Reloading supplies and getting the press set up.

[Bill]

A mere 3 months after buying my Ruger, and less than 3 weeks after first getting to shoot it, Dad came to visit and brought presents.  Namely his reloader, the remaining supplies he had for it, case cleaner, calipers, .357 dies, .38 special dies, and other assorted goodness.

He headed home after the Spring Game and post-game BBQ, and I had a chance to start going through stuff. Some questions start coming to mind, so here I am.

My Dad hasn't reloaded pistol ammo in probably close to 15 years, so all of this dates from that timeframe.

The reloading books are pretty dated, being at least 20-25 years old.  Is there a recommendation for a current book?

The powder he had is Bullseye.  Any reason to think this wouldn't be safe to use?  It's been in the original container the entire time.  He advised getting something else when I buy more as, "That damn Bullseye crap is some of the dirtiest powder I've ever used."  I think I took out some expletives there, but you get the idea.  Really though, isn't most gunpowder fairly dirty?

The Lee site shows that they now have a 4 position turret assembly.  The dies I have are 3 position.  Am I correct in assuming I am still fine using the 3-stage dies?

Where oh where can I find primers for .357?  For some reason I think they use the small pistol primers, but I could be mis-remembering.

The press itself barely moves.  I'm going to clean it up and oil it, is there anything I should not use as far as oil goes?

[justsomeguy]

Hey Bill, sounds like a great gift. Welcome to the world of reloading. Here is one guy's opinion regarding the questions you have.

The books should be fairly accurate still. Remember, they should only be used as a guide, or for a starting point for your loads. you should ALWAYS work up your own loads from a starting charge to see what is safe in YOUR guns. If you're concerned Hornady and Sierra publish some great books. IMR/Hodgdon has a data base on their website and caliber specific pamphlets can be purchased at local sporting goods stores.

The powder will be OK if you're sure it was properly stored ( Not exposed to extreme heat ). If this cannot be verified you can safely dispose of it by spreading it in the garden or on the lawn. Powder makes great fertilizer. It's fairly cheap anyway with one pound going for about $20 which will produce over 1000 rounds. I really like Hodgdon TiteGroup. It burns clean and you don't need much per round.


The three die press should work fine as most pistol dies come in 3 die sets. Only problem would be if you wanted to crimp in a seperate step. The press could also be used as a single stage.

You can find primers at Scheels, Cabellas, Guns Unlimited and most other gun stores. A small pistol primer will work but I would use small pistol magnum for the .357

Clean your press with steel wool and lubricate with a good DRY lubricant. Grease, oil, WD-40 and the like will kill primers and powder. I don't use them anywhere near my setup.

Hope I've been some help, I'm sure others will chime in. Reloading is a lot of fun and a very rewarding hobby.
If you have any more questions fell free to PM me.
Guy

[Dan W]

Sounds like guy has experience with that caliber , as I do not. I tend to run with the  slower powders that fill a case up and overflow with a double charge in 9mm and .45ACP but that is just me.

As for data books, the best sources are the powder and bullet makers online databases. I also like the "Load Book" sources that have many manufacturers loads for one cartridge, and are available in all the popular calibers.

I have a copy of Speer #13, am thinking about the new Hornady book, and would like a Sierra book for Rifle loads.

I like to get several sources for a load before I start, then start low and work up.  I usually load  10 of a new recipe at the starting load, 10 more  increased by .5 grain, and so on for about 50 total in increments of .5 grain up to the mid point, then chronograph and function test those 50. I am looking for bad signs like flattened primers,blown out or pierced primers,  case bulging and other high pressure indicators. Also watch for  low pressure signs like excessive unburnt powder and sooty case mouths. I test the chamber fit and function in my semi-autos, and evaluate for accuracy. I try to keep notes about each load.

Once I find the sweet spot, I might try moving the powder charge up and down in .2 grain increments to see if any gains in accuracy are to be had. Otherwise, I note my favorites, log the components used in that load, and then make a larger batch.

After a few attempts, I have normally found the load I want to use and, and then I make a bunch of them, usually lots of 500 for rifle and pistol

[Bill]

Thanks for the replies.  I used to be Dad's press monkey when he was heavy into reloading and I was young enough to think it was fun.  He'd set it up and I'd spend time going <chunk> <chunk> <chunk>  Now I have to figure things out without doing something stupid.

So why do you recommend magnum primers Guy?   I know the wife wants to go down to Southpoint, so maybe I'll slip over to Scheels while I'm there and see what they have for supplies.

[Bill]

I picked up the ABC's of Reloading at the Lincoln library.  Seems like a really good book.  Just for grins I pulled out the other books Dad left.

Speer Reloading Manual #10, Copyright 1980  (current is 14)
Lyman Reloading Handbook, #45, Copyright 1970  (current is 49)

I'm actually surprised they only have 4 updates in the last 30-40 years.

[JimP]

Bullseye is a pretty "fast" powder for .357 ...... would be possible to double charge a case fairly easily.... Very Bad JuJu, that.

I like Alliant's 2400, as you don't need magnum primers with it (per Speer #13 manual) and can load .38's and .357's with the same primers.

[Bill]

Coincidentally I took my first set of 30 reloads to the range today.  


4.2 gr of Bullseye, 158 gr cast SWC

All 30 rounds are represented by that target.  All in all I'm happy.

I think the next 30 will be 4.5 grains of powder, and provided it doesn't do any worse I'll leave it at that. That would be a medium load according to the books.

The double charge caution is very well made.  Fortunately the turret press makes that exceptionally hard to do as it advances every pull of the lever.  

[unfy]

I've only been reloading for about a month or two now. Hornady Lock'N'Load A.P. with their series 2 new dimension dies for 38/357/357max.  I also grabbed a powder cop die.  Although it's an AP, I don't try to crank out rounds extremely fast... but the less work is kind of nice.

You probably definitely want small pistol magnum primers.  I run Win-296 17gr with Win Small Mag Pistol primers and I believe it was 125gr hornady hp/xtp bullets.  Produces a louder report, more recoil, and much better accuracy down range than Win factory rounds in my S&W 686 3 or 4" revolver.  I personally don't mind the louder report and recoil... it's part of the joy of firing it.

This morning, I picked up some supplies from Guns Unlimited, including some RCBS .40 S&W dies and Unique powder so I can load for my Sig P229 in .40.  I'll report on what I think of the RCBS dies in the press etc later.

As suggested by others - use the books as a guide.  Start low and work your way up.

If you change your primer manufacturer or type, start over with a lower charge and work your way up.

If you change powder brand / type, start over again.

If you empty your powder bottle and open a new of the same type - compare the lot numbers between bottles.  If they're different, start over.

If you switch bullets to a different manufacturer, even at the same weight, start over again.

....

Last suggestion would be to keep non jacketed cast bullets under 1000fps to avoid leading. If ya still get leading, drop to 800fps.