.357 loads

[Djmudge]

getting ready to load .357 mag loads. using titegroup. start out on 158 gr lswc is 4.5. now shooting out of a 7 1/2 bbl is the starting grain good or do i need to step up to 4.6 to start.max is 5.1.

[ArizonaRick]

I tried to get good accuracy with tight group and It just was not there in 3 of my revolvers. In 357 mag (lite) I use Missouri Bullet Company's 158g SWC extra hard cast bullet and worked up from the starting load with Herco, 800x, and power pistol all gave great accuracy. Power pistol was the best at 1.5 grains under max using standard small pistol primers & medium crimp. Very comfortable, no leading, and great accuracy at a fraction the price of jacketed. Best of luck.

[Hammerhead]

4.5 sounds fine. You would be hard pressed to see or feel any difference between 4.5 and 4.6. Chances are your charges are varying by at least .1 grain anyway.

[Djmudge]

i know out of my .38 spl my loads are 3.6 of titegroup on a 158 gr swc (missouri bullet) with a o.a.l. of 1.50. at 10 yds shes pushing 4 inches on the group. not looking for a hot round. just working somthing up so i can hunt with it for deer and hogs. most shots where i hunt will be under 40 yds. my biggest deal is the 38's bbl is 1 1/2 inches compare to the .357's bbl of 7 1/2. dont want to lodge one on the bbl.

[chiefr]

From 10 yards, I too would be concerned. If you moved close to max loads without improvement, time to change powder.
Have you tried Unique?

[Sevens]

Titegroup is not an ideal choice for a high horsepower, large case volume magnum round such as the .357 Magnum.

If all you wish from these handloads is that they go bang and send a bullet, Titegroup can certainly be made to work here -- and will have the added benefit of being economical as you will be using low charge weights.

However, if one of your goals with these handloads is to replicate actual factory loaded .357 Magnum ammo and the real velocity that goes with it, Titegroup is too fast burning a powder to provide that for you.

You will get 100% of the pressure (and wear & tear on cartridge brass & firearm) all the while returning substandard velocity. If you don't mind that -- and you also don't mind that the pressure advances at a quickly advancing rate near it's max, then Titegroup can be used here.

A medium rate powder such as the above suggest Unique (or Hodgdon Universal) is a better choice... and for true top-end loads, you'll need a proper slow burning powder such as H110 or Accurate #9. Here, I really like and often suggest Alliant 2400.

In a round like the .357 Magnum, Alliant 2400 will make better and safer loads than Titegroup could ever hope to pull off.

[LE-28]

Power Pistol works very well in .357mag also, much better then Titegroup.
I shoot 7.8gr of power pistol with a 158gr lead or plated bullet at 25yds off hand, standing, both hands, and usually get between 4 to 6"groups.

It has become my standard range load.

I tried titegroup in my .357mag and didn't care for it. It is my favorite 9mm powder though.

[TimSr]

If you are going to shoto deer and hogs, its time to step up to a real magnum powder, and a real magnum bullet. H110 or W296 fired by a magnum primer, and make sure you are using a real quality hard cast bullet, if by "lswc" you really mean "lead". Unqiue will get your velocity up there, but its can't touch the accurracy I get from 110 and 296. At 40 yards it holds a 6" group from a 6" GP100 shooting offhand.

[GP100man]

Titegroup is a very dense ,fast burning powder .

It gives the bullet a snatch start instead of a easy push start as needed with lead ,no matter how hard it is!!

Mid burning powders to the slower is where you`re gonna get better performance with lead.

Hodgdons UNIVERSAL is very close to UNIQUE ,but cleaner & measures easier .
2400, H-110 & 1 rarely mentioned these days IMR 4227 is excellent for heavy loads with lead bullets .

[Djmudge]

hey thanks. took the mag out today with the titigroup and got 5" groups at 30 yds off a bench and bag. but got a few stragglers to. will look at a few of the reccomended powders as i found some small pistol mag primers today.

[ljnowell]

If you want to load real 357 magnums, then I would recommend 2400. Its my go to magnum handgun powder. Also listed above was Power Pistol which works great too.

I dont care much for titegroup and cant think of a single situation where I would recommend it, but thats just my personal preferences.

[David Bachelder]

I like:
150 gr cast Semi Wad Cutter
14 grains 2400
CCI Small Pistol Magnum Primer
COAL @ 1.58

Feels like a true Magnum load, loud, plenty of kick and great accuracy. I use this in my Ruger BlackHawk and Henry rifle. You might start out at 10% less and build up as usual.

I also found that Winchester 296 is a great magnum powder.

[ljnowell]

Originally Posted by David Bachelder

I like:
150 gr cast Semi Wad Cutter
14 grains 2400
CCI Small Pistol Magnum Primer
COAL @ 1.58

Feels like a true Magnum load, loud, plenty of kick and great accuracy. I use this in my Ruger BlackHawk and Henry rifle. You might start out at 10% less and build up as usual.

I also found that Winchester 296 is a great magnum powder.

Thats pretty close to mine, i like a 158gr SWC loaded over 14.5gr of 2400. Over on THR we had a most popular load for 158swc thread one time. The overwhelming majority that used 2400 loaded 14.5gr, it was weird.