Suter's Choice .38 cal Question

[efelien]

Hello,
I purchased 500 125 gr Suter's "hard cast" RNFP from Sheels, but I can't find any info on how hard they actually are. I want to load them using Bullseye, and I would like to know how fast I should push them in my GP 100 6" to minimize leading.

 

[Hanshi]

Very hard bullets fired in most revolvers lead terribly around the forcing cone. This can affect accuracy and is very difficult to remove. The reason is that in a revolver a hard bullet is much more difficult to expand and seal and some gasses blast by causing a "soldering" effect. With a target load of Bullseye you shouldn't have much problem. I've loaded commercial hard cast bullets over moderate loads of Unique and Red Dot (900-1000fps) with good results. It's just something you should watch for.

 

[rcmodel]

Rule of thumb (nail)
If you can scratch a lead bullet with your thumbnail, it is soft.
If you can't, it is hard.

In general, 125 RNFP bullets are sold for light load cowboy action shooting.
As such, they will be too soft to take magnum pressure & velocity.
I would suggest you try 4.0 Bullseye and see what you see.

rc

 

[Fanky]

I just loaded up some .38 Specials with these for my 6" 19-4 the other day in various charges of Bullseye. I had my best luck around 3.8-3.9 grains.