.32 S&WL Loads using Clays, Trail Boss, or Red Dot?

John C · Post by **John C** » Thu Jan 17, 2013 11:50 pm

Does anyone have some pet loads for .32 S&W long for 98 gr HBWC using Clays, Trail Boss, or Red Dot?

It looks like the most popular powders for this application are Bullseye and VV N310. I'd like to use a bulkier powder, since I'm having trouble throwing extremely small charges consistently. I'm currently using 1.5 gr of Bullseye, and getting good results from my Walther GSP Expert.

Thanks,

-John

Trooperjake · Post by **Trooperjake** » Fri Jan 18, 2013 8:43 pm

I use VV310 and would not switch, it throws small loads better than anything else. I use the Dillon ultra small load measure, on my SD Press.
Get a better powder measure.
I have never had good luck throwing small loads of clays.
Bullseye would be my second choice.
Have never seen target loads for trail boss or Red Dot in the 32.
Just my 2 cents.

John C · Post by **John C** » Fri Jan 18, 2013 10:22 pm

Thanks for the reply.

I have several powder measures, but the variation I'm seeing in the charge weights is excessive. What sort of variation of charge weights are you seeing? Have you chrono'ed your ammo? Are you seeing any excessive velocity spreads?

I've never seen target loads for the .32 with other than Bullseye or VV powders, either. I'm just hoping! :)

Thanks,

-John

Trooperjake · Post by **Trooperjake** » Fri Jan 18, 2013 10:37 pm

I have never chrono'd my loads,
But I do check the meter every 100 or so drops.
I rarely see more than .1 either way, most are dead on.
Most people I know get similar results with the Dillion SD measure.
Right now I am using VV310, 1.4 gr. for 25 yards.
VV's fine powder drops great.

John C · Post by **John C** » Sat Jan 19, 2013 3:28 am

Jake;

Interesting. I may have to put my .32 conversion kit on my Dillon SDB or 550 and see how well I can get Bullseye to meter. I have an Arredondo Accessories extra small powder charge bar.

Currently, I'm auto trickling every charge. It works great, all the charges are spot on, but it takes a LOT longer than pulling the handle on my SDB. I guess if I keep the charge at 1.5 gr, then going .1 gr over isn't too big of a deal.

Thanks,

-John

David M · Post by **David M** » Sat Jan 19, 2013 4:19 am

Playing with Trailboss in .32swl , 98g HBWC, Win primer
1.8g Trailboss, av 690 fps
2.0g Trailboss, av 720 fps

mld · Post by **mld** » Sat Jan 19, 2013 9:56 am

I'm loading 1.3 gr of VV310 with the 100 gr H&N HBWC for 25 yards.

I'm loading 1.5 gr of VV310 with the 83 gr Berry's HBWC for 50 yards.

I'll second John C's comment: the Arredondo Powder Drop Slide is very precise and works well in my Dillon SDB.

John C · Post by **John C** » Sat Jan 19, 2013 2:43 pm

David;

Thanks for the load data. I'll have to give that a try. Are you compressing the powder charge at 2.0 gr?

Mld;

Maybe I need to get a pound of N310 and try it out. I see from the Lee VMD chart that it's approximately 14% bulkier per grain than Bullseye. This about cancels out the smaller charges required.

I will definitely check out the Berry's bullets. I haven't done enough research to find out if my gun will reliably print at 50 yards, but others in my club have problems. If my gun won't print, I'll try the Berry's before I send it off to Dave Wilson for a barrel upgrade.

Thanks,

-John

David M · Post by **David M** » Sun Jan 20, 2013 1:58 am

Trailboss is a full case about 2.4g, the max I have tried is 2.2g (98g HBWC) and it shoots fairly hard (725 fps).
If using VV n310 start at 1.3g, up a max 1.5g with a 98g HBWC (if using in a blowback auto).
1.5g n310 in my SP20 gives 740 fps on a 98g HBWC
1.4g n310 gives 700 fps on a 90g cast BNWC

John C · Post by **John C** » Sun Jan 20, 2013 5:58 pm

David;

Great info!

I'm shooting a Walther GSP Expert, so it's a blowback semi-auto pistol. I'll keep in mind that 2.2 gr of Trail Boss shoots hard.

What pistol are you shooting?

-John

David M · Post by **David M** » Sun Jan 20, 2013 7:03 pm

New Hammerli SP20 RRS

jbshooter · Post by **jbshooter** » Sun Jan 20, 2013 9:37 pm

Is the SP20RRS built like the 280 ie plastic top and frame. What do you think of its RRS feature?

