Squib loads with Factory ammo? Sounds like something other than the ammo. Does it fire with a second or third hammer strike?

Sporty wrote: Sat Apr 20, 2019 6:27 pm

DJA wrote: Sat Apr 20, 2019 4:46 pm ... a tumbler to clean your brass ...

Now, I'm taking another look at reloading.

A Vibratory Case Tumbler seems inexpensive ($40). Would I need an ultrasonic cleaner too?

If you're looking at the reloading path (again?) it might be a good idea to look at the combined price of the vibratory case polisher and ultrasonic cleaner, and compare that price with a stainless steel pin wet tumbler.

cedestech wrote: Sat Apr 20, 2019 8:41 pm Did you lighten your hammer spring?

Can you post a pic of fired case and dude case primers?

The new Winchester 1873 Sporter is all stock except for the lower front sight. I didn't see any difference in the primer strike. Maybe the Geco quality control manager will give me some feedback on his testing of the lot I sent back. Doubt it, though.

Yesterday's squib sounded like a .22 report. I'm confident because a competitor was shooting his .22 next to my position and he agreed. I was able to pull the bullet out of the muzzle with my fingers, like the other three squibs.

I have 12 opened boxes from seven different manufactures of .357 Magnum & .38 Special, including Cowboy loads, from my initial accuracy & target damage testing. I'll bring my AR500 steel gong to the range and see if any of those have any squib issues.

Another Dang 9 wrote: Sat Apr 20, 2019 9:42 pm Squib loads with Factory ammo? Sounds like something other than the ammo. Does it fire with a second or third hammer strike?

I can't shoot a squib again. You may be thinking of a misfire.

Sporty wrote: Sun Apr 21, 2019 6:12 am

Another Dang 9 wrote: Sat Apr 20, 2019 9:42 pm Squib loads with Factory ammo? Sounds like something other than the ammo. Does it fire with a second or third hammer strike?

I can't shoot a squib again. You may be thinking of a misfire.

I thought we were talking misfire... yes, if the primer detonates and there is no boom... that is ammo.... sorry.

My reading comprehension needs work....

I gave another brand of factory .38 Special 158 grain Jacketed Hollow Point a try. The groups are unacceptable as are the muzzle velocities. Nothing I've tested has beaten the Geco .38 Special 158 grain JHP for precision & accuracy but the squibs are unique to that ammo brand. It's time to reload.

FIOCCHI 38B
20 Shots Fired
Average FPS 931.2
Max FPS 1010
Min FPS 822
STDEV 50.6

Why not try factory .357 mag ammo or .38 sp+P? It's not that much more than .38 sp. Subsonic ammo shouldn't be your goal.

Another Dang 9 wrote: Tue Apr 23, 2019 3:35 pm Why not try factory .357 mag ammo or .38 sp+P? It's not that much more than .38 sp. Subsonic ammo shouldn't be your goal.

I have tried lots of factory .357 magnum but they were all too hot and damages AR500 steel. The only .38 Special +P I tried isn't made for tube fed lever action rifles. The bullets get set deeper with each recoil. Single shot was not very accurate. That was Winchester Super X 158 grain Lead Semi-Wad Cutter. I wouldn't be surprised if bullets in a revolver cylinder travel out each time one is fired.

Subsonic center fire pistol cartridge is our club rule for shooting at the silhouette range originally designed for rimfire. We have a Master shooter who competes at our matches and shoots reloaded .357 at 1100 fps 158 grain jacketed HP with an 18" barrel.

Charlie, if you are wanting to dabble with reloading the Lee Kit will work. If you have it, try it. I received one like that when I was in my early teens for the only rifle I had, a 30-06. I loaded lots of ammo on it. They are slow for sure and you might need a powder scale---I found the Lee Dipper was not very precise and if a person doesn’t watch they could get in trouble with an overcharge/undercharge.
What Lee is saying about the neck size only----if you can take a fired, empty case and chamber it in your rifle, it will work with the kit. So, if you are patient and chamber each empty round---or better yet, buy a Wilson Case gauge for a 38 or 357 to tests the cases. If it fits in the case gauge, it should be fine.
If you have ever seen the fired brass from heavy loads that show a definite bulge toward the web/base of the case, these will likely not work in your Lee Hand tool. I found with mine that moderate or light loads worked best to keep the brass in spec. Also, brass that has been fired many times and is work hardened is hard to work in the hand tool.
If you have a friend who knows a bit about reloading and if you have the instructions that came with the tool, you should have a good start. I still use mine---it loads good ammo.
You can clean brass by hand or wash it in warm water with soap—some folks I shoot with use a mild vinegar and water wash that works well---mostly for black powder but it works on smokeless also. If you knock out the primer before you wash them, it will help clean the primer pockets.
If you have a lot of patience and don’t expect to load a bunch of ammo in a hurry, it will work. Although you don’t necessarily “need” one, a powder scale would be good. The dipper works if you stick to the powder/bullet combinations Lee recommends for it, but if you are searching for a certain subsonic load a powder scale will be a real plus. You may need a mallet, I use a dead blow rubber style.
Nice thing about the kit, you can take it to the range. Using this kit is not much different than using Wilson hand tools---that many benchrest shooters use, so if you know a benchrest shooter they can help you with the process. Hope this helps with the tool.

Jon Carlisle, Big Wonderful Wyoming.

Sporty: Have you tried Magtech: 357 MAG 158GR LFN Muzzle Velocity 1085. I used these a long time ago before I got into reloading.
ppkny

Let's get serious about reloading...nobody can afford to spend 10 minuets loading one cartridge with that Lee reloader. You're going to need 40+ cartridges for a match. You will NEED to invest a certain amount of money say about $150 to get started. So either do it or continue to spend $$$ trying to find adequate factory loads which you'll find out there aren't any.
Unsolicited advice by:
ppkny

AR 500 Steel would laugh at anything other than armor piercing ammo. Even AR 350 will take it. Your club is most likely using plain hot rolled steel. I would protest the metal used as not conforming to NRA rules. I've had this issue with clubs before and after much discussion it always turns out they bought cheap targets to save money. If you are shooting approved matches the targets MUST conform to the rules.

Another Dang 9 wrote: Wed Apr 24, 2019 8:24 am AR 500 Steel would laugh at anything other than armor piercing ammo. Even AR 350 will take it. Your club is most likely using plain hot rolled steel. I would protest the metal used as not conforming to NRA rules. I've had this issue with clubs before and after much discussion it always turns out they bought cheap targets to save money. If you are shooting approved matches the targets MUST conform to the rules.

Tommy, there is nothing in the rules which states what type of steel is to be used for targets. It is a no brainer that for HP you need AR 500 or 400.
However for the 1/2 scale cowboy targets A-36 is what we have and any reasonable load will not damage them. Have we had to tell some shooters about hot loads; yes. But most of those cases were factory loads. That’s unfortunate but you don’t need loads that will send chickens and pigs 10 feet behind the berms either.

Al Foust

It may not be target damage that his club has a problem with.

Doesn't mater though... club rules are club rules...

The match I run at BRI is 22MAG only for PCCLA. We lease the range and that is the lease agreement, no rifle over 22MAG. Period.

It is what it is...

I bet if you ask around you can probably get enough people to donate 90% of the stuff you need. I know I gave a Lee 3 hole press away last year to get a guy going with progressive. He as single stage loading and I can't fathom how painful that was on pistol rounds....