.38 spcl.

[HBREEDEN]

Does anyone have some good loads for the .38 spcl.,using 158 gr. Cast swc bullets,.357 dia.want to use for small game and target practice.have s&w mod. 14 with 6 inch barrel

[fryboy]

hola amigo ! and welcome to the forum ! i really like imr's 700X with mine ( in 38 special brass but not 357 mag brass ) small game and targtes do not need full power loads and many of the current cowboy type loads fit the bill , you didnt state plain based or gas checked and it can make a difference , for plain based lyman's 3rd edition pistol manual suggest 4.0 grains of win 231 as the most accurate load but please note that this is also max load and you should start at 3.6 and work your way safely up , you may find that in your barrel the starting load maybe just as accurate with less recoil

[versifier]

Welcome to The Guide.

Sounds like your bullets are a bit on the small side diameter-wise. Keep the alloy soft and the charges light (Unique or Bullseye) and you can avoid the gas checks, too. If you can get them sized to .359 or .360, you will likely see better accuracy and you can push them up to hotter levels, as long as the cylinder throats are large enough, too. I only put GC's on heavy .357mag hunting bullets these days as I have found that nothing in the .38spec loads needs them, even the +P loads, as long as the bullet is the correct diameter.

[runfiverun]

third the larger diameter 358 could be enough.
i like the 4 grs 231 also, but aa#2 and many other fast powders [700-x,bullseye,tightgroup,and clays]will fill the bill nicely.
many of these lighter loads feel similar to a 22 to me and give good accuracy.
you can even go into some of the medium powders like aa#5 or unique with good luck in the 700-850 fps velocity.

[Paul B]

My load for the .38 Spl. with 158 gr. bullet is the Lyman #358156 gas checked bullet over 5.0 gr. of Unique. CAUTION: Maximum load is 5.1 gr. of Unique in the Lyman #49 manual.
A couple of other loads I like are the Lyman #358466, a 150 gr. SWC over 5.0 gr. of Unique and the Lyman #358493 wadcutter over 3.0 of either Bullseye or W231. That last load puts a hurt on jackrabbits from my 6" .38 Spl. That load is close to a max load as well.
All bullets are sized to .359".
There is a very good chance that if your bullets are in fact sized to .357" that they will lead your barrel badly. To get the best accuracy from your gun, you should slug the barrel (a bear with S&W guns and their 5 groove barrels but you can come close enough.) and then slug the throats of each chamber. Ideally the chamber throats should be .001" wider than the groove diameter of the barrel for best accuracy so if the barrel is .357", the throats should be at least .358" but not much larger and the bullets sized .359" to .360" depending on which size your gun likes best.
Paul B.