[RidgwayCO]

I did a "bulk purchase" of Remington 158gr SJHPs from MidwayUSA back in November for my new .357 Magnum revolver. When I went to start working up some loads last week (using resized, once-fired Remington brass), I tested the first rounds by gently pressing the nose of the bullet into the bench while leaning into it, and darn if the bullet didn't seat deeper into the case! I tested the other rounds I'd loaded, and they did the same thing. I've never had this happen before, but I'm sure glad I've made the COL testing thing a habit...

I started measuring everything that could be causing this, and finally found the culprit... the bullets' diameters measure only .356" to .3565". I checked my other Remington .357" bullets (125gr, 140gr, and 180gr) and they all measure .357" with boring regularity.

So I called Remington and was told by the nice lady at Customer Relations (Wanda) to "send them in", and she even mailed me a pre-paid FedEx label for the box. So the 20+ lb box left this morning and I'm hoping Remington decides to replace them.

One additional note... before sending the bullets back to Remington, I decided to test whether a different crimp would help. The original loads had used an RCBS roll crimp (which is usually more than sufficient), but I thought I'd try a Redding Profile crimp to see if that would fix the loose bullet problem. In a word... nope. I slowly worked the Profile crimp die down until I was crimping the heck out of them, but the bullets were still loose. So from this experience I can honestly conclude that crimping is not the solution to a case-bullet tension problem.

Has anybody had this problem recently with Remington's bullets?

[351 WINCHESTER]

I don't know about their .357's, but for years they marketed their .303 British 180 gr. as being .311 when, in fact, it was .310.

[rcmodel]

I would suggest if 1/2 thousandth made your .3565" bullets loose in the case, your expander is too big for even .357" bullets.

Could also be caused by a too big sizing die, or thin case-neck brass.

The Rem SJHPs are very soft lead core, and probably would shoot fine if you reduce the diameter of your expander .001" - .002" to get some proper neck tension.

I think it needs it anyway.

rc

[Walkalong]

Yep. Don't believe .0005 is the problem.

[RidgwayCO]

Yes, it surprised me too. But I was using the same dies and shellholder (RCBS), and the same brass (R-P), and the difference in case-bullet tension between my other SJHP bullets (.357") and the 158 grainers (.356-.3565") was that noticeable. I didn't think .0005" could make such a difference, but in this situation it surely did.

[Walkalong]

I didn't think .0005" could make such a difference, but in this situation it surely did.
Then you are borderline on being OK with .357 bullets. I would seriously consider polishing down the expander if it is opening up the brass any after sizing. This is easy to check.

[retsub]

When I started to load .357s, I bought some of the Rem. 158 SJHP bullets. I noticed that I couldn't produce a crimp that the reloading manuals call for-with the case mouth biting well into or to the bottom of the cannelure. My crimps simply look like mini bottle necks. I thought that I was about to buckle the case by the feel of the press-sort of like the camming feel when full length resizing rifle cases. So I left well enough alone.

These are the only jacketed bullets I have loaded for my .357, so I don't know if another brand takes a better crimp or not.

Even though I could not attain the crimp I sought, the rounds shoot alright and I haven't noticed any issues with the bullets moving.

Does anyone use a bullet that will allow a crimp into the cannelure?

[MMCSRET]

I've used a lot of the bulk packed Remingtons and I do believe that the quality control has loosened up. I went and checked the latest bunch and compared them to some Winchesters I have and the Remingtons did vary more, but I don't find it problematic as long as I sort my cases by head stamp and load accordingly. By the way, I find them to be a looser fit in R-P cases than any other.

[Walkalong]

RP cases tend to be the thinnest in many calibers.

[RidgwayCO]

Well, I just got off the phone with a technician from Remington. The news is that those undersized 158gr SJHP are actually well within Remington's specs for the bullet. The tech says that Remington makes the 158gr SJHP bullet with a diameter range of .3561" to .3567". I asked (incredulously) "Isn't .357" supposed to be in there somewhere?" and the answer was "Nope." They're sending my .3565" bullets back to me...

So it looks like Plan B is the next step. I'll be retiring the Remington .357 brass and trying some new Starline cases instead. Interestingly, the Starline brass weighs a couple of grains less than the Remington, but the case walls seem to be a mite thicker.

[lwknight]

I found it best to use a heavy taper crimp with those bullets. Also crimp in the cannalure for best grip. The Rem. SJHPs work best at full power loads like most old technology velocity dependant HP bullets. Basically you have a soft lead slug with a copper jacket on it.

I just measured mne that I got several months back. 0.3565"

[Remo-99]

Bullet setback isn't the issue with revolvers, but if they don't have enough tension from the necks they will jump forward after the recoil of several magnum load firings, maybe enough to bind up the cylinder.
While heavy crimping into a groove will proberly stop them jumping forward under recoil, they still should have good neck tension, and with slow magnum powders it also produces more consistant starting pressures with the resistance of good neck tension.