New to Reloading

I use H110 for my 44 mag carbines. I'm told 296 is the same powder.

Yes, 296 will work very well for both .357 mag and 44 mag. However, 38 spcl and 44 spcl can not be loaded with it.

Also know that 296 is a full house magnum powder and can not be reduced below published loads. And it requires a magnum primer to properly light it up. Also, you must use a very firm roll crimp or the bullets will litterally jump out of the case mouths before making it to battery.

I've been loading almost exclusively with this powder for my magnum wheel guns for many years, and it behaves very consistently and predictably. It also performs best when taken up toward the higher end of the charge table.

GS

as utryme said, h110 is the same as win296. just as how hp38 is the same as win231. But yes, 296 is good for a full house hand stinger, but you dont get many loadings out of a pound of powder. I use hp38/win231 for 38 special and it works well for mild 357 loads. I dont load 44 mag but it seems 296/h110 is a preferred powder.

W296/H110 is kind, but unforgiving

CPLofMARINES said:

I may be a few months away when I start, when finances
Open up. But I have a lot of questions, but I am viewing,
Reading and taking notes. So, please be patient. I have
Read here that W296 powder is good for .357 Mag but
Can you also use that for .44 Mag. ? When I start I plan
To start with .38/.357 then move to .44spl/.44Mag Being
That is what I shoot the most. Thank you all for your help.

Semper Fi

Click to expand...

Thanks for your service to our country. Welcome to loading.

That (those) powder give the best performance for recoil and pressure of just about any handgun powder, but if you make a mis-step, they are unforgiving.

What I am saying is that I would not learn to reload using either of those powders.

As you do your reading, pay attention to the subject of powder "quickness". Also the subjects of detonation, pressure spiking and "ringing". While these subjects are controversial (and some even deny the phenomenon exists) caution is to be observed.

When I taught my friend to load, I started him using Trail Boss in his 500 S&W Magnum. It is easy to use, to see in the case, results in low-recoil and low-pressure ammunition and lets you get the basics of the bullets, primers, cases, seating, crimping and cross-checking quality control.

He still uses Trail Boss in addition to Unique, H110 and a couple of other powders. TB is really good for when he wants to let curious onlookers fire off a few rounds of 500 Smith. They can start out with the TB rounds (300 grains at 850 fps) which recoil like a 22 rimfire in that heavy gun. If they like that, they move up to the higher power loads, 350 grains at 1200, and then the 375 grainers over H110 if they like. Only about half do.

In my opinion, Trail Boss is the ticket for learning.

Good luck,

Lost Sheep

The best advice anyone can give you is to get atleast 2 or 3 reloading manuals.
Read them cover to cover atleast twice.

Then you will know what questions to ask.

Manuals like Lyman's 49th Reloading Handbook have a GREAT how-to section & tons of load data.

That data will tell you what bullet, what powder, how much etc, etc.
By reading one, you'll know what powders are really good for what caliber & what bullet.
You'll find that some powders are better with jacketed bullets, whereas some are better with lead.

By the way, w296 is not one of my favorites.

Have you read "The ABC's of Reloading"? Compiled by editors, it features a variety of writers which affords different points of view and speaks in different "voices". Also, almost every loading manual has, in the early chapters, descriptions of the loading processes. Your base library will likely have copies, or your local city library.

Does your base have a gun club? I got a lot of use from the Eglin Air Base club when I was stationed at Hurlburt Field. Though I already knew how to load.

Here are some links to threads you might find interesting

let me share with you some posts and threads I think you will enjoy. So get a large mug of coffee, tea, hot chocolate, whatever you keep on hand when you read and think and read through these.


