My .38 Colt rounds are loaded like ones for the original 1871 Navy conversion. A 124 grain .375" lead heel bullet and 8 to 10 gains (volume) of FFFg Gunpowder. More fun, more smoke like Colt intended.
I've been saving my cracked 38 specials to chop down to 38 shorts using the Lee Case gauge for 9mm, it's only 10 thou difference in COAL if I remember correctly. I was going to use low end 9mm data for starting loads, but have found a few loads specifically for 38 shorts. Great tutorial. Just be careful while you're filming. I've caught myself making silly mistakes because I was distracted by the camera. Looking forward to more!
Very nice, informative. I'm just getting started reloading. Starting with a Lee Classic Loader in 38 Spl and then moving up to their hand press with Lee carbide dies. New subscriber. God bless, Rob
I think the issue or problem with lee dies is the inconsistency. One person gets a die or die set that’s manufactured properly but the next person gets a die or set that’s poorly manufactured. So I think that’s were all the different opinions come from.
Whenever I find a .38 Special case with a cracked case mouth, etc., I like to cut them down to either .38 Long or Short Colt, too. Long Colt, most of the time. Great way to recycle brass cases. I also use the Lee .38 Long/Short die set. Published load data for both .38 Long & Short Colt, can be found on the Hodgdon Reloading Data Centre website.
In order for me to reload for my 38 S&W I have to buy 38 SPL and cut them down because the 38 S&W casings are more than double the price, that is assuming I can even find them! And as for FPS, energy and lethality, plenty of hardened men have been put down permanently with 600 - 800 FPS black powder ball rounds through the years, and that's nothing to sneeze at.
i bought a very large box of starline brass (was 500 or 1000 pieces of brass) .38 S&W for about $300 pre covid.still have maybe 80% of them unfired. just started using them again because pistol primers are becoming available again
I think this is very similar to what Service Pistol Match guys do, in Australia at least. The difference is that we use a full length 38sp case, loaded with a 100gn semi wadcutter but seated way below the case mouth as in the tip of the SWC is approximately 0.125-0.175 below the case mouth. I only have a Lee seater/crimper die to seat bullets so I had to machine some of the threads off the stem. I get about 650fps with 2.4gn of AP50N (similar to bullseye, in fact the same charge of bullseye yields similar results). The 38SP of choice is a Model 64, Model 10 or any K frame really. Great video my man, really enjoyed it.
Thinking of reloading. Here is my concern. Will shooting the 38 short colt cause enough crud ring in the chambers to make it difficult to chamber the 38 special round. That’s my worry
@@heavyleadenthuasist38 There are Cowboy Action shooters that have loaded them for years and many, many dozens of times. The secret is to bell just enough otherwise you end up over working the brass.
Phillip, the number of reloads is dependent on several factors. Like - how hot are you loading cases - and how much case stretching occurs - and how quickly the brass work hardens. - and etc. The thumb rule is 5 to 8 reloads per case with minimal reworking of the brass. Straight walled cases give more reloads than bottle necked cases. Some calibers have a reputation for excessive stretching that limits reloads to maybe two or three. The 348 Winchester is one. Sharply tapered case allowed a great deal of bolt thrust, thus stretching the case. You were lucky to get 3 reloads. The 303 is another, but that's due to the generous chamber dimensions that are normal for it. Nickel plated cases start out harder, so fewer reloads are the norm. The Ackley Improved cartridges were designed to provide a bit more speed but significantly more reloads per case. You could also use standard factory ammo in an AI chamber, and it would safely fireform the cases. For the 303, you can neck size the cases for use in your rifle. This minimizes case "working" and provides more reloads. However, the biggest thing you can do to improve case life is to anneal the cases. Unlike iron that gets harder when heated and quenched, brass gets softer. It doesn't take much - just until the instant you see the flame change color, then quench. Keeping the brass annealed can effectively double or triple the number of reloads, all else being equal.
My .38 Colt rounds are loaded like ones for the original 1871 Navy conversion. A 124 grain .375" lead heel bullet and 8 to 10 gains (volume) of FFFg Gunpowder. More fun, more smoke like Colt intended.
I've been saving my cracked 38 specials to chop down to 38 shorts using the Lee Case gauge for 9mm, it's only 10 thou difference in COAL if I remember correctly. I was going to use low end 9mm data for starting loads, but have found a few loads specifically for 38 shorts. Great tutorial. Just be careful while you're filming. I've caught myself making silly mistakes because I was distracted by the camera. Looking forward to more!
