357 mag issues
Quote from Reloader on December 9, 2013, 3:33 amI am having a lot of issues with reloading the 357 mag. First off I am having a great deal of the brass getting stuck and not fitting on the shell plate. These tend to be S&B brass that I am having issues with. Anyone else have this problem? I have attempted to loosen and tighten the shellplate with no effect.
Next issue is with the powder bar. The small powder bar, from what I understand is supposed to dispense up to 20 grains, yet I can only get 13.7 out of mine. I had to switch to the large powder bar to get the 17.9 grains I need (using IMR 4227). With the large powder bar I am getting a great deal of powder spillage ; about 20 grains worth every 100 rds. I am not sure how to fix these issues. Any help would be appreciated.
I am having a lot of issues with reloading the 357 mag. First off I am having a great deal of the brass getting stuck and not fitting on the shell plate. These tend to be S&B brass that I am having issues with. Anyone else have this problem? I have attempted to loosen and tighten the shellplate with no effect.
Next issue is with the powder bar. The small powder bar, from what I understand is supposed to dispense up to 20 grains, yet I can only get 13.7 out of mine. I had to switch to the large powder bar to get the 17.9 grains I need (using IMR 4227). With the large powder bar I am getting a great deal of powder spillage ; about 20 grains worth every 100 rds. I am not sure how to fix these issues. Any help would be appreciated.
Quote from Reloader on December 9, 2013, 3:18 pmThe powder issue is due to the IMR powder. IMR is an extruded powder and has a tendency to log jam in the funnel. My solution was to go VERY slow on the stroke, at least one to two seconds once the powder bar starts moving. This will help the spillage. I have even given the handle a slight tap at the bottom of the stroke to try and jar any extra powder stuck in the funnel. Another problem is the design of the powder funnel. It has a flat surface at the top which just begs to allow powder to sit on top. I ground this flat top to an angle and polished it, so the powder slides through more easily. In the end, I quit buying IMR as the extruded cylinder shape was not a good mix with progressive reloading, especially the 233 rifle cartridge. All powders are hard to find now and you have to get what you can find, so this could also be an issue. As far as your first problem, I don't have any issues with .38 or .357 not loading, so I can't help with that. Hope this helps. jj
The powder issue is due to the IMR powder. IMR is an extruded powder and has a tendency to log jam in the funnel. My solution was to go VERY slow on the stroke, at least one to two seconds once the powder bar starts moving. This will help the spillage. I have even given the handle a slight tap at the bottom of the stroke to try and jar any extra powder stuck in the funnel. Another problem is the design of the powder funnel. It has a flat surface at the top which just begs to allow powder to sit on top. I ground this flat top to an angle and polished it, so the powder slides through more easily. In the end, I quit buying IMR as the extruded cylinder shape was not a good mix with progressive reloading, especially the 233 rifle cartridge. All powders are hard to find now and you have to get what you can find, so this could also be an issue. As far as your first problem, I don't have any issues with .38 or .357 not loading, so I can't help with that. Hope this helps. jj