Reloading .357 mag

[Ubermeier]

Both will be fun to shoot but I'm more for the 1911 than the Redhawk. It's not that there is anything wrong with the Redhawk, I just don't want to load for another cartridge. When looking for a forty cal I went with the 45 Colt and 45 ACP instead of the .44 Magnum.

I will most likely get the 1911 first, the wife enjoys shooting .45 ACP more than .44 magnum. I like them all, but have an affinity for .44 Magnums:

 

[RealGun]

What are your favourite primers, powders and projectiles for loading .357 magnum? I'm not looking for data, just which components work best for you, to help me find a starting point. Looking to load for a 6" Ruger revolver. Thanks.

My Security Six is a shorter barrel (4") than yours, but I load it and the Smith model 19 as "medium" level loads. There I am using BE-86 (7.5 gr) and Missouri 158 gr bare lead SWC, their "357 Action!". I have a "heavy" load with HS-6 and a "full" load with W296/H110, there using coated and XTP respectively, either in larger guns than the Security Six, massive enough to handle the recoil for a mere mortal.

 

[Legionnaire]

I shoot Missouri Bullet 158 gr SWCs almost exclusively; my next order will be coated.
I use Trailboss for light plinking and target shooting; Alliant 2400 for full power hunting loads; Unique for intermediate loads.
Beauty of reloading for a revolver is the broad spectrum of power you can achieve with the same projectile.

 

[Ubermeier]

My Security Six is a shorter barrel (4") than yours, but I load it and the Smith model 19 as "medium" level loads. There I am using BE-86 (7.5 gr) and Missouri 158 gr bare lead SWC, their "357 Action!". I have a "heavy" load with HS-6 and a "full" load with W296/H110, there using coated and XTP respectively, either in larger guns than the Security Six, massive enough to handle the recoil for a mere mortal.

The 6" heavy barrel on mine does make a big difference reducing felt recoil for sure.

It sounds like HS-6 was a good choice, with the ability to load medium to heavy loads. I can already tell I am going to enjoy this almost as much as shooting.

 

[2ndtimer]

I have been loading for various .357 Magnums for 35 years or so, and have used most of the powders mentioned so far, except my new favorite. I like Alliant Power Pistol with a 170 gr Keith style SWC. It is only about 100 fps behind similar top loads with W-296, H-110 or Power Pro 300-MP, and uses about half as much powder per cartridge. I still prefer the slower powders for jacketed 158 gr bullets (W-296, H-110, 2400, 300-MP, Accurate No. 9) I also have loaded a bunch of milder loads with 148 gr Wadcutters and 158 gr cast SWC bullets using Unique, W-231, HP-38, Universal and most recently, Titegroup. Titegroup is a very clean burning powder that utilizes very small charge weights and is not position sensitive in the case. A very versatile propellant that I also use in 9mm and .45 ACP.

 

[RealGun]

For reloading or hand loading the .357 mag I use pretty much any brass that has been accumulated over the last 40 years. I have at times bought new untrimmed or primed brass when found on sale as well as range pick ups and brass from friends that do not reload.

Primers I use are generaly any that I find at reasonable prices. Probably have used more Winchesters than any others over the years but have all the common ones by CCI and Federal along with Fiocchi and currently have some S&B . Never did use many Remington's just because they don't go on sale often. Ball powders get magnum primers where they're recommended and others get standard primers.

For bullets I like Remington or Winchester Bulk in 125 or 158gr but load Speer, Sierra, and Hornady also. For practice I generally shoot .38 spl loaded with 158gr lead in either SWC or RN and usually have a box or 2 or full power .357mag SWC 158gr hard cast loaded using AA9 to 1,250 fps out of a 4" barrel.

As far as powder goes will use anything that I can find data for but my favorites are 2400 for 158gr and heavier jacked bullets, Blue Dot for 140gr and under, Unique or W231 for .38 spl. W296/H110 for Rifle. Unique or AA9 for cast depending upon what velocity I'm looking for.

Yesterday I found 10 out of 100 Winchester new cases in 357 to be too big for my Lee shell holder (R1), so I made a note to always use my Hornady shell holder #H6 for 357 with Winchester cases (and Blazer, CBC, and others I set aside). Those shell holders are not the same height, so dies have to be adjusted to go from one to the other. I find an issue with 38 Special too, there also including CBC and Blazer. The Hornady #6 lets the cases wobble during sizing and priming, so I do prefer the Lee and brass that fits it. Starline is always a winner.

 

[GooseGestapo]

I'm going to make a plug for Hodgdon Lil'Gun.
I use 17.8gr (Hod max 18.0) under a Hornady 158gr XTP, or bulk 158gr R.E.M. JHP I bought about 18yrs ago.
This gets 2,050fps from a 20"bbl Win M94. 1,500fps from a 4" RugerSec6.
Nothing else come close. 14.5gr #2400 or 16.5gr H110 are 100fps slower from handgun, 150fps from rifle.

