Accurate #9, and this chart shows a started load of 12 grains and a maximum of 13.5 or 15 grains.

I first looked for an intermediate load for Accurate #9 between 12 and 15 grains (the starting and maximum loads according to the chart above). On the AutoDisk chart, I looked for a load near 13-14 grains. 13.4 grains is on the list, so I went up the chart to the AutoDisk number: .88.

This is the .88 Lee AutoDisk hole.

Dirk's 148 grain cast lead bullets and Accurate #9. #9 is a ball powder which meters quite accurately and consistently in the Lee AutoDisk.

Here's the powder in the hopper, so you can see the consistency. It's actually so fine that some always leaks out at various joints and ends up on the bench. The .88 AutoDisk setting actually dropped 13.1 grains in the case, and that was close enough to what I was shooting for.

A few finished cartridges.

Always keep an eye out for split cases. Here's one I came across while reloading tonight. Check back to see how well these cartridges grouped at the range.

Hornady 140g Cowboy

I swung by a local gun shop today to pick up a magazine for the Ruger LCP and discovered that they were selling for almost $30! Cabela's had them for $24 last week so I decided to pass it up and instead took a look at their bullets. I was surprised to find that they had a few 350 count boxes of Hornady #10078 .357 mag cowboy bullets on the shelf. The last box I loaded came directly from Hornady, and I haven't seen them anywhere since I started reloading. The price seemed a little high, but I bought them anyway because I like the way these bullets shoot with 4 grains of Unique (see my previous test)  and they are still a lot cheaper than any jacketed bullets out there.

I looked through my Hornady manual to see if I could find load data with a powder I already have on the shelf. They had data for Unique and American Select. Since I already ran a test with Unique, I decided to load tonight with American Select. I found a midpoint load that I could hit with my AutoDisk: 3.9 grains with the AutoDisk set at .57. I loaded 50 rounds tonight and as soon as I shoot them, I'll post my targets and comments.

Here's my previous 25' target shot with the Ruger SP101. That's a decent group, so I think I'll load 50 more with this recipe (4.0g UNIQUE - .49 AutoDisk).

Don't be a brass whore

Ya, it's a little rude, but it makes the point. Someone just posted this term on my facebook and I thought I'd pass it along. He was referring to people who pick up brass at the range that they don't plan to reload. I would explain them as people who can't get enough at the expense of others. Brass is expensive and often in short supply. People who bring a bucket to the range and scoop up every piece of brass are no better than those who bought up all the powder and primers during the Obama shortage. Remember the 'Golden Rule', "Do onto others as you would have them do unto you". Take only what you really need to reload. Just because you reload .357 magnum doesn't mean that you need to have 5 gal. buckets full filling up your basement.

If that's what you've been doing and have had a change of heart, why don't you simply give some away? You'll make some new shooting buddies as well as feeling better about yourself.

I found another winner yesterday from Accurate

For years now I've been using Accurate #9 in my .44 magnum reloads and I've been very pleased with the results. Until recently I didn't realize that #9 was also recommended for some .357 Magnum loads. I like to reload with #9 because it's a ball powder and it flows consistently through my Lee AutoDisk.

Last week I loaded 50 rounds using Hornady 158g GR XTP bullets with 10.8g of Accurate #9. It was in Hornady's reloading manual so I thought I'd give it a try. I couldn't believe the results. At 25 feet from a standing position, the Ruger was putting multiple bullets through the same hole! I was amazed how well the RSP101 was shooting with this combination. I then put the target out to about 50 yards. Of course the groups weren't as tight, but the elevation and windage were right on target, with holes evenly circling the bullseye. On the other hand, when I switch to a load using 4.7g of Unique, the rounds were hitting 4" low and on center. I'm sold on using #9 in my Ruger.

Here's some Autodisk info:
10.8g AA#9 = .71 Autodisk
4.7g of Unique = .57 Autodisk.

The AutoDisk was consistently throwing powder from about the 3rd round through the 50th. That isn't true of Unique, which can be much more inconsistent.  I strongly suggest weighing every load, or at least very 5th or so.

And the winner is...!

I sent over 300 rounds of Hornady 158g SWC-HP bullets down-range today at between 30 - 40 yards, loaded with various amounts of Unique in order to establish a favorite load for both rifle and revolver. The result: 4.4g

The girls try out my Hornady/Unique loads

This weekend I had the opportunity to introduce my daughter and her friend to the fun of shooting (the full story and video is on my RANGE PAGE). The girls had the opportunity to try out 8 or so handguns of various calibers from .22LR to .357 Magnum. I was surprised that they were even willing to shoot the .357 Magnum, never mind saying that it was their favorite gun of the bunch.

