Way back in the 70's as a newly minted Idaho certified police officer in a small rural farming community we dealt with 3-D Co., Inc out of Doniphan, Nebraska for our 38 spl practice rounds. We would send them 1000 brass and they, for a price of course, would send us back 1000 loaded with 158 grn swaged lswc's. At one point I was fooling around with a RCBS rockchucker and ended up buying 2000 bullets from them. Fast forward to December 2012 and I just started reloading 38's with these bullets I have lugged around for all these decades! I have been reloading for several years but only for my 9mm's and 45acp's. So now I am taking my M27 and M66 revolvers out of mothballs and will set up my chrono to see how this works out. Using CCI 500 primers with oal of 1.448, I have loaded 12 rounds each of Unique at 4.0, 4.3, 4.6 and 5.0 grains on my Lee classic turret press. In researching load data I get all kinds of different opinions on the amount of this powder to use, but most who load with this type bullet and Unique like 5.0 grains. We will see how this works!

I use 5.0 with cast 158 SWC in all loads except for an old heirloom M36 of my buddies that gets 4.5. Both are smile makers, they just work great.

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KMAG YOYO

I kind of miss 3D. They went out of business eons ago. I used to load a lot of their swaged 230 gr 45 ACP bullets for IPSC matches.

Sounds like you are right on target with your loads.
Good luck.

Your post brings back old memories. My department used 3-D too, but we used the 148 grain WC load. We never returned the brass, and most was thrown away. I still have buckets of the mixed head stamp 3-D brass. I like 5 grains of Unique with a cast 158 grain SWC in K, L, or N frames. In my old model 60 I use 4.3-4.5 grains of Unique with a swaged 158 SWC.

The thing I remembered about the 3-D ammo was that it leaded bad.

Regards

Memories here, also. I used quite a bit of 38 Special 3D in the 70s --- shooting steel.
I still have some of their well-made, yellow and black boxes with plastic inserts that I keep reloads in.

I also shot 3D's in the 1970's. However, for PPC competition I shot
swaged hollow base wadcutters through my Power Grand Master.
Fun days, I miss them. Still have my Power's though.

John P., I am wondering about the leading problem, I cannot remember if we had much issue with it back then. What I need to do is reload more of each powder charge, enough to show me what each does to the barrel with these bullets, then pick the one with the least lead buildup.

Nice to hear from others that remember 3D! Kinda dates us though!

I still have a "souvenir." Joe

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Wisdom chases me; I'm faster

I qualified with a 4 inch model 13, a 4 inch 686, a 2.5 inch 66, and a 2 inch 60. This was back in 1986 until early 1989, when I switched to the first 5906 I could get my hands on. I would have continued to carry the revolvers, but I got on SWAT, and we were required to carry a 59, 459, or one of the then new 5900 series. Our duty rounds were the Federal .357 magnum 125 gr. JHP load, a Remington 125 gr. plus P if one carried a .38 Special, and the Winchester 115 gr. Silver Tip in 9MM. We used a 60 round course, and those that liked to shoot were able to grab a box or two to plink with after the qualification course. I usually shot an extra box, so after the 110 rounds there was quite a bit of leading to clean. I forgot if we used the 148 DEWC or the HBWC, but they did lead. If the old 3D bullets you have are swaged, try Lee Alox on them if they lead at the higher charges of Unique. When I use the swaged Hornady bullets, I use the Alox with good results. My favorite load is still a cast (usually the economical 158 grain SWC-Bevel Base) over 5 grains of Unique.

Good luck and best regards

I still have a few boxes of the 3-D ammunition somewhere.

Lyman cast bullet handbook shows a +P .38 Special load as 5.3 grains of Unique behind a 158 grain SWC. Their "standard" load is 5.0 grains of Unique.

I have settled on 5.0grs of Unique as the max +p load in my snub nose for best accuracy and recoil for this revolver.....a 5.55ft/lb recoil is plenty for me in this light 38.

in my 686 6" I have gone all the way up to 5.5grs in a 38 spl hull that puts out around 1015fps but it may over penetrate and in the 6" mag. 4.0grs of Reddot puts out 890fps and is a tac driver !!
I have never gone lower than 5.0grs in the mag for target loads since 3.4 and 4.2grs of Trail Boss worked right off the bat for me in the snub nose and 6" tube.

Pharmer after looking at your picture I went down to my reloading area. I have one box of 3-D 38's. I took them out to try,worked good for me. I was given these by a friend who has passed on, he was a state officer,and thay did not use 38's any more. The box has about 18 rounds left and I just could not use up the last of his shells.

Yes, they are swaged. Thanks for the info on the alox, never heard of it before.

Here's another oldtimer who memory got jogged by your post. I loaded many rounds with 3-D .38 wadcutters back in the 1970's.

I'd like to see a pic of the 3D bullets.

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Professional Trainer

They look like any other LSWC bullet, although the case is marked 125grLSWC not 158. I used to pay around $70/thousand with brass exchange around 20 yrs ago. Joe

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Wisdom chases me; I'm faster

I guess this is going to be a blast from the past in a couple of ways. An old thread resuscitated...and I found these for sale about 2 weeks ago. Per the old request, here is a picture of the wadcutters.

By the way, these are still available. I just bought 7 boxes and think I will buy 7 more - they are cheap for these days. Apparently they found a pallet-full of these still in the original boxes. I don't know that I am allowed to post a vendor's location, so if anyone is interested, PM me and I'll send you the link.

Ah... 3-D! I remember 3-D! Always was good ammo for me.

