My reloading journey begins !

[Jacko]

Well folks last week I bought all I need to reload for my .357 mag Rossi 92 24"octagonal barrel rifle - a Lee Hand Press and the assorted die's and tools needed , 158 grain Hornady XTP Jhp , Remington No1 1/2 small pistol primers and a 1lb bottle of Alliant 2400 powder. I have over 200 Federal nickel shells that I'm not worried about recovering when out chasing feral pigs and goats and am building a collection of brass shells that I will be a little more carefull with when I've lost / used all the nickel shells .

I have Nick Harvey's Practical reloading manual 8th edition , he is a respected gun scribe in my part of the world . The max load listed tested in a Marlin 1894 with a 20" barrel , I realise the 92 is often touted as a stronger action but I like my fingers and eyes . He lists a maximum load of 13.8 grains of 2400 with a 158 gr pill . I knocked a bit off that and loaded up a few cartridges with 12.5 grains . I've since read this is a pretty conservative starting load , seems all the .357 rifle loads in this manual are conservative if I can believe what I read about the web . I will work up to a stout but sensible load next trip to the range .

Those jacketed bullets sure are an expensive little item . I have been collecting wheel weights and have a 158 grain semi wadcutter bullet mould I traded with a mate for a knife sheath . I am searching for a local dealer where I can purchase a casting pot and a bottom feed ladel , they all want to push jacketed pills . The missus does not know it yet but she is donating an old patty cake baking tray to mould ignots in . I'll jump the hurdle of homemade lubes etc when I need too .

I've lurked about this site and others gleaming advice about casting , load development etc , really enjoyed sitting down this arvo and playing with my new toys . Now I gotta wait another week before I can get testing

regards Jacko

[Rusty]

Jacko,

Welcome to the world of bullet casting. I started casting with a cast iron skillet (frying pan) and an industrial type kitchen spoon. I heated the lead over a gasoline camp stove. It worked for a while but nothing compared to what a good casting pot will do.

I guess my memory isn't what it was at one time. I was looking just the other day through the online references for 2400. I seem to remember that years ago the hot load I was shooting in my Colt Python was 13.5 grains of 2400 and a magnum primer and it was pretty hot. Now I see that on the company web page they list 15.1 grains. I guess that's why we need to use those books so much .

[Tycer]

Good go Jacko!

Keep in mind speed is not better than accuracy.
One of our own levergunners had some expensive 357 mag ammo fail to kill due to bullet failure recently. Those rounds run 2150 fps for a 158 grain jacketed hollow cavity. I don't know what brand of bullet was used. http://www.levergunscommunity.com/viewt ... =1&t=16565

I think your starting load is fine and you can work up from there to get the best accuracy in your rifle.

Keep us posted.

[Gobblerforge]

Casting Is great. Any old cast iron skillet or pot will work to melt lead in. You don't need a special pot.
Gobbler

[the telegraphist]

Gday Jacko
Check that box of Remington primers, I purchased some recently, they carry a warning not to use with high intensity cartridges 357 mag 357SIG 40S&W. I bought them primarily for 38SPL reloads. See whats written on your box. Go for .
Winchester CCI or Federal. I have not been to the Remington website to view the reason cus I dont use em in my 357 S&W 686 handgun, prefer Winchester or CCI. Others on the forum may have further info.
Loads, 2400 may be the powder in your rifle, 15g would be a near max. Win 296 is a good powder also, used to be the factory load powder in Winchester ammo, it may still be, 16.6g would be max according to my info.

Once again please check the Remington primer box for the warning above. Your eyes hands life are worth alot more than anything else in this reloading game. I've been doing it for over 35 years now, luckily and through diligence have never had a problem. Buy some more reloading books, Speer, Hornady or visit some of the reloading sites on the net.

Rgds

[WyrTwister]

Well folks last week I bought all I need to reload for my .357 mag Rossi 92 24"octagonal barrel rifle - a Lee Hand Press and the assorted die's and tools needed , 158 grain Hornady XTP Jhp , Remington No1 1/2 small pistol primers and a 1lb bottle of Alliant 2400 powder. I have over 200 Federal nickel shells that I'm not worried about recovering when out chasing feral pigs and goats and am building a collection of brass shells that I will be a little more carefull with when I've lost / used all the nickel shells .

I have Nick Harvey's Practical reloading manual 8th edition , he is a respected gun scribe in my part of the world . The max load listed tested in a Marlin 1894 with a 20" barrel , I realise the 92 is often touted as a stronger action but I like my fingers and eyes . He lists a maximum load of 13.8 grains of 2400 with a 158 gr pill . I knocked a bit off that and loaded up a few cartridges with 12.5 grains . I've since read this is a pretty conservative starting load , seems all the .357 rifle loads in this manual are conservative if I can believe what I read about the web . I will work up to a stout but sensible load next trip to the range .

Those jacketed bullets sure are an expensive little item . I have been collecting wheel weights and have a 158 grain semi wadcutter bullet mould I traded with a mate for a knife sheath . I am searching for a local dealer where I can purchase a casting pot and a bottom feed ladel , they all want to push jacketed pills . The missus does not know it yet but she is donating an old patty cake baking tray to mould ignots in . I'll jump the hurdle of homemade lubes etc when I need too .

