Win52C
Member
Glad your OK!
The 500 dollar paperweight Model 60
- Thread starter 1sgpierce
- Start date
Also, a problem could be seating to the same OAL. While the 125s are only 15 gr heavier they are also a tad bit longer. Seating the 125s to the same OAL will mean the bullet is actually seated deeper in the case which will increase pressure.
getoff
Member
WOW! you my friend, are lucky to have all the digits you went to the range with! again, WOW...
sqhead
US Veteran
the way my luck has been going ,i'm surprised i was'nt standing next to you when it happened....a for sure clean your pants situation.........
Allen-frame
Member
I'll stick with my 4.1 gr. of 231 in 38 special cases with the 122 gr lead bullet.
I personally never did see the use of a 357 Magnum J frame.
But to each his own.
Very glad no one was injured.
Allen Frame
I personally never did see the use of a 357 Magnum J frame.
But to each his own.
Very glad no one was injured.
Allen Frame
ispcapt has a point here that all reloaders should take note of, and actually all shooters. Tests have shown a rapid increase in pressure on .40 S&W ammunition when the bullet is seated just a little deeper than it should be. This may have contributed to the damage. I would consider sending it back to Smith for their analysis, along with all the information about the incident.
Kavinsky
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good god, that is one tough ***.
and yeah I mean its an upped .38 special that can just so happens to handle .357 magnum, even so I would never use .357 in that or any J frame sized guns.
in my opinion .357 should only be used in the K and N frames, not guns like the model 60.
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Sportsterguy
Member
I'm with ya Allen on the use of .357's in a J frame.Thats what K and L frames are for IMO as they wre made for the round. I also ONLY use my own handloads and also double check every one of them with a flashight in the tray. Also recalibrate my scales before and after every 50 - 100 rounds in any caliber with my old Rock Chucker that's all I'll reload during a session. No matter how much I may love shooting friends reloading skills I still dont trust them as anyone can mess up and I've seen a few magnums blown up over the years. Almost did it myself with a .41 mag. when I started reloading back in the mid 80's with that same RC.
Tried and shortly carried magnums in a 60-10 that looks just like your's and it was a handful to hold onto and regain a good sight picture quickly. Went back to shooting nothing but .38's through it and finally traded the revolver off. Also am glad no one was seriously injured.
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Skip Sackett
US Veteran
The "J" frame is one of the strongest frames out there! Bolt notches between the chambers, just like the 5 shot "X" frames, Freedom Arms and other firearms that handle the real tough stuff. The barrel shroud is almost nonexistent which means that a forcing cone split is next to impossible!
Now, alloy frames, different story but the M60? Stainless Steel through and through? The 357Mag in no way is going to test that frame, no way.
Triple charges of fast powder? Yep. Chasing stuck bullets with full power loads? Um, yep. A firearm "stress tested" by another owner and you pushing the envelope a bit? YES! But just because they are small doesn't mean that they are poorly designed! My, my!
I will take a 357Mag "J" frame LONG before I would take a "K" frame 357Mag, ANY DAY!
The "L" frame will take a standard 357Mag all day long, for longer than you live and not have one problem. Still, I would stake my life, and have, on a "J" frame in 357Mag.
Now, alloy frames, different story but the M60? Stainless Steel through and through? The 357Mag in no way is going to test that frame, no way.
Triple charges of fast powder? Yep. Chasing stuck bullets with full power loads? Um, yep. A firearm "stress tested" by another owner and you pushing the envelope a bit? YES! But just because they are small doesn't mean that they are poorly designed! My, my!
I will take a 357Mag "J" frame LONG before I would take a "K" frame 357Mag, ANY DAY!
The "L" frame will take a standard 357Mag all day long, for longer than you live and not have one problem. Still, I would stake my life, and have, on a "J" frame in 357Mag.
I was once loading some 95gr .380 pretty stiffly and when i went to the range to chrono them they were close to 1000fps but boy did they kick in my Colt Mustang. I figured I better back off the charge a little and when I went back to my bench I discovered I was picking out of the 122gr Berry's box, not the 95gr Remington FMJ next to it. I have no idea what kind of pressure was absorbed by that little Mustang but I was lucky that day.
I am leaning toward the OAL being too short driving up pressure but any chance you could have loaded a heavier bullet than 125?
I am leaning toward the OAL being too short driving up pressure but any chance you could have loaded a heavier bullet than 125?
