OK I've got all the reloading equipment and the manual but still having trouble deciding which bullet to get. I will be shooting these reloads out of an old break top revolver. Its in good shape but I still want to stick with lead bullets less than 158 grains. My manual has data for 148 grain RN bullets but I can only find wad cutters in that weight. I did find a 140 grain semi wad cutter which I'm considering but will the slightly lighter bullet mean I'll have to change the powder charge? I feel like a babe in the woods here, need your advise.

Breaktop

Old guns in these old rounds have bore and cylinder mpouth diameters all over the map, really need to slug (r other wise accurately measure) BOTH the cylinders AND the bore. Can find them anywhere from .358" to .370".

(Yeah...I know they should never be that large...but one H&A I measured had the unfortunate combination of .370" cylinder mouths and a .359" bore).

Most of myonw loadings for these old guns centers on the basic 148gr. .358" HBWC. That hollow base helps seal larger bores.

Can't help too much with loads...for the old guns, will load black powder or the very lightest of smokless loadings (squib loads more or less...1.5gr. of Red Dot works fine for me).

I have an old top break revolver in 38S&W (3"bbl) that I shoot both 148gr hollow base wadcutters and 140gr flat nosed (Hornady lead bullets, I get them from Midway but many others have them) that work fine. 2gr of Bullseye under either will work just fine, 3gr of Unique gives a little more flash, but still works dandy. Both are as accurate as I can be with the ... minimal ... sights ;) But it's good enough for cans at 20-30ft :)

The cases fall out of the chambers, which is good for me since the extractor mechanism is broken in my gun, so it doesn't extract...

i use the hornady 148 gr HBWC in my H&R topbreak. I have put over 2000 rds thru with no problems yet. It makes cans and other things jump reallt good. It cuts pretty holes in paper too.

As ribbonstone said, slug your bore and/or cylinder mouths, the 38s&w was a true 38 as opposed to the 36 of the 38s&w special. the hbwc's will work becuse the skirt does expand to bore dimintions, but the nose is still able to be off center. While I realise you are not going to use this as a target gun, proper fitting bullets will be a lot less discouraging to start with. DM

I have an old top break revolver in 38S&W (3"bbl) that I shoot both 148gr hollow base wadcutters and 140gr flat nosed (Hornady lead bullets, I get them from Midway but many others have them) that work fine. 2gr of Bullseye under either will work just fine, 3gr of Unique gives a little more flash, but still works dandy. Both are as accurate as I can be with the ... minimal ... sights ;) But it's good enough for cans at 20-30ft :)

The cases fall out of the chambers, which is good for me since the extractor mechanism is broken in my gun, so it doesn't extract...
Stanger 73,

Just got the 148 grain Hornaday wad cutters from Midway. My question to you is how deep do you seat them? Appears there is little or no room for powder if they are seated all the way. Do you leave a quarter or a third of the bullet protruding out the top or is that even necessary?

Thanks

Topbreak

Stanger 73,

Just got the 148 grain Hornaday wad cutters from Midway. My question to you is how deep do you seat them? Appears there is little or no room for powder if they are seated all the way. Do you leave a quarter or a third of the bullet protruding out the top or is that even necessary?

Thanks

Topbreak

Seat them OUT. IF you seat them to 1.56", will have about 40% of the bullet sticking out of the case,,,no real problem, these rounds don't need a super-aggresive crimp, just a slight roll crimp.

as Ribbonstone noted, you have to seat them out in the 38s&w or you don't have enough room for powder. I seat them at 1.5" for the 2gr Bullseye loads.

IIRC I had to seat them out a bit more for the 3gr Unique loads, I forget how much. I only tried them out before settling on the Bullseye loads.

I determined my seating depth by throwing a charge and checking the fill depth. I wanted the case to be full but not compressed.

I crimp with a Lee FCD, just enough to remove the mouth bell, and I only bell just enough to fit the base of the bullet. I can FEEL the bell, but I shure as **** can't SEE it :)

IF you do seat them deeply, hen seat one and then pull the bullet back out...measuring the base, will find the base is something close to .348". Case walls get thicker as you go down, so they act like a bullet sizer as you seat...not something to promote accuracy.

You guys are the best. I could not remember why I was not seating my Hornady HBWC all the way in with my Green Dot load. I did a search and here is the ansxer. The internet even lets your mind go and you still can have total recall.

I try to find the largest diameter softest 38 bullet and push it with 2 gr of Bullseye or 3 gr of Unique.

My grandfather carried a 38sw Iver Johnson hammerless breaktop in the Alaskan Gold rush.

I shot some of his old black powder ammo in 1972 and half of it went off.

The Bullseye and the Unique give the same sort of recoil, but allot less smoke.