Light low recoil 38spl loads needed - Page 2

jetinteriorguy · August 23, 2020, 10:57 AM

Bullseye would replace Titegroup of the powders you have listed. The only reason to do so would be because Titegroup runs hot which isn’t always good with lead bullets, but for plated or coated bullets no problem.

mikejonestkd · August 23, 2020, 03:12 PM

Just to throw another option in the mix- don't forget about trail boss. Its excellent with low velocity lead loads in the 38 special

Metal god · August 23, 2020, 09:56 PM

Quote:

Titegroup of the powders you have listed

I was afraid of that because I have way to many good Titegroup loads to replace that powder .

Quote:

Most ladies wouldn't shoot it.

So what'ya try-n ta-say

My next question would be if I am loading 158gr's way down below minimum . Is there a better bullet type for that . I have soft cast , hard cast , plated and jacketed 158's haha like I said I have a bunch of 158's for my 357 . I'm pretty much stuck with the 158's for right now unless I can find some cheep coated 125's or so .

Looks like I can get 105gr and 125gr coated bullets from missouri bullets with a Brinell 12 rating ??? Only 357 they have start at 140 and are brinell 18 which my 158's are close enough to that that there would be no need to buy more bullets in that weight .

Jim Watson · August 23, 2020, 10:25 PM

Do NOT load JHP bullets below the start load for the type.
A powderpuff load that works with cast can stick a jacket in the barrel.

P Flados · August 23, 2020, 10:42 PM

With TiteGroup you can pretty much ignore the published minimum and just work you way down to a comfortable recoil without much worry about problems.

I would expect any 38/357 commercial cast bullet to be a good choice. For low power target loads, any hardness should be ok. The double ended wad cutters are easy to load and work pretty good for target shooting. I also like round nose and truncated as they are real easy to slip into the chamber.

If you have fixed sights, your resultant "comfortable target load" may not shoot to point of aim. If so, the next step can be to change your bullet weight. Heavier will shoot higher, lighter will shoot lower.

jetinteriorguy · August 24, 2020, 06:18 AM

I’ve used a lot of Titegroup with very good results, but only with plated, coated, or metal jacketed bullets. Due to a negligent overload situation causing the loss of my favorite.357 I quit using it. I know it runs hot, but in lighter loads with lead WC’s it may be perfectly fine, I’ve never tried it so have no direct experience. I’ve since almost entirely eliminated it from my loading regimen. Not the powders fault, entirely my own. Lesson being, no matter how many years you’ve been loading, never get complacent.

gwpercle · August 25, 2020, 04:06 PM

Light recoiling ... 2.7 grains of Bullseye and whatever weight lead bullet you can get , anything from 105 Grain SWC (Lee mould) to 160 grain WC or SWC .

The weight of the powder charge and the weight of the bullet make up felt recoil .
2.7 grs. Bullseye is a light weight charge . Also Lead bullets are easier to get moving down the barrel and thus generate less felt recoil .
For a soft 38 load in a J or K frame , 38 special load , I bought a Lee double cavity mould ...
#358-105-SWC , tumble lube it , load this bullet over 2.7 grains of Bullseye ... and it doesn't get much more pleasant shooting than this !
Gary

BondoBob · August 27, 2020, 08:56 AM

I started out with Trailboss mainly for safety concerns as a new re-loader. But I've just purchased another bottle because I love it for this application.

38spl, 3.8 to 4.0 grns of Trailboss and a 158gr soft lead swc are smooth, gentle and accurate. Lower than 3.5 grains I start to see some tumble out of a 642. These butterfly fart rounds are a joy to shoot.

jetinteriorguy · August 27, 2020, 02:37 PM

Trail boss is great, as long as your nose doesn’t work.

Metal god · September 15, 2020, 02:09 PM

I went and shot 3gr Titegroup with 158gr LSWC which shot pretty good . I think I could go down to 2.5gr .

Crunchy Frog · September 15, 2020, 02:32 PM

Titegroup is a double base powder. It seems to produce a snappier recoil impulse and sharper report than single base powders of similar burn rate.

gwpercle · September 15, 2020, 05:23 PM

Super Low Recoil - 38 special

Lead Bullet - for some reason lead bullets develop less recoil than jacketed .

Lead Bullet Weight - any weight from the 105 gr. SWC up to 150 gr.
It doesn't matter if the bullet profile is WC , SWC or RN . Typically wadcutters are used to take up space in target loads with small powder charges and a good choice but the other profiles work , use what you can get/have .

Most Important : Powder ...2.7 to 3.0 grains ... Titegroup , Bullseye or Red Dot ...again use what you can get / have . Weight of powder charge adds to felt recoil so use a light charge .
I see you have Titegroup , 3.0 grains and a cast coated 148 gr. wadcutter will put you in low recoil business .

If you ever find Bullseye ... get it , Bullseye is still my favored target 38 powder...
2.7 grains and a 160 grain wadcutter is a tack driver in my 38 special target revolver .
Gary .

Metal god · September 15, 2020, 06:40 PM

Yeah I tried that 3gr charge out of my 6" GP100 first . Figured if it got out of that barrel it will get out of my 1.75" LCR barrel .

