I was wondering if folks on the list -- particularly, of course, Doc Roberts -- might have suggestions for the best possible Super factory load. One of my more frequent EDCs is a LWC in that chambering, and I do not love the Silvertips that I currently carry. If I have to load my own, I have no problem doing it. I have not yet slugged the barrel to see if I can run 158s.
I used Georgia Arms 147gr when I carried it. The loading's been discontinued, however.
Double-Tap also has some loads for the .38 Super.
http://www.doubletapammo.com/php/cat...sCsid=afneznoc
Wonder what bullets they're using? Regular 9mm stuff is going to want to blow up early at those velocities, but .357SIG-specific GDHPs should work well...
IIRC, Mike said they used Gold Dots but I don't know if they're the .355 Magnum rounds.
Cor Bon has a 125gr DPX (Barnes bullet) load going at about 1350 fps from a 5" barrel.
There're a lot of .355" fans on this forum, and if I get the Gestalt the 147 grain weight seems to be favored. This blends well with my own slow-heavy inclinations. I see three 147 grain loads out there for the Super: Cor-Bon's, DoubleTap's, and Buffalo Bore's. Cor-Bon is sending an unknown JHP at 900 fps, which seems like it should be discarded out of hand. DT is pushing a Barnes TAC-XP at a reported 1450 (so let's guess 1350 in my Commander, optimistically), and BB is pushing an unknown JHP at what should be slightly more than 1100. I don't know how well the TAC is going to hold up at that velocity, and based on my general experience with DT I would expect that load to be very near overpressure, scary in my non-ramped Colt. The BB load would be attractive if I knew what bullet it was, and how that bullet does at those velocities.
If I go with 124 grain bullets things open up quite a bit. There's my SilverTips, which probably aren't great. Cor-Bon has DPX at 1350, BB has an unknown at 1330, and Wilson has an XTP at 1330.
The problem with 147s, of course, is that they're almost all tuned to expand reliably at ~1000fps or even less, to make them useful out of a 9x19. Punch it up to 1200fps, and it could cost in the penetration department if it blows up too fast.
I dunno... Maybe something like the XTP or Speer Unicor, which aren't that enthusiastic of expanders in the first place? I'm feeling deja vu...
Isn't the most popular load in the .355 Magnum the 125 grain anyway? Wouldn't it then follow that a 125 would make more sense for a Super?
Caleb,
The .357SIG has that bitty case neck which makes heavier bullet loads problematic, so you've pretty much got to use flying dimes. All else being equal, I likes me some sectional density; I want to make sure that that bullet is going to get where it needs to go.
(It's one of the things that makes me sad about that S&W 296 I keep in my purse; the thing turns into a kinetic bullet puller with anything over 200gr loads. Of course, it'd probably be too much of a handful to practice with with anything heavier, but it's the principle of the thing.)
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