Powder choice for 357 Mag and 125 gr JHP

[climbnjump]

Do not use blue dot! Alliant put out a warning that using blue dot with 125 grain bullets could cause dangerous pressure spikes and pulled all their data.

Yeah, just because it can't be repeated enough:

http://www.alliantpowder.com/getting_started/safety/safety_notices.aspx

I had just fired about 50 rounds of .41 mag using Blue Dot just before that warning came out. Gave me some real warm and fuzzies...

 

[bluetopper]

2400 powder has been the standard in 357 since 1935.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

Do not use blue dot! Alliant put out a warning that using blue dot with 125 grain bullets could cause dangerous pressure spikes and pulled all their data.

The Alliant warning is an odd one. BD was listed in manuals as a 125 gr powder for years. Funny how there are no alleged problems with lighter or heavier bullets....If their actually was a problem, I wish they would have figured it out before I shot the first 10k+ rounds.

 

[BullfrogKen]

Caster, almost forgot about AA No 7, and I have 12 lbs of it right now. And I've had good success with it in 38 Super. I just shoot so little 357 magnum that I never considered it as an option. Or a least for something on the lower end of the power scale for that bullet.

 

[osteodoc08]

I think I'm gonna load up some with power pistol, H110 and HS-6 on Friday. 100 each in a middle range for each loading and see how they do. Figure out which I like most and then crank out the other 200.

I've got to get more 158 and 180 loaded up. I'm a bigger fan of heavy for caliber loadings but got the 125gr bullets for cheap range fodder.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

10.0 gr of Power Pistol under a 125 JHP out of a 6" gets me 1400+ fps with great accuracy.

 

[Keeperfaith]

I love my 2400, I just wish I can find more in gun stores... I use it in 357, 41 magnum and M-1 carbine loads. Accurate.

Thanks

 

[jmorris]

And very dense fast powders in a deep case are just asking for trouble. Very difficult to see a double charge.

Hard to see small charges in lots of cases. Might change my powder choices if I didn't own any powder check dies.

 

[david bachelder]

For .357 I like Alliant 2400 or Winchester 296 (AKA H-110).

Big bark, big bite. A magnum should sound and feel like a magnum.

 

[CountryUgly]

Yeah, just because it can't be repeated enough:

http://www.alliantpowder.com/getting_started/safety/safety_notices.aspx

I had just fired about 50 rounds of .41 mag using Blue Dot just before that warning came out. Gave me some real warm and fuzzies...

I did not know this!!! Holy Cow! BD is my go to in all my hard hitting pistol rounds including 125gr bullets in .357 mag. Guess I'll stop that now. Guess this explains the excess in noise/recoil with my 125gr XTP / BD load! Power Pistol is my second choice for most other loads so I guess the 125gr will be getting that now and will be my recommendation for the OP's original question.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I loaded 14.0 gr of Blue Dot with 125's for years before the warning. That was actually under the starting weight according to my Speer #11 manual. They sure went boom and threw the fire.

 

[Crashbox]

As has already been said, 2400 is the stuff for 125 JHP .357 hotties. Love it running 17.2 grains, lit with Federal 200 magnum primers. Definitely an attention-getter at the range.

Funny thing happened today which is related to said round report. I was on vacation for two weeks and returned to the firing range, and someone had mentioned that they set some brass aside for me there because they had thought I shot a .44 Magnum...

 

[zxcvbob]

Caster, almost forgot about AA No 7, and I have 12 lbs of it right now. And I've had good success with it in 38 Super. I just shoot so little 357 magnum that I never considered it as an option. Or a least for something on the lower end of the power scale for that bullet.

AA-7 is just like Blue Dot without the drama. It's a very good powder for .357 Magnum, but it won't quite reach what you can do with 2400 or 296 (not that you always need to.) I'm not sure how it compares to 800X and Power Pistol.

I've also loaded .357 with WSF and 125 grain Remington half-jacket HP's, and I thought it was a good load.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

2400 works great. Trouble is it takes nearly twice as much powder than some of the other choices and yields only about 100 more fps.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

AA-7 is just like Blue Dot without the drama. It's a very good powder for .357 Magnum, but it won't quite reach what you can do with 2400 or 296 (not that you always need to.) I'm not sure how it compares to 800X and Power Pistol.

According to some powder burn rate charts AA#7 has the same burn rate as Blue Dot and 800X and is slower than Power Pistol which is more in line with HS-6.

 

[Walkalong]

2400 works great. Trouble is it takes nearly twice as much powder than some of the other choices and yields only about 100 more fps.

But recoil is smoother than with powders using half as much for nearly the same velocity. A little less sharp.

 

[Constrictor]

2400

 

[Lj1941]

125 hp

I am one of those who fired many rounds of Blue Dot loaded 125 Grain loads without any kabooms. That said- I wondered why the huge flash and heavy recoil. It was the starting load from Speer #12. I never chronoed any of those loads so I can't comment on that. I have since switched to Power Pistol for what Alliant calls high performance loads and love it. I use it for 9,40,45ACP,38Spec & 357 Mag. I like it for high performance loads in all of those calibers.Alliant has loads listed for Power Pro 300- MP for a seeming crazy 2000 FPS. I have serious doubts about that load and velocity.I end up with good results from high but not maximum loads of Power Pistol. Flash while present is not nearly as bad IMO as Blue Dot .

 

[10 Spot Terminator]

My vote goes to Unique as like you I was looking for a medium heavy load rather than a full house load . My personal load using a 125 gr. Speer JHP is 7.8 grs of Unique fired from my 4 inch Model 66 Smith & Wesson. Recoil is very manageble making it easy to shoot double action. It runs over 1150 fps and when fired single action off of a pistol perch at 20 yards stays well inside a half dollar. If I wanted to go full house loads I would step up to 2400 .

10 Spot

 

[MAG-63]

I loaded 14.0 gr of Blue Dot with 125's for years before the warning. That was actually under the starting weight according to my Speer #11 manual. They sure went boom and threw the fire.

Back in the mid-late 90s, I loaded and shot several thousand at 14.5 grains (from the Speer #11, and still below max IIRC) with absolutely no problems. I find it odd that Alliant never seemed to have the feared "pressure spikes" when using 110 grain bullets and even greater charges of Blue Dot?