In order to participate in the GunBroker Member forums, you must be logged in with your GunBroker.com account. Click the sign-in button at the top right of the forums page to get connected.
Options
Silhouette load
woodchuckjohn
Member Posts: 207 ✭✭✭
At our club in Central Jersey we shoot a lever action, pistol caliber silhouette match which is cometitive and fun. I'm loading 11.1 grains of Blue Dot powder behind a Remington 125 grain semi jacketed hollow point bullet in 357 magnum caliber. Plenty of down range power to knock over the 3/16" thick targets at 80 and 100 meters. Zero at 80 meters requires a hold over at 100 but considerable hold under at the shorter ranges. Like holding on the base of the beam for the chickens. So I was wondering if a 38 special traveling at a slower velocity would give me point blank hold at all ranges. After checking the loading manuals rifle loads vs pistol loads I deemed it ok that my existing 38 loads were an ok starting point. Finally settled on 5.6 grains of Unique behind the same the same 125 grain bullet. At 40 meters it printed a group 3/4" above point of aim and at 60 meters a center hold was 2" low. The only concern some of my buddies expressed was possible chamber fouling if the 38 special was fired before the 357 mag. The manuals don't give rifle loads for 38 special, but they do for 357 magnum. The same load for a revolver may give 600 feet per second faster in an 18" rifle barrel. Interesting. Extreme care must be used so not to reach dangerous pressurs.