I've lurked about this site and others gleaming advice about casting , load development etc , really enjoyed sitting down this arvo and playing with my new toys . Now I gotta wait another week before I can get testing

regards Jacko

Check out the lee bottom pour melting pot and Lee Liquid Alox lube .

If the bullet needs a gas check or if they are too large to chamber , as cast , the Lee bullet sizing dies mount on the press and are inexpensive .

I am loading for a Winchester M 1892 that some one , some time , converted to a .357 Mag .

First bullets I tried in it were SWC's I cast for a wheel gun . I was not supprised to find that the SWC's feed so - so in a lever gun . None of my other lever guns seem to like SWC's .

So , I ordered a Round Nose Lee 6 cavity .357 / .38 mold . Took about 2 months to receive , was back ordered from Lee . The RN mold I bought for my .44 Mag Marlin feeds slick .

Weather permitting , I hope to cast some RN .357's this PM . And , maybe some .45's ?

I only cast outside , on the concrete patio , in back . Be sure you cast where you have plenty of ventilation . Do not eat or during at the casting table . Wash your hands very well when you finish . Change cloths and was them by them selves .

This will prevent problems with lead contamination .

God bless
Wyr

[deerwhacker444]

Congratulations Jacko..!

You'll have thousands of dollars tied up in no time..! It's a fun itch to scratch though.

[HEAD0001]

Personally I like the Lyman small pots and a simple ladle. However you can buy a cheap cast iron pot on E-Bay, along with some cheap cast iron utensils for cleaning your lead.

If you are new to loading handgun ammunition. Then the best advice I can give you is to make sure all your brass is trimmed to the exact same length. This solves your crimping problems before they occur. Also I crimp in a separate step from seating. it just works better for me that way(more consistent). Tom.

[marlinman93]

Congrats Jacko! Just one word of advice; don't load too many rounds before trying them out. Best to keep it to 5-10 rounds and then see what you get for results. Then you can adjust the charge if needed to get it where you like it.

[Jacko]

Gday Jacko
Check that box of Remington primers, I purchased some recently, they carry a warning not to use with high intensity cartridges 357 mag 357SIG 40S&W. I bought them primarily for 38SPL reloads. See whats written on your box. Go for .
Winchester CCI or Federal. I have not been to the Remington website to view the reason cus I dont use em in my 357 S&W 686 handgun, prefer Winchester or CCI. Others on the forum may have further info.
Loads, 2400 may be the powder in your rifle, 15g would be a near max. Win 296 is a good powder also, used to be the factory load powder in Winchester ammo, it may still be, 16.6g would be max according to my info.

Once again please check the Remington primer box for the warning above. Your eyes hands life are worth alot more than anything else in this reloading game. I've been doing it for over 35 years now, luckily and through diligence have never had a problem. Buy some more reloading books, Speer, Hornady or visit some of the reloading sites on the net.

Rgds

Thanks for the heads up Telegraphist

Now I am really upset off , I waited for several weeks because this gun shop 1 1/2 hours drive away was having a yearly promotional sale , big savings , advice from experts in the industry , seminars etc . I specifically told the gun shop that I was new to reloading and that I was shooting a .357 magnum rifle . I went there with the specific recommendations as listed in my reloading manual I originally asked for a differant powder [W296 or Unique ] they recommended 2400 , they tried to push a progressive reloading press on me but I don't have the bench space . Should have listened to the little voice ringing the sucker alarm bells .

And to top it off I asked for Winchester small rifle primers but they said the Remington primers would be fine - I foolishly accepted their word as I did not know any better . I just read the print on the primer box , it's small but clearly states not to use them in the .357 mag . It will cost me more in fuel than the few dollars the primers cost me to drive back and jam them where the sun does not shine - this mob has an impecible reputation - guess I struck a real turkey !

I have only primed 20 cases and loaded 5 . I was always going to buy a bullet puller down the track so I will put those 5 loaded rounds aside clearly marked with the problem until I get the bullet puller . I will deprime the other 15 cases and put it all down to experience

regards Jacko

[Tycer]

You can put the loaded round in the shellholder of your press without a die installed and run the round up through the empty hole and grab the bullet with a pair of endcutters and lower the ram on the press. Voila, bullet pulled. Oh, and when you get your bullet puller, shellholders work easier for me than the universal shellholder that comes with it.

[JustaJeepGuy]

Keep the primers. You may want to make lighter loads some day, and those primers will still be good for many years if stored properly. Unless someone has a problem with you having "too many" primers around....

[JohndeFresno]

You can put the loaded round in the shellholder of your press without a die installed and run the round up through the empty hole and grab the bullet with a pair of endcutters and lower the ram on the press. Voila, bullet pulled. Oh, and when you get your bullet puller, shellholders work easier for me than the universal shellholder that comes with it.

Brilliant! Boffo! Shiny! (Latter exclamation is for Firefly/Serenity sci-fi fans)

I've been handloading for a few years, now, and never thought of that. I've wasted a lot of time fighting with the little rubber band thing (that sometimes comes apart) with cast .44 and other large caliber bullets that don't always comply; and I hated pulling the bullets. I tried out your idea with my RCBS Inertia Bullet Puller and it fits and works perfectly. Thanks for the tip, Tycer.