Hey guys I have a Smith @ Wesson 636 357 mag and looking for a few good loads. One, I'd like a good hunting load for deer. Two, I want a good plinking load that's accurate and cheap for practice.

I have RCBS carbide 3 die set and 100 pieces of Starline brass and that's it. Thought I'd ask before I pick up powder, bullets, primers. Thanks


Trystan

Just started loading for mine and loaded a few with 5.5 grains of Longshot and some 158 LSWC that are hard cast and powder coated. Shot ok out at 25 yds need to tweak it and look for the sweet spot or try some other powder.

158 gr LSWC and Unique make a great 'plinking' load that will also work just fine on deer. If you want to go hotter, 300-MP and a 158 gr LSWC or XTP will run 1200 fps out of a 4 5/8" barrel.

K1500,

Thanks for the info! I'll be working my loads up and see how it pans out. I'll be happy at about 1,000fps.

You should be able to get 1,000 out of unique, with 1/3 the powder you would use in MP300.

My goto is 14.5gr of 2400 behind a Nosler 158gr JHP.

It's been working well for me for the last 20 years.

Great info really appreciate everyone's input/ advice!

I shot several coyotes and Javelina with

125g Sierra, Winchester, and Rem HP
17.8g of IMR 4227
Mag cci primer
This load kills very well.

158g Hornady Speer deep curl is a world class choice
With close to max load of H110 was accurate.

Note, Speer makes a 125g Gold Dot bullet that penetrates very, very well with the load above for 125g bullets for hogs and does.

I use H-4227 in W-W cases to power 158gr cast performance hardcast bullets to 1396 fps in an old S&W pre-27? 8-3/8ths inch barreled 357 mag revolver, a very nice well balanced accurate load, not a revolver hunter, but, I don't think a buck deer can hold one.

13 gr 2400 with 158 gr XTP and 4.5 gr W231, or Universal Clays with a 158 gr cast or a 125 gr JHP

For a hunting load 158/160 grain bullet with 15 grain 296/H110 or 180 grain with 13 grains H110/296 both loads with small magnum pistol primer.

i am one of those oddballs that has never liked H110 or 296 mainly because the start and max load are so close to each other.
unique or 2400 or some other powder works for me.

At ~ 1400 fps and that bullet? I doubt it too, gunner.

Universal 4.5-5 is a pleasure to shoot with 158 cast, in 357 Mag brass

First off I don't know what a model '636' is ? I've been a S&W shooter competitor for over forty years and admit to not following the current band of boneheads running the company these days but this model escapes me. Is this a typo and should be 686 ? Is the revolver a L or K frame as the pressure tolerance between the two is major. Finally I have to say asking for load info on a board full of variables like this, or any, is not a smart play unless of course you're trying to determine the modulus of elasticity of your revolver's top strap.

Good luck

Typo, its a 686

I've been reloading for over 30 years and have yet to have any problem. My question for all the fellas was mostly to find out what bullets/ powder combos have worked well for them and the due diligence is on me. As an example of due diligence I fully understand that H110 that I plan to use can have a serious issue if the starting load is too low. I also fact check each recommended load with a load Manuel. The load manuels can give you hundreds of loads but it is only the guys on this forum that can tell you which of those 100s of loads worked the best. It is much appreciated and likewise words of caution are also appreciated


Trystan

2400 with a Barnes 125 grain XPB will do a good job on Bambi. Not cheap for plinking though. BUT... nothing says you can't use cheap lead core bullets for plinking and the XPBs for Bambi.

The well recognized propensity of Barnes copper bullets to go all the way through is what you want for hunting and I have tested the 125 grain XPBs down below 900 FPS and they produce ad copy expansion in water jugs down there. Velocity is good and 2400 will give you >1600 FPS and if you think you need more, there are powders that will provide almost 1900. 2400 is pretty hard to beat for an all around 375 mag powder though.

You bet LD, I need to wait on the perfect north wind and get deep into that pine thicket and test it out, I had a doe in there with my long bow last year at 6 yards, drew on her just to see if I could, let her walk, maybe even I can hit a deer with a revolver at 6 yards.

And HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!

Lol. Thanks, gunner!

Well I got around to trying a few loads.

The 180 Hornady XTP with 14 grains of H110 shot 5 into an inch at 20 yds with 1 slightly out. I'm happy with that!

I loaded some 158 Speer SP with 16 gr H110 and 16.5 and both were right at 2 1/2 inch 6 shot groups.

