What's Rour Favorite Powder for.358-148gr WC

[41 Mag]

I have a shelf full of manuals, just trying to narrow down which powders are tops. I shoot mostly big bore and lean towards the upper end loads with the slower powders, these are for the wife pure and simple, for target shooting only.

Last time I loaded any WC's was close to 30 years ago, and those were 148gr HBWC's. I remember using Red Dot on those, simply due to I still have the load written on the side of the bottle. Those were loaded in 38 SPL cases though.

I have several powders, Unique, Universal, Blue and Red Dot maybe even some Green Dot. I know I have Tite Wad and Clays as well.

These will be loaded in .357 cases to be run through her GP-100.

She normally shoots full power 140 through 160 grain top end loads, but I figured since I got this nice old Hensley mold I might as well put it to use.

So what say you plinkers and target shooters, got a favorite powder...

 

[nix4me]

231 if you can find it

 

[rcmodel]

Bullseye.

Or Red Dot.

rc

 

[Salmoneye]

Bullseye.

Or Red Dot.

/\/\This/\/\

 

[oneounceload]

Both of those mentioned are the best ones, although many will work decently enough

 

[zxcvbob]

What power level are you wanting? Hard cast wadcutters loaded to about 30000 PSI in .357 Magnum cases are kind of interesting.

 

[vongh]

I had some Hornady 148 grainers and used bullseye for some nice mild shooters

 

[Edarnold]

I've used 3.7gr of 231 with several types of 148 to 158gr lead in .357 cases for a very pleasant shooting target load

 

[beatledog7]

Bullseye. For best accuracy in my 642 I use 2.7 or 2.8 grains, seated to just about 1.18" OAL and crimped just enough to let them easily chamber.

BE makes very soft-shooting plinkers with .3 grains less, but they lose accuracy and suffer some soot blowback due to incomplete case expansion. I don't load them that light any more.

 

[joneb]

For swaged WCs I like Bullseye, but of the powders you mentioned I would work with Clays or Red Dot, I am not familiar with Tite Wad.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

With a 148gr DEWC I use nothing but 3.5gr W231/HP-38. It's one of my two favorite loads the other being a 158gr LSWC over 4.0gr W231.

I have several powders, Unique, Universal, Blue and Red Dot maybe even some Green Dot. I know I have Tite Wad and Clays as well.

Of the powders you listed Red Dot and Clays will serve you very well for building target velocity WC loads. (that's if you don't want to buy or can't find W231/HP-38)

 

[41 Mag]

I do have some 231 as well, just didn't remember it off the top of my head.

I'll give those a good look over and see what I can put together.

I appreciate the info, just looking at the manuals on can get cross eyed trying to pick something decent. With the "abundant availability" of things I was just trying to narrow it down to what I have on hand.

Appreciate it.

 

[ETXhiker]

Another vote here for Bullseye.

 

[LeonCarr]

231

Just my .02,
LeonCarr

 

[BullRunBear]

For light wadcutter loads, in either 38 or 357 cases, I've used Bullseye for decades. But if you have 231 available, it will do a fine job. (Note: the charge weights for 231 and Bullseye are not the interchangeable so check the manuals.)

Jeff

PS: Those 38 special WC loads are what I use to introduce newbies to center fire handguns. I always have a couple hundred loaded up for that reason. Obviously your better half doesn't need that aspect.

 

[41 Mag]

PS: Those 38 special WC loads are what I use to introduce newbies to center fire handguns. I always have a couple hundred loaded up for that reason. Obviously your better half doesn't need that aspect.

Naa far from that anymore. She got thrown straight into the fire with me. When we started shooting together, I was putting several hundred 41 and 44 mag top end loads down range a week, prepping to start hunting with them. She actually started off shooting my scoped Redhawk rested on a homemade wooden rest. Those loads brought dust down from where ever we were shooting. It was about all her 95 pounds could do to sit int he chair and hold the thing up, but she shot some VERY impressive groups even out to 100yds with it.

She didn't bat an eye with them, and when I got her the first GP-100, she stood with a two handed hold and put 18 rounds into the 3" bull at 25yds. To be honest I don't give her much lip at all.

 

[zxcvbob]

She didn't bat an eye with them, and when I got her the first GP-100, she stood with a two handed hold and put 18 rounds into the 3" bull at 25yds. To be honest I don't give her much lip at all.

Okay, here's a .357 wadcutter load that I like: 148 DEWC, 4.5 grains of Promo powder (you can use Red Dot), SP primer, 1.35" length. Moderate roll crimp.

 

[TfflHndn]

I like Green Dot a lot. Accurate and comfortable recoil. The newest manuals don't seem to list GD loads, but if you have a shelf full of manuals, you should find data you can use in some of the older ones. Try it, you'll like it!

 

[Schwing]

For light plinker rounds I like unique, about 4.5-4.7 grains. For hot loads I just discovered hi-skor 800x. It meters like peanut butter but makes for some fun loads at around 8 grains.