Magnolia plate rack max capacity

Beladran wrote:Depends on what powders you use

Well sure, and bullet weight too. I think if it was kept under 1225 fps and 180 pf it would be fine on the steel, and I was just wondering if that would really be a "magnum" load if it was kept to those requirements. My USPSA Open .38 Supercomp leaves small nose dimples on my steel plates that are tolerable, although not ideal, but it wouldn't be allowed under the 1225/180 standard. It's less than 180 PF but the velocity is about 1370 fps (125 gr. bullet so approx. 170-173 PF.)

Im assuming your using a fmj profile bullet? The surface area on the nose of that bullet is tiny so all the energy gets deposited quickly in a small area untill the bullet flattens out. I could load 357 mag will full wad cutter to the speed of your 38ac and only knock the paint off the plate because the surface area of my bullets nose is bore diameter

That's just my thoughts Its hard to have something set in stone : ( heck for my 38spl to make PF I'm at the bottom end of magnum levels

FMJ and JHP, but the difference is pretty small. That makes sense about the full wadcutter, but it's all academic for me because I shoot jacketed for the less smoke and a full wadcutter won't feed in autos.

I agree it is hard to set anything in stone because there are lots of variables, but I think the 1225/180 standard is a decent attempt at a reasonable limit. While there are certainly things that exceed it that won't do too much damage (frangible bullets for example, in addition to others), I am more interested in whether there is something that stays within it but yet causes too much damage to the steel.

No damage! Thanks to whoever left 50 or so once fired .45 ACP's laying in the grass, I gave them a new home!! I painted all the plates while I had the can in my hand.

Great close-up picture showing the olded dimples in the plate.

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shoeshooter wrote:What model Smith you got there Phillip? Looks like a 3.5" barrel?

It is a 1066, 4.25" barrel and is the similar to the FBI issue 1076, the difference being the FBI 1076 has the decocker on the frame, where the 1066 is on the slide. It is DA/SA.