I shot some Remington 125g JHP's through it, and didnt like the muzzle blast and have heard those are pretty rough on a K frame. So what is a good load? Something in 158g perhaps? Any specific recommendations would be appreciated!
Good 357 mag load for K frames?
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kbm6893
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Although 110 and 125 grain .357 is not as hot as it used to be when they caused a problem with K frame mags, the general wisdom is 158 grain is best, and even then, most people shoot .38 through them for practice.
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Many recommend the Speer .357 Short Barrel load, 135 gr at about 1100 fps or so out of a 4" barrel.
While you surely can shoot any factory .357 Magnum load in your K-Frame, it may be wiser to limit the Magnum loadings in all bullets weights
While the 158grs. may be a bit easier on the gun than the hot 125 grainers, a steady diet of any of these full power Magnum loadings is going age the gun prematurely.
The reason I am mentioning this is, while the gun will not just “blow up” someday from using the Magnum loadings regularly.
Over time you will see all the “sweet” shooting attributes of the little K-frame leave the gun like the lock up and timing.
(Don’t ask me how I know this)
For practice and general shooting .38 Special or even .38 (+P) loadings would go a long way in preserving the “fineness” of the gun.
Save the full house Magnum loads for defensive or home protection situations only
For training, practice and fun shooting, shoot the lighter 38 loadings
Years from now you will be glad you did
Good Luck
AveragEd
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To get an idea of what might be the best all-around "magnum" load for any .357-bore handgun, run a cylinder each of .357 Magnums and .38 Special +Ps through it over a chronograph. Depending upon how short your gun's barrel is, you might be surprised at the difference in muzzle velocities.
Ed
Ed
ScottJ
Member
If you're a handloader you can also build mid range stuff.
My IDPA loading is 8.5gr of Accurate No. 5 under a cast 140gr SWC. It runs 1010 on average out of my 2.5" 66. That's hotter than any .38 Special you can buy but still quite easy on the gun (and you for that matter).
I'm toying with the idea of developing something with the 140gr XTP in the same power range and seeing if I can get reliable expansion in water.
My IDPA loading is 8.5gr of Accurate No. 5 under a cast 140gr SWC. It runs 1010 on average out of my 2.5" 66. That's hotter than any .38 Special you can buy but still quite easy on the gun (and you for that matter).
I'm toying with the idea of developing something with the 140gr XTP in the same power range and seeing if I can get reliable expansion in water.
Maximumbob54
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My thoughts on the K Frame Magnums:
They aren’t making them anymore. They aren’t even making barrels for them anymore. You can read all the conflicting views, thoughts, and data on them that you want but the simple fact is there is now a finite amount of them in this world. Lead is softer than copper jackets when it hits a forcing cone. A longer bullet seals up the gap between the cylinder and the forcing cone so the powder gets more time to burn and less flame hits the forcing cone or the top strap. Modern bullets don’t require the massive velocity that first generation hollow point bullets used to need to fully function.
Read into that as you will. I know I like mine and while I had toyed with the idea of trading some K’s into N’s they have very much become “From my cold dead hands guns” now. There are a lot of them out there but every year there are that many fewer from someone trying to prove to themselves that they can handle a steady diet of the hottest and nastiest loads out there or that they can cook up. They were dreamed up and built to be light weight carry all day magnum revolvers. They weren’t made to be Thor’s IDPA gun. I kind of like mine and don’t need to see it fall into wall hanger or paper weight status.
Crazy thoughts from Bob complete.
End result? I would stick with a 158 grain lead SWCHP bullet loaded to a maximum of 1200 FPS. I load mine to what the book says is between 1000 and 1100 FPS and I’m pretty sure they will end a bad guy’s day or take the light out of Bambi’s eyes at an appropriate distance. I size mine to .358, don’t use a gas check, and lube them with a double dipping of Alox and Johnson’s Paste wax that I heat in a small crock pot. I’m not sure what factory magnum ammo I would run through mine only because now that I load my own I don’t keep up too much with what is the latest and greatest super ammo. I have tried the Speer Gold Dot Short Barrel 135’s in a SP101 and thought they were pretty decent so I guess they would get my vote if I had to cast one.
