S&W and Colt different twist?
I usually don't wind up with two new guns on the same day but...
Picked up two like new 4" 357s: a S&W 686 and a King Cobra. Off to the range with handloads of 158 gr LSWC Meister bullets over 6.5 grains of Bullseye. Both guns seemed plenty accurate even though I was not shooting my best. What was weird was that S&W consistently punched clean holes while the Colt mostly seemed to tear through the target. This was at 21 feet. All the ammo was made the same way with a separate crimp as I always do and the paper is the same--even different paper targets yielded the same result. My guess is that the barrels have a different twist type or something. I still find it puzzling, any ideas or suggestions would be helpful.
Three Precious Metals: Gold, silver and lead
Picked up two like new 4" 357s: a S&W 686 and a King Cobra. Off to the range with handloads of 158 gr LSWC Meister bullets over 6.5 grains of Bullseye. Both guns seemed plenty accurate even though I was not shooting my best. What was weird was that S&W consistently punched clean holes while the Colt mostly seemed to tear through the target. This was at 21 feet. All the ammo was made the same way with a separate crimp as I always do and the paper is the same--even different paper targets yielded the same result. My guess is that the barrels have a different twist type or something. I still find it puzzling, any ideas or suggestions would be helpful.
Three Precious Metals: Gold, silver and lead
0
-
They would most likely have a different twist rate, most guns do. Sounds like you're keyholing. It might be a question of the rifling style being different. The bullet might not be taking the rifling in the Colt. I'd try some bullets with a jacket and see if the problem continues. You may need a harder lead or jacketed bullets for the Colt.
Love them Beavers
SUPPORT THE I.N.S. , THE COUNTRY THEY SAVE COULD BE YOUR OWN0 -
I normally shoot jacketed bullets in .357, but they are also lighter too - 125gr flat points. I noticed afterwards that there was more cleaning than normal--to be expected with lead. I was hopeful that these SWCs would be ideal for target. At least they work well in the S&W [:)]
Three Precious Metals: Gold, silver and lead0 -
Does anyone know of someone who makes jacketed 158 grain SWCs not lead?
Three Precious Metals: Gold, silver and lead0 -
SaxonPig is right. A S&W is rifled clock wise and the cylinder turns counter clock wise. A Colt is rifled counter clock wise and the cylinder turns clock wise. I think I remember that right. Is it possible that the the cylinder and the barrel on the Colt are not lined up exactly right. Does it seem to be shaving the bullets. Find a .38 cal size metal rod and with the cylinder closed and empty, slide the rod down the barrel. If it hangs up going into the cylinder then it is not perfectly aligned and a competent gunsmith can fix it easily. If it doesn't hang up then its not that. It seem like a friend of mine had this same problem and it was the alignment problem that was deforming the bullets as they went into the barrel. Hope this helps. 0 -
Smith .357 twist is 1 in 18 3/4 inches.
Colt .357 twist is 1 in 14 inches.
Don't believe this is the problem though. As GUNMAN4FUN suggested, get a range rod and check the barrel/cylinder alignment.
"Don't send flowers when I die. Send money now so I can buy more guns and ammo."0 -
If it is shaving lead, you may be able to check the forcing cone and flutes in the cylinder and see buildup. 0 -
I put a rod down the barrel and it seems to be fine.
Maybe I am fishing down the wrong the stream, but I was wondering if I need a tighter crimp for the lead bullets and the Colt is just less forgiving in this regard.
Three Precious Metals: Gold, silver and lead0
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Comments
7 comments