All of the .357 Magnum bullets shot were Hornady 158g #10428 SWC-HP, and the powder was UNIQUE. I loaded 100 rounds with 3.5g, which was a good starting load for the girls, but I was very surprised that Sarah had no problem shooting 4.7g loads (5g being the max). Since this was their first shoot, I was more concerned about them being comfortable with the handguns than with accuracy. As you can see, at 25' they didn't shoot all that bad. Previous posts show that this bullet/powder combination has proved to be quite accurate, and with 1.7g between minimum and maximum loads, I need not be super critical with my powder measurement. The Lee AutoDisk does an excellent job quickly loading the cases.

If you look closely at the photo of Sarah shooting, you'll see a highlight in front of the barrel. That's actually the Hornady bullet leaving the barrel which was caught by a single frame of my video clip!


The girls did a heck of a lot of shooting yesterday, so it looks like I'll be spending the rest of today reloading. A perfect thing to do on a rainy day like today.

Setting up the Lee Auto Disk Powder Measure

Find your bullet and starting load (3.3g of Unique)

Locate powder on AutoDisk chart

Locate grains you wish to load

Go up the chart to find correct hole to choose

Locate the correct hole on AutoDisk

Turn the hopper 'ON'

Get your powder

Use drier sheet to remove static charge

Add powder

Weigh empty case*

Zero scale to remove the weight of the case

Charge a case with one lever pull

Weigh the case with powder charge. We're .2g low.

Chose a larger hole

Reweigh. We are +.1g, which is good.

50 completed cartridges

*My daughter may be shooting with me next weekend, so for obvious reasons I didn't want to take any chances with these loads. To be safe, I decided to weigh the powder in each case individually. Don't think you can weigh one case and take it for granted that they all weigh the same. As a test, I weighed 10 cases and not one of the 10 weighed the same. Here's the results in grains:

83.8

83.6

83.1

84.1

84.4

82.0

81.8

83.7

82.3

83.9

There's a big difference between the weight of some of these cases, so be sure to zero your scale for each case before weighing the charged case.

Reloading .357 Mags with the Lee Turret Press

Yesterday I turned the camera on while reloading some .357 mags. I've only used the Lee Turret Press a few times, but as you can see it's very easy to get up to speed with it. I had previously run these cases through the sizing die on my Lee single stage press and seated the primers, so I removed the Lee Safety Prime and skipped the sizing die* in the process, which is the first of the four dies. Unique is a flaky powder, and I've found that the Lee Auto-Disk Powder Measure sometimes had difficulty consistently charging the cases. That's why I checked the load so many times on a digital scale. I've gotten suggestions to help with this from my friends, including wiping the inside of the red canister with a drier sheet, and taping a vibrating phone to it. I found that if I pull the press's handle with a bit of force both up and down, it jolts the Auto-Disk enough to keep the powder flowing consistently. Weighing the charged case is a good way to see when your technique is working properly. I didn't have this problem with Accurate #9, which is a ball powder that flows very easily. This is something you need to be aware of, because too little powder can be as bad as too much.

If you have a squib fire and the bullet lodges in your barrel, the following round in a double-tap could blow your gun apart. Always keep this in the back of your mind when you've loaded your rounds with powder that could be inconsistent. Pay attention to the recoil from each round, and if one seems too light, stop and check to be sure your barrel is clear. Also don't use non-magnum primers when magnum primers are called for, and visa versa. Better safe than sorry. At the gun club my buddy Dirk belongs to, there's a handgun framed on the wall that was blown to pieces. Someone used modern powder in a black powder gun. I've seen this happen first hand last year at the state range. Steel flew everywhere, and it was a miracle no one was injured. As I said, these malfunctions were the result of using the wrong powder in muzzle loaders. The same can happen if you shoot a round with an obstructed barrel. Pay attention. Earlier in the week I loaded around forty rounds after work when I was a way to tired. I began running on auto-pilot, like when you drive to work and realize that you've driven a few blocks that you don't remember how you got where you now are. This can be a disaster when reloading. Rather than taking a chance, I got out the bullet puller, pulled every cartridge apart and started again when I was rested and could pay complete attention. Though reloading is a relaxing hobby, it can also be a dangerous one for someone who takes it too casually. Stay safe.

*Note that in the still photo the Lee Safety Prime is installed and in the video it has been removed and is sitting on the table.

Hornady lead bullets with Unique Powder. Ruger SP101 with new replacement barrel and front sight

25 FEET

158g Hornady SWC/HP - 3.5g UNIQUE
(Holes outside the orange were the first shot when I was getting a feel of the gun)

158g Hornady SWC/HP - 3.5g UNIQUE

140g Hornady COWBOY - 4.0g UNIQUE (.49 AutoDisk)

158g Hornady SWC/HP - 4.0g UNIQUE (.49 AutoDisk)

50 FEET

158g Hornady SWC/HP - 4.0g UNIQUE (.49 AutoDisk)

140g Hornady COWBOY - 4.0g UNIQUE (.49 AutoDisk)

158g Hornady SWC/HP - 3.5g UNIQUE
(X's indicate holes from another gun)

158g Hornady SWC/HP - 4.3g UNIQUE
(X indicate holes from another gun)

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