New Articles

[K-Texas]

2 since March 25th and a new one will be posted this week that should be particularly interesting to you .357 Mag wheelgun/carry guys.

https://blog.westernpowders.com/

[K-Texas]

The newest article is up. It's about a defense load I developed that I'm calling the .357 Triple Ought. Hope y'all like it!

[K-Texas]

Updating as there's a correction that needs to be made to the new article. There should be a target for the 4th test round that somehow got deleted. It gave the best result overall, and I have contacted the editor of the blog. Hopefully, it will be corrected this afternoon.

[K-Texas]

I suspect many of you have seen the .357 000 article by now. You no doubt read that from about 12' to 21' the pattern size increases to around 2" - 3" and should not over penetrate through sheetrock making it a good choice for indoors.

I've mentioned Charles Schwartz's book Quantitative Ammunition Selection a number of times and the response has been a bit under-whelming, considering this site is geared toward CHL holders. The book contains a good number of mathematical formulas which some shooters just might not be into; but there's a reason. In my 40 years of handgunning I've seen all of the various theories on wounding/stopping capability. What Charles did in QAS was define the vast majority of them in provable mathematical formulas where those inclined can determine the accuracy of his theorems.

Not many have it, but I do have his spreadsheet program and every iteration of it going back the 5 or 6 years that we've been corresponding. I've been able to provide him with data for defense handloads that equal or exceed the best loads available commercially, and he's right around 900 tests where he fires a load into calibrated 10% ordnance gel at its specific, req'd temperature, just as the FBI tests. No gel substitutes because they do NOT give the same results. The closest medium within less than even 1% is water. And he tests the same loads that were fired into the calibrated gel into water baggies for direct comparison. Not some Joe Blow's opinions on a YouTube channel. This is pure physical science with conclusive mathematical formulas covering every theorem you've likely come across going back to the early 20th century, as well as all of the testing done by the US Military, Fackler/IWBA, M & S OSS, Strabourg, FBI and even BPW, they have all been evaluated through mathematical formula.

My method is a bit simpler and Charles uses his own apparatus explained in QAS. I've been shooting 1 - gallon water jugs long before I got acquainted with him, and I continue to do so. Simply put, they're a bit more convenient to use at a gunrange. What is req'd for evaluation is the velocity of the bullet as it enters the test medium, it's recovered mass and diameter. And again, around 900 data sets where the results are 95% accurate in predicting penetration in calibrated gel. I simply place the 1st Jug at 12' from the muzzle, the same distance I chrono at. The Q-Model goes on to give statistical analysis for several other important factors like probability of incapacitation. More realistic than anything I've seen previously or expect to see. The probability of incapacitation increases with each successive shot placed into the thoracic chest cavity.

Typically, loads that give 70% P[I/H] for the first round will do what you need them to do and by the 3rd round a good JHP load should raise the P[I/H] to 98%+ or even above 99% after 3 rounds fired. So with the data for the best defense handloads I've come up with and provided data to Charles, I've had a few that have scored 75%+ for the first round fired. The .357 000 project has been going on since I did the shotshell/snakeload load article back in December where I omitted the shotshell capsule and used larger 7 1/2 shot in the load. So both the blog's editor as well as Charles Schwartz were informed on my progress with the .357 000 load as it developed.

And while it should not over-penetrate sheetrock walls beyond an estimated 15', the first round prediction for incapacitation came in at above 84%, even at what seems a sedate velocity of 800 FPS. The first test target was placed right behind the chrono at my normal distance of 12', and you can see that the 3 - 000 pellets essentially gave a cloverleaf pattern, but beyond that distance the pattern continues to increase in size. 4 more tests were conducted with the targets at 21'/7 yards.

Now for the good news: for some time now, Charles has been developing a commercial version of the Q-Model, and I hope to see it available soon. One of the results I tend to look at very closely is the value ΔE15, that is the amount of the bullets energy expended within the 1st to 15th Centimeter of penetration. And as you might guess, the best performing loads tend to have higher ΔE15 values. Not nearly so much as muzzle energy and what it indicates best is that the more rapidly a JHP expands while still going on to penetrate at least 12", the load will get good scores in several relevant categories. It's also the toughest test for any JHP and I don't use gimmick, screwdriver or FMJ bullets for defense.

