Rossi Rifleman

Noting that the SAAMI max. COAL for the .357 is 1.590" I find that, using a loosely-assembled "dummy" round, the chamber will accommodate a cartridge length of 1.697" (with an FMJ bullet) and 1.666" (with a cast RNFP bullet). This indicates that at published max. COAL I would have at least a 0.10" "jump" to the lands.

Just as a matter of interest, are there any likely advantages (e.g. accuracy, consistency) to loading the rounds to give a lesser "jump" to the lands or is this likely to lead to an undesirable increase in chamber pressure?

Your thoughts would be welcome, thanks!

I have to load my 180-ish cast to 1.63" because of the bullet size and it shoots just fine with a heavy load of H110/W296 or 2400. I have some Lil Gun loads to try too.

I like loading my ammunition .005" of ogive/throat contact, so yeah, I think .100" is a lot. The question becomes just what length your rifle's action will feed from the tube, up, and into the chamber. Remember, that the cartridges that the 92s are chambered in, SAAMI has specified COALs for a revolver cylinder. The only exception is the 44 Mag which does also have a rifle chamber spec. With that cartridge, the COAL remains the same as the pistol spec, but a leade is established for the chamber.

Gas Guzzler, Ranch Dog - Good Lord........ you guys are up early or do Texans never sleep ??
Thanks for the replies. I'm used to loading the .308 and .223 closer to the lands but have not really given much thought to the .357.
RD - you confirmed my thoughts about the SAAMI dimensions being related to revolver/pistol usage.
I'm not too worried about whether the longer rounds will feed from the mag, as I'm quite happy to single-load if necessary.
I'll knock up some "longer" rounds with the FMJ and some 2400 - I just didn't want to risk anything untoward happening.
Thanks guys.

severnsider wrote:Gas Guzzler, Ranch Dog - Good Lord........ you guys are up early or do Texans never sleep ??

I'm up trying to kill the raccoons that are raiding my protein feeders.

Ranch Dog wrote:

severnsider wrote:Gas Guzzler, Ranch Dog - Good Lord........ you guys are up early or do Texans never sleep ??

I'm up trying to kill the raccoons that are raiding my protein feeders.

I've been off work for the Holiday so my mind is going 9464168 miles per hour.

I think the concern would be under-pressure, with more case volume. Lower case fill might present a consistency issue all by itself. And maybe bullets being dislodged in the mag, due to the lesser bullet seating? But I guess that would be more of a revolver issue.

I don't understand why jumping distance to the lands doesn't cause problems, but we all seem to happily get by with shooting .38 & .44 Specials out of our Magnums.

HarryAlonzo wrote:I think the concern would be under-pressure, with more case volume. Lower case fill might present a consistency issue all by itself. And maybe bullets being dislodged in the mag, due to the lesser bullet seating? But I guess that would be more of a revolver issue.

I don't understand why jumping distance to the lands doesn't cause problems, but we all seem to happily get by with shooting .38 & .44 Specials out of our Magnums.

Thanks Harry - perhaps you're right about under-pressure; I really don't know. I was interested in the longer COAL as the FMJ I have are a little (but not much) more "pointy" and can enter the bore slightly more than the rather blunter RNFPs. Thought it might give them a better start down the barrel if they were up close to the rifling. I'll load some and see whether accuracy improves over 50m. If not then I'll revert to "standard".
I'm hoping that the 2400 will fill the case sufficiently to ensure consistent results........

2400 has a narrower band than some powders but almost like H110/W296 you can hardly put too much....kinda. 16gr of 2400 is a good start on lots of stuff. Use my advice at your own risk. I love 2400 in .357.

Thanks GG. I don't have ready access to a vast range of powders here, but now have Bullseye, Unique and 2400 on the shelf. For .38 reloads (lead) I'm using the Bullseye, for .357 (lead) the Unique and having found that 10.6gr of 2400 behind 158gr lead RNFP was giving MV of almost 1400fps I thought it best to only use the 2400 for FMJ. Interestingly 12.0gr of 2400 was making the cases a little sticky to extract, so I doubt I'll be going anywhere near 16gr!
Have a great Christmas!

28 December. Well, I loaded 12.5gr of 2400 under a 158gr FMJ to 0.007" off the lands and ended up with MV of 1450fps and a consistent, accurate round. No pressure signs or extraction issues, so I have no idea why the cases had been "sticky" with 12.0gr of 2400 under 158gr lead RNFP at SAAMI COAL.

Had to single-feed though, but that wasn't an issue for the target shooting.