They aren’t making them anymore. They aren’t even making barrels for them anymore. You can read all the conflicting views, thoughts, and data on them that you want but the simple fact is there is now a finite amount of them in this world. Lead is softer than copper jackets when it hits a forcing cone. A longer bullet seals up the gap between the cylinder and the forcing cone so the powder gets more time to burn and less flame hits the forcing cone or the top strap. Modern bullets don’t require the massive velocity that first generation hollow point bullets used to need to fully function.
Read into that as you will. I know I like mine and while I had toyed with the idea of trading some K’s into N’s they have very much become “From my cold dead hands guns” now. There are a lot of them out there but every year there are that many fewer from someone trying to prove to themselves that they can handle a steady diet of the hottest and nastiest loads out there or that they can cook up. They were dreamed up and built to be light weight carry all day magnum revolvers. They weren’t made to be Thor’s IDPA gun. I kind of like mine and don’t need to see it fall into wall hanger or paper weight status.
Crazy thoughts from Bob complete.
End result? I would stick with a 158 grain lead SWCHP bullet loaded to a maximum of 1200 FPS. I load mine to what the book says is between 1000 and 1100 FPS and I’m pretty sure they will end a bad guy’s day or take the light out of Bambi’s eyes at an appropriate distance. I size mine to .358, don’t use a gas check, and lube them with a double dipping of Alox and Johnson’s Paste wax that I heat in a small crock pot. I’m not sure what factory magnum ammo I would run through mine only because now that I load my own I don’t keep up too much with what is the latest and greatest super ammo. I have tried the Speer Gold Dot Short Barrel 135’s in a SP101 and thought they were pretty decent so I guess they would get my vote if I had to cast one.
stantheman86
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I own two 66's, including a newer 66-6 which is one of the last of them made. My older 66 has seen maybe 2 boxes of .357 since 1990, when my Dad bought it new. It has seen many, many rounds of .38 and there's a reason why it's still tight as new.
I don't mean to sound cocky, but in my 20+ years of being a S&W shooter, I have been hearing the "K frame magnum" debate and never understood why some people can't grasp the ".38's for training, .357 for carry" concept.
Not only did Bill Jordan, the "father" of the Model 19 advocate .38's for practice and .357 for duty, S&W themselves also state this same advice to owners of 13's, 65's, 66's, and 19's.........and still, every so often you hear someone bragging about how they have been running blue whistler handloads through their 66 and now don't understand why it "doesn't touch rounds off anymore, sent it back to S&W and they say the frame's stretched"............
S&W doesn't make K-frame .357's anymore, but the Classic Model 15 is pretty much a new version of the 19, chambered in .38 Special.......
I don't mean to sound cocky, but in my 20+ years of being a S&W shooter, I have been hearing the "K frame magnum" debate and never understood why some people can't grasp the ".38's for training, .357 for carry" concept.
Not only did Bill Jordan, the "father" of the Model 19 advocate .38's for practice and .357 for duty, S&W themselves also state this same advice to owners of 13's, 65's, 66's, and 19's.........and still, every so often you hear someone bragging about how they have been running blue whistler handloads through their 66 and now don't understand why it "doesn't touch rounds off anymore, sent it back to S&W and they say the frame's stretched"............
S&W doesn't make K-frame .357's anymore, but the Classic Model 15 is pretty much a new version of the 19, chambered in .38 Special.......
bronco45
Member
I shoot 3 K frame magnums regularly. A 19-5 2.5" a Model 65 3" and a Model 19-2 4". I shoot a 158grain LSWCHP/GC from Rimrock bullets for serious business. I load it to 12.0 grains of 2400 and a standard primer and it produces 1,000fps. More importantly it shoots to identical POA/POI with the 65 and then I dial in the 19s sights. Also, this load allows quick recoil recovery and that is vital for combat shooting. My weapons are fired DA 95% of the time.