I have the most recent version of the Q-Model, so I can say that part is done. It's now just a matter of packaging and marketing the Q-Model. It is the best science I've ever seen, and absolutely empirical in what it predicts.

[K-Texas]

For those who may not be familiar with Charles Schwartz, he is a retired federal LEO. While pursuing his BA in psychology at Ohio State University, he wisely chose to minor in physics. And you can find more info at his website: http://quantitativeammunitionselection.com/

[K-Texas]

On a different note: my daughter found the news before I did, but a man not so far away from here lost his life a few nights back when he and his motorcycle had an impact with a large hog.

In my most recent article here: https://blog.westernpowders.com/2020/05 ... ple-ought/ I mentioned a load under development. It would not have changed the outcome of the unfortunate motorcycle rider because a mistake he made before that journey began, was in failing to put on his helmet.

I've been observing a good many things in handloading and ballistics over many years. Maybe one of the best things that's come from that is an axiom that says that, some expansion is always better than no expansion. I've heard as far back as 1986 when I began handloading; after a number of years previously, in studying any handloading article that came my way by printed magazine subscriptions, that you need a hard-cast bullet as a responsible handgun hunter or handloader. bull!

That concept never really worked for me. Not when if you have a concern about a JHP load being sufficient to accomplish the necessary amount of penetration on game. And regardless of anyone's favorite paranoia about what handgun cartridge that you need to be carrying in Bear country, the reality is that the most dangerous game animals/predators you'll encounter in Texas are the Cougar/mountain lion/puma. Next on the list and far more likely to be encountered would be feral hogs. And you need not be hunting them. Like the motorcycle incident I mentioned earlier, I've seen what can happen when someone hits a hog on a highway, county, state, national or interstate. These animals are dangerous indeed.

Now for the worse news. If you encounter a feral hog in the wild, do not try to presume anything other than dispatching that hog. I have not yet had the opportunity to test the updated load I made for my shooting partner whom had a close encounter with the sow I posted the pic of in said article. But I don't have any doubt about the SPEER 158 gr. JSP. Find the highest velocity data you can because the bullet will not expand greatly. It does, however, test as well as you can expect, and essentially, a sharp 6-pointed star is formed on the nose. And as was the case with my article, I'll also mention the Hornady 158 gr. XTP-FP, the soft point version of the XTP. I would use either but the SPEER 158 gr. JSP was a very good deal at Midway-USA. Another benefit here is the sectional density advantage over say a .400" bullet,

As for bear country, I'd feel pretty comfortable with a 4" S&W M57/657 as well as the 4" Ruger Redhawk. Unfortunately, the bullet I'd want does not exist, a 220 gr. JSP in .410" dia or heavier. Sierra once made maybe the ideal bullet for .41 Magnum with their 220 gr. Tournament Master, really made for shooting Silhouette competition. It did have lead exposed at the nose and would deform with enough velocity.

But in terms of Texas' Dangerous game, a .357 Mag load with a 158 gr. JSP load with all of the velocity that can be mustered, you're pretty well armed. Better armed if you can fire your .357 Magnum as fast as you can in DOUBLE-ACTION MODE where you can put those 12 or more rounds into a 10" circle at 50'. I'm trying to remember if paper pie plates are 10" in diameter? All that matters to me is that I can do that on a swinging steel target that is 8" in dia, shooting my 4.2" GP100. And whenever recoil is part of the advantage, make the best of it.

I will not say that more rounds of 10mm isn't better, but only when they're fired from an autloading pistol. Like I've said before, if enough of us want something, the gun industry will provide it, and I don't agree with that notion. 9 X 19mm loads when fired from revolvers can have any bullet after the 1st one fired, walk forward from recoil, including binding the cylinder preventing it from rotating. And the 10mm will need the heavier bullets vs even the .357 Mag.

To sum up, when you need MAGNUM POWER, use a magnum handgun cartridge, Magnum Revolver Bullets have cannelures for the case-mouth to be crimped into. And on the very best day it ever had, the 10mm isn't a .41 Magnum. But, the reality of demographics show that the .41 Mag has the highest occurrence of handloaders by handgun cartridge for a reason, and when you get to the nut-cuttin'; no 10mm load will exceed the best .357 Magnum load, Test the loads for velocity with a chronograph and water test any load you plan to carry: whether it be 4 legged or 2 legged animals!