Are you guys throwing 2.5 to 3gr charges . Man that's a small charge to throw although I weighed every charge (50) I threw them first from my Hornady powder measure which did pretty good , It stayed with in +/- .1gr . I never needed to add or take way from the throw . I was always 2.9 to 3.1gr at least that's what my Redding beam scale said backed up with check weights at the beginning and again about half way through . I'm still not comfortable throwing charges I can't really see in the case on the press .

I prime off press and then size with the decapping pin removed using the Lee CTP . I did a few by after weighing the charge I dumped the powder into the case then sized and flared with the powder already in the primed case . Seemed to work ok , anything you guys see wrong with that method ? With that method I can throw my charge directly into the case using the Hornady powder measure then place the primed and charged case into the press to complete the 4 stage process ??? This will allow me to manually see the charge in the case much easier then if I were trying to throw a charge using a case activated powder measure on the press like the auto disk or auto drum which I have and use often .

P Flados · September 15, 2020, 09:56 PM

If you want to prime and charge off of the press, your sequence sounds good.

Using TG and using a progressive press to do the charging has been blamed for a number of Kabooms.

I also feel that weighing each charge actually distracts your focus from the really important task of getting one single charge into each case.

With small charges in 38s, I really like using a 50 hole loading block and doing full batches with "extra focus" as I throw a charge into each case. This goes pretty quick and can usually be done with no interruptions that add risk for a double charge or an empty case. If you do get interrupted, you can again refocus and double check yourself when restarting.

I also like to visually scan the entire batch of 50 after charging to make sure they all look right.

jetinteriorguy · September 16, 2020, 07:14 AM

On my Lee turret I start with a cleaned sized case, size and prime, then flare and drop powder with a Pro Disc powder measure, then seat, then crimp/remove flare depending on what I’m loading. This is only used for pistol rounds. I find a cavity that throws just short of the desired load, then slowly ream it with a tapered reamer until it throws the desired charge. After that I don’t worry about it because once set up this way I’ve found for smaller pistol loads the Pro Disc is so consistent it’s no worry. The most common powders I use this way are, HP38, Clays, Titegroup, 700-X, BE, Green Dot, Red Dot, Power Pistol,and HS-6.

August 23, 2020, 03:12 PM	#27
mikejonestkd Senior Member Join Date: January 3, 2006 Location: Brockport, NY Posts: 3,716	Just to throw another option in the mix- don't forget about trail boss. Its excellent with low velocity lead loads in the 38 special __________________ You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.

August 23, 2020, 10:42 PM	#30
P Flados Senior Member Join Date: January 8, 2017 Location: Wilmington NC Posts: 243	With TiteGroup you can pretty much ignore the published minimum and just work you way down to a comfortable recoil without much worry about problems. I would expect any 38/357 commercial cast bullet to be a good choice. For low power target loads, any hardness should be ok. The double ended wad cutters are easy to load and work pretty good for target shooting. I also like round nose and truncated as they are real easy to slip into the chamber. If you have fixed sights, your resultant "comfortable target load" may not shoot to point of aim. If so, the next step can be to change your bullet weight. Heavier will shoot higher, lighter will shoot lower. Last edited by P Flados; August 23, 2020 at 10:49 PM.

September 15, 2020, 06:40 PM	#38
Metal god Senior Member Join Date: April 10, 2012 Location: San Diego CA Posts: 6,876	Yeah I tried that 3gr charge out of my 6" GP100 first . Figured if it got out of that barrel it will get out of my 1.75" LCR barrel . Are you guys throwing 2.5 to 3gr charges . Man that's a small charge to throw although I weighed every charge (50) I threw them first from my Hornady powder measure which did pretty good , It stayed with in +/- .1gr . I never needed to add or take way from the throw . I was always 2.9 to 3.1gr at least that's what my Redding beam scale said backed up with check weights at the beginning and again about half way through . I'm still not comfortable throwing charges I can't really see in the case on the press . I prime off press and then size with the decapping pin removed using the Lee CTP . I did a few by after weighing the charge I dumped the powder into the case then sized and flared with the powder already in the primed case . Seemed to work ok , anything you guys see wrong with that method ? With that method I can throw my charge directly into the case using the Hornady powder measure then place the primed and charged case into the press to complete the 4 stage process ??? This will allow me to manually see the charge in the case much easier then if I were trying to throw a charge using a case activated powder measure on the press like the auto disk or auto drum which I have and use often . __________________ If Jesus had a gun , he'd probably still be alive ! I almost always write my posts regardless of content in a jovial manor and intent . If that's not how you took it , please try again .

August 23, 2020, 10:57 AM	#26
jetinteriorguy Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 2013 Posts: 3,175	Bullseye would replace Titegroup of the powders you have listed. The only reason to do so would be because Titegroup runs hot which isn’t always good with lead bullets, but for plated or coated bullets no problem.

August 23, 2020, 10:25 PM	#29
Jim Watson Senior Member Join Date: October 25, 2001 Location: Alabama Posts: 18,541	Do NOT load JHP bullets below the start load for the type. A powderpuff load that works with cast can stick a jacket in the barrel.