This load will last my lifetime remaining in those K frames. They are accurate powerful and comfortable to shoot. If you need to blast something to smithereens get a S&W 500.
This load will last my lifetime remaining in those K frames. They are accurate powerful and comfortable to shoot. If you need to blast something to smithereens get a S&W 500.
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I have always considered a K Frame 357 Mag a Light Duty 357 Mag.
Now that is not a bad thing or a negative thing, just a physical reality.
Even back in the day when S&W came up with the High Speed 38 Special loads they made the 38/44 HEAVY DUTY for them, a N frame...
Now I think that a K frame 357 Mag is one of the best revolvers S&W has ever made.
But it is on a "small frame" and will not take a "ton" of 357 Mags. That is what the N frame and later the L frames are for.But in the Real World how many full power 357 Mags does a person need to shoot???
If you "need" to shoot a lot of them then get an N or an L frame...
But if you want/need a handy light carry gun in 357 mag then get a K frame and shoot it most of the time in practice with 38 Special loads, and use 357 Mags only when they are needed.
I cannot believe that in todays World of Concealed Carry, S&W does not bring back the K frame 357 Mags.
Now that is not a bad thing or a negative thing, just a physical reality.
Even back in the day when S&W came up with the High Speed 38 Special loads they made the 38/44 HEAVY DUTY for them, a N frame...
Now I think that a K frame 357 Mag is one of the best revolvers S&W has ever made.
But it is on a "small frame" and will not take a "ton" of 357 Mags. That is what the N frame and later the L frames are for.But in the Real World how many full power 357 Mags does a person need to shoot???
If you "need" to shoot a lot of them then get an N or an L frame...
But if you want/need a handy light carry gun in 357 mag then get a K frame and shoot it most of the time in practice with 38 Special loads, and use 357 Mags only when they are needed.
I cannot believe that in todays World of Concealed Carry, S&W does not bring back the K frame 357 Mags.
When reloading for a K frame 357 Mag, we always reduced the powder charge a grain or a grain and a half, for our normal high power shooting/ working loads, saving full power loads for when they were really necessary.
Harrison
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bdsmith
Member
Corbon DPX 125 grain might be what you are after. Less flash and recoil then the other's. Advertised at 1300 from a four inch.
I use Speer gold dot 158 grain 357's. Works very well in my K-frame magnums.
The Remington 125 grain Golden sabre is not bad either. Modern 357 ammunition is not what it once was. Certainly not like the Super Vel 357, which combined with poorly crush fit barrels, contributed to the hysteria over running 357's through K-frame magnums. Regards 18DAI
The Remington 125 grain Golden sabre is not bad either. Modern 357 ammunition is not what it once was. Certainly not like the Super Vel 357, which combined with poorly crush fit barrels, contributed to the hysteria over running 357's through K-frame magnums. Regards 18DAI
stantheman86
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I mentioned before but it still puzzles me that S&W introduced the J-frame .357 while dropping the K-frame .357.....but I understand the reasoning, that the J-frame .357's are not designed for constant use with .357, even less so than the K-frame .357's.
But I would love to see a 2" and 3" 65 come into production. I don't mind the IL and I think MIM parts are fine, I would buy a new 3" 65 in a heartbeat.
But I would love to see a 2" and 3" 65 come into production. I don't mind the IL and I think MIM parts are fine, I would buy a new 3" 65 in a heartbeat.
I have several friends who regularly shoot 357 magnum ammo thru their J framed 357s. They are not pleasant to fire but seem to hold up to Magnum ammo quite well. I have examined both stainless steel and scandium J framed 357s that show no adverse wear from hot 357 ammo. So that considered I don't think any K frame revolver should have an issue using 357 Magnum ammunition.
3rdRRU_PhuBai
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As above, from a 640-1 snub and a 60-10.
When I shoot .357 Magnum ammo in my M-19 its' 158Gr. LSWC ahead of 14 Grains of Herco 2400 with a CCI primer. Most of the time I shoot the Federal 147Gr. 38 special +P+ load.
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