The "sticky" thread at the top of TheHighRoad.com's reloading forum is good, entitled, "For the New Reloader: Thinking about Reloading; Equipment Basics -- READ THIS FIRST"
http://www.thehighroad.org//showthread.php?t=238214

The "sticky" thread at the top of TheFiringLine's reloading forum is good, entitled, "For the New Reloader: Equipment Basics -- READ THIS FIRST "
http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=230171

"Budget Beginning bench you will never outgrow for the novice handloader". This was informed by my recent (July 2010) repopulation of my loading bench. It is what I would have done 35 years ago if I had known then what I know now.
http://rugerforum.net/reloading/2938...andloader.html

Thread entitled "Newby needs help."
http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=430391
My post 11 is entitled "Here's my reloading setup, which I think you might want to model" November 21, 2010)
My post 13 is "10 Advices for the novice handloader" November 21, 2010)

The first draft of my "10 Advices..." is on page 2 of this thread, about halfway down.
http://www.rugerforum.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=13543

Minimalist minimal
http://www.rugerforum.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=107332

http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=439810

Good luck,

Lost Sheep

Like said above, W296/H110 is a very good powder for both the .357 Magnum and .44 Magnum. It's more suited for full power loads than middle loads and Hodgdon recommends you do not download that powder more than 3% from the Max charge. For the .38 Special and .44 Special I look to the other Winchester powder, W231. W231/HP-38 is much better suited for the Specials and can be safely downloaded to different levels.

My "Powder Trinity" is W231 (HP-38), W540 (HS-6) and W296 (H110). I load almost everything with those 3 powders and they do very well.

If you're looking for a Magnum powder that's more flexible 2400 or AA#9 would be good choices but again, for full power loads W296 can't be beat...

CPLofMARINES said:

What Reefinmike says u don't get many loadings out of a pound.
About how many?? Because a high volume of powder
Is used, also would this be a forgiving powder or one
For an experience reloader ? Thank you

Click to expand...

Different powders have different energy densities and different volume densities. A full load of H110 (filling the case to the bottom of the seated bullet) is approximately the full charge. The same thing holds for Trail Boss. But H110 has a lot more energy packed into that volume.

Trail Boss was developed about 5 or 6 years ago specifically for CASS (Cowboy Action Shooting Sports) which uses lead bullets at black powder pressures and velocities. At first, the maker did not recommend Trail Boss for jacketed bullets, but only for lead. That has since been opened up, but you have to take care not to let velocities fall too low or you could get a jacketed or plated bullet stuck in the bore (and the next shot likely to blow up the gun). But if you keep charges to the point where velocities are reliably above 800 fps this is unlikely.

The two powders are VERY different except that they tend to fill the case.

Bullseye powder is also good for lighter loads, but to get proper pressures and velocities takes a very little, and it is easy to get too much if you are not observant. So it scares me a little. So, TB is my choice for beginners. Bullseye, Unique, Red Dot and others like that for experienced , careful loaders in search of target/plinking loads and 2400 for mid-range to near-maximum loads and H110 (which, frankly, scares me a little, too.)

TB is be good for any straight-walled cartridges shooting lead bullets. That is what it was intended for. But it has been found to be good for bottlenecked cartridges and for plated and jacketed bullets, too. But there is no load data for those uses. The standard rule of thumb is to fill the case up to the bottom of where the seated bullet will be and weigh that amount of powder. Take 70% of that weight and that is your charge. You can increase that up to 100%, watching for signs of pressure along the way.

Lost Sheep

If you use Trail Boss just remember to NEVER compress the load or break up the little donuts that are the powder. Pressure spikes can and will happen if you do that!

Want to hand load and reload need guidance

IDK how to start a thread or I would've but I to need help with reloading and hand loading. I have a .45 and am currently waiting on my refund to pay the rest of my G20 off and I want to learn how to hand load and reload. I have read that a lot of factory loads are weak for the 10mm and I would enjoy the satisfaction of hand loading and reloading .45 and 10mm. Can someone tell me a starter kit or what all I will need to obtain in order to start and I'm a college kid so I don't have ally of cash please keep that in mind. I would really love some advice from some of the knowledgeable and thrifty people of this forum, thank you and sorry if I hijacked the thread.

