.32 S&W & .38 S&W Black Powder Cartridges

lebomm said:

It's also important to clean your cases THOROUGHLY between loadings with black. The residue is just as corrosive to brass as it is to gun steel. My practice was to carry a milk jug 1/2 full of soapy water to the range, and drop the cases in as they were fired. Then when you get home, put them into a mesh bag and run 'em thru the washer-dryer. Just be sure they're fully dry when you load 'em into your tumbler.
Worked great for me in .44-40.

Larry

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I ain't sure my Bride will allow me to run them through the Washing machine and then the drier. She would be afraid of an explosion. There is no way to convince her that it will not happen.

Something to keep in mind is to be careful of static electricity and sparks when loading with black.It's different from loading with smokeless powders.

arjay said:

Something to keep in mind is to be careful of static electricity and sparks when loading with black.It's different from loading with smokeless powders.

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arjay, that can be a scarey thought. Thanks for mentioning it.

Mule

Thanks ArchAngelCD for the tip on Trail Boss Powder. I had a gunsmith check this old top break H&R in 38 S&W and he thought it was solid. I bought a box of 158 gr. hornady lead bullets, some small pistol magnum primers, a can of Trail Boss. Ordered some 38 brass and loaded a few rounds. The first round I loaded pretty light, then stepped it up a couple at a time. Found reload formular on the net for Trail Boss. First shot sounded like a cap gun. Second sounded like a pistol, hit a target dead center about 20 ft. Pistol shoots great. Looking foward to shooting it a lot more. It shoots real straight. We know the pistol hasn't been fired from at least 1942. Thanks y all for all your info!!

I just do it the easy way. There is no way you're likely to hurt a good sound gun with light reloads using modern powders. I shoot 32 S&W in this Iver Johnson 1st. Model loaded with 1.1-1.2 grains of Bullseye. No...I don't range-shoot it, but the little gun is plenty strong enough to handle it. In my case, cylinders and other spare parts can still be obtained for this little Judy-Pooper. I don't shoot it much, but when I do...I just don't fool with black-powder at all.

jhillhouse said:

Thanks ArchAngelCD for the tip on Trail Boss Powder. I had a gunsmith check this old top break H&R in 38 S&W and he thought it was solid. I bought a box of 158 gr. hornady lead bullets, some small pistol magnum primers, a can of Trail Boss. Ordered some 38 brass and loaded a few rounds. The first round I loaded pretty light, then stepped it up a couple at a time. Found reload formular on the net for Trail Boss. First shot sounded like a cap gun. Second sounded like a pistol, hit a target dead center about 20 ft. Pistol shoots great. Looking foward to shooting it a lot more. It shoots real straight. We know the pistol hasn't been fired from at least 1942. Thanks y all for all your info!!

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I'm very happy that worked out for you and I'm glad I could steer you in the right direction. There are a lot of new powders on the market and sometimes I feel they are just duplicating what we already have but not with Trail Boss. It isn't everything for everybody but it does do what it was designed to do very well. Trail Boss is perfect for loading smokeless ammo to Black Powder pressures!

I've loaded 38spl(for a '51 Open Top that I had) and 45/70 both with black powder and pyrodex. DO NOT use a plastic powder measure(like the Lee Perfect Powder Measure) to load black powder or pyrodex. The static from the plastic can and will cause the powder to detonate, not a good thing.
You can use the Lee Powder Dippers, pick the one with the proper CC's to measure out the amount of powder in grains that you'd like to use.
Black Powder or Pyrodex is best with zero air space or even a slightly compressed load and magnum primers are a must to touch off all that powder so you'll get a clean burn.
I'm sure if you google it you'll come up with a lot of good info and SASS/CAS will probably have some good info on their forums.
Also, as had been stated, you can use a light charge of smokeless if you'd like. There'd be less fuss and muss and you'd not have to soak your cases in soapy water after you shoot em' to kill all the corrosive salts from the powder residue.
You'd also not need a magnum primer for a light charge of smokeless either.
Either way be careful and read up on everything you can get your hands on before you take the journey into loading the smokie stuff.

I forgot to mention above, DO NOT compress Trail Boss and break the "donuts" up. (look at the powder and you will see what I mean by donuts) The shape and coating on the powder controls the burn rate and it can be a little erratic and possible go overpressure if you compress it.

