Wild Shots

[Charlie Bowdre]

Feel free to move this if necessary

I have been shooting ( with the general bad luck ) black powder muskets and long guns for over 12 years . Just recently got hooked by this aspect . I am having the devil of a time  trying to work up a load for my revolver.

Now there is stupid then there is me ..so don't be afraid to jump in .

I have a Uberti OT .38 cal with 5.5 in bbl. At present I am shooting 158 gr LRNFP bullet with a 3.8 gr. charge of Trail Boss. My shots even at close range are all over the map.

This Forum has tons of information but I fear I am in overload state , I just need some info on a good basic load for this handgun. I certainly am not looking to challenge for the State Championship , just want to be able to hear a 'clang ' now and then .
When I say all over the map ...I mean all over the map.
I can stand 5 feet in front of the paper sight in target and put 5 shots which would not even look like a good buckshot grouping.
Any ideas.

Much appreciated.

[Machete]

I'm shooting NM Ruger Vaqueros 357/38s with 5.5" barrels using Remington 38 Special Match brass that I got on ebay, Winchester primers, MidStates 125 grain flat nose bullets and a 4 grain charge of TrailBoss and its hit point of aim and real easy on the recoil.

Machete

[Charlie Bowdre]

Tks for the reply. I am thinking the 158 may be a bit heavy??
Dutchie

[Pettifogger]

The 158s should be fine.  First thing to check is your bore diameter.  What kind of conversion do you have?  Some of them have .375 bores and are made for hollow based bullets.  If it is a current Uberti it should have a .357 bore.  You generally want your cast bullets .001" over bore size.  If they are undersize that can adversely affect accuracy.

[Charlie Bowdre]

Tks Pett..
The Uberti is a Cimmeron , it is .357 my  bullets are sized .358.

[Driftwood Johnson]

Howdy

I don't want to cast doubt on your measuring ability, but are you sure your barrel is .357? Your results so far sound exactly like what might happen firing .357 bullets out of .375 or so barrel. Those barrels require hollow based bullets .357 bullets so the bullet base can expand under pressure, much like a minie ball, to grip the rifling.

158 grains is a fine bullet for 38 Special and you should have no problem achieving acceptable accuracy with it. Hodgon's on line data says that for a 158 grain Lead Semi-Wadcutter the minimum load with Trailboss is 2.7 grains and the MAXIMUM load is 4.2 grains. Although you are using a Round Nosed Flat Point bullet, the weight is the same and it should not make a whole heckuvalot of difference. You might want to try some Sem-Wadcutters though, just for the fun of it. But Semi-Wadcutters may not feed so hot through a rifle if you are using the same loads in your rifle.

I have not used Trailboss in 38 Special, but I have used it in 44 Special the accuracy was fine. If your rifling truly is .357 and you can't get decent accuracy with a 158 grain bullet and Trailboss somewhere in the range of recommended loads, then I dunno what is wrong. But I'm really suspicious of that rifling diameter. Did you slug the bore? Just to make extra sure we're all on the same page, the rifling should measure .357-.358 in diameter across the bottom of the grooves.

[Charlie Bowdre]

Thanks Driftwood . Actually the measure is hearsay , I'll have it checked to be sure . Thanks again.
Dutchie

[Delmonico]

Not wanting to offend, but a valid question is, can you hit good with any handgun? 

[Charlie Bowdre]

Del

None taken and not bragging but every year for 34 years I qualified twice a year with revolver , pistol , shotgun and rifle.

And from 5 feet even a blind squirrel can find a nut once in a while
Do you have any other suggestions

[Pettifogger]

Can you hit that blind squirrel at five feet?

[Charlie Bowdre]

what can I say. I'm surrounded by experts.

[Delmonico]

Del

None taken and not bragging but every year for 34 years I qualified twice a year with revolver , pistol , shotgun and rifle.

And from 5 feet even a blind squirrel can find a nut once in a while
Do you have any other suggestions

Sounds good to me, seen a lot of folks over the years question the gun/loads when either was fine.   Check the bore dia and report back.

[Arcey]

I can hit a blind squirrel with anything I carry at five feet. But I only qualify once a year these days. Retired.

Suggest handin' the thing to someone else 'n let them give it a try.

[Charlie Bowdre]

Me too , don't have to qualify for nothing now. Just looking for some help . My mistake.

[Major E A Sterner]

Dutchie, You can also check that the barrel wedge is installed correctly, if it is loose or not fitted properly it will allow the barrel to move around with each shot giving you the results that you have been getting, Just a thought and hope it helps

[Arcey]

Me too , don't have to qualify for nothing now. Just looking for some help . My mistake.

Oh well. I still have to qualify. But it's fun 'n don't cost much.

Always ask when ya don't know. Ya learn by mistakes. Always willin' ta help. Don't be shy.

Arcey:

BOLD #81

SASS #13901

[Wymore Wrangler]

Shoot the pistol from a bench rest, if it groups fine, then it you, if it is still all over the place, a trip to a good gunsmith is in order...

[boot strap jack]

       have you shot other bp revolvers, and with no problems. had a friend that got nervous because of the smoke?

[Greeenriver]

Try loading a box up with hollow based wadcutters, or any other soft lead hollow based bullet and shoot them. That's the best way to seeif it's the bullets or not.

Might surprise ya.

Greeenriver

[litl rooster]

Dutchie, You can also check that the barrel wedge is installed correctly, if it is loose or not fitted properly it will allow the barrel to move around with each shot giving you the results that you have been getting, Just a thought and hope it helps

  ditto



  Do you have another .38 or .357 you can try the load in?

I load Trailboss in .38 specials for Rugers and Marlin rifle, 158 grain  I can't verify at this time but if memory allows around 3.2 grains ofTrailboss