David M · Post by **David M** » Mon Jan 21, 2013 1:34 am

SP20 uses a combined plastic lower and moulded grip with a steel/alloy top.
I originally thought the grip might be a problem but I have found it to be very good. All it required was a light rub to kill the sharp moulded surface.
The pistol without weights is very light so I added the internal weight and the handling with the RRS is good.
The trigger group is the same as the 280, so it's good.
Its nice to have two pistols .22 and .32 with the same feel.
Its a big barrel on the .32 (.3135") so I load .314 projectiles using modified oversize dies. The modified dies made a huge difference.
After all the playing with 98g HBWC it still prefers my home cast 90g BNWC.

John C · Post by **John C** » Mon Jan 21, 2013 11:34 pm

David;

If I may ask, what modifications did you make to your dies? I'm very curious, since I'm also loading .314 bullets.

Thanks,

-John

David M · Post by **David M** » Tue Jan 22, 2013 2:06 am

My carbide full length die was diamond lapped out 0.0035" bigger diameter and the neck sizer was increased to 0.314" and lengthened to the full HBWC length (18 deg flare). A .314 neck sizer will allow the brass to spring back and give .001-.0015" neck tension.

Oversize dies I think are available from Lee (.314 cowboy dies or custom).

The real test of your dies is to get a .314 HBWC, measure for accurate dia, load, then bullet pull the round and re-measure the diameter, if your dies are tight it will see a reduced bullet diameter.

John C · Post by **John C** » Tue Jan 22, 2013 1:13 pm

David;

May I ask who did the work on your dies? Also, can you please post the specs of your dies? (IE, what's the inside diameter of the carbide ring) I think I'd like to have my dies modified along these lines.

My current plan is to skip the sizing portion of the process, since all my brass was fired in my gun. I'm just going to deprime in station 1, once I get my loads dialed in. I'm running Dillon progressive presses, and just had a custom expander funnel made to .3135. I'm hoping this is enough expansion. If not, I'll probably go for a .3145 or .315.

Thanks,

-John

David M · Post by **David M** » Wed Jan 23, 2013 1:26 am

I lapped it out on my workshop lathe, working slowly it took me two days (including testing and coffee breaks).

PFribley · Post by **PFribley** » Wed Jan 23, 2013 9:29 am

Lee makes an oversize expander plug for your expander die. The part number in the directions the came with your set. I was having problems with bulging my loads. I was using the .314 swagged wadds.A local bullet make had some .313 cast I would use. I could see I was bulging the brass.But didn't know the solution In my Pardini HP the round would not go all the way into battery and still go off. They were blowing out the side of the round. Found a string on Bullseye L. The editor was doing the same thing. Not sizing the brass. I now use a 9MM die to decap. I have a Wilson barrel and use mostly .312 swagged wadds. I can seat them with finger pressure. this has been the solution to my problem. Lee will make you a custom expander plug for the cowboy dies to any size you desire. Also my neighbor has a star sizer and luber. I use it and can size the .314 wadds down to any dia. I need. Just get the proper size die for it. I size mine down to .312.

John C · Post by **John C** » Wed Jan 23, 2013 12:25 pm

Thanks David and PFribley.

If you consider the hourly rate of a machinist, David must own the most expensive .32 sizer die on the forums! I'm sure the result is worth every penny, just a little more than I wanted to spend.

I'm my case, I have the option of using a Dillon Square Deal or 550. I had a custom expander made for me that will fit both presses. I'm going to try the Square Deal first, because the station one sizing die can be left out, leaving the decapping plug. So, I'll try these unsized, and see what happens. If I decide to use the 550, I have a Lee decapping die that will fill the same role.

I think I'm ready to do this!

-John

oldcaster · Post by **oldcaster** » Thu Jan 24, 2013 11:19 pm

You might try some Accurate #2 because it throws very well. 1.6 will push a 100 grain lead bullet about 700fps but it is a small quantity so some measures won't go small enough. I also have used Power Pistol which throws well also. 2.0 will give about 700fps and isn't so dense.

For you guys that don't want to size your brass so far down, Lee has a special die that will size .002 less. You have to call them to get it. Dave Wilson I think also has some dies that are different dimensions that he got from Lee. I don't remember how much the -.002 die cost but it wasn't real expensive. If you want even less or a custom size from Lee it is $100. It seems to me that Dave wrote this in a post here somewhere so if you search for it you can see how much he wants for his dies.