200gr bullet for 357 mag?

[returningfire]

OK, I bought a bunch of mixed reloading stuff from a guy that had got it all from a guy that didn't pay him for some work on his house. Long story short in the mix was a box of Speer 200gr 357 bullets. I love 357 mags but have never seen a 200gr load. These are new but very old. Were these made for use in a 357 rifle only or does someone have a load for this bullet for a handgun? Should I even shoot a 200gr in a handgun?( "4" Ruger Security Six) I've done a lot of loading and shooting in my 58 years, but never owned a 357 mag rifle so I am not familiar with this bullet. Can't even fine the 200 gr on Speer's website.
If you have a load for this for a handgun I would be interested, because I hunt in Eastern NC where Bears around 800 lbs sneak around so I carry a 357 on my hip to dust off the bears, and a 200gr would certainly be nice to carry.

 

[ngnrd]

Here's some reading material for ya...

Link

 

[hueyville]

A lot of the older manuals will have data that has since been flushed. You should try and pick up older manuals as well as new ones as they come out. Some of my manuals from the 1930's to 1950's have much great information. I have loaded bullets up to 225 grains in .357 magnum. At some point the velocity squared portion of the energy formula takes over. It varies from caliber to caliber. If you need that much mass, I suggest you step up a caliber. With a little effort you can work up a load for those bullets the ol fashioned way. I used that bullet in my .357 Maximum which was relatively short lived as a production caliber for shooting steel rams and such.

 

[Hondo 60]

Not that I'm some "heard all" guru or anything, but I never even heard of a .357" 200 gr bullet.

I wish you very good luck finding data.

 

[ljnowell]

Its out there. Alliants 2000 manual has bullseye, green dot, red dot, unique, 2400, and maybe herco data for a 200gr bullet. PM me if you are interested, I have the pdf if you want it.

 

[Jesse Heywood]

Found this, but I don''t know which edition it's from. Use with caution, Speer lloads were hot.

 

[cpileri]

230gr thunderheads

Penn Bullets recommends 7-9gr of AA# 9 depending on 38spl or 357mag load, for their 230gr Thunderheads. I've tried it, kicked but not too bad. Just throwing that out there. C-

 

[Cosmoline]

I've loaded the 200 grain Cast Performances. The powder space is a bit tight and you have to watch overall length. I found 180's a little easier to deal with. The big jacketed rounds are likely for T/C .357 mag or even .357 MAXIMUM. That's really where they shine.