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Old February 22, 2005, 06:28 PM   #1
Bass Man
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leading velocities?

At what velocities does leading become a problem with the .38 special and .357 magnum? I'm shooting 158 gr. lswc and have a few 148 gr. lwc.
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Old February 22, 2005, 06:58 PM   #2
CaptainRazor
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This is a good question, I shoot a lot of 38 spl, and rarely ever have leading problems, the same for 45 ACP. Of course, they don't really travel that fast either.

I'm curious at what velocites does 357 mag start leading?

Surely some of you guys have setup a chrony and experimented.
Tell us what your findings are.
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Old February 23, 2005, 05:07 PM   #3
.45 Vet
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My experience has been that the softer lead swagged bullets lead my revolvers @ around 1050/1100fps. In HARD cast this may not start untill 1200/1300fps. In any case That's why they sell gas-checks.

A lot of leading can also be prevented by propper bullet sizing and selection. More than a few guys have fallen in love with the accuracy of 200gr swc's in .45acp. Only to be turned off by barrel leading at warmer velocities,(850/900fps). Many times this can be prevented by choosing a FLAT based bullet, instead of a tapered base.
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Old February 23, 2005, 08:51 PM   #4
smokin54
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The alloy used to make the bullets , the size of the bullet and shape of the base all have a affect on at what velocity a bullet will start leading .I have found that with cheap Nevada bullets I can get an additional 100 + fps by cleaning the hard blue lube and reapplying Lee lube ,
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Old February 24, 2005, 09:37 AM   #5
Handgunr
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Vet & Smokin' provide valuable points.....

"How fast can you shoot a lead bullet in a .357 before it starts leading ?"

They both answered that one...."it depends on the hardness of the lead", and that's in "any" caliber.

Providing your sizing is correct (another topic), and you're using a good appropriate lube, the bullet's hardness, or BHN figure has to support the pressures created.
Pressure is a cast bullet's enemy, not velocity. Cast bullets of appropriate hardness levels, up to a given level of pressure, will swell, or obturate, slightly when fired. They will return somewhat, back to their original shape and continue on their way.
When pushed too hard, they expand from the pressure and fail to rebound, usually destroying a good portion of their accuracy potential.

Another area of problem is the base. Hot loads have a tendency to burnish, or melt the base, blowing the fine molten bits of lead outwards onto the guns bore.

My rule of thumb for handguns is;

Pure lead at 5BHN - 800 to 1000fps.
WW's air cooled to 9BHN - up to 1200-1300fps
WW's water cooled to 14BHN - up to 1400-1500fps

Bullets using either air cooled WW's, or water quenched WW's, are usually my gaschecked varieties.

Take care,
Bob
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