J frame loads

[oneounceload]

158SWC, either lead, plated or jacketed will put your bullets in the right place.

 

[Qc Pistolero]

You might lose more velocity than you think when going from a 4" or 6" gun to a snub nose 2". My notes indicate a cast 160 SWC and 3.5 Bullseye gets 880 in a 6" Model 14 and 730 in a 2" (not sure if I chronographed this in a 2" Chief or a 2" Detective Special). 4.3 231 is at 860 in the 6" barrel and 730 in the 2".

These figures will vary somewhat from my guns to yours, but the numbers will give a pretty fair indication of velocity loss. Despite what some Internet experts claim, such a slow load and heavy bullet still penetrate well.

I'm not about to disagree with you since I haven't chronoed my load with shortie vs my 6'' tube and even if I'd have and showed higher results than what you say,it wouldn't proove that I'm right;it would only have prooved the old saying that each and every gun is an entity of its own.
I just went the easy calculation that says that you aproximatly loose 25fps X inch of tube;of course this way of figuring doesn't take into account the type of powder used,the weight of bullet,the cyl. to barrel gap,etc,etc into consideration.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

This isn't a knock but are you sure it's not you?

Short story, the first time I shot a revolver it was a J frame. I put a 8" x11" paper up, stepped back 10 yards and cities 5 shots. I went up to see how close the holes were and to my surprise the paper was clean!

What I did was practice my trigger control with snap-caps and I got much better... Because of the lack of recoil you can see if you are pulling or pushing the gun when you pull the trigger and immediately fix the problem, it works.

If that's not the problem it's still a good idea to dry-fire your J frame to improve your trigger control.

I also agree, your load is probably light. I would give a 148gr wadcutter a try next to see if your groups improve because of the ammo change.

Good luck.

 

[Nevada Ed]

Not all pistols shoot a bullet the same....... and POA can be different.

I agree with the above that practice and trigger control is needed but
with those three targets of yours that you posted.............

I noticed that there was one flyer in them.
Mark a cylinder with felt or nail polish and have a target with five spots.
Fire each cylinder hole five times at its own target, and see if one of your
cylinders is not shooting at POA.

Otherwise, you just have to find a different speed or a new bullet to get accuracy in that revolver.
My Snub J frame does not do well with 110 or 125 JHP bullets but it will
shoot a 125 and 158 gr lead to POA.

Bullet Dia. might also be one of your problems?
Good luck.

 

[pete950]

Did you try starting at self defense distances like 12 feet and work your way back to 10 yards whjch is 30 feet! Just a sujestion

 

[max503]

148 grain full wad cutter and Unique at 50 feet from my S&W 638. Sights are dead-nuts.

Seems I heard somewhere the J Frames are meant to be used with target wad cutters. Don't know where I heard that. Works for me, but I increase the load a bit.

 

[AZretired]

I have a 642, 10 and 60 and cannot get reload 125gr FP with HP-38 to shoot worth a hoot! The 642 prints them low and left in about softball and half groups at 21ft. The 60 prints them like buckshot with most being low and left and others slung all over. The model 10 seems to do okay with them but not great. From some reading I have done everyone suggests heavier bullets. Are these J frames really calibrated for heavier bullets?

I see a lot of suggestions for WC and SWC bullets. How about 158gr RN or Speer 135gr TMJ? Any other suggestions welcome.

First, get yourself a couple boxes of factory 158 gr. RNL or SWC and practice shooting from a resr at 7, 10 and 15 yards until you can maintain sub 2 inch groups.

Once you know POA vs POI then you can test your reloads. 125 grain bullets should be just as accurate as 148 or 158 grain bullets. They will just have a lower POI. Until you know you can shoot factory ammo accurately you won't lnow if the softball/ shotgun groups are the reload combo or you!

 

[Chuck Edwards]

My experience is that recent S&W snubs are regulated for 125-130 grain bullets. My 642-2 shoots 158s high but to POA with my 125-grain handloads using coated cast bullets and Ranger 130-grain bonded JHPs. OTOH, my 49 no-dash shoots to POA with my 158-grain handloads and the Federal Gold Medal Match 148-grain wadcutters I use for carry ammo. No problem with accuracy with either one.

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

Chuck, this thread is from four years ago.

 

[Les Greevy]

I have several J frames and have burned a lot of powder looking for one load that works well in all of them. One very good load that shoots point of aim and is accurate in most all is 3.0 gr. of Bullseye and the Bayou 135 gr. powder coated round nose bullet and pleasant to shoot even in the Airweights. 3.1 gr. of TiteGroup also shoots well. Bayou also makes a 138 gr. button nose wadcutter that shoots point of aim and is very accurate.
Les
Les