A cost effective .357 load

[lordgroom]

Has anyone ever used Bullseye or Unique for .357 Magnum? I current have Bullseye and 2400 (no Unique yet) but I am looking for more cost effectiveness. What loads do you find effective for a practice load?

I am firing 158 gr. laser cast SWC bullets from a Colt Mark V Trooper revolver with a 4 inch barrel. I have found that 13 gr. of 2400 is a very accurate load for my colt but I am looking for a more economical loading.

Using 13 gr. of 2400 yields only 538 shots per 1 pound of 2400.

Bullseye:
Lyman lists a range of 4.8 -7 gr. which is 1458 to 1000 shots per pound of powder
Lee lists a range of 5.9-6.5 gr. which is 1186 to 1076 shots per pound of powder

Unique:
Lyman lists a range of 6.4 to 8.3 gr. which is 1093 to 843 shots per pound of powder

Any advice on a cost effective and accurate loading? I fire .38 special from the same handgun but I enjoy feel and recoil of the .357 so it doesn’t necessarily have to be a light load.

 

[Clark]

The max H110 [slow powder] 357 mag loads are hard on the primer.
The max Bullseye [fast powder] 357 mag loads are hard on the web.

 

[lordgroom]

It doesn't have to be a max load but i want an accurate load.

 

[XD-40 Shooter]

You could run 6.5 grains of Unique with a 158 grain lead bullet, my Lee book show's a range of 6.2-6.8 grains, that'll give you over a thousand rounds/pound.

My pet load is 9 grains of Unique behind a Rem 125 grain SJHP, its a very accurate, mid-range 357 load, chrono's at 1350 fps. I get about 750 rounds/pound out of this one. Unique is good for mid-range 357 loads.

 

[joneb]

Bullseye with small pistol primers and 158gr SWC I think you will find a good load with those ingredients, I would load 5 to 10 rounds at 4.8gr and work up in .2 gr increments and see what shoots well in your gun. It's a pain but clean between the different loads.

 

[campbell]

Titegroup and 158 grainers is a popular combo.

 

[Joemyxplyx]

Alliant Promo

For the lowest cost pistol powder, I've been looking at Alliant Promo. Alliant Bullseye and Red Dot cost $91.50 for 8lbs from Powder Valley. Promo which uses Red Dot loading data costs $75.75 for 8lbs, a savings of about $2.00/lb.

Promo is hard to find locally. But if you burn through 1,000's of rounds per month, it seems like it would be worth looking into. Loading data is around 5-6 grains for a 158gr bullet.

Promo is cheaper than Bullseye, which is one of the cheapest .38 cal loadings around. However, if you aren't shooting thousands of rounds/month, I don't think you'll notice the difference in your pocketbook at the end of the year.

As always, this advice is worth what you paid for it.

 

[dmftoy1]

Slightly different approach to the problem . . .

My 70 year old mother wanted to start shooting/practicing with a .357 loaded to .38 special levels. In looking at the problem it seemed to me that the bullets were the most expensive part of the equation once the cost of the brass was out of the equation:

(Starline Brass - new) - $15.29 per 100 = .15 per case
(Generic Cast bullets) - $25 per 500 = .05 per bullet
(Powder - Bullseye) - $15.99 per pound = .01 per cartridge (4 grains)
(Primer - WSP ) - $25 per k = .03 per cartridge

So figuring that the brass cost is amortized across multiple loadings it seemed to make sense to me to pick up a 6 cavity lee aluminum mold and a pair of handles and start casting my own. I figure that it costs me about .01 per bullet casting my own. (can be cheaper if I get the wheel weights for free)

FWIW.

 

[mainebear]

I use the exact same load jibjab uses. It's hard to beat Bullseye for economical powders. A little goes a looong way. Happy shooting.

 

[lordgroom]

dmftoy1- I am interested in casting at a later date as I see it as something I could really get into. Many things prevent me at the current time. I have small children in the house and no good place to do it outside. I wouldn't want to poison my children.

Thanks for the loads everyone. Keep them coming. I might consider trying the 125 gr bullet too.

Why small pistol primer with the bullseye. How will it make a difference?

 

[lordgroom]

Cost is another factor as I just bought a RCBS pro 2000 and more in the past year.

 

[joneb]

Why small pistol primer with the bullseye. How will it make a difference?

Mag primers with Bullseye is not needed, So why would you use mag primers ? I find it to be lazy when one out of the seven other powders listed requires magnum primers, and the load data will list all the other powders with mag primers when it is not needed

 

[GooseGestapo]

I shoot thousands of .38spl wadcutters annually. I use 2.6gr of Bullseye under a 148gr wadcutter. About as cost effective as you'll get.
They are as accurate as the gun/components you are using.

With the .357mag, I use 7.5gr of Unique under a cast 158gr SWC. I find this load equally accurate and nearly as fast, but equally effective as 14.5gr of #2400 under the same bullet. The Unique load gives 1275fps, the #2400 gives about 1425fps.

With a 165gr GC-SWC, I've found either 6.5gr of Unique or 13.5gr of #2400.
I've killed 200lbs pigs DRT with this #2400 load. Usually they're balled up under the hide on the far side......

I don't like Bullseye in the .357mag case. It's too easy to overlook a double charge. Impossible to do with either the Unique or #2400 as it'll overflow the case. It's possible to even triple-charge a .38spl case with Bullseye and ditto for the .357mag case.

But, if you do use Bullseye, I'd recommend about 4.5gr with a Lead 158gr SWC for "cost effective".......
Though I usally just use 3.5gr in a .38spl case and call it good........... (about 900fps good !!!!).