Thank you. My brain got ahead of my typing.
-
Forum Update: We've upgraded the software to improve security, performance, and the overall experience.
👉 Read why we made the change | Support the Forum
Wadcutter accuracy
- Thread starter Wgf
- Start date
Thank you. My brain got ahead of my typing.
This has probably been covered elsewhere in Reloading. Hope no one minds the repeat.
Obturate is the technical term for the base of the bullet widening up to fill the full diameter of the tube that it is in, and you want this to happen.
HB lead WC bullets do this very well at low pressures/velocity. This can be especially helpful in cases where the size of the guns cylinder does not match the size of the barrel. Barrels can be tight & loose. Cylinders can be tight & loose. HB lead WC bullets tend to handle mismatched sizes well because even if the barrel is larger than the cylinders there still is enough pressure in the barrel to expand the bullet to grab the rifling.
The other advantage of HB bullets is that they have a long bearing surface for a given bullet weight. This is true for *all* HB bullets.
Full wadcutters have fallen in and out of favor. I think the Brits first did it pre-WWI with their "man stopper" bullets. This may also be tied to revolver vs semi-auto popularity.
In recent memory, it seems that Buffalo Bore re-ignited interest in the wad cutter use on non-paper targets about 10 years ago.
gwpercle
Member
AWESOME !!! Thank's ... that's the one .
See photo's in post #20 .
If you look at the design , it's not designed to be loaded flush , a fair amount of the nose projects above the crimp groove , the 160 grain weight is close to the old standard 158 gr weight ... my fixed sighted J & K framed revolvers shoot it to the fixed sights and I also believe the first driving band , above the crimp groove, keep it centered in the cylinder / throat .
It is more accurate than double ended cast wadcutters and only the 148gr. swaged lead HBWC / 2.7 grains Bullseye target load can meet or beat it ...but those bullets I can't cast and have to buy .
Being cast you can drive it as fast as you like .
In a 357 Magnum load , this bullet over 6.8 grains of Unique steps along at about 1050 fps (6 1/2" bbl. Ruger Blackhawk) the flat faced bullet hits hard .... I love this bullet!
Gary
Last edited:
rkittine
Member
Pretty Round Holes are easier to scope and score in competition. Next topic, Hollow Based Wadcutters or solid double ended? Hard cast etc. ......... Then when you get into many target guns like the S&W Model 52, Sig Hammerli P240, Benelli MP3S etc. what barrel, barrel twist and bore size. For the competitive shooters, these are all parameters to consider.
Last edited:
boatbum101
Member
Since you're shooting @ 25yds or less I wouldn't get too far out there . S&W with stock 1 in 18.75 twist won't hurt you @ 25yds . I'd check cyl throats for size / uniformity first correct as needed . Size bullets to a snug push thru but not tight . Cast HBWC are for me a royal PITA . Commercial swaged HBWC are more uniform ( I vastly prefer the Remington ones , Zero also makes a good one ) . Cast go with a flat base , many proven designs & the cheap Lee tumble lube 148 also shoots quite well . Standard small pistol primers & an one of the faster pistol / shotgun powders will produce usable loads . Old favorites are Bullseye , Win 231 & WST , 700X , Acc #2 .
158 loads most of the time a RN will outshoot a SWC . Harder to find a good load with than the 148's for some reason . Like 45acp hardball , if a load will hold 3" consistently from your gun @ 50yds it's a keeper .
158 loads most of the time a RN will outshoot a SWC . Harder to find a good load with than the 148's for some reason . Like 45acp hardball , if a load will hold 3" consistently from your gun @ 50yds it's a keeper .
max503
Member
Which Rossi are you talking about? I've got a lever action Rossi 357 rifle. Someone said wadcutters jammed his up. Guess I could single-load them.
My Dillon progressive press is set-up for DEWC's. Four grains of Unique gives real good accuracy in my 38's. If I increase that to 4.5 grains then groups start to open up. I always seat the bullets sprue up because the other end is more consistent. I use Unique because that's what I'm invested in.
If I was buying them my first choice would be HBWC's , but I cast my own.
