New to .38/.357 - Cartridge Reloading Questions

[JakeB]

Hey All,

I'm new to the revolver and the .38/.357 cartridges and will have some questions in addition to these...please bear with me...

First off is do .38 Special and .357 Magnum cases need to be chamfered/deburred?

Does it affect case strength/integrity to chamfer/deburr after each trimming?

What is the minimum case length that you go to before pitching the brass?

What brass manufacturer do you prefer to use?

Thanks a ton!!!

Jake

PS - I just got a new 686 SSR and now my Glock feels neglected.

[Skip Sackett]

Originally Posted by JakeB

Hey All,

I'm new to the revolver and the .38/.357 cartridges and will have some questions in addition to these...please bear with me...It isn't a bother at all, fire away!

First off is do .38 Special and .357 Magnum cases need to be chamfered/deburred? New ones yes. In my experience, they will also need full length sized. They come a little large from the store!

Does it affect case strength/integrity to chamfer/deburr after each trimming?You must be a rifle handloader! There will be little need for case trimming in most handgun calibers. The pressures for target ammunition just doesn't get to the place where it will stretch brass. That is, in straight walled pistol rounds.

What is the minimum case length that you go to before pitching the brass? I only throw brass away after it cracks. I used to separate all of my 38spl brass and have it stored in containers that were marked by length. Length range was .005", +/- .0025". The only reason to separate brass is because you are loading it in some kind of progressive set up, auto-indexed turrets included. Variations in length can reek havoc with belling/crimping operations. If you set up on one of the shortest cases in your batch and the longest is only .005" longer, you will be fine. Any longer and you can make another group with a .005" spread. I have some cases that are 1.140" long. Used them for more years than I care to admit!

What brass manufacturer do you prefer to use? Free is usually best! I have a ton of different brands. I have found all of the major brands acceptable for reloading. My target loads started off as new loaded ammunition. Federal Nickel plated. I have lost a few to cracks in the case mouth over the years but at 15,000psi or CUP or whatever, you just aren't going to do any damage to them via pressure. Get them up into the +P range, 20,000psi and things may happen, in a year or two, shooting them 10,000 times a year!

Thanks a ton!!!
Welcome a ton! Enjoy.

Jake

PS - I just got a new 686 SSR and now my Glock feels neglected.

All kidding aside, the 38spl is the easiest round to reload. There are tons of options, powders/bullet weights/bullet types and on and on and tons of loads.

Do you have a bullet picked out yet? Powder?

What are your needs going to be as far as loading? Target, action shooting, self defense? Just curious.

Enjoy yourself here! Lots of good folks!

[BillyWayne]

Hello. I will give you my 2.5 cents.
I do not chamfer or deburr.
I recycle the brass when it looks like it is time.
I prefer Star Line but Federal has worked well for me as well.
I do not load hot loads so it is very rare that I actually have to trim the brass.
I have the 686 SSR and Glock as well. The 686 is a "blast".
Have fun.

[acl864]

Welcome JakeB

The 38/357 cases don't have to be chamfered/deburred unless you trim them. If you trim then you will have to chamfer and deburr the cases. Unless you're extremely particular you will not need to trim every time. As long as you do it lightly, chamfering and deburring should not shorten case life. If you really crank down on the deburr tool I guess you could prematurely wear out a case mouth but in normal use I don't think it's an issue. You'll probably end up pitching your brass when the case mouth starts splitting. I don't think I've ever tossed out brass because it was too short but eventually the case mouth gets brittle and cracks. Then it's time to trash it. I'm not real particular when it comes to brands of brass. I don't use military brass and I ran into some S&B once fired that had tight primer pockets. But other than that I haven't found alot of difference in the brass I've used. Nickel plated brass doesn't seem to last as long as the plain brass.

Hope this helps. Andy

[ArchAngelCD]

Like said above, you will have little need to trim pistol brass. I have never trimmed any handgun brass.

I like Federal and Winchester handgun brass best but almost any "name brand" brass will work fine. I've loaded Federal, Winchester, Remington, S&B, Fiocchi, Magtech, Speer, CCI, Norna, Starline, Hornady and a host of other pistol brass and all worked just fine. The only brass I won't reload is A-Merc brass.

As for how long brass will last, well, it lasts as long as it lasts... I have been reloading the same 1,500 pieces of Remington .38 Special brass for the past ~5 years and none have split yet. My .45 Auto brass has at least 8X reloads on it and all of it's still fine. (mostly Winchester, Fiocchi and Federal)

[eddie h]

if you are shooting the 38 spl in moon clips-best use --rp--cases they fit better

[JakeB]

Thank you very much everyone!

[RV4driver]

Yep, A-Merc sucks. Period.

Military brass needs to have the crimp worked out, somehow. If you have a choice, don't mess with it.
WCC and anything with the NATO cross in circle logo usually has crimped primer pockets.

Jeff