Cast handgun bullets.

[Adam Helmer]

I suspect most of us handload our handgun ammo. I have a box of jacketed .38 handgun bullets somewhere here, but exclusively I use cast bullets in all my handguns. The reloading manuals indicate cast bullets of the same weight as jacketed bullets go a bit faster with the same powder charges.

My favorites for the .38 Special and .357 magnum are Lyman 148 grain wadcutters, 152 grain SWCs and 168 grain SWCs. I drop my bullets from the double cavity moulds into a bucket of water for a quench. I lube with Aalox and never get leading. My bullets are made from wheel weights with a dash of tin.

After the snow leaves, I will chronograph all 3 bullets from handguns of various barrel lenghts to see what they deliver. Who else casts their handgun bullets?

Adam

[Larryjk]

Adam, I have a long list of moulds that I don't have time to use anymore, but want to get back to when I "retire". Two of those you listed are my favorites, the 148 gr. HBWC in my S&W Model 14 with 6 "barrel. shoots into the same hole at 25 yards. The 168 gr. SWC is my favorite in the S&W 586 .357. I have been buying them for a few years made from the commercial cast formulae. I also use cast in the .41, 44, and .45.
I find I can shoot them at about 1050 FPS (not the 148 HBWC) without leading. My grandson shot with me in a fun bullseye league n he was a highschool senior and beat me a couple times with the .38 and those 148 gr. HBWC. He keeps hinting that he would like that revolver. He may end up getting it.

[popplecop]

Most of my revolver cartridges get cast bullets and they work great. All I do is vary the alloy for what type of shooting I want to do. Will do more casting when spring comes if ever, always like to do it outdoors.

[Catfish]

I go both ways :eek: I mean when it comes to lead or jacketed handgun bullets. I use mianly cast for practice but for hunting and CCw use jacketed.

[Adam Helmer]

Catfish,

Handgun bullets are low velocity loads. Cast bullets in handguns will do all that jacketed bullets say they will do. This is true for the shorter barreled handguns, my chronograph says so. Save lots of money and cast your handgun bullets.

Adam

[Mr. 16 gauge]

I cast for every handgun I reload for, with the exception of the .380. I also quench my bullets in a similar manner.

9mm & .38 Super: LEE 111 grn RN and LEE 120 grain TC

.38 special: LEE 150 grain SWC

.357 magnum : LEE 158 grain SWC GC (casts out to 162 grains with the alloy I'm using)

.44 magnum: LEE 240 grain SWC GC (casts out to 242 to 250 grains, depending on alloy).

I usually add a little tin and a little antimony to the mix.

I shoot a lot of lead handgun bullets, but I don't like shooting them in the indoor ranges I usually shoot at.....too much lead dust, and the ventilation system doesn't seem to be the best. Prefer to use them outdoors where ever possible.

[PJgunner]

Hmmm. Lyma bullets. I'm guessing the 148 gr. is #358495, the 152 gr. is #358477 and possibly the 168 is either #358156 or #359429. The only one of those 4 bullets I don't have a mold for is the #358429. :(
For the 148 gr. bullet I like 3.1 gr. of either Bullseye or W-231. Bullets are sized to .359" as are all 3. Accuracy is superb, in fact outshooting some very expensive Winchester .38 Spl match ammo. I like 5.0 gr. of Unique with the 152 gr. bullet in .38 Spl. also very accurate. I use 14.0 gr. of Alliant #2400 with the 152 gr. bullet and the 168 gr. bullet in the .357 mag.
If you can find a mold, look for a Lyman #358430, a 190 (nominally) bluff round nosed bullet. Seat it over 3.5 gr. of Unique and that will duplicate the old long discontinued Winchester and Remington 200 gr. Police Load. It's a doozy. I loaded some up when I was loading ammo commercially for a sheriff's deputy many years ago for use in his snubbie BUG. he had to shoot a bad guy with them one time and he said it was a happy outcome. :cool: I've thought about loading some up for my snubbie and for my .357 mag. as well.
Some of us were discussing that bullet on another site a long time ago (couple or three years ago) and some of the comments were very interesting. One guy said he was using them in an S&W K38 for deer hunting and they worked just fine. I hae an S&W M60 with a 3" barrlel and adjustable sights that shoots that "police" load into tight groups and have carried it in some hiking areas where guns, while not verboten are severely frowned upon by all the ecofreak bunnyhuggers. It hid nicely in a pair of jeans I had that had deep pockets. I don't think I'd want to tangle with a Black Bear with that snubbie but I figure at close range it might do OK on a Mountain Lion. Now that AZ has liberalized their carry laws, I take either my 4 5/8" Ruger .44 mag. of a Single action colt with a stiff, for that gun handloaded 255 gr. Keith bullet. I get a few dirty looks now and then from the huggers but they've gotten used to me carrying. A lot of us are regulars on that trail and there have been lion problems off and on the past couple of years.
FWIW, I use my own home cast bullets 9in just about all my handguns and in rifles too. The only handguns that still get jacketed bullets are a Walther PP .32 ACP and a Walther PPK/s in .380 and that's because I haven't bought molds for them yet.
Paul B.
Paul B.