.38 Sp. powder choices

CBA Member

Ed Harris posted this 20 January 2014

I think we should delegate that project to Joe for a 5x5 factorial experiment!

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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JeffinNZ posted this 20 January 2014

What is the fastest commercially available powder available in the US? Bullseye I suspect. 3gr tends to be the target load from what I have seen.

Cheers from New Zealand

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mckg posted this 20 January 2014

TT, please do check manuals and websites. Some “Top 25” powders, like TiteWad, have been officially found unsuitable for cartridge loads.

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CBA Member

Ed Harris posted this 20 January 2014

Here is an exerpt from Hodgdon's Burn Rate Chart, you need to go deeper than 25! W231 is #29, Unique is #31

I'd have no concerns using 3 grains of Unique as a minimum start load in .38 Special, but some of the others listed I'm not sure....

1 NORMA R1
2 Winchester WAALite 3 VihtaVuori N310 4 Accurate Arms Nitro 100 5 Alliant e3
6 Hodgdon TITEWAD 7 Ramshot Competition 8 Alliant Red Dot 9 Alliant Promo
10 Hodgdon CLAYS
11 Alliant Clay Dot 12 IMR,Co Hi-Skor 700-X 13 Alliant Bullseye 14 Hodgdon TITEGROUP 15 Alliant American Select 16 Accurate Arms Solo 1000 17 Alliant Green Dot
18 Winchester WST
19 IMR, Co Trail Boss 20 Winchester Super Handicap 21 Hodgdon INTERNATIONAL
22 Accurate Arms Solo 1250 23 IMR, Co PB
24 VihtaVuori N320 25 Accurate Arms No. 2 26 Ramshot Zip 27 IMR, Co SR 7625 28 Hodgdon HP-38
29 Winchester 231
30 Alliant 20/28
31 Alliant Unique

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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CBA Member

tturner53 posted this 20 January 2014

31 is even better! Like I said, I'm not making a load suggestion, just passing along an interesting bit of info. Anybody reloading SHOULD ALWAYS verify load info. I found this info while researching old posts on Trail Boss, of which I bought 5 .lbs back when. On the label it said something like “made especially for lead bullets” which got me right off. Now I gotta use it up somehow. The one claim to fame TB has is resistance to double charging. That's a whole 'nother subject as a double charge is actually a 'mistake' made by the reloader and 'shouldn't' happen. right? Anyway, I've loaded up 100 .38 Specials with the Ranch Dog TL 359-100 RF and 4.3 grains of TB. The idea is a load my daughters will like in my old Victory and 6” M&P.

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TRKakaCatWhisperer posted this 20 January 2014

I'll volunteer to test them if they'll send me a couple of pounds of each type!

:)

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JeffinNZ posted this 20 January 2014

HUH, I thought Bullseye was faster than Red Dot. Shows how much I know.

Cheers from New Zealand

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mckg posted this 21 January 2014

JeffinNZ wrote: HUH, I thought Bullseye was faster than Red Dot. Shows how much I know.Red Dot is always a clean winner on the charts, yes...

Now I'm currently using TiteGroup and 700-X, and if my hand and guns were in charge of establishing who got more stamina, I would say the TG clearly wins. But anybody with a chrono seems to find Bullseye and 700-X only a few fps apart... So TG has to be faster than Red Dot, right...:0

( If anybody is trying to find a logic here, there's none. Buy as many manuals as you can.)

And before (?) tturner feels bad about having started that thread, I'll say that I use the 3grs value in 9 Luger as a starting load with any “superfast” or suspicious powder, unless I find a lesser value somewhere.

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Ken Campbell Iowa posted this 21 January 2014

speaking of hot powder, a couple days ago, a cci gold dot factory load ( blazer --- i know ... ) ... let go in my ij makarov ... big blue cloud, but little ij ejected the ruptured case; after crying time y inspection, put on leather glove y shot up half the box, no problem. i think i like steel guns ..

i been shooting makarov handloads for 10 years ( trap 100 ) with no problem.

my trap 100 is about 20 years old ( g ).. not on charts now.

oh .. wear shooting glasses ..

ken

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Webley posted this 22 January 2014

I seem to remember an article that stated that 3.4 gr was the magic number for all reasonable powders with a 148 gr WC. I cannot validate that claim. I will say that I use 3.5 gr of HP-38 with good results.:^:

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mckg posted this 22 January 2014

Now that I think about it, I might have been asked once for a universal pistol load... by someone who didn't give up easily...

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joeb33050 posted this 22 January 2014

I've always thought that the energy in smokeless powder was a function, primarily, of the weight of the charge. Maybe 2 scales, single/double base. Means a certain charge weight of any powder has the same energy. 3 gr of any powder has the same energy. Powders are varied by shape = surface area, additives, and single/double base.Thus I'd suspect that given a safe charge of very fast powder, ex: 3 gr, that 3 gr of ANY powder would be safe, and 3 gr of any powder ~ same fast would be accurate. Let us know of any explosions.

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giorgio the slim one posted this 22 January 2014

I am an Italian shooter Very concious of the value of cash. Here the price of imported VihtaVUORI or US p0wders is the double of .the price of locally made shotgun powders . For this reason I have often had to reloaded without a manual. I most often use powders used for 12ga trap or field loads,excluding the 12 magnum loads. I used the three grain test system, but with a lighter 150 gr bullet and my Smith& Wesson mod 29 357 revolver, to be on the safe side. The measure of the speed of the bullet with a chronograph and the study of the conditions of the fired case are are Always important.

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CBA Member

giorgio the slim one posted this 22 January 2014

I am an Italian shooter Very concious of the value of cash. Here the price of imported VihtaVUORI or US p0wders is the double of .the price of locally made shotgun powders . For this reason I have often had to reloaded without a manual. I most often use powders used for 12ga trap or field loads,excluding the 12 magnum loads. I used the three grain test system, but with a lighter 150 gr bullet and my Smith& Wesson mod 29 357 revolver, to be on the safe side. The measure of the speed of the bullet with a chronograph and the study of the conditions of the fired case are are Always important.