I keep Lil'Gun on hand for .410, .22Hornet, .218Bee, and .300B.O., so it seems natural.
In .44mag, I never need any more than 10gr of Unique.

 

[Walkalong]

and is not position sensitive in the case.

It is certainly advertised as such, but when doing powder forward vs powder back tests it was only average. Still burned clean either way.

I like WST or Competition (Lean towards WST but bought Comp last time because WST was nonexistent. Very little difference) and an X-Treme 158 Gr SWC for light target/plinking loads in .357 cases.

I finally scored some BE-86 at the recent gun show and am going to try tightgroup tiger's posted midrange load with BE-86 and the X-Treme 158 gr SWC.

 

[blarby]

Personally, I like lighter and faster in 357, because I prefer the feel of the shorter recoil pulse in full framed 6 shot revolvers.

The Hornady 110 XTP is great, even on top of full-tilt H110.

If you prefer heavier bullets, 158's from Nosler can usually be had in a factory seconds offering on the cheap. For the best accuracy I've found in all of my revolvers, a hard-cast .358 SWC either hand poured or from Mo Bullet are always worth considering.

 

[Ubermeier]

I'm going to make a plug for Hodgdon Lil'Gun.
I use 17.8gr (Hod max 18.0) under a Hornady 158gr XTP, or bulk 158gr R.E.M. JHP I bought about 18yrs ago.
This gets 2,050fps from a 20"bbl Win M94. 1,500fps from a 4" RugerSec6.
Nothing else come close. 14.5gr #2400 or 16.5gr H110 are 100fps slower from handgun, 150fps from rifle.

I keep Lil'Gun on hand for .410, .22Hornet, .218Bee, and .300B.O., so it seems natural.
In .44mag, I never need any more than 10gr of Unique.

Lil gun was one of the few powders available at my LGS. I will have to pick a lb up for experimenting with full power loads. Thanks for the information.

 

[Ubermeier]

Personally, I like lighter and faster in 357, because I prefer the feel of the shorter recoil pulse in full framed 6 shot revolvers.

The Hornady 110 XTP is great, even on top of full-tilt H110.

If you prefer heavier bullets, 158's from Nosler can usually be had in a factory seconds offering on the cheap. For the best accuracy I've found in all of my revolvers, a hard-cast .358 SWC either hand poured or from Mo Bullet are always worth considering.

So far due to ammo availability at my LGS, I have only shot 158 gr projectiles (LRN to JHP) in .38/.357 magnum.

Lighter projectiles will be something I will have to try out. How do you find the accuracy? Comparable to 158 gr? Thanks for the info.

It looks like loading .357 magnum is going to be interesting for years to come with all the projectile weights and powders to experiment with.

 

[Walkalong]

Lighter bullets in .357 mag can be very accurate, but I don't care for the flash & blast the heavy charges with light bullets have.

Of course some people love it.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

Lil gun was one of the few powders available at my LGS. I will have to pick a lb up for experimenting with full power loads. Thanks for the information.

Just a warning about Lil'Gun with ammo used in a handgun. I have found it generated excessive heat and can be hard on the forcing cone. I will never use Lil'Gun in any of my handguns ever again. I will only use Lil'Gun with heavy bullets in the .357 Magnum shot in my levergun.

 

[xphunter]

I won't use it in a revolver either.
H-110 is primary for in 158's-180 grainers

 

[RealGun]

So far due to ammo availability at my LGS, I have only shot 158 gr projectiles (LRN to JHP) in .38/.357 magnum.

Lighter projectiles will be something I will have to try out. How do you find the accuracy? Comparable to 158 gr? Thanks for the info.

It looks like loading .357 magnum is going to be interesting for years to come with all the projectile weights and powders to experiment with.

Somewhere in all this there was a statement to the effect that a 357 is a 357. Well, I have loads for "Lite", "Medium", and "Heavy", each with a bullet weight to correspond. I actually have a "Full" category too but not that I shoot much. I have a pretty complete array of gun sizes in .357. These .357 guns come in at least three size/weight categories, preferences quickly departing from the original Smith N-frame guns that kept the power of full up loads under reasonable control. The alternative of the easy way out of shooting 38 Special is one way, but those dedicated to use of full sized cases may have a variety of loads they use depending upon the intended gun.

 

[maxxhavoc]

I will most likely get the 1911 first, the wife enjoys shooting .45 ACP more than .44 magnum. I like them all, but have an affinity for .44 Magnums:

Consider the 454 then. A bit more power than the 44, and the "light recoil" companion cartridge is the .45 Colt. Personally, I like .454 more than .44 Magnum, and 45 Colt more than .44 SPC. .45 components are very easy to find as well.

