How many load and use any type of wadcutter?

I'd like to know what kind of advantages wadcutters offer to the hand loader. I have fired factory semi-wadcutters and know it makes a clean cut in paper. But I came across statements that years ago LEO in some jurisdiction were required to use them. Are they more lethal than for example round ball? Have not seen any wc lately in LGS.

All my shooting is at indoor ranges. I always carry concealed (including bug) and I have plenty of defensive ammo on hand. Since I have mostly .38 & .357 cal revolvers I would be loading 38s to use at the range. I own .44s but would not load for them. I own two dozen Smiths with 2, 2 1/2 and 3 inch barreled revolvers. They are what I want to become more proficient with. I also have a smaller number of 4 thru 8 3/8 barreled revolvers.


Thanks in advance for any information.

I shoot more .38 wadcutters than anything else. If you load them at about 700 fps they are pleasant to shoot and are easy on me and my revolvers.

Mike

I have a modified Lee 6-cavity tumble lube bullet mold that casts flat base (I despise bevel base) with enthusiasm. I get 1500 loadable bullets in about 2 hours if I start with castable ingots.

I use mined / melted bullets from the dirt berm that give excellent results at target to mid-range velocity according to the reloading manual.

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S&WHF 366

I do not believe that a wad cutter offers any significant advantage over a semi-wad cutter.

However hollow base wad cutters are a different story.

I shoot tons of 38 hollow base wad cutters. Went through 100 on Monday.

I also just ordered a hollow base wad cutter mold for the 41 Magnums.

The reason that HBWCs have superior accuracy over many other projectile designs is that the expanding gasses force the hollow base out against the barrel. This makes for fantastic contact with the rifling even if the bore diameter is somewhat off-spec.

they are usually the most accurate .38 bullets there is. in a .38 spl. 2.7 - 3.0 grs. bullseye will work up to about 50 yrds.

I shoot solid flat base wadcutters that I cast in my 38 loads.
They give most excellent accuracy.

I load Speer 148 gr HBWC over 3.6 gr W231, makes for a nice easy range load.

Best Bang for your money if you don't roll your own.

Sub-Sonic to Warp speed if needed can be put through you guns.

Makes the holes in paper targets a lot easier to see than the JHP or LRN styles at 25 yards or more.

You can load for pennies with a lead bullet that come 500 to a box vs the high priced Jhp that comes 100 per box.

Unless you are the type that wants loud noise, muzzle blast, and lightning bolts coming out the end of the barrel..............

the WC will be just "Plumb Handy".

I agree that HBWC are the way to go. Extremely accurate and gives a nice round hole. Back in the day wadcutters were used in many police guns. A normal FMJ or round would just sail on through a bad guy. A wadcutter seems to do more damage. You can even turn the hollow base around and make a nice hollow point.

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Tom
NRA Pistol Inst

HBWC is the most accurate bullet for light target use in .38 caliber. Speer, Hornady make swaged HBWCs that are not too expensive, at least not as expensive as plated or jacketed bullets. Another thing I like is that they REALLY cut a clean round hole in the target.

One more vote for the utilitarian, accurate, and cheap wadcutters. They seem to be a tad more accurate than the SWC in my guns. I have had great luck with the Speer HBWC, but have taken to the solid base version from Missouri Bullet Company because they are even cheaper. There may be a minor loss of accuracy, but hardly noticeable for my plinking uses. I use 3.1 grains HP-38 that are easy on the hand and my old revolvers. I use the same load in magnum cases, too. The old Bullseye load seems to be very popular, but I am using what I have.

Here is one of the best authoritative articles written about the .38 Special "Full Charge" wadcutter:

Ed Harris: Revisiting The Full Charge Wadcutter | Reloading, Ammunition, Hunting | GrantCunningham.com

FWIW
Dale53

They have the most bearing surface of any bullet. Hollow base makes for even more bearing surface. Since they make nice holes in paper, they will in small game too.

In my 38, a solid base wadcutter loaded to max also gives the most fpe.

The wadcutter is loaded flush or almost flush. This reduces the size if the case capacity so a smaller charge is needed and more efficient.

I used to be a bullet caster. I could not make a HBWC, only full solid base WC. The store bought HBWC always shot better groups. Not by much, but I could never get as good accuracy.

Don't load the **** out of a hollow base, it blows the skirt off them and accuracy goes south.

Try em!
David

I have 4 Smiths - 2", 4", 5" & 6". I find that the solid base WC is one of the most accurate of the loads that I reload. I cast my own and use the old standby 2.7 gr. of BE. I shoot the 5" most (a 1952 pre-10) and the two most accurate bullets I use in that one are the WC and the 158 gr RN (cast lead). Most of my shooting is either indoor range (when I'm in AZ for the winter) or 25 and 50 yards on my shooting area not he farm - usually 25 yards. I find the WC load to be ideal for paper punching, "can killing" and once in a while, a nasty varmint on the farm.

I have been thinking about this. I started shooting in the 70s when my dad bought a S&W K38 that started life as a Cal 38 S&W. It was bored out to 38 special. My dad loaded wadcutters, I think hollow base with 2.7 bullseye. They shot excellent, I could hit with it better than my dad. We would go to the dump and shoot bottles and washing machines.
Bang..... Smash went the bottle
Bang..... Clunk and a nice ring in the porcelain coating of a washing machine. Then we would shoot at the same spot for a group
I could always hear the shot and the bullet hitting. It was a slow load. There was a swamp next to the dump, this is when we started shooting frogs with the same gun. We shot until we were out of ammo.

