Anyone load .380 ACP?

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FEG SMC-380

Just picked up a FEG .380 slightly used $160 out the door! I happen to like the P64 9X18 and thought a .380 version would be nice; this is as close as it gets and it's smaller than the P64. I'll do a range report later.

jAK-47

FEGSMC-380.jpg
 
Range Report

FEG SMC-380

Shot about 100 rounds through it without a hiccup. Silver Bear OK. Even tried some PowRBall CorBon and smooth as silk.

I rolled some 100gr RN over 3.7gr of Unique and will shoot those within the week.

This gun is very light and, so far, 100% reliable. The Hungarians make a good product!

jAK-47
 
I have the Lee factory crimp die on my 550B & it works like a champ. I have been using Universal with a 95 gn FMJ bullet. I've been thinking about going a little heavier (perhaps even 115) but haven't seen much load data on that.
 
I like Power Pistol and 158 gr in my 1903 Colt 380 blow back.
I like Power Pistol and 90 Gr in my 2006 P3AT locked breech.
I shoot something in between in my Beretta 1934 blow back

I am trying to get as much power as I can.
 
You bet, I'm too cheap for store-bought 380. Magnus makes some nice 95JSPs and 100 LFPs that shoot great. I only have one little 380 but I like always being able to have ammo for it w/o going to the store. A bonus is that hardly anyone else reloads 380, so if you see someone shooting it at the range, they almost always will be ok letting you have the brass!
 
Clark, do you really use a 158 grain bullet in 380acp? How many grains of PP?
 
I've been itching to load some 102gr Remington Golden Sabres in my sister's Bersa.


i bought some golden sabres for my h&k usp45 only to realize the rifling in hk usp pistols is backwards from all my other 45s (1911s) and the way the golden sabres are directional kinda bummed me out on my hk usp.


by the way, go jackrabbits.

im from forney too.
 
Hey folks,

The .380 headspaces on the case mouth, so case length should be uniform. The good thing about the .380 for me is that once I have trimmed my cases to the required length, they never seem to lengthen no matter how many times they are reloaded. Then again, I load on the lower end rather than hot. I also use both jacketed and cast bullets: about 95 grain jacketed, and cast bullets from 95 to 121 grains. The 121 grain cast bullets are my own.

For some years now, I have been loading the .380 and most other auto cartridges on my Hornady L&L. When I first started loading, I used to clean primer pockets of residue. I gave up on that practice many years ago and cannot say I can see any difference.

I never have any need to crimp any of my auto pistol loads, including the .380. I only bell the case slightly when using cast bullets, and I both seat the bullet and remove any case belling in one step in my regular bullet seating die.

Best wishes,
Dave Wile
 
FlyinBryan said:
the golden sabres are directional

Source please? I heard this a couple years ago from a gun store commando.

Yes, the petals are folded in one direction but they open from hydraulic force, not peeling the petals back from a rotating bullet. I'm just trying to squash a myth.

I haven't seen Remington state that it needs a right twist and the 165gr. that I load into the 40 S&W P239 expand just fine and reliably too. They twist left.
 
I'm loading 380 with Hornady 115g XTP hollow point, Berry's 100g plated with the hollow base, and Xtreme 115g plated round nose. In each case, HP38/W231 are giving me the best accuracy and recoil performance in a Colt. You'll have to choose your own powder charge.

In the Colt, I only remove the bell with the seating die, lack of crimp has never set a bullet back in the mag or feed ramp (not much recoil in a 380, is there?). I never trim and it doesn't affect headspace in the chamber. I'm very careful to check chambering, but I find no problem with untrimmed brass.

The 380 case wall tapers toward the mouth, so they split rather easily compared to other pistol calibers. This also yields a 'bulge' when you seat the bullet, but 380 chambers are dimensioned to accomodate the bulge.

jak47: All .355 bullets work in 380 and 9mm Luger. 9x21 and 9x23 and 38ACP and 38 Super also. (They don't work in 9x18 makarov, but you didn't ask that.) For convenience, the light bullets are marketed for 380 because they are more popular for that caliber. If you're using a heavier bullet in 380 (which will be a long bullet) be careful of seating depth due to limited case volume. Use published loads only and follow their minimum overall length.
 