Very nice, informative. I'm just getting started reloading. Starting with a Lee Classic Loader in 38 Spl and then moving up to their hand press with Lee carbide dies. New subscriber. God bless, Rob
Thanks for watching!
I think the issue or problem with lee dies is the inconsistency. One person gets a die or die set that’s manufactured properly but the next person gets a die or set that’s poorly manufactured. So I think that’s were all the different opinions come from.
Thanks for watching
Whenever I find a .38 Special case with a cracked case mouth, etc., I like to cut them down to either .38 Long or Short Colt, too. Long Colt, most of the time. Great way to recycle brass cases. I also use the Lee .38 Long/Short die set. Published load data for both .38 Long & Short Colt, can be found on the Hodgdon Reloading Data Centre website.
Great video👌👌👍👍
My range sells Remington 38 short colt …can I safely fire them in my 38 special snub nose??
Yes you can just don’t load them hot. I used 38 s&w data not 38 special data. Work up from there.
Good Demo! Thanks, I'm researching .38 Short Colt Round Ball Loads for really light plinking in a shotgun adapter for .38 Spl. Thanks, Mike.
Thanks for watching! Not much info on the 38 short colt so I wanted to get that out there
In order for me to reload for my 38 S&W I have to buy 38 SPL and cut them down because the 38 S&W casings are more than double the price, that is assuming I can even find them!
And as for FPS, energy and lethality, plenty of hardened men have been put down permanently with 600 - 800 FPS black powder ball rounds through the years, and that's nothing to sneeze at.
i bought a very large box of starline brass (was 500 or 1000 pieces of brass) .38 S&W for about $300 pre covid.still have maybe 80% of them unfired. just started using them again because pistol primers are becoming available again
I think this is very similar to what Service Pistol Match guys do, in Australia at least.
The difference is that we use a full length 38sp case, loaded with a 100gn semi wadcutter but seated way below the case mouth as in the tip of the SWC is approximately 0.125-0.175 below the case mouth. I only have a Lee seater/crimper die to seat bullets so I had to machine some of the threads off the stem. I get about 650fps with 2.4gn of AP50N (similar to bullseye, in fact the same charge of bullseye yields similar results).
The 38SP of choice is a Model 64, Model 10 or any K frame really. Great video my man, really enjoyed it.
Thanks for watching!
Thinking of reloading. Here is my concern. Will shooting the 38 short colt cause enough crud ring in the chambers to make it difficult to chamber the 38 special round. That’s my worry
I haven’t had an issue. If you are worried just clean it after every range session.
Forbidden crayon
Pink! End of my masculinity right there.
What is the average number of times you can reuse the cases?
I haven’t reloaded a bunch of the same cases consecutively but I’d imagine if you don’t load them hot they should last at least 6-8 reloads
@@heavyleadenthuasist38 There are Cowboy Action shooters that have loaded them for years and many, many dozens of times. The secret is to bell just enough otherwise you end up over working the brass.
@@buzzard6410 correct
Phillip, the number of reloads is dependent on several factors. Like - how hot are you loading cases - and how much case stretching occurs - and how quickly the brass work hardens. - and etc. The thumb rule is 5 to 8 reloads per case with minimal reworking of the brass. Straight walled cases give more reloads than bottle necked cases. Some calibers have a reputation for excessive stretching that limits reloads to maybe two or three. The 348 Winchester is one. Sharply tapered case allowed a great deal of bolt thrust, thus stretching the case. You were lucky to get 3 reloads. The 303 is another, but that's due to the generous chamber dimensions that are normal for it. Nickel plated cases start out harder, so fewer reloads are the norm.
The Ackley Improved cartridges were designed to provide a bit more speed but significantly more reloads per case. You could also use standard factory ammo in an AI chamber, and it would safely fireform the cases. For the 303, you can neck size the cases for use in your rifle. This minimizes case "working" and provides more reloads. However, the biggest thing you can do to improve case life is to anneal the cases. Unlike iron that gets harder when heated and quenched, brass gets softer. It doesn't take much - just until the instant you see the flame change color, then quench. Keeping the brass annealed can effectively double or triple the number of reloads, all else being equal.
@@kirkboswell2575 super informative. Thank you so much