August 24, 2020, 06:18 AM	#31
jetinteriorguy Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 2013 Posts: 3,175	I’ve used a lot of Titegroup with very good results, but only with plated, coated, or metal jacketed bullets. Due to a negligent overload situation causing the loss of my favorite.357 I quit using it. I know it runs hot, but in lighter loads with lead WC’s it may be perfectly fine, I’ve never tried it so have no direct experience. I’ve since almost entirely eliminated it from my loading regimen. Not the powders fault, entirely my own. Lesson being, no matter how many years you’ve been loading, never get complacent.

August 25, 2020, 04:06 PM	#32
gwpercle Senior Member Join Date: November 30, 2012 Location: Baton Rouge, Louisiana Posts: 1,752	Light recoiling ... 2.7 grains of Bullseye and whatever weight lead bullet you can get , anything from 105 Grain SWC (Lee mould) to 160 grain WC or SWC . The weight of the powder charge and the weight of the bullet make up felt recoil . 2.7 grs. Bullseye is a light weight charge . Also Lead bullets are easier to get moving down the barrel and thus generate less felt recoil . For a soft 38 load in a J or K frame , 38 special load , I bought a Lee double cavity mould ... #358-105-SWC , tumble lube it , load this bullet over 2.7 grains of Bullseye ... and it doesn't get much more pleasant shooting than this ! Gary

August 27, 2020, 08:56 AM	#33
BondoBob Senior Member Join Date: May 3, 2020 Posts: 163	I started out with Trailboss mainly for safety concerns as a new re-loader. But I've just purchased another bottle because I love it for this application. 38spl, 3.8 to 4.0 grns of Trailboss and a 158gr soft lead swc are smooth, gentle and accurate. Lower than 3.5 grains I start to see some tumble out of a 642. These butterfly fart rounds are a joy to shoot.

August 27, 2020, 02:37 PM	#34
jetinteriorguy Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 2013 Posts: 3,175	Trail boss is great, as long as your nose doesn’t work.

September 15, 2020, 02:09 PM	#35
Metal god Senior Member Join Date: April 10, 2012 Location: San Diego CA Posts: 6,876	UPDATE I went and shot 3gr Titegroup with 158gr LSWC which shot pretty good . I think I could go down to 2.5gr . __________________ If Jesus had a gun , he'd probably still be alive ! I almost always write my posts regardless of content in a jovial manor and intent . If that's not how you took it , please try again .

September 15, 2020, 02:32 PM	#36
Crunchy Frog Senior Member Join Date: December 26, 2008 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 591	Titegroup is a double base powder. It seems to produce a snappier recoil impulse and sharper report than single base powders of similar burn rate.

September 15, 2020, 05:23 PM	#37
gwpercle Senior Member Join Date: November 30, 2012 Location: Baton Rouge, Louisiana Posts: 1,752	Super Low Recoil - 38 special Lead Bullet - for some reason lead bullets develop less recoil than jacketed . Lead Bullet Weight - any weight from the 105 gr. SWC up to 150 gr. It doesn't matter if the bullet profile is WC , SWC or RN . Typically wadcutters are used to take up space in target loads with small powder charges and a good choice but the other profiles work , use what you can get/have . Most Important : Powder ...2.7 to 3.0 grains ... Titegroup , Bullseye or Red Dot ...again use what you can get / have . Weight of powder charge adds to felt recoil so use a light charge . I see you have Titegroup , 3.0 grains and a cast coated 148 gr. wadcutter will put you in low recoil business . If you ever find Bullseye ... get it , Bullseye is still my favored target 38 powder... 2.7 grains and a 160 grain wadcutter is a tack driver in my 38 special target revolver . Gary .

September 15, 2020, 09:56 PM	#39
P Flados Senior Member Join Date: January 8, 2017 Location: Wilmington NC Posts: 243	If you want to prime and charge off of the press, your sequence sounds good. Using TG and using a progressive press to do the charging has been blamed for a number of Kabooms. I also feel that weighing each charge actually distracts your focus from the really important task of getting one single charge into each case. With small charges in 38s, I really like using a 50 hole loading block and doing full batches with "extra focus" as I throw a charge into each case. This goes pretty quick and can usually be done with no interruptions that add risk for a double charge or an empty case. If you do get interrupted, you can again refocus and double check yourself when restarting. I also like to visually scan the entire batch of 50 after charging to make sure they all look right.

September 16, 2020, 07:14 AM	#40
jetinteriorguy Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 2013 Posts: 3,175	On my Lee turret I start with a cleaned sized case, size and prime, then flare and drop powder with a Pro Disc powder measure, then seat, then crimp/remove flare depending on what I’m loading. This is only used for pistol rounds. I find a cavity that throws just short of the desired load, then slowly ream it with a tapered reamer until it throws the desired charge. After that I don’t worry about it because once set up this way I’ve found for smaller pistol loads the Pro Disc is so consistent it’s no worry. The most common powders I use this way are, HP38, Clays, Titegroup, 700-X, BE, Green Dot, Red Dot, Power Pistol,and HS-6.