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Powder for .357 Rifle
- Thread starter T. May
- Start date
296 and unique are my go to powders in this caliber
Imr 4227 is a good powder for 357 rounds
Where ya been? Hope the hands still doing well!
Been working my tail off. The hands great. Honestly it's pretty much normal as its going to get.
Pressure is a common concern that is already accounted for in the load manuals. Pressure is not a bad thing, unless it exceeds the limit of the gun or the brass. Often times, more pressure gives more accuracy. Perceived recoil is related to the pressure but it is a small caliber in a relatively heavy gun. So, I would prioritize accuracy and power over recoil.
To put this into perspective, I loaded up some Keith loads that were pushing a 125 grain bullet at 1800 fps when chronoed out of an 8 3/8" barrel. In all my wisdom at the time, I thought that my 686 would handle them just fine as it was designed for a "steady diet of hot .357 Mags." I'm here to tell you that loads that were designed for and shot out of Registered a magnum with a 8 3/8" barrel are more than a 686 will handle. No damage to the gun but the recoil, muzzle blast and over pressure was brutal.
I took the remaining 38 rounds of the 50 I loaded and ran a out half through my 4" Model 28. Still a lot of noise and flash but the recoil was much, much more manageable. I shot the final 19 through my Model 94?AE. After the first round I had to double check to make sure I had the correct ammo. There was virtually no recoil, no flash and the noise was way, way less than the revolvers.
I realize this is an anecdotal observation. There's nothing scientific about it. My point is that rifle chambers, especially a Ruger 77/357 AE much stronger than most revolver chambers. You can upload and exceed the SAAMI specs as long as you are diligent in observing the results and work up slowly. Recoil from a five or six pound rifle is nothing like recoil from a 42 ounce pistol so that shouldn't be a concern.
One of the reasons I bought the rifle is that he(my son) is really small. I didn't want something that was going to beat on him and turn him off from shooting. We handle the noise with plugs. I've let him shoot it with .38 Specials and he had a lot of fun. .38 is easier to find than .22, so we shoot and save the brass. I am taking him deer hunting this year and we are going to let him try to get his first one. Like I said earlier, not looking to hot rod anything. Just trying to get a good accurate load that will put a deer down. Thanks for all of the help. I am definitely going to look at W296 and 2400. My cousin has some Lil Gun and 110 as well. Thanks again and have a good one.
old thread resurrection.....ever get a good load?
I shoot the same load from my carbine and revolvers. 15.6gr H110 w/ Small magnum primer and a 158gr XTP.
I shoot the same load from my carbine and revolvers. 15.6gr H110 w/ Small magnum primer and a 158gr XTP.
