reload 38 S&W

[joeyj]

Help, I am totally confused. I have a Webley top break World War II vintage revolver. I bought new, primed brass, from one vendor. And bullets from Missouri bullet company. When I looked in a reloading manual they list bullets as 359 diameter, but Missouri sent me 361 diameter. They are 145 grain round nose, Brinell rating of 12.

1. Will 361 be safe to use.
2. I have Bullseye powder, but I can get a couple of other kinds if you give me some choices.

If you need any more info let me know. Thanks Joe

[raxar]

briefly looking online shows bullet diameter for the .38 s&w being .360, since you're shooting lead I wouldn't be too worried, though slugging the bore might be a good idea since it tends to vary from gun to gun when dealing with surplus stuff.

I had OK performance using red dot and .358 cast bullets, all out of american guns though.

[Delkal]

.361 bullets are fine and probably optimal. The bore of a .38 S&W is bigger than a .38 special. Like the other poster said....slug your bore. As a general rule for cast bullets I usually shoot bullets 0.001 larger for best accuracy.

That said, I assume you just want to affordably shoot your WWII top break revolver, nothing wrong with that. Its a lot of fun but don't expect it to win Bullseye matches so bullet diameter is not that critical. Also the .38 S&W is pretty anemic as designed and should be loaded that way or lower. Use VERY light loads just so you can hit the paper. Don't push it and have fun.

If you think you need more power get a .38 or a .357.

[Pete D.]

I have a similar Webley and have been reloading the 38 S&W for years.
I use bullets at .360-.362....depending on the weight and alloy of the bullets.
The Lyman 358430 at 195 grains drops at .360". Liberty Cast bullets (now defunct) sold a 200 grain LRN that was a duplicate for the British .38-200 load. They were .362.
Cast Bullet Enginerring down in New Zealand made beautiful brass molds in a variety of bullets weights. Those drop at .360-.362 depending on the alloy.
I have loaded ad used cast bullets designed for the 9mm Makarov which were 95 grains and. .364".
No heavy loads. My point is that lead bullets in the range of .360 to .362 are fine.
I use 2.5 to 3,0 grains of Unique.
Pete

[DucatiRon]

FWIW a friend of mine reloads for 38 S&W and uses a .362 powder coated bullet that I make. He has had good luck with that diameter. I think you will be ok too.

[Guns N'at]

Just in case if you have not bought dies yet, I use my Lee 9mm Makarov set for double duty. Works great for both applications. I think your bullet choice will be perfect; I use .358-.359" bullets in my Webley, and the results are plenty good enough for plinking. You could always check your cylinders throats/barrels groove diameter as a guide to what might be potentially optimum, but the proof is always in the eating.

Bullseye is great, as is just about any other propellant in that general curve... I have had nice loads with Bullseye, Red Dot, WW231, and 700x.

Good luck.

[joeyj]

Just in case if you have not bought dies yet, I use my Lee 9mm Makarov set for double duty. Works great for both applications. I think your bullet choice will be perfect; I use .358-.359" bullets in my Webley, and the results are plenty good enough for plinking. You could always check your cylinders throats/barrels groove diameter as a guide to what might be potentially optimum, but the proof is always in the eating.

Bullseye is great, as is just about any other propellant in that general curve... I have had nice loads with Bullseye, Red Dot, WW231, and 700x.

Good luck.

how much Bullseye do you use? My teenage grand kids love to shoot it.

[Dave_n]

I have been reloading this cartridge for many years to feed a growing "herd" of Enfields, Webleys and S&W K frames from roughly WWI onwards, as the Colt New Police and the UK's 38/200 are effectively the same round. 360-361 diameter 180 grain heads and load to give approx 650 fps. Point of Aim at 7 to 10 metres. Dave_n

[Guns N'at]

how much Bullseye do you use? My teenage grand kids love to shoot it.

Using 148 grain WC's; 2.5 grains of Bullseye:

690 721 691 687 670 AV 691 ES 51 SD 18

Using soft 158 grain LSWC's and 2.5 grains WW231:

689 719 696 723 699 AV 705 ES 34 SD 14

For your bullets, 2.5 grains of Bullseye would be just fine. Good luck having fun with this round.