357/ 38 sp Henry rifle loads

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Wondering if anyone is willing to share any loads/ tips for reloading for a 357 rifle with a 20" barrel.

I have about 1000 pieces of 38 special brass, and a few hundred 357, and am wanting 1 bullet that i can use for both of them.

Not sure whether to go with a lead, jacketed or plated bullet. Ideal weight? I'm thinking 158gr
Will be ordering bullets from budgetshootersupply
I have lots of Titegroup and Lil' Gun on hand, most loads i find are for pistols. Will these starting pistol loads be safe out of the longer barrel? I know i will see significant increase in velocity, not sure about pressures.
Thanks
 
I can't comment on the safety of pistol loads in a rifle (i believe anything a pistol can shoot a rifle cam safely, but I may be wrong)

Bullet choice 158gr is the most common and the one I use the most. I have Berry's 158gr RN plated and also my own cast which I use the most.

Tightgroup is good for light loads and Lil gun will be a nice magnum load, but I like h110/w296 better for full magnum loads. I use 15gr with any common 158gr bullet.
 
Any load data you find for the ammo used in pistols will be perfectly safe for the rifle. You won't see any increase in pressure since the peak pressure occurs while the bullet is within a very short distance of the case mouth and goes down from there. It would take a VERY slow powder to see the pressure peak when the bullet is more than a few bullet lengths from the mouth of the casing.

Accuracy is another issue. Only fellow Henry owners will be able to tell you what bullets seal well and work well with the rifling's twist rate to provide the highest level of accuracy. But I'd suggest that the plain iron sights will be the limiting factor anyway.

From information I've read the best cast bullets are those that are a thou or two bigger than the land groove. Or at least are cast soft enough that they fully obturate to seal right to the groove floors. The common factor I've seen is that it's worth slugging the bore to obtain measurement. Having said this I've shot quite a few thousands of .358 size cast bullets from my cowboy action rifle with no signs of leading up or any other issue. Much depends on if you run into a problem or not.

Note that cast bullets commonly cost more by a couple of bucks/500 than the lesser cost jacketed or plated. But at .357Mag speeds I would not want to use a plated bullet such as Berry's. If you want to go for speed then stick to bullets with proper formed jackets. The lighter plated bullets can peel the plating off the core at higher speeds and pressures.

And if shooting lead you don't want to push them much faster than 1400 to 1500. Up around that point leading the bore becomes hard to avoid.

For full power .357Mag loads I've had good results with both H110 and 2400. But I've not really checked for accuracy from my guns. Just that these provide consistent power.
 
Oops, I forgot to answer your direct question.

I'd suggest that you buy some 158's in either cast or jacketed (not plated). Whatever you buy should have a flat nose to be safer in the tubular magazine.

Looking at the reloading data on the Hodgdon powder web site I'm really liking the Lil'Gun numbers. It provides really good velocities from relatively modest pressure levels. On the other hand I see that at Magnum power levels that the Tightgroup generates high pressure to move the bullet along. So for a lower power plinking load the Tightgroup would be just as good. But for maximum power loads I'd prefer the Lil' Gun you have.

Of course the key is to load up a dozen of each at a few different load strengths and try them for grouping. Or seek out someone with the actual Henry and start out with their pet load.

You say you have a 1000 Special cases. Obviously you can load up using the Special load data and there won't be a lick of an issue since the peak pressure in the Special loadings is so low. From there you could work up to +P+ loads or even work to powder charges that are just a small amount lower than the starting loads for the Magnums. In that case start a little lower and work up watching for signs of over pressure. Things like flowed out primers and possibly extraction issues.

Chances are though that you're best to use the Special cases for lighter plinking loads and get some Magnum cases to use for longer distance higher power loads. The reason being that the shorter Specials result in the bullet traveling for some extra unsupported distance before engaging the chamber throat and rifling. With the Magnum cases you have the bullet supported fully from the initial start and the bullet engages the rifling that much sooner. You can then even play with seating depth to locate the bullet right by the start of the rifling. All of this being to achieve a better potential accuracy level.
 
Oops, I forgot to answer your direct question.

I'd suggest that you buy some 158's in either cast or jacketed (not plated). Whatever you buy should have a flat nose to be safer in the tubular magazine.

Looking at the reloading data on the Hodgdon powder web site I'm really liking the Lil'Gun numbers. It provides really good velocities from relatively modest pressure levels. On the other hand I see that at Magnum power levels that the Tightgroup generates high pressure to move the bullet along. So for a lower power plinking load the Tightgroup would be just as good. But for maximum power loads I'd prefer the Lil' Gun you have.

Of course the key is to load up a dozen of each at a few different load strengths and try them for grouping. Or seek out someone with the actual Henry and start out with their pet load.

You say you have a 1000 Special cases. Obviously you can load up using the Special load data and there won't be a lick of an issue since the peak pressure in the Special loadings is so low. From there you could work up to +P+ loads or even work to powder charges that are just a small amount lower than the starting loads for the Magnums. In that case start a little lower and work up watching for signs of over pressure. Things like flowed out primers and possibly extraction issues.

Chances are though that you're best to use the Special cases for lighter plinking loads and get some Magnum cases to use for longer distance higher power loads. The reason being that the shorter Specials result in the bullet traveling for some extra unsupported distance before engaging the chamber throat and rifling. With the Magnum cases you have the bullet supported fully from the initial start and the bullet engages the rifling that much sooner. You can then even play with seating depth to locate the bullet right by the start of the rifling. All of this being to achieve a better potential accuracy level.
 
Thanks for the input guys.

Any experience with Cam-Pro plated bullets? They say their plating is "superior" or thicker and they won't come apart at magnum velocities. I may order 100 and give em a try.
 
I like them alot, only tried them in 9mm, but I push plated to jacketed speeds with no bad effects to my knowledge. Might change things in a rifle, but I doubt it. But as bcrider said stick with flat points which should be easy to get.
 
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