Just bought an unfired H&R .38S&W break top, circa 1912, and can't bring myself to shoot it. It is MINT. So I was forced to buy an old Iver Johnson break top .38S&W less than mint so I can shoot. Thanks for all the info I learned from reading this thread. Will begin reloading soon. (Have been reloading a number of cartridges since 1981, so I have that experience.)This cartridge is a new one for me. Will load it mild.

I started looking for black powder loads for the .38 S & W revolver I recently purchased, discussed in the " Antiques" section of this forum. Of course, one loads black powder so that it is compressed by the bullet, so, I can figure out a decent volume of FFFg on my own. I am, however, seeking information on a recommended or ideal lead bullet, both in grains and diameter.

Okay, I will risk my reputation here, but who ever originated the idea that blackpowder rounds must be loaded with Magnum primers? Nonsense! I have loaded and fired black powder rounds using standard primers for nearly a decade and never had a problem.

I've been using Trail Boss in my old top break revolvers and love it. Have used both black powder and Pyrodex as well. Both of the latter are dirty and produced far more felt recoil than the near full, uncompressed loads of TB in both the 32 and 38 S&W. When shooting black powder I was only able to shoot two full cylinder loads out of my 32s before fouling began to interfere with cylinder rotation. Wasn't quite as bad with the 38 S&W but was still became factor with efficient operation as more shots were fired.
I use unsized home cast round nose bullets made with a Lyman 358311 mold, tumble lubed in Liquid Alox. Accuracy is good and have had no problems with leading.
Some shooters complain about the smell of burnt Trail Boss. Heck, at one time or another I've thought all powders stank . It's an acquired taste. Shoot enough of it and you'll learn to like it.
John

I shoot nothing but BP in this. it is my 1873 uberti deluxe sporting rifle in 44wcf with BP you always want to make sure the case is full enough to compress the powder with the bullet and there is no air space, then you will be safe.

mrcvs said:

"...who ever originated the idea that blackpowder rounds must be loaded with Magnum primers?

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This is not a general "requirement" for loading black powder. This began with those shooting long range precision games with black powder target rifles. Rules prohibit duplex loading and they have found that they see less fouling and improved accuracy when using magnum rifle primers. You are correct, this is not necessary.

Personally I do duplex load, use a grease wad under the bullet, and use standard large pistol primers in rifle cartridges. But I am hunting and recreationally shooting where NRA rules do not apply.

mrcvs said:

I started looking for black powder loads for the .38 S & W revolver I recently purchased, discussed in the " Antiques" section of this forum. Of course, one loads black powder so that it is compressed by the bullet, so, I can figure out a decent volume of FFFg on my own. I am, however, seeking information on a recommended or ideal lead bullet, both in grains and diameter.

Okay, I will risk my reputation here, but who ever originated the idea that blackpowder rounds must be loaded with Magnum primers? Nonsense! I have loaded and fired black powder rounds using standard primers for nearly a decade and never had a problem.

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Back in the BP days, the standard factory BP loading for the .38 S&W cartridge was:
.38 S&W: 14.125 grains Black Powder, 146 grain lead bullet (0.360")
10 shot avg. velocity 635 ft/sec (@25' from a 5" barrel). A smokeless powder load producing equivalent velocity or less would also be OK in older top break revolvers.

BP residue is messy to clean up and will gum up your revolver in a hurry. I avoid its use other than for C&B revolvers. And even then, I normally use a mixture of BP and Pyrodex pistol. Ignites better than Pyrodex and doesn't gum up the works so quickly.

BP is easy to clean! people have a misconception about it. I use a "big lube bullets" the molds can be had from a fellow over at CAS city - The World of Cowboy Action Shooting - Powered by Outdoor Channel. he goes by the handle "dick dastardly" he has a web site you can order the mold from. they have a large lube grove. use only spg BP lube and "only" real black powder. Pyrodex is a joke in the world of BP for clean up use ballistol mixed with 50% water. just swab the bore and the cylinder, brush and wipe clean. I can clean a gun shooting metallic cartridges filled with black powder in half the time it takes me to do a good clean up with smokeless. but you need to clean your gun when you are though shooting. BP is a blast to shoot! it makes a very loud "boom" and you get a cloud of white smoke.