Re: Magnum load advice - Lil Gun powder 357 & 44
Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2017 9:51 pm
Sevens, THANK YOU for that bit of wisdom.
I knew pieces and parts of what you were saying but you rolled it up into a nice, neat package that was easy for my brain to digest.
What you mention about "filling the case and it still being safe" is one of the reasons I am so fond of Trail Boss. That bulky, donut powder is just about impossible to grenade with. My soft .500 S&W loads use it and it fills most of the case. Heck, even if you filled it all it'd still be gentle (just don't compress it).
Yeah, once upon a time I thought I could get away with maybe 3 powders. One for target pistol loads, one for magnums and certain rifle rounds like .300 BLK and .50 Beo, and then finally a true rifle powder. Heck, nowadays I use different powder for .38 Special whether I'm loading lead cowboy bullets or copper-plated target rounds. Lil' Gun is probably my most flexible powder in that I use it for heavy bullet magnums (.357/.44/.500), .300 BLK and .50 Beo. But after that different rounds seem to behave better with different powder. Just the way it is I guess.
...and yes, because I bought an odd lot of reloading stuff that included a smattering of a dozen different powders I am DEFINITELY experimenting with things that are not ideal. I still haven't found a valid use for that darn IMR PB (seriously thinking about just dumping it in the flower beds come spring).
One last question - awhile back I tried Accurate #7 with some 200-gr coated RNFP .44 Mag bullets and got mediocre velocity. Since 200-gr is "light" for .44 Mag I refuse to use Lil' Gun for this bullet. Thoughts?
I knew pieces and parts of what you were saying but you rolled it up into a nice, neat package that was easy for my brain to digest.
What you mention about "filling the case and it still being safe" is one of the reasons I am so fond of Trail Boss. That bulky, donut powder is just about impossible to grenade with. My soft .500 S&W loads use it and it fills most of the case. Heck, even if you filled it all it'd still be gentle (just don't compress it).
Yeah, once upon a time I thought I could get away with maybe 3 powders. One for target pistol loads, one for magnums and certain rifle rounds like .300 BLK and .50 Beo, and then finally a true rifle powder. Heck, nowadays I use different powder for .38 Special whether I'm loading lead cowboy bullets or copper-plated target rounds. Lil' Gun is probably my most flexible powder in that I use it for heavy bullet magnums (.357/.44/.500), .300 BLK and .50 Beo. But after that different rounds seem to behave better with different powder. Just the way it is I guess.
...and yes, because I bought an odd lot of reloading stuff that included a smattering of a dozen different powders I am DEFINITELY experimenting with things that are not ideal. I still haven't found a valid use for that darn IMR PB (seriously thinking about just dumping it in the flower beds come spring).
One last question - awhile back I tried Accurate #7 with some 200-gr coated RNFP .44 Mag bullets and got mediocre velocity. Since 200-gr is "light" for .44 Mag I refuse to use Lil' Gun for this bullet. Thoughts?