Can a .358 jacketed bullet be used in a .355 barrel?

[Oleg Volk]

Would it have to be swaged to .355, or would I just have to keep the charge down?

Also, would a .35 Whelen bullet (180-200gr) stabilize out of a .357 Mag barrel, assuming the OAL of the round wasn't excessive?

 

[pbhome71]

Oleg,

A .357Mag barrel is .357, not .355. 9x19 has .355 barrel.

I would think the 35 Whelen bullet will be stabilized.

However, a rifle bullet has heavier construction than of a pistol bullet of the same weight. The reason, as I understand, is because a rifle bullet is design to work at higher velocity.

If you want heavier bullet, why not try Hornady XTP line?

-Pat

 

[griz]

I've fired .358" lead bullets out of a 9mm (.355") handgun and it actually resulted in a nice accurate load. But I was cautious about the diameter of the loaded round, worked up from starting loads, and did not try it with a jacketed bullet.

Speer listed 180 grain loads for silhouette shooting. The crimping groove is in the wrong place for 357 so there was a little work involved to get the OAL correct.

 

[djl4570]

Parker Ackley experimented with bullet diameter and pressure and discovered that the diameter of the bullet has less effect on pressure than the chamber neck dimension. With a larger diameter bullet the chamber needs enough clearance for the brass case to expand and release the bullet. Once the bullet swaged onto the rifling it had been resized to the proper diameter.

Rifle bullets are designed with terminal ballistics of rifle velocities in mind. Heavier construction to acheive penetration higher velocities. Such bullets fired from a handgun are unlikely to provide good terminal performance. Handguns will also have twist rates for the lighter bullets typical of handguns that will not properly stabilize the typically heavier rifle bullets of the same caliber.