Quiet 357 handload question

Hi. This is my first post on THR.

I am just about to get into hand loading for my 38spl and 357 revolvers, a Dan Wesson 15-2, Ruger SP101 and a S&W M360 airweight.

I live the diversity of the 357 but do not like the blast and shock of hot loads. I also have a lot of H110 and W296 that needs using up.

In an attempt to find a modest load that exceeds 38+p without the thunderous punishment of 357 I have come up with the following idea based on my dubious internet research.

Since these powders cannot be downloaded due to lower pressures affecting performance I was wondering if using a heavy bullet, 180gr or more, seated deeper into the case would create the higher pressures need for the H110/ W296 but would do so using less powder because the smaller space in the case and the heavier bullet would still keep the pressures high enough for long enough for reliable combustion.

I do not intend trying this out myself. I am way too new to be experimenting with such things, but am curious as the the theoretical possibility of such a round and possible development at a later stage.

I know that it is strongly advised that I follow the loading manual and will do just that, but it doesn't hurt to speculate.

My aim is to find a load that may burn all or most of the powder before the bullet leaves the barrel while still maintaining a good 357 pressure for good penetration without the harsh report. I want a woods carry round for the SP101 that will not blow out the eardrums of my wife and I if I needed to use it in a hurry. There will be no time to put on hearing protection in a self defence situation yet from what I hear a woods carry pistols should be 357 or more.

Maybe another powder would work better.

I guess the quick question is does anyone have any knowledge of the magnum powders being used in smaller charges in smaller spaces to keep the pressure high?

Thanks guys, I appreciate any input you may have.

As a quick addition; I know many people say that given the adrenalin of the situation I will not likely hear the muzzle blast but I have read enough accounts of people suffering permanent hearing damage and lifelong tinnitus from just one full house 357 round being shot without hearing protection. I do not want to take that risk. If I am being responsible enough to take charge of the safety of myself and my wife and I give one or both of us permanent hearing damage then as far as I am concerned I partially failed in my attempt. Next time I may not hear any attack coming until at all over the constant ringing.

Excellent information. Thank you gentlemen.

I jumped on the H110 because It was $50 for a mostly full 8lb jug on Craigslist a couple of weeks ago. The guy said his step father died and he had no use for it since he didn't reload. Sounded too good to be true but it passed the smell and flash tests. This is at a time when none of my local stores (Jacksonville, FL) have any pistol powder at all and at my first gun show last month only one vendor had powder and was asking $220+ for 8lb and 100 WWB 9mm fmj were $80 a box. Not to mention that all the seals were very carefully broken on all his "new" powder cannisters.

I don't shoot the full house mag loads much so I guess it will last me a long time. It's not the recoil that bothers me, it's the sound wave that seems to penetrate my skull despite protection. A push type recoil rather than a snap would be fine. I find this with Corbon 125gr JHP +P in the snubby. A potent boom rather than a sharp snap like the other ammo I was trying out that day. I could shoot that all day.

So is it the amount of powder that is crucial and not just the pressures then? I guess it must be or you could load effective .38 special rnds with it.

My logic told me that it should be possible to re-create the same behaviour using the same pressures with less powder in a smaller space but for less time and so reduced blast but I can see how you would need more powder to help create an even burn with H110, just like you can't build an effective fire with a handful of matchsticks even though the proportions are equal to a barrow load of 12" x1" sticks which would burn great.

I also have some Red Dot, Unique, Tite Group and a little Clays to play with too.
I got some leftovers from a friend who was giving up reloading for 38/357 so can afford to experiment a bit.

The biggest issue I have is the absolute absence of mag primers needed for the H110. All that powder and nothing to ignite it. I scored 500 today at Ace while I am visiting Clayton GA, it was all they had. I may go back tomorrow and pick up some SR4756. Who knows when I will see any more in my neck of the woods?

Post deleted.

The main issue was that I have a whole load of H110 and not a lot of anything else due to bad shirtages in my area and was wondering if there was a way to use it without running nothing but full power 357 loads. I don't dislike 357 but wouldn't want to shoot it all the time. I will use other powders for 38.

I admit that I was thinking aloud as I was typing with subsequent posts when I should have kept my questions short and to the point.

As has been pointed out here H110 is what it is and I have to accept that.

However, looking at the loading data on Hodgdon's website the powder charge for H110 varies from 13gr for 180gr bullets to 22 gr for 110 gr bullets. That seems like a huge difference to me. I know that a heavier bullet will increase recoil (not a problem) but surely using roughly 40% less powder for the heavier buller is going to reduce the blast and flash significantly.

I am still totally new to reloading and am just trying to understand how it all works rather than blindly following the rules without insight into the process.

Good answers all round. I like this place.

I came across a post somewhere, can't remember where now, someone was asking about the different max/ min loads from different loading manuals from different years. It seems that the old minimum was higher than the new max, or the other way around. Not that I'd load up with this kind of data but interesting to see how the "RULES" change with time. What is set in stone today was written in the sand a few years ago.

Edit:
So I came across this on another forum:

"When consulting my Hornady 7th edition. the loads they list are against the powder manufacturer's strict warnings about cutting the max load more than 3%
Not sure what to make off this.
HDY 158gr XTP bullet.
H 110 Start: 12.7gr WSPM primer
H 110 Max: 15.6gr WSPM primer

All my other manuals state start around 16 and max around 17

Thoughts?"
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"You must be comparing loads using the older SAAMI max chamber pressure specs (46,000 CUP). The new SAAMI max chamber pressure spec is 35,000 psi, which works out to 16 gr of H-110 with a 158 gr bullet. For a safety margin, the max powder charge should be about 15.5 gr and should achieve 1200 fps from a 6" barrel. The minimum charge weight should be 12.5 gr @ 1000 fps, both well within the upper and lower limits. The old "do not reduce more than 3% below" was found to be way too conservative ... in fact, new data max loads are lower than the old starting loads."