Reloading .38 Long Colt

[mi2600]

Is anyone reloading .38 LC? I have two 1901s and I would be interested in your bullet choice and recipes.

[smkummer]

Right now I am using 2.8 grains bullseye behind a 148 grain Hollow base wadcutter in a 38 special case( this is the classic 38 special mid-range match load). Works good enough and no need to use 38 LC brass. If I use a 38 Long case, I seat the wadcutter bullet out of the case to the same length as when flush loaded in the 38 special case. Using a 38 Long case is kind of a pain when it comes to crimping as I use a 9mm luger seat/crimp die to do that. A older hercules manual listed 2.8 grains bullseye behind a 150 grain bullet for the 38 LC. Since my 1901 has no chamber step, the hollow base wadcutter appears to give better accuracy than a .358 diameter plain base bullet.

[mi2600]

Thanks. Great minds must think alike. Thats the same bullet and recipe I found and used. I did trim down some .38 Spl cases and left the WC out of the case about 1/8". It would be nice to find a HB round nose, but if it's out there I couldn't find it. I haven't shot it yet, but it's good to know it works well.

[Oyeboten]

I would just use any good grade of 3 F Black Powder, same as they would have been 'then'.

[mi2600]

For me it hasn't been a powder question. The main stumbling block has been finding a bullet that would be a suitable substitute for the original "heeled" bullets. If anyone knows of a source, please join in.

[bang]

I came across an 1885 Winchester low-wall in 38-40, and the chamber and bore were in extremely poor condition.

My gunsmith suggested sleeving the barrel to .357 and chambering it for the 38 LC.

After he finished with it, you couldn't tell it had ever been sleeved -- best gunsmithing job I've seen in a while . . .

I shoot 38 spl in the gun, loaded with 3.7 grains of Bullseye under a 110 grain .357 Winchester HBHPMJ, and it is a sweet shooting load, doesn't stress the gun, and FWIW, the chambering is "period" for the gun . . .

I wound up with a little over $1,200 in the gun after the sleeving job, and it is a pleasure to shot, and best of all, the chamber and bore are pristine . . .

[haggis]

Gad Custom Cartridges has heeled bullets for the .38LC for $8/100.

Gad Custom Reloaded Cartridges and Shell Reloading Services

Buck

[mi2600]

Thanks, Buck. Where has that site been? I'll have to call them. Maybe I don't understand, but the bullet is at .375". Wouldn't that be a problem?

[TomP]

I can't remember when it happened but at some point Colt barrel bores were reduced to use a non-heeled .357 bullet. Prior to that the bores were sized to fit a .375 bullet whose .357 "heel" held it in the case mouth. I believe that .357 hollow base wadcutters work to some degree because they expand to fit the bore on firing. Years ago I had a 1901 that worked well with HB WC but not with regular .357 bullets.

I guess my point is that your bore and groove diameters might be just right for a .375 heel base bullet. Do your chambers have "steps" in them near the front end or are they just bored straight through?

[bmcgilvray]

I'm with smkummer and have long used the common 148 grain hollow base wadcutter and 2.8 grains of Bulls-Eye put up in the .38 Long Colt case for my piddly .38 Long Colt shooting in my own Model 1901. Good accuracy can be had from it. I've even resorted to using the same exact load except put up in .38 Special cases. Don't generally like to do that just because I want to keep the two cartridges well segregated.