I have pondered teaching this old dog new tricks. I have been reloading for many years, but think I can update my ways. If anyone reloads 380 acp please tell me. What bullet is best? Primer? Powder? Also on crimping, taper crimp? How tight? I use factory crimp die. Any ideas or experience will be helpful. Thank you in advance

The first rule of freeloading a 380 is to get a big net to catch the empties. For every ten minutes of shooting at least two hours are spent searching for the empty cases.

I used red dot in mine along with almost any bullet. Not much different then loading anything else.

i like 90 gr bullets, bullseye powder, any primer and a very slight taper crimp

I cast my own 100-grain RN bullets from a Hensley and Gibbs #S55 mould, and run them with 4.5 grains of AA %5, lit with a CCI-500 or Winchester SP primer. Seat them to where they fit the magazine and let the good times roll.

I have yet to find a blow-back style pistol this is not very accurate in, and they all eat it with relish. My personal pistols are a stainless PPK and a Baikal (Russian) Makarov, both in .380.

By far the most recommended bullet for .380 is Hornady's 90 gr. XTP. Faster powders work best. I actually believe Unique is too slow. Best powder I've tested by far is Accurate Arms #2. Good velocity and very low extreme velocity spreads. Accuracy is good and feeds perfectly in in Colt Gov't, 2 Sig 238's, and Bersa Thunder .380's. This little 90 gr. XTP-HP isn't too expensive even for plinking. I've only used CCI 500 primers. I would only taper crimp and then only enough to remove the belling and not to dig into the bullet. Accurate Arms has data on-line.

Right now I'm using brass from Armscor, Win small pistol primers, 2.7 gr of Win 231 and a nameless 90 gr round nose bullet which gives great results in a Remington RM380.

What exactly are "great results?"
My CZ83 will do about 5" at 25 yards, and I don't consider that great--just acceptable for the carry gun that it is.
This is almost like asking for the accuracy secrets for a Raven .25 Auto...
First, how good is the gun, and then how good is the cartridge?
In most cases, a JHP will be about the most accurate bullet. My choice is a 90gn JHP.

Thanks for all the info. From what has been said here I seem to be doing ok. Using stainless PPK 90 gr bullet with a slight crimp. I think I might relook over my crimp just in case. Again thanks for the input.

'Great results' for me in plinking ammo is acceptable accuracy, 100% function of all rounds and easy on the brass and gun. The Remington RM380 is a very accurate pistol.

Steve.......

I usually use Bullseye and W-231. I taper-crimp, but the crimp is minimal.

I mostly use 95 grain bullets and whatever primers and brass I happen to have around.

Because of the small volume of powder you use with a .380, I weigh charges from my powder measure more frequently with the .380 than I do with some other, larger volume, cartridges.