Full Power .38 Wadcutters?

[Vern Humphrey]

If I'm not mistaken, a lot of HBWC's (and WC's for that matter) are swaged out of relatively soft lead. Pushing these to full power .38 speeds would probably get you a lot of leading..

I loaded a batch of HBWC backward in a .357 to slightly over max and took it to Viet Nam on my first tour. It leaded ferociously, but had great terminal effects.

 

[tomh1426]

Wow this is an old thread.
I was just looking for a light .357 target load.
Id like to try some of the plated HBWC's.
I started in the middle and worked up hot loads but now im winding down and lookin for farty target loads.

 

[jaydubya]

Erich, where are you? This is your favorite topic. I await your words.
Cordially, Jack

 

[Bailey Boat]

Ahhhhhh..... the old "upside down wadcutter".... I used to do those and carried them in a little Smith mod 60, cat's pajamas they were.... EVERY paper target I EVER shot with them died instantly!!!

As best as I recall they were 148 gr when loaded and about 130 gr when they came out the end of the 2" barrel, with the remaining 18 gr of lead smeared in the bore !!!!! A pack of smokes and a full bottle of Hoppe's later and it came as clean as a whistle......

 

[Vern Humphrey]

They work -- they lead, but they work. I used them twice, and neither customer asked for his money back.

 

[Cougfan2]

You can load leadwadcutters to higher velocities, but you want to make sure you use good hard cast bullets. When I first started reloading is used Honady 148 gr. HBWC's. They were just barely hard enough to function properly. If you loaded them to hot you had a nice evening with JB bore cleaner and a lewis lead remover.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

If you loaded them to hot you had a nice evening with JB bore cleaner and a lewis lead remover.

Yep -- but I consoled myself with the thought that at least I was alive to clean that revolver.

 

[tasco 74]

i have some of the 148 gr hbwc loaded in reverse in .357 magnum cases myself... vern i have always wondered about the terminal effect of these special loads... mine are loaded over 4.5 grs. of bullseye if i recall and seated pretty far down in the case... it sounds like a guy should cast his own dewcs from hard lead if he wants to push em to a good velocity to avoid the leading problem... i'm thinking they would be very good sd rounds at the right speeds.........

 

[Quoheleth]

Skeeter Skelton loaded a few .38 HBWCS inverted, creating the massive hollowpoint loads. I cannot find his load data, though, in either of the two books of his work that I have. Not saying I would do it, but he did.

'Course, that was back in the day when you could carry your own reloads for self-defense and be reasonably assured the prosecution wouldn't skin you alive.

Q

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

Years ago I loaded up some hard cast WCs in 357 cases over 13.5 grains of 2400. They worked fine, were plenty accurate.

 

[ThomasT]

I have cast and shot the Lee Tumble Lube WC bullets for years. They are cast from wheelweights and dumped in cold water. I have no problems with leading. I use the Alox lube but have since then started using Rooster Jacket. And yes this stuff works fine for the 1100fps that i have pushed it to so far.

I load my solid WC bullets hot. I use 4.5 grs of Bullseye or around 5grs of Unique. These will get around 900-950 fps from a 6" gun. I also seat them long and they function in a Marlin 94 357.

I won most of my trophies in the falling plate matches with these bullets also. That was with a 3 gr charge of Bullseye.

I don't pretend to know how they would work for self defense but i will say i have carried them quite a bit. The above mentioned Terry Mubach wrote in one of his articles that he knew someone that had killed a deer with one.

 

[pete f]

I have used DEWC in .357 loads out of a carbine and if the lube and hardness is right, they do not lead badly at all up to about 1700 FPS< drills nice big holes in yotes and other things.

I did the backwards HBWS thing too. but had a few jump under recoil as there was little for the crimp to resist. SO I started putting gas checks on both ends, then loading with the HB out to the front. I will tell you that stops things right there. I mean they are faster than a 125 .357 mag as a stopper.

 

[Owen Sparks]

I have done some rather considerable experimentation with inverted wadcutters and the problem is that by having the bullets weight forward they tend to tumble. at across the room distances this may not be an issue but at 15 yards accuracy goes to crap and oval holes appear in the target. If you want to load some be sure to test them out of the specific revolver you will be using to see how far out you can count on them to take a head shot.

 

[zxcvbob]

I just figured out last night that .357's loaded with wadcutters will cycle just fine in my Marlin carbine, and I can load 10 in the magazine just like .38 Specials. Whoo-hoo! I tried using .38 Special wadcutters a long time ago and they jammed hopelessly. (.38 Special JHP's and RNFP's feed great.)

I need to do some load development first -- probably something like 14 grains of Accurate 4100 if that much will fit -- but this may end up being what I keep the thing loaded with for TEOTWAWKI instead of handloaded .38-44 HV's (think ".38 Special +P on steroids") in .38 Special brass.

 

[saltydog452]

I had the same results as Owen Sparks, post # 38.

Never tried that load at 15 yds, but it did keyhole at 25. I don't remember the charge, but the bullet wss Speer 148 HBWC loaded backwards.

At that time, some folks played around with Corbin swaging dies and lead rope to produce kinda, sorta expansion at short barrel revolver velocities.

A couple of intrepid souls carried steel frame 38s with cylinder chambers bored out to accept .357 ammo. Don't know how long they lasted, but the resoning was if they held together for a cylinder full of ammo, that'd be enough.

Thankfully we now have reliable ammunition. Nothing can replace shot placement though.

salty