Thanks for the memories.
David

Have fired wadcutters for many years. Great target loads. I use 2.8 of BE with a 148 grain DEWC. For revolvers and my smith 52 (with is a w.c. only gun) they are great. Easy on recoil, fast to get back on target, great accuracy.

If you are going to be shooting matches (PPC and th elike) that require a reload with a speed loader you will be better off using a SWC as these will line up / enter the cylinder much faster than a w.c will.

For close range defense they work well. A bullet that goes through a target is not putting all the energy into the target (wasted energy) and you run the risk of striking secondary, unintended targets.

Actually, neither wadcutters NOR SWC's load well under stress. Round noses work perfectly but do not do a good job at terminal ballistics. They slip through flesh with little damage. On the other hand, a RF does a good job on the terminal end while also slipping in to the cylinders as easy as can be. LBT's WFN or LFN are excellent examples as is Lyman's 358665. Others have similar copies that will work well for a speed load.

On the other hand, if you seat a wadcutter out by one band (as in the dbl ended wadcutter ) or in the crimp grove (as in the H&G #50) there is enough lead in front of the case that you can do a credible job of "speed loading" with attention.

Just a thought or two...

Dale53

I have sent many many downrange, they are very accurate cut perfect circles in targets, the revolvers love them but the Mod 52 has to have them

I shoot a Smith Model 52 that shoots only flush seated wadcutters. Beautiful gun and a great shooter. The trigger on the gun is fantastic.

Another long time wadcutter shooter here.
Like everyone else, 148 HBWCs over 2.8 Bullseye in .38. Shot 1000s of them.
In .357, its a DEWC at 900+ for a bit of zip.
And, in 44 Special, its the 180 grain Lyman 429348 over 4.3 of Bullseye. My 696 loves this one.

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-jwk-
US Army '72-'95

The perception is that wadcutters present a full, bore diameter, sharp edged profile to the target. The same thing that causes wadcutters to be great at cutting clean holes it the same thing that makes them great at cutting into tissue and creating a destructive wound channel.
FACTORY loaded wadcutters are mild. Hand loaded wadcutters can be whatever the loader desires. Wadcutters will not have good downrange ballistics but can be VERY effective up close. Modern all-copper, huge hollow-point ammo is very much LIKE the classic hollow-base wadcutter loaded backward!

A 185 or 200 grain wad cutter in my 1911 with some WST is heaven and pretty much all that I load for it anymore.

Great observations Dale53.

Back in the day when I was in LE and shooting every week, I would seat the w.c to the crimp groove which provided for easier speed loading in the K-38. I also used an early all rubber cylinder loader from Safariland that held the rounds really solid with no slop like many guys experienced with the HK cylinder loaders. There was also no risk of dumping the rounds from the cylinder loader if since there was no knob like on the HK's that tended to twist and dump the rounds as you pulled it out of the belt pouch.

Some of the shooters used to chamfer the cylinder ends to facilitate speed loading but this would create problems if you ever decided to shoot full charge or +P rounds.

I load a lot of 148 gr. HBWCs in .38 spec.
I have used various powders and all have given satisfactory results.
The real trick is to make 'em accurate and as cheap as possible.

Another advantage of the full wadcutter is that when seated in the case it does not leave a overly large space for the modest powder charge to roll around in. The 38 spcl. charge is around 2.8 grs Bullseye, the small space helps keep the powder in position near the primer and helps with accuracy. This may not be the only reason WC's are accurate in target loads but it is one of them.

My most accurate load to date is with a 160 gr WC in the 38 special.
Gary

I load nothing but HBWCs for my .38 Special target ammo, either Remington (when I can get them) or Hornady. A poster on here casts HBWCs and I bought 500 from him. They work great, too.

I sorely wish someone would make a target-grade 1911 in .38 Special. It would have to shoot wadcutters due to magazine space limitations and that's fine with me. Cleaning revolvers is a huge pain in my arthritic hands unless I choose to not clean them thoroughly. 1911s, on the other hand, are a snap to get clean as new and all kinds of original and aftermarket parts are readily available for them, unlike the S&W Model 52. I cleaned a 6" 66-2, a 1911 and an S&W 22A today - the 66 took twice as long as the two semi-autos combined and left the joints in my hands aching. Getting the cylinder face clean is pure torture.

I told my son that unless he promises to clean my revolvers AND actually shows up to do it, there will be a dozen or so pre-IL, pre-MIM S&Ws he won't inherit - no sense keeping that money tied up in guns I won't shoot!

Ed

My thought is that when in the mountains fishing alone along creeks, one does not want to be dinner for the local mountain lions. If I had to shoot a mountain lion, I would want the bullet to break bones. I believe that the wad cutter would be a nice hard bullet that would be on target and break bones as it enters the body.

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Doug "N Frame Addict"
CO

I suspect that there might be better bullet designs for killing mountain lions as a wadcutter would certainly get his/her attention but may not put the critter down for the count unless put through the skull. When I go scouting for deer and such, I carry a 4" 686-3 loaded with three "snake charmers" (shot loads) and three 158-grain JHPs in warm weather or a 5" 629-3 Classic DX loaded with three snake loads and three 240-grain JHPs as the weather gets colder and bears might be trying to fatten up prior to hibernating.

Ed

Wad cutters are strictly a target bullet loaded to low velocity to reduce recoil and allow faster follow up. Their only advantage is that they cut a nice paper punch type hole in the target that's easily scored.

Their disadvantages are they don't hold stability much beyond 50 yds so they are a close range bullet. The nose profile makes they difficult to load quickly either singly or from a speed loader so other than paper punching they don't play well in games of speed.

Colt used to make the Gold Cup in .38 spl and they can still be found on the used market. There are a few companies that make custom .38 spl WC guns on the 1911 frame.