For loading 158 gr. lead bullets, Skeeter Skelton recommended 5.0 gr. w/ whatever .38 Special casing and whatever small pistol primer was on hand. I've been using it for over 30 years. It has worked well in all my revolvers.

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<><

I used to load and shoot their 200 gr copper coated LSWC .45 ACP bullets. The coating wasn't a jacket, I'm guessing it was plated several thousandths thick. I also loaded and shot thousands of their pulled 125 gr .38 JHP and Nyclad bullets. I saved a few with the cannelures in the wrong place, and one is "hollow pointed" backwards; the exposed lead is at the base and they tried to put a hollow point in what was supposed to have been the jacketed bullet base, the flat bottom of the bullet. They were, after all, pulled bullets.

Many years ago I bought some ammo from "Longs" drug store for the .357 magnum and they had some 3D 110gr Jhp that was the most accurate 110 ammo that I have ever shot out of my six inch magnums.
All ammo was in the Red boxes...... never did see any green ammo boxes.
I still have one Red box of .357 ammo left. I don't know why I am saving it? Probably just know that when it is gone, that will be the end of it ? Sure was some sweet ammo, though.

That ammo hanging from the white plastic was sort of a new thing back then. I don't see that any more........ in the ammo I buy.

later.

A bunch - as in pallet loads - of 3D recently showed up at the LGS, Vance Outdoors. They're selling it for $15 a box as "Wadcutter Police Trade" rounds.

I was stationed in Washington DC in the '70's and I won an auction for 700 pounds of 5.56 brass from Aberdeen APG MD. I cleaned the brass in my bath tub and boxed it up and sent it to 3-D and told them to pay me it's worth in loaded 5.56 ammo. I got back 4,000 rounds of 5.56 in 50 round boxes. I think I sold it all at gun shows for $10 a box... maybe it was $5.. anyway I made money on the deal!

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Old paratrooper in NC

If it wasnt for 3-D and Zero brand reloads I doubt I wouldve got hooked on shooting. From the early to late 90's I shot thousands of their .38, .357 and 9mm usely for only $3.99 to about ten bucks a box. Very, very seldom a squab round like gunshow bulk reloads.

I remember them also, mostly for the smoke .

Price has been reduced from $15 to $11/box for the 3D wadcutters mentioned a few months ago. (Sportsman's Outdoor Superstore)

How hard were 3D bullets?

Thanks for the heads up. At $.22/rd., it's a nickle cheaper than any other .38 Spl. any of the ammo search engines find. Next cheapest is $.27/rd. and that's case price for Georgia Arms.

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SWHF #448

A shooting buddy sold me all his remaining stock of Master Match police and PPC ammo from his deputy days in the 70s. The ammo was about 50-50 148 gr LHBC and 158 gr LSWC. I shot a lot of it at steel matches until the match director complained it was so slow the bullets were bouncing off the steel. Master Match was HQed in Indianapolis and also catered to the police trade. I could still buy 3-D ammo in the early 90s but it was gone by Y2K.

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Bob.
SWCA 1821

I still have some 3D hbwc bullets that I purchased years ago. They are good bullets, but no better than those made by other manufacturers today.

My order from Sportsmans got here today (shipped quick- ordered late Friday night, arrived this morning) and the ammo looks like good stuff. It's all clean nickel, I counted about a dozen different headstamps.

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SWHF #448

When I was in college I scrimped and saved and purchased a used nickel model 10 w/a heavy barrel (didn’t pay attention to dash numbers at that time) at a shop in Santa Fe, NM. Wasn’t my first hand-gun, but was the first one that wasn’t junk and worked.

The only ammo I could afford was 3D. My recollection was that it was like shooting a black-powder pistol. Smoky as heck! I recall a day out by the dumpy area where people tossed junk and busted (or stolen) cars and shot at them. I was shooting at a big tire; it took several rounds for me to realize this tire was bouncing the 3D .38s all over the place.

Like the young idiot that I was, I traded that Model 10 and some cash for a factory refurbished MPCD Glock 17. I still get mad at myself for that. Me and that Model 10 had lots of fun and did lots of wandering around. Ah well, not the biggest mistake I’ve made, but one that really bothers me.

Man, that 3-D ammo has some hellacious amount of crimp on it!

It sure does!! Those swaged bullets will get swaged again getting out of the case.

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Bob.
SWCA 1821

I dunno, I'm no reloader but it doesn't really look like much, if any, more crimp than factory 148s have.

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SWHF #448

Anyone run the 3D 148 gn wadcutters through a chronograph? I'm curious how they stack up against Blazer 158gn LRN.

38 Special #3522 158 LRN barrel-4V
755'ps/200'lb/Muzzle
728/186/-3.2 50yd
702/173/-10.8 75yd
-22.1-100yd

ETA: Fired alternating 158 LRN/148 WC out of a 6" HE and the Blazer had more pop.

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Caveat venditor.

Like many other posters, 3-D was about all I could afford when starting out. Sure, they were a little dirty and required a bit to clean-up, but they were a lot better than most gave them credit for. Other guys would laugh when I told them what I was reloading/shooting, but I cleaned many a 25yd target with them. I ransom-rested them out of my Lou Ciamillo-built Mod.10-5 PPC gun at 50 yards, and they shot 1.82(w)x2.44(h) for 24 rds, with the 2 fliers opening the group to 2.82".


They were a good value - if they were still in business, I'd still be buying them......

2.9 gr. WW231, Fed100 primer, Fed case, 3-D HBWC

Attached Images

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