WB
Very good observations and testimony
Saturday, January 14, 2023, 09:16

As a young boy I was simply mimicking what I was reading about in the late 1970's. My hero's said it was the stuff so that's what I tried. I could buy a (100) box of cast SWC projectiles to load up for $3 - $5, depending on the deal my LGS had going. Conversely a box of (100) Serria JHC in .38 cal. was $7.50. For a .44 it was $10 for JHP. Making about $2 per hr. working at the Grocery store that made a difference in economy. A weekend pizza dinner for my girlfriend (wife) and I was about $6. A boy has to have goals and boundaries. But I was getting it all done to suit. A box of Super-Vel .357 JHP (if you could find them) were $12-$15/50, the same price as (20) W-W .44 Magnum 240 gr. factory ammo. Norma steel jacketed .44 JHP was the holy grail and said to be what Jack Petersen used on that huge white Polar Bear! Stuff dreams were made of. I will say in my minimal testing all caliber JHP ammo was mediocre in performance. Often the nose filled with medium and it was a FMJ. Or they broke up completely shedding the jackets. We did like the Speer half-jackets, 140 gr. .357 JHP, and anything Serria made. Powder of choice was Blue Dot, 2400, or 296. Unique worked for anything less than magnums. We must have shot a truckload.

*Us boys did not mess with semi-auto handguns. Not much fun anyway. 9mm S&W, or Colt Commanders, and the 1911 .45, that was pretty much it, except for odd surplus guns. None seemed to be reliable with any JHP of the day. You just didn't bother.

I quickly found the 173 gr. SWC was a step ahead in penetration and accuracy. I often shot split red oak stove logs stood on end to observe reaction and penetration comparisons. I strive'd to be scientifically accurate within the obvious limited controls. That 173 seemed to up the ante of the .357 considerably and would plow through the oak well and slap it down quick if it hit any fibrous resistance. Very close to what I observed with the .44. I shot a LOT more wood that critters, but had a deliriously fun time. My most used .357's back then were a Colt Trooper MKIII, Dan Wesson 15's, and Colt Pythons. A buddy had a Blackkhawk I shot as much as I would had it been mine. The .44 was Super BH as the S&W cost twice as much back then and was hard to find. Thanks Clint Eastwood.

You didn't mention the crimping of the 173 "Keith". In a .357 case you had to seat the front band below the case line and crimp in front of it. It worked fine, but was sort of ugly. However loaded in .38 Special cases (as we mostly did) you just loaded the hot 2400 loading and crimped under the driving band as normal. The long bullet stuck out so that no .38 Special could shoot it, it protruded beyond the end of the cylinder and would not fire. Perhaps a grenade if someone found an odd application such as one of the potmetal O/U derringers that were popular, but our loads didn't last long anyway.