Run through the links provided by Lost Sheep in post #9.

Thank you very much.

My first indoctrination to reloads was a friend of a friend reloading .357 with W296 at close to the max. Within half a grain I was told. Out of my SP-101, I'd get about three feet of fire out of the muzzle and asked not to do that anymore at least once at an indoor range due to the insane noise coming out of that thing.

That was of course before I learned to caution other people's reloads (no side story).

Unique, 2400 and Bullseye in that order. Be careful with Bullseye but a mainstay for light target loads on a budget.

CPLofMARINES said:

I may be a few months away when I start, when finances
Open up. But I have a lot of questions, but I am viewing,
Reading and taking notes. So, please be patient. I have
Read here that W296 powder is good for .357 Mag but
Can you also use that for .44 Mag. ? When I start I plan
To start with .38/.357 then move to .44spl/.44Mag Being
That is what I shoot the most. Thank you all for your help.

Semper Fi

Click to expand...

Make sure you pick up a book or two! Sierras is great, and has a heck of a lot of information about the reloading process.

Good manuals are indispensable for getting through the beginnings of the reloading process. Reading internet forums can yield some good tips, but it all is kind of "disjointed", little bits of info here and there. The way it's presented in proper reloading manuals really lays it out well, step by step.

Have fun, be safe, and welcome to the hobby.

I use Universal Clays (mid burn rate) and Bullyseye ( fast burn rate ) for almost all my reloading calibers. Bullseye would be great for 38 spl and the 44 spl with accurate target loads. When I want a hotter load I move up to Universal Clays for my 357 mag. As I don't load at the top of the Magnum levels these serve my purpose.

Be careful of Bullseye because you can double or even tripple charge the brass before seating a bullet by accident and that WILL blow up your firearm as well as possibly your hand/more. When starting to reload you should start by filling cases with a propellant that will fill that case more than 1/2 way full with a charge so you can easily see if there is too much in there and thus avoid blowing up anything. The more "economical" propellants tend to fill the case only a small amount as they have more energy packed into that smaller amount to yield the same results. This is really a double edged sword to the new reloader. Finally this should not be a problem after you understand what the many dangerous things to look for are once you have reloaded for a while. Think of it like a self imposed learners permit for safety. I agree that you should get a couple or three reloading manuals and study them well before you start this adventure, it will save you time/money/body parts IMHO.

Reloading is not unsafe at all if you approach it with an open mind and plenty of caution while following the directions in a good reloading book.

Mr Marine -
Thank you for your service.

The over-riding concern in reloading is always chamber pressure. You will quickly work out a loading process that helps you maintain high accuracy in powder measurements, but for safety sake let's start with a benign round. If you own a 357 Mag, then I'd suggest you learn the basics by reloading 38 Spcl for several months. That's a low pressure round and when shot in a 357 gun will give you extra layers of security.

THEN, when you have a better idea how to set the dies, how your powder measure is going to behave, which brand of bullet you like working with, how to keep your reloading notebook, and a million other start-up details, THEN you can move on to 357 Mag. Learn to walk before you try running.

What Reefinmike says u don't get many loadings out of a pound.

Click to expand...

It really doesn't matter. If you'll cost out all your components, the bullet and primer cost more by far. You may consume more powder by volume, but not by cost. Powder is by far the lowest of all your expenses.

CPLofMARINES said:

What Reefinmike says u don't get many loadings out of a pound.
About how many?? Because a high volume of powder
Is used, also would this be a forgiving powder or one
For an experience reloader ? Thank you

Click to expand...

1 pound of powder = 7000 grains. So a 15 grain charge would yield approximately 466 rounds. Approximate, because there are always small discrepencies such as weight variance, spillage, etc. But it's a good fact to remember.

+1 to FROG. A triple charge of Bullseye in a 44 mag could make for a bad day. I don't think you can blow yourself up with Unique without doing it on purpose.