I'm going to keep the 180 hornady load for hunting and see if I can't find a good powder to work up a mild plinking load for the 158 speers. I'm guessing the 158s will group a lot better with a milder load.



Trystan

I don't really have any plinking loads suggestions. I'd generally throw some amount of Win 231 under bulk WW 125 grain JSPs in the 1000-1100 fps range, typically in .357 cases but not always.

For hunting loads I had a couple. All used WW brass, Fed 200 primers, and Win 296. I'll tell you up front they are HOT. At the time I worked up to them, they were book-max in manuals from Sierra, Hornady, Hodgon's, or Speer. They are several grains above what is listed as max. I am damned careful to use them only in Blackhawk, GP-100, or Contender. I think they'd be fine in a S&W L or N frame as well. Quite possibly ok in an SP-101. I keep them very far away from my J-frame .357. My guess is introduction of the J frame .357s contributed substantially to the reduction in max loads in the past couple decades.

So, with that into, here are my 3 loads:

1) 19.5 grains of Win 296 under a 140 grain Hornady XTP or Speer JHP
2) 17.5 grains of Win 296 under a 158 grain Hornady XTP SP/HP or Speer JHP/JSP
3) 16.0 grains of Win 296 under a 170 grain Sierra JHC

Those Speer bullets were the older type with some exposed lead. They've changed to a full profile jacket. I would be real careful to work back up, don't assume the cannelure is in the same place, don't assume the seat to the same depth. And obviously the 170 Sierra JHC was discontinued long ago.

I also played with 110 and 125 grain bullets and heavy charges of both 296 and 2400. The 2400 loads, though "book", were scary. The pressure way would slap the front of my pants legs from the knees down most disconcertingly. I didn't feel what I was doing was safe so I backed away from it.

One hunting load which I would not be afraid of in the J-frame uses the 180 grain Nosler Partition. Yes, discontinued. I would not hesitate to swap in the 180 grain XTP HP and hunt with it in a pinch though. Same brass, same primers, 13.5 grains of 296. In the handguns and rifles I've test fired it in, there was noticeably more drop and more "soft" boom instead of the crack-of-doom the other loads above produced.

At risk of rambling a bit more, though I haven't pulled the trigger myself, I've seen a couple deer shot with 125 grain JHPs from a .357 handgun and based on that, I would pass on it if at all possible. The bullet holes, multiple per deer, seemed to be "splashes" on the surface that didn't penetrate very well. I bet they hurt like hell and bled, but it was surface-ish bleeding, not deep organ bleeding. At the same time, I'd want to test the 180s a bit to see if they expand at all. Just throwing something together and going hunting, I'd probably go with 140s slightly reduced or 158s full throttle. I'd really prefer to test-drive them into a coyote or two to see what happens before I shot deer with them.

Tom

Tom, I loaded the 180 XTP and at 14gr of H110 it put 5 shots in less than an inch at 20 yds with 1 shot out. I'm pretty sure it's a one hole load and the dispersion is purely the shooter. I looked for the 180 partition but couldn't find any now I know why.

The 158 Speer SP I loaded behind 16-17 gr of H110 was 2 1/2" groups. From what I've read about H110 I don't want to try reducing that load so going to try a light to mid range load with unique powder for that bullet today






Trystan

I’d be looking for a good supply of coated semi wadcutters to put on top of a mid range Unique load for your general use load. Probably be a good bit cheaper than any jacketed bullet for plinking and what not. Plus at middling speed there’s really no gain by shooting jacketed IMO.

Of course take my opinion for what it’s worth to you as I’m not really a big fan of hot 357 loads for anything. I feed all mine a 38+P type load that I also use in all my 38s. A 150-175gr bullet going 950-1100fps depending on barrel length is an easy to shoot and useful all around load. YMMV

4227
Lil Gun
2400

Hunting loads -125gr JHP or 158gr LSWC PC


Clays
Trail Boss
Unique

Plinking loads - 98gr LRN PC or 115gr PC

I think I have about 1200 rnds of 38 spcl with 148gr cast, great for my 357 mag, just a bit more cleaning on the cylinders afterwards, not a big deal.

I like 180gr cast or 158gr xtp's with 2400 for hunting.

Blammer, I've always used 180 hard cast for bear protection and settled on the 180 XTP to try first for a hunting load. I would be very inclined to try the 158 XTP also just for the sake of comparing. Have you by chance compared the 158 and 180?


Trystan