Kavinsky
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Not me, no way in hell
and after what this guy said the difference in pressure between the magnum loads and the standard .38 pressure is in this reload video
037 Massad Ayoob Demonstrates the "Stressfire" reload for the Revolver - YouTube
I know the J frame wouldnt be able to handle it, atleast not the titanium framed ones, and plus it would hurt like hell and when your in a fight supposedly you loose 50% of your shooting abilty to stress AND your carrying an overpowered not easy and not fun to shoot short barreled J frame that you've probably never practiced with?
frankly may the man upstairs help ya, you'd be better off with a .32 acp as atleast then the recoil wouldnt be so bad that you wouldnt be able to get multiple shots off and in the right places.
and many good lawmen have carried the K frame .357 magnum and it has served them well, far better than the J frame or K frame in .38 special.
Dont get me wrong though I do understand the apeal, after all I did really like that detonics combat master in .45 acp but atleast in this case with a J frame .357 its just like a hotrod, ton of power but none of the control you really need along with the brakes!
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SmithMarine
Member
Two things I would check that I have not seen mentioned.
1. Pull the bullets on the remaining loads and weigh the powder with an actual scale. and are you sure it was a 125 and not a 158 gr bullet that slipped in?
2. Are you SURE it was Unique? Check the powder in the pulled loads to compare. It has been known to happen that some people have more than one powder on the bench (a reloading no-no) and use the wrong one.
Look on the bright side, you have some spare parts for the next M60 once you take off the sideplate and remove them, along with the grips and maybe barrel.
1. Pull the bullets on the remaining loads and weigh the powder with an actual scale. and are you sure it was a 125 and not a 158 gr bullet that slipped in?
2. Are you SURE it was Unique? Check the powder in the pulled loads to compare. It has been known to happen that some people have more than one powder on the bench (a reloading no-no) and use the wrong one.
Look on the bright side, you have some spare parts for the next M60 once you take off the sideplate and remove them, along with the grips and maybe barrel.
Finn McCool
Member
I have a stainless 640 and I think it handles 357s quite well. I shoot 357s in it frequently, not the stoutest mind you, but definitely mid range 357 loads. Recoil is substantial but manageable. I do think the scandium j frames would be scary to shoot, though.
To the OP- Thanks for sharing your story. I too reload, and can learn a lot from your experience. Sorry about your gun, but I'm glad you are okay.
To the OP- Thanks for sharing your story. I too reload, and can learn a lot from your experience. Sorry about your gun, but I'm glad you are okay.
I have a policy of only having a one can of powder on my bench at a time the rest is kept in the wooden chest on the floor. Plus, I only use unique in my handguns because 99% of the time I shoot very mild loads. I also have 500 round boxes of cast bullets on my bench, and these particular bullets were a truncated cone bullet I got in trying out a new casting place. My 158 grain bullets are a regular semi-wadcutter. As far as the rest of the box, I just pulled the bullets and dumped the powder I didn't bother to measure the powder because I was pretty sure it was just an overload.
Skip Sackett
US Veteran
Kavinsky,
There you have it. You follow what Ayoob says about stuff, and I NEVER would. To each his own.
There you have it. You follow what Ayoob says about stuff, and I NEVER would. To each his own.
devildog66
Member
Ya know, the cylinder seems to have released... Glad you came through relatively unscathed.
That's good policy. Ditto with primers. Nowadays when I am reloading only one box (of 100) at a time comes out of their metal cabinet.
Rather than your handloads, I suspect the gun may have been fatally cruded-up if there was difficulty loading the chambers. Sometimes you cannot adequately clean a cylinder with ordinary cleaning tools if it has been really abused. In those cases, you have to resort to a lead-removing reamer to get things back under control - or some other form of more aggressive cleaning like the Lewis lead-removing tool.
The main thing is that you are OK. Remember, the loss of that gun is nothing compared to an injury that could have impaired you for the rest of your life. I'm sure the incident gives you pause about your reloads. I have handloaded all my life and never had a serious incident so I am not sure how I would react, other than to thank The Lord that I still have my hands, fingers, eyes, etc.
CAJUNLAWYER
Member
So a little JB Weld on the cylinder-clamp the frame in a vice, put a 2x4 on the topstrap and pound it back down, heck you're good to go
Better yet-list it on gunbroker "good honest wear"
So a little JB Weld on the cylinder-clamp the frame in a vice, put a 2x4 on the topstrap and pound it back down, heck you're good to go
Better yet-list it on gunbroker "good honest wear"
better yet, do you have the box? i would list it as LNIB
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