Speer has really changed some of their data now that they use psi testing rather than the old CUP stuff.
Look at Speer 11 versus Speer 14. I used to load a lot of Hercules Blue Dot. My 357 loads were:
125 jhp/15.2 grains BD
140 jhp/13.5 " "
158 jhp/12.5 " "
None of these are MAX loads in Speer 11. In fact, the Speer 11 starting loads are HIGHER than the Speer 14 MAX loads.
If I had started with a max load of BD from Speer 11 I would have blown primers at the least, maybe destroyed a gun. Start low and work up carefully.
All my loads with BD were worked up with standard spp's. One day, I loaded up some 140's and absent mindedly used CCI 550's, the magnum spp. Oops. Stuck cases and flattened primers. I had to go back and pull the remaining 94 rounds for that misstep.
Look at Speer 11 versus Speer 14. I used to load a lot of Hercules Blue Dot. My 357 loads were:
125 jhp/15.2 grains BD
140 jhp/13.5 " "
158 jhp/12.5 " "
None of these are MAX loads in Speer 11. In fact, the Speer 11 starting loads are HIGHER than the Speer 14 MAX loads.
If I had started with a max load of BD from Speer 11 I would have blown primers at the least, maybe destroyed a gun. Start low and work up carefully.
All my loads with BD were worked up with standard spp's. One day, I loaded up some 140's and absent mindedly used CCI 550's, the magnum spp. Oops. Stuck cases and flattened primers. I had to go back and pull the remaining 94 rounds for that misstep.
