38 super handloads

[brutus51]

New to this caliber, looking for accurate handloads for target shooting. Will be using Extreme 124gr. 9mm plated flat points for starters. Powders on hand are HP-38, Bullseye, AA#7, Power Pistol, Universal Clays and CFE pistol. Will be using CCI #500 primers and Starline brass.

 

[12Bravo20]

I can’t help with reloading 38 Super.

I do reload 9mm Largo (9x23). My reloads are mild since I shoot them in an older Star Super A. I use Berry’s 124 go flat point plated bullets over a 5.2gr charge of Hodgdon Universal powder. I get good results out of the old Star with that combo.

 

[someguy2800]

No experience with 38 super but if I were loading it I would use power pistol

 

[fxvr5]

Not sure what kind of accuracy you'll get with plated bullets. The proven accurate bullets are jacketed.

Power Pistol in the 5.5 to 6.5 grains range produce very good results in my pistol - around 1" groups at 25 yards with jacketed bullets.

 

[Cemetery21]

My loads are mild and reasonably accurate in my pistol. 124 gr. Ranier over 5.0 gr. HP-38

 

[Walkalong]

Not sure what kind of accuracy you'll get with plated bullets.

The Berrys 124 Gr TP-HBRN actually shoots pretty well in the .38 Super, as does the Powerbond 124 Gr HP. My favorite is the Zero 125 Gr .356 .38 Super bullet. Both are tough for plated. I would expect that some plated would not fair as well.

 

[brutus51]

Thanks for the feedback, any idea what kind of velocities your rounds yield? Intend to keep the plated bullets in the 1100/1200 fps. range. Starting around 1100.

 

[ATLDave]

AA#7 has been a standard powder for 38 super in the action pistol sports (USPSA/IPSC in particular) for a couple of decades. Of course, that's in the context of open guns with compensators and/or ports, so AA7's large volume of gas is a good thing. It may be a touch slow for trying to stay under 1200 fps, as the suggested start loads are north of that number in the Western Powder data, but not by a lot. But AA7 and 38 super go together like peanut butter and jelly.

 

[Shimitup]

HS-6 does the peanut butter and jelly for me. I've had HS-6 around for years doing small lots for this or that caliber for which it is recommended, never really satisfied with it until I tried it in 38 super. The case volume seems right, finally burned clean, great accuracy and excellent velocity.

 

[ATLDave]

As that's a slightly faster powder than AA#7, I can easily believe it's a good fit for 38 super where you're not trying to drive a comp or hit major power factor.

 

[Dudedog]

Try them All
You never know until you try!

Rocky Mountain Reloading (RMR) has some really good prices on their in house 9mm jacketed bullets. They work really well for me in 9mm, no reason they should not work well in .38 super that I can think of.
5% Discount for THR members with your THR screen name and the code "TheHighRoad5" free shipping to.
RMR normally ships quickly and uses USPS priority mail. Light years faster shipping than Xtreme and much better bullets IMO.

With all those powders to try you made need more bullets

 

[brutus51]

Having a heck of a time getting this project launched. First paperwork delays and the holiday delayed shipment, hopefully get it today. Then yesterday when I finally got some time to reload I discovered my brand new RCBS dies are sizing the cases undersize and leaving a distinct ring around the case about 7/16 from the rim. A call to RCBS was placed and the tech thinks the carbide insert was pressed in backwards. At any rate I'm dead in the water until the new dies show up probably Monday or Tuesday. By the way RCBS is a great company to work with. Wish Kimber would adapt their customer service philosophy.

 

[rfwobbly]

I've also got a Kimber in 38 Super. Here's what I've learned...
• I suspect that lots of modern Supers are simply 9mm barrels reamed for the Super chamber. That being the case the results have been excellent using 9mm bullets interchangeably. But when bullet shopping, don't forget to check under both listings. It loves the Berry 124gr HBRN and the coated 135gr RN from MBC (IDP#8).
• Super likes a slightly slower powder than 9x19. So any powder that's a good defensive powder for Luger is an excellent target powder for Super. Examples: N340, No7, Unique, HS-6, Silhouette, WSF, BE-86, and similar.
• My Kimber choked on feeding Berry 124gr Target HP, and does not like to extract 38 Super Comp brass.

 

[ATLDave]

My Kimber choked on feeding Berry 124gr Target HP, and does not like to extract 38 Super Comp brass.

Since the difference between Super Comp and regular Super brass is the rim diameter, that stands to reason! IIUC, you could re-tune the extractor to run the Super Comp brass.... but then it might not like the non-Comp ones.

 

[rfwobbly]

...you could re-tune the extractor to run the Super Comp brass.... but then it might not like the non-Comp ones.

I went so far as to buy a high-end extractor from Brownells.... which performed even worse! So I simply started sorting out all the Comp brass.

 

[ATLDave]

I went so far as to buy a high-end extractor from Brownells.... which performed even worse!

But it's not a question of quality. The geometry is different. Some gun/extractor combos may run both, but most of the time it's one or the other, from what I have read. There's just much less rim to grab on the Comp brass, so the claw of the extractor has to go materially further in towards the center of the breach face. That much extra "tension" will often cause feed problems with non-Comp brass. Most people have to sort brass - it's just a question of which ones they're sorting out.

FWIW, the Comp brass is designed to improve intra-magazine behavior in double-stack 2011 race guns. Some shooters find that the rims get "tangled" on the non-Comp brass in their big competition magazines and they get feeding problems or magazines that completely lock up. The semi-rimmed non-Comp cases aren't really a problem in the single-stack magazine, though. (Similarly, you don't see many double-stack .22lr magazines/designs - the rims would get tangled, so you have to keep them in a single row). Your Kimber is a single-stack, I assume, so there's not much reason to try to change over to the Comp stuff (unless you can get big piles of it for free, but have to pay for non-Comp brass).

 

[Walkalong]

But it's not a question of quality. The geometry is different. Some gun/extractor combos may run both,

I'm lucky, both my Colt and my Springfield will function with either, but I run Super Comp. Both single stack.

 

[fxvr5]

Most extractors can be tuned to run both types of brass. I have several 38 Supers and they all function with semi-rimmed and rimless.