 

[breacher]

I have been loading for various .357 Magnums for 35 years or so, and have used most of the powders mentioned so far, except my new favorite. I like Alliant Power Pistol with a 170 gr Keith style SWC. It is only about 100 fps behind similar top loads with W-296, H-110 or Power Pro 300-MP, and uses about half as much powder per cartridge. I still prefer the slower powders for jacketed 158 gr bullets (W-296, H-110, 2400, 300-MP, Accurate No. 9) I also have loaded a bunch of milder loads with 148 gr Wadcutters and 158 gr cast SWC bullets using Unique, W-231, HP-38, Universal and most recently, Titegroup. Titegroup is a very clean burning powder that utilizes very small charge weights and is not position sensitive in the case. A very versatile propellant that I also use in 9mm and .45 ACP.

Care to share your Power Pistol recipe? Not much data available for PP in 357. I have a few lbs of it for my 40 cal Glock loads and just recently started loading for a S&W 28-2. I can advise that 17.0 gr of LIL' GUN behind a 158 gr Xtreme plated flat point will leave rings of copper plating in the forcing cone and result in 3 foot groups at 20 yards!! I still have about 400 plated bullets left and would like to get rid of them with the PP. Stick with coated lead or jacketed in the future for magnum loads.

 

[Ubermeier]

Just a warning about Lil'Gun with ammo used in a handgun. I have found it generated excessive heat and can be hard on the forcing cone. I will never use Lil'Gun in any of my handguns ever again. I will only use Lil'Gun with heavy bullets in the .357 Magnum shot in my levergun.

I won't use it in a revolver either.
H-110 is primary for in 158's-180 grainers

I can advise that 17.0 gr of LIL' GUN behind a 158 gr Xtreme plated flat point will leave rings of copper plating in the forcing cone and result in 3 foot groups at 20 yards!! I still have about 400 plated bullets left and would like to get rid of them with the PP. Stick with coated lead or jacketed in the future for magnum loads.

Point taken gentlemen. I will stay clear of lil gun in my revolver.

 

[RealGun]

Care to share your Power Pistol recipe? Not much data available for PP in 357. I have a few lbs of it for my 40 cal Glock loads and just recently started loading for a S&W 28-2. I can advise that 17.0 gr of LIL' GUN behind a 158 gr Xtreme plated flat point will leave rings of copper plating in the forcing cone and result in 3 foot groups at 20 yards!! I still have about 400 plated bullets left and would like to get rid of them with the PP. Stick with coated lead or jacketed in the future for magnum loads.

The older generation Alliant guide lists 8.0 max Power Pistol at 1305 fps for JSP, the closest I found to your plated 158 gr.

 

[breacher]

I was getting about 1300 fps with the 17gr lil' gun load when the plating began to shed. I guess I'll back that off to 7.0 gr of PP and see what happens. Same 17gr lil' gun charge registered almost 1400 fps with 158gr coated LSWC on my chrony with no ill effects. Accuracy was nothing special tho. I have some W296 I need to crack open and try next.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

I was getting about 1300 fps with the 17gr lil' gun load when the plating began to shed. I guess I'll back that off to 7.0 gr of PP and see what happens. Same 17gr lil' gun charge registered almost 1400 fps with 158gr coated LSWC on my chrony with no ill effects. Accuracy was nothing special tho. I have some W296 I need to crack open and try next.

I highly recommend using magnum primer with W296.

 

[Captcurt]

I have killed several deer with my GP100. It really likes 180gr. XTPs over a stiff load of AA9 or H110. Shot it out to 100 yards with a Tasco ProPoint. Works swell.

 

[Reeferman]

One of the most accurate loads in my 686 with a 4.25" barrel is 19.1 of 296 with a 125 HP XTP. Burns really clean as well.

 

[2ndtimer]

Care to share your Power Pistol recipe? Not much data available for PP in 357. I have a few lbs of it for my 40 cal Glock loads and just recently started loading for a S&W 28-2. I can advise that 17.0 gr of LIL' GUN behind a 158 gr Xtreme plated flat point will leave rings of copper plating in the forcing cone and result in 3 foot groups at 20 yards!! I still have about 400 plated bullets left and would like to get rid of them with the PP. Stick with coated lead or jacketed in the future for magnum loads.

I have loaded 7.8 gr behind the 170 gr cast SWC in my 6" GP-100 and use 7.5 gr in my 2.1" SP-101. The 6 inch chronos around 1250+ and the snub hits right at 1000 fps. Both are very accurate with minimal leading. I sort of extrapolated from the Alliant data online which showed 8.5 gr as max with the Speer 158 gr Gold Dot Hollow Point. Neither load shows any pressure signs, primers look good, cases extract easily from the cylinders.

 

[Fishslayer]

I like 2400 because no need for magnum primers and it's more tolerant of downloading than H110.
158 grain SWC bullets. I've found Xtreme plated work well but am messing around with powdercoated cast lately.