The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - my AA#9, 357 mag, 158 gr, research and tests

Clark · June 17, 2001, 07:31 PM

WARNING: don't do anything I do.

Get a good load book and follow the instructions and you and your gun won't get hurt.

The experements that I do are risky even with a trigger string. When something fails, at the very least, you could wreck your gun and be kicked out of the range. At worst you or a bystander could be dead.

I was reading the new Accurate Arms 357 mag load data. "Why did they change thier data?" I wondered.

So I looked in a bunch of load books for 158 gr FMJ 357 mag AA#9 max loads:

Accurate pamphlets 96, 97, 99, 2000 13 gr
"Accurate Arms Number Two" 2000 15 gr
Accurate pamphlet 2001 "new data" 15 gr
http://www.accuratearms.com/data/357.html 13 gr

"Modern Reloading" Richard Lee 1996 13 gr

"Speer 12" 1994 13.7 gr
"Speer 13" 1998 13.7 gr

Hornady 2000 11.5 gr

"Lyman's 47th" 1992 16 gr
"Lyman Pistol and Revolver" 1994 16 gr
http://www.again.net/~steve/357p_4_158.html 16 gr

"Midway Loadmap" 1999 15 bullets 11.3~11.7 gr

For a test gun, I used a Colt Police Positive 38 Special from Aim surplus [$79]. I bought some of these for destructive tests, but they are so nice, I wanted to be careful:

AA#9 1.475", 38 Special brass, wsp, hard crimp
11.3 gr wimpy
12 gr better
12 gr ok
15 gr OK
16 gr OK!

I couldn't get the right overall length with that 38 Special chamber. I was too cheap to get a real 357 mag chamber reamer from Brownell's, and using a drill does a terrible job, so I compromised a got a $15, .380" industrial reamer. I reamed all of the chambers in the cylinder of one of the Colts to .357 mag length:

AA#9 1.590", 357 mag brass, wspm, hard crimp
16 gr OK!!
17 gr STOP! case stuck, hammered it out

It looks like Lyman was right all along, and Accurate Arms was comming around to reality.

June 17, 2001, 07:31 PM	#1
Clark Senior Member Join Date: December 4, 1999 Location: WA, the ever blue state Posts: 4,678	my AA#9, 357 mag, 158 gr, research and tests WARNING: don't do anything I do. Get a good load book and follow the instructions and you and your gun won't get hurt. The experements that I do are risky even with a trigger string. When something fails, at the very least, you could wreck your gun and be kicked out of the range. At worst you or a bystander could be dead. I was reading the new Accurate Arms 357 mag load data. "Why did they change thier data?" I wondered. So I looked in a bunch of load books for 158 gr FMJ 357 mag AA#9 max loads: Accurate pamphlets 96, 97, 99, 2000 13 gr "Accurate Arms Number Two" 2000 15 gr Accurate pamphlet 2001 "new data" 15 gr http://www.accuratearms.com/data/357.html 13 gr "Modern Reloading" Richard Lee 1996 13 gr "Speer 12" 1994 13.7 gr "Speer 13" 1998 13.7 gr Hornady 2000 11.5 gr "Lyman's 47th" 1992 16 gr "Lyman Pistol and Revolver" 1994 16 gr http://www.again.net/~steve/357p_4_158.html 16 gr "Midway Loadmap" 1999 15 bullets 11.3~11.7 gr For a test gun, I used a Colt Police Positive 38 Special from Aim surplus [$79]. I bought some of these for destructive tests, but they are so nice, I wanted to be careful: AA#9 1.475", 38 Special brass, wsp, hard crimp 11.3 gr wimpy 12 gr better 12 gr ok 15 gr OK 16 gr OK! I couldn't get the right overall length with that 38 Special chamber. I was too cheap to get a real 357 mag chamber reamer from Brownell's, and using a drill does a terrible job, so I compromised a got a $15, .380" industrial reamer. I reamed all of the chambers in the cylinder of one of the Colts to .357 mag length: AA#9 1.590", 357 mag brass, wspm, hard crimp 16 gr OK!! 17 gr STOP! case stuck, hammered it out It looks like Lyman was right all along, and Accurate Arms was comming around to reality.