Greetings,

We found a very good and cheap load for a Taurus 380ACP:
Hard cast 88 grains RN bullet
3.1 grains of Unique
Wolf small primer

My friend shoot bulleye with that load.

Thank you
 
I'm no firearms, engineer. I read this in a book:

An added note about reloading for blowback pistols.

One of the biggest purposes of locked breech actions involves the rise and decay curve of chamber pressure. The locked breech allows the slide and barrel to travel backward for a short distance before separating. This is to keep the brass case fully enclosed in the chamber until the pressure in the chamber decays to a modest level (usually when the bullet has left the barrel). This is necessary so the pressure doesn't rupture the brass case while it's only half way out of the chamber, and blow hot gases back into the operator's face.

Blowback designs are for modest cartridges with peak chamber pressure below the point that it would rupture the case. So you can let the slide move rearward while the barrel stays still, pulling the case out of the chamber immediately while the bullet is still in the barrel. For that reason, the case is generally fairly weak because it really doesn't sustain elevated pressures. Cases for blowback pistols often have somewhat short lives and you can't load them very hot.
 
yes I load for my Browning BDA (3rd .380 I've owned, added to a Walther PPK/S, and a CZ83 (wish I had kept that one)) useing Rem slugs including GS's which have best groups. I load 'em warm usually. I've got some cast slugs comeing - if Mike at mastercastbullets gets off his ass and send 'em!
 
My wife has a bersa 380 as a purse gun.

I have been very happy with a 95gr bullet and 3.0 grains of titegroup. It functions well and is fairly clean.
 
i have just started reloading in this caliber. i have loaded 2 boxes, but my kel-tec is in the factory for service, so i am not able to shoot them. i am using titegroup for powder, cci primers. but i wont disclose the load until i know it works, i am pretty much sticking to loadings in the hodgedon manual anyway, with the exception of a few "hot rod" loads i am trying to work up for p.d. . with this little case, i am simply upping the load at .1 grain increments. i can see where it would be very easy to damage the gun with these little loads. if my calculations are right, i will be able to load about 1400 round with a pound of powder. to bad the bullets were not cheaper. and yes, it is hard to recover the brass. this little gun throws them all over a 25' circle. amazing!
 
I load 3.1 gr of HP-38 under a Berry 100 gr CPRN


This is basically my load or often I use a 95 grain copper washed bullet over 2.8 grains of HP-38. Nice light plinking load that feels like a .22 LR in my Russian Commercial Makarov chambered from the factory in .380 ACP.
 
I just bought an LCP so I want to load .380's also, but based on this thread I have a question. I see that some people are loading cast bullets intended for 9mm at .356 diameter. All my load books specifically state that the .380 must load the 9mm at .355 bullets. If you load cast they must be sized down to .355.

Is anyone loading .355 cast bullets? Where can I get some?
 
Since the thread is 6 months old, some of these guys may not be on the Forum any more. Maybe some new guys who load 380 can add their 2 cents.

The 380 cartridge base is the same as 223 Remington rifle. If your 223 loading block isn't too deep you can use it. But mine is way too deep, so I use the 9mm side of the multi-caliber tray made by MTM if I'm loading with the single-stage press.
 
Hey folks,

Lovesbeer - Off hand, I cannot remember what size bullets my .380 uses, but different .380s may have different bore sizes. I would suggest slugging the barrel of your .380 to see exactly what it is. If it is .355, you could easily use cast bullets sized to .356 or even .357.

Burr - I also do not remember what loading block I use for .380, but I kind of think I actually have a commercially made wood block made for .25 ACP and .380. I know I also have a couple of MTM blocks which will fit most calibers, but I rarely use them, and I still think you can get a wood block from Midway in the small pistol calibers.

I am spending the next four months in Florida, so I am unable to check my loading data.

Best wishes,
Dave Wile
 
Loading block? I just dump the cases and bullets on a cookie sheet next to my press on the benchtop and pick 'em up one at a time as I'm running them through the press, finished rounds go right into the box.
 
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