Need some solid advice here.....

[fredj338]

You need a reloading manual, you need to read the primer on HOW TO RELOAD metallic cartridges. Then you use starting data, work up in 1/10gr increments, NO MORE than 5rds each charge wt. Shoot them in order. Note accuracy, functioning & any pressure signs or lack of. That is a how to do a proper laod development.

FWIW, TG is THE SINGLE WORST powder for a noob to start with. The very small charge wts & minimal spread from start to max make it very diff to stay out of trouble. So no, I would not shoot them. I would pull them down, put the powder back in the jug & go buy something in the burn rate range of Unqiue, WSF or Universal. Learn there, then if you must use TG, I won't, then at least you'll have some good habits under your belt before venturing into one of the more diff powders to work with.

 

[JJFlash]

Thanks for all of the advice guys....

BTW, I DO only have one powder on my bench at a time; The rest are in my safe. (I also loaded up some .223 loads, which I loaded at the low end of the range per the manuals I had on hand.)

FWIW, I only bought the TiteGroup because it was the only powder on the store shelf.

I was returning from a rather long drive to buy 1500 hard-cast 158 LSWC bullets and stopped at a chain store (like I always do) to see if they had anything in stock.

No ammo. no bullets. no primers.....But wait, what's that on the shelf beside the jar of black powder?? TITEGROUP?? HMmmmm.

With things being what they are out there, I figured that I should probably buy the only pistol powder that I had seen in the last 3 months.

Powder, primers and even bullets are in short supply around here.

I should've done more research on TG before I started.

I have a stockpile of 4 pounds of Unique that I had planned to start with.

I did by 2 manuals this afternoon, a Lyman's and a Speer.

I have read the two older reloading manuals that I have front to back several times, and followed their directions.

I just didn't read the entire label on the TG jar.......

I think I WILL save these, and work my way up to them, as suggested.

I think that I will also abide by the suggestion that I not share my handloads.

Thanks to all who gave advice.

BTW, I have thoroughly enjoyed the whole handloading experience. It is peaceful and therapeutic. I liken it to the manly version of knitting......

Say, if I post some up-close photos of the finished loads, will you guys give me your opinions of the seat/crimp?

I adjusted the die until the loads fell freely into the cylinders of my model 10s, and set the overall length to what was on the TG label (1.475"). Is that good enough??

 

[alwslate]

Want some advice?, here's mine and remember it didn't cost you any
thing. Sell your Unique to somebody who enjoys dealing with poor
metering dirty powders and buy more Titegroup or HP38/W231 or WST
or...take your pick. Your cast SWCs will have a crimp groove. Seat to
crimp in the groove and forget about OAL. "Maximum load" is a grossly
misunderstood term in handloading. 3.8 grs TG with a 158 gr cast SWC
is the maximum charge listed in the Hodgdon manual but it is not a
maximum load by any standard of measure. It is listed as developing
15,400 CUP which is less than the ceiling for standard pressure in the
38 spl and well below the limit for +P. The current limit for standard
pressure is 17,000 psi and 20,000 psi for +P. Most loads in manuals
stay below the actual pressure limits. Maximum charges listed for
standard pressure often top out below 16,000 psi and many loads
listed as +P are barely above standard pressure at 17,100 or so.
Obviously the companies feel little incentive to push the limits in
developing loads and then publishing them and you can't blame them.
So there is little for the handloader to worry about in using any
published load. Shoot your loads and don't worry. You may find that
you, like many others, will prefer to load the 38 spl down a bit for
pleasant plinking loads and TG is much more suited for mild loads
than Unique. Almost forgot, Hodgdon lists 4.3 grs TG for a +P load
with 158 gr JHP so contrary to what you've been told your load is not +P.

 

[Forrest r]

Your spot on alwslate, there's nothing wrong with those loads.

It's like making mountains out of molehills.

Titegroup isn't bad for straight walled cases like the 38spl, 44spl, 45lc, where there's a lot of case volume. Full house loads with titegroup in the 9mm & 40s&w will get reloaders in trouble.

 

[blujax01]

I agree with Twoboxer. Read his advice. Those M10's in particular should handle whatever you throw at them, even if you have made some hot rounds.

And if Titegroup is all you can find, it's all you can find. I've loaded many pounds of it without incident into 38 special, 9mm and 45 ACP.

But as the others have said - be careful out there. It's a low volume powder so you have to be on top of your game.

Welcome to reloading. Fun, ain't it?

P.S. Here's a link to Hodgdon's on-line reloading manual http://data.hodgdon.com/main_menu.asp

 

[AzRedleg]

The cartridges you loaded, based on the information you provided, seem perfectly safe to me. As previous posters stated they aren’t even +P loads.

Titegroup seems to have gained an unfair reputation for blowing guns up. Titegroup doesn't blow guns up. Handloaders who don't pay attention blow their guns up. It seems likely if someone is not paying enough attention to realize they double charged with Titegroup, they won’t notice they double charged with a powder other than Titegroup unless it overflows the case. Very few smokeless powders suitable for use in the .38 SPC will overflow the case with a double charge. Yes, it is easier to spot a double charge with some other powders but careful loading methodology should preclude a double charge anyway. The visual inspection is just a final check to make sure you didn't make an error.

You stated that you were weighing loaded cartridges to try to determine the powder charge. There is a good chance each of the cartridge casings will not weight the same and there is a good chance for weight variability in the cast lead bullets. Cast bullets can have voids inside so there may be some bullets that are easily one or two grains lighter than nominal. It is just not a reliable method to determine the amount of powder in the cartridge.

You seem to be very cautious and methodical about your loading. If you keep it that way you won’t have any problems.

Have fun and stay safe!

 

[Bart45]

A powder that fills the case and works well in 38/357 is Trail Boss.

 

[JJFlash]

Thanks again for the help, guys!

I will post a range report of my new (gradually developed) loads soon.