I got messing about with some 158 gr lead bullets and Unique powder for my S&W 686 .357 and found something that bothers me about the Hornady load data.

4th Ed Hornady Handbook pg 572: min load 4.7 gr max 6.5 gr

7th Ed Hornady Handbook pg 827: min load 3.3 gr max 5.0 gr

Yes loads between 4.7 and 5.0 are in both publications, but there seems to be contradiction that needs clarification. Since both very light loads and very heave loads can result in disastrous results, what is the correct information?

Hornady has not yet had an opportunity to check this and reply to my e-mail, but I wonder how often old data changes by what seems to me a significant shift.

What has your experience been?

that sir is one of the reasons why you get a collection of loading books and look into all of them before even guessing what you want to load

That's exactly why all loading manuals have a disclamer of some sort. Briefly, it's something like this:

Buyers and users assume all risk, responsibilty and liabilty whatsoever for any and all injuries (including death), losses, or damage to persons or property arising from the use of product or data...

You have found what we have known to be true. We are putting our own loading manual together and one fact is clear each powder type but of different lots are not the same

We are going to include articles reflecting this fact in our loading manual which should be finished by the end of 2008.

The bottom line is, as Craigster suggested, get several manuals and use them all to find the best place to start. Every powder lot is different and should be treated as such.

Regards,
Eric Stecker
Berger Bullets

Hey Gray Fox, A good while back I'd gotten my Bambi Blaster Loads for my Ruger down to a level where I needed to load some more up. I opened the latest Speer Manual and noticed the SAFE MAX Load was something like "2-grains" lower than what I had written in my Load Notes on the inside of the box.

I first thought I'd somehow gotten the Load Data from the Manual all hosed up. Decided that I needed to see how I could have possibly gotten the SAFE MAX off by approximately 2gr.

Got out an older Speer Manual and sure enough the Load I was using was what they had listed - for a Ruger. The newer Manual had Loads developed in an older Model S&W, back even before the Ultra-Leftist Brits owned S&W.

Those of us who were using Revolvers to Hunt with knew if you used the same Loads in those old S&Ws that you would quickly shake them loose. But they were lighter to carry than the Rugers of that era.

All the recent S&Ws I've seen appear to be beefed up in the Cylinders, but that could be Full-of-Beans. Anyway, check to see if they changed Revolvers from the 4th to the 7th edition. And it does make sense for the Load Manuals to reflect a Load that will not destroy those older, lighter made Revolvers of years past.

Best of luck to you.

I have and use several books. My son brought a new book to the re-loading bench, and this caught my attention.

Normally I check a couple of books, and run in the middle, at least to start. Now I will check at least four sources.

The reason for the differences is probably that the new book actually used a transducer and pressure tested the loads. Many of the older manuals were developed using traditional "pressure signs" and were found to be a little warm once they were actually pressure tested.......................DJ