In an NRA handloading book from the 60's Col. E H Harrison wrote 4 articles on wadcutters. His conclusions were that button nose wc outperformed flat wc by a very slight percentage. They were very slight differences in alloys from dead soft to bhn 15 at a 50 yard target. Over lubing was the biggest detriment to accuracy with one groove holding a good lube deemed the best performer.
I find that since my late 50's I can no longer shoot well enough to maintain much of any difference between hb and standard wc.
I find that since my late 50's I can no longer shoot well enough to maintain much of any difference between hb and standard wc.
One reason that I shoot lead bullets in my 38 specials, is that they can be......
down loaded and have a lot LESS recoil than JHP or JSP bullet that need higher fps, in order not to present the chance of a Squib in the barrel.
My light J frame snub nose would be a Bear to shoot all day if I had to use full 38 special loads, or a box of +P ammo.
A lead 125gr at 566fps to 690fps is not that bad, recoil wise.
The 148 WC in my 2" barrel can start out around 580fps with Trail Boss
and have the light target loads doing 630fps with Bullseye that match factory speeds.
A big 158gr lead bullet RN can start off with just 570fps for a light target load or you can push a Lswc 158gr design up to 740fps for a full load in the snub nose.
Some like the thrill of hanging on for dear life with a 158 lead bullet doing from 800 to 851fps out of a J frame snub nose but most of us only do this now and then, and then remember why we load light target loads.
Stay safe.
down loaded and have a lot LESS recoil than JHP or JSP bullet that need higher fps, in order not to present the chance of a Squib in the barrel.
My light J frame snub nose would be a Bear to shoot all day if I had to use full 38 special loads, or a box of +P ammo.
A lead 125gr at 566fps to 690fps is not that bad, recoil wise.
The 148 WC in my 2" barrel can start out around 580fps with Trail Boss
and have the light target loads doing 630fps with Bullseye that match factory speeds.
A big 158gr lead bullet RN can start off with just 570fps for a light target load or you can push a Lswc 158gr design up to 740fps for a full load in the snub nose.
Some like the thrill of hanging on for dear life with a 158 lead bullet doing from 800 to 851fps out of a J frame snub nose but most of us only do this now and then, and then remember why we load light target loads.
Stay safe.
Last edited:
max503
Member
After 15 or 20 full power loads out of my Airweight 38 my hand will shake too much for me to aim properly. Takes a little while to recover.
My 14-4 performs best with Zero 148 gr. WCHB’s. Delivered a 96-4x in the slow fire portion of my club’s monthly Harry Reeves bullseye match a few years back. Got me a 284 overall. I use Win brass, Fed primers, and Titegroup. I also have a custom seating stem that does not contact the outside edge of the bullet.......only the dome on the nose..........tdan
jtcarm
Member
- Joined
- Apr 30, 2011
- Messages
- 4,422
- Reaction score
- 4,314
It’s not so much a question of at what range do SWCs become more accurate, but where does the full WCs accuracy drop off.
The generally-accepted rule of thumb is the full wadcutter is good out to 50 yards, after which it loses stability. But that depends a great deal on the barrels twist rate. The full WC likes a faster twist rate.
I believe one of the reasons Colts were so popular among the Bullseye competitors of yore was their faster 1-in-14 rifling twist, pretty quick for a .38 Special and probably more accurate with full WCs.
The generally-accepted rule of thumb is the full wadcutter is good out to 50 yards, after which it loses stability. But that depends a great deal on the barrels twist rate. The full WC likes a faster twist rate.
I believe one of the reasons Colts were so popular among the Bullseye competitors of yore was their faster 1-in-14 rifling twist, pretty quick for a .38 Special and probably more accurate with full WCs.
max503
Member
I remember one time being out on a snow covered frozen lake and shooting full wadcutters out of my 36. The conditions were just right and I could see them going through the air. At some point they would fall off from a straight trajectory into a corkscrew. It was quite interesting.
How 'bout....
How about a hollow base RN? They'd have a little better BC for longer ranges?
How about a hollow base RN? They'd have a little better BC for longer ranges?
Similar threads
Latest posts
-
-
FINLAND - The Winter War 1939 -> NATO member 2023 - general matter about Finland- Latest: S&WshooterFIN
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
