Research on Reloading 9mm

[NE Bull]

DE Guns gave me a fair deal on primers last time I bought  them. Nearly the same price as the web + hazmat. Call them and get a quote

I have heard the same about DE Guns.  I need to go check them out.  (I bought my last primers from Scheels, mostly because I was there and the had them in stock. )

[OnTheFly]

I just called Scheels on Winchester WSF.  They wanted $149.99 + tax on an 8# jug.   

Fly

[JTH]

Regarding Primers & Powder...I will have to check the Lincoln area to see if anyone has a similar good deal.  Otherwise, a drive to Omaha in my gas guzzler may not make it cost effective.

Hey, next time you come up for a match, just stop by Guns Unlimited.    (Steel Challenge on the 17th!)

As for finding those prices elsewhere---I certainly haven't.  Scheels and Cabelas both have really horrible powder/primer prices, far as I can tell.

[OnTheFly]

Hey, next time you come up for a match, just stop by Guns Unlimited.    (Steel Challenge on the 17th!)

I won't be available for the match, or probably any other match until later in the summer.  I have to go back to work so I can pay for this hobby.

Fly

[Ram Ringer]

Hey SemperFi Guy, Just remember if you buy that old beat up Dillion 550, and send it in to Dillion You might just get a nice shiney brand new one in returned. My Father in law came into possession of one that was all rusted sent back and got a new one in its place.

[SemperFiGuy]

Ram.................

OK, Here's the deal:

First, We convince Tom to send his Dillon back to the factory; so he gets a brannew 550 reloader machine in exchange.   All new and shiny.   Works like a charm.   Doesn't miss a beat.   Never a missing primer.

Then we cozy up to him.   Let him shoot our old beater guns, whatever.   Make him feel He Owes Us.   [Maybe somehow even get Julie to be on our side.    Have our women go to lunch with her.   Talk about kids, fixing husbands, shopping, whatever.]

Next, we haul our reloading stuff--brass, primers, bullets, powder, etc.--over to Tom's Man Cave, play helpless, get him to set up the Spanky New Dillon 550 for 9mm.   Say Wow!

Moving in for the Kill, we bet/dare him that he can't make more than 500/rounds per hour on that new Dillon Machine that ain't broke in yet.

We can do this on Sunday evening, listening to Mark Walters on Armed American while Tom pulls the crank.

When he isn't using the machine, we can rent it out to NFOA folks.

You call him.


sfg
[PS - Maybe we can use the Dillon to reload your Mystery 32s.   Make a brannew Wildcat round:   the RamRingerZinger.]

[Ram Ringer]

Semperfi,

Sounds like a good idea

[JTH]

First, We convince Tom to send his Dillon back to the factory; so he gets a brannew 550 reloader machine in exchange.   All new and shiny.   Works like a charm.   Doesn't miss a beat.   Never a missing primer.

Then we cozy up to him.   Let him shoot our old beater guns, whatever.   Make him feel He Owes Us.   [Maybe somehow even get Julie to be on our side.    Have our women go to lunch with her.   Talk about kids, fixing husbands, shopping, whatever.]

Next, we haul our reloading stuff--brass, primers, bullets, powder, etc.--over to Tom's Man Cave, play helpless, get him to set up the Spanky New Dillon 550 for 9mm.   Say Wow!

Moving in for the Kill, we bet/dare him that he can't make more than 500/rounds per hour on that new Dillon Machine that ain't broke in yet.

We can do this on Sunday evening, listening to Mark Walters on Armed American while Tom pulls the crank.

When he isn't using the machine, we can rent it out to NFOA folks.

You call him.

This is scaring me.   

(Besides, my Super 1050 is already set up for 9mm.  Wouldn't need to set up the 550 for that!)

[Mudnrox]

jthhapkido how much powder do you use for your setup?

[unfy]

Powder's gonna be based first upon published reloading manual guidelines, and then tailored to the particular bullet and pistol.  I know my Sig likes some things, dislikes others... varying powder charge by a few tenths of a grain within the margins of the book can make all the difference when loading different bullets.

I picked up an 8lb jug of powder a while back, prolly made 3000 rounds with it already... and there's still a lot left.

Don't take this as for 9mm, but if ya put 5.0 grains of powder in each round - you can make 11200 rounds out of 8 pounds of powder if everything is perfect.  It won't be quite perfect, but I don't see why you couldn't get 11K rounds out of an 8lb jug at 5.0gr per round.

[SemperFiGuy]

UNFY.........

I'll close my eyes and take a guess:

8 pounds of.................WIN231!!!!!!!!!!



sfg

[unfy]

Actually, 8lb of Winchester 296 for magnum charges and 8lb of Alliant Unique for generics

[Mudnrox]

I meant to be specifically asking about his setup for:
 - 9 mm 124 gr CMJ bullets
 - WSF powder
 - Winchester primer
 - for use in a Glock

Just looking for what he found to work for him, and a place to compare with on other research

[Dan W]

Don't be offended,  but many ( if not most ) experienced handloaders are often leery of giving exact load data information for fear that a proper load work up may be skipped by the end user.

Truly every firearm is a new and different "experiment" in ballistic wizardry, and what works in one may not be safe in another

[SemperFiGuy]

Mudnrox:

For safety, whether starting as a new reloader or starting a new load as an experienced reloader, it's a good idea to begin the reloading work from published, tested data found in a factory reloading manual, usually published by a powder company or a reloading equipment company.

Hornady, Speer, and Lee are just a few.   Many others.   They only cost about $25 -30 each.

The front end of the Hornady manual gives excellent information on interior ballistics.
Lee's manual gives Lotsa loads for Lotsa different bullets in many different weights.
No single manual covers all available powders and bullet weights.
They frequently disagree between each other on loadings.
But............they all are based on loads that have been tested and re-tested in lab-controlled conditions.

Conversely, the loads posted on the internet by anonymous reloaders are potentially dangerous.   No way to know if any tests have been conducted at all.

It's always a good idea to start with the lower loads and work up toward maximum.

Happy reloading.


sfg 

[Mudnrox]

Thanks.
I am just trying to figure stuff out.

I haven't put anything together yet, but I did pick up the Hornady manual to start with

[SemperFiGuy]

Mudnrox

Good start.

If you want any help, you're welcome to PM me.

sfg

[bk09]

Thanks.
I am just trying to figure stuff out.

I haven't put anything together yet, but I did pick up the Hornady manual to start with

BTW most if not all powder sites have load data on them. I have used many Hodgdon powders for the vast amount of data they supply (the also include IMR and Winchester).

[unfy]

Aye.

ALWAYS START FROM PUBLISHED DATA.

If this is from bullet manufacturers, or powder manufacturers... just so long as it's from one of those sources.  Books a great cause they're easy to thumb through, but many powder manufacturers also have website stuff.... I can dig up some links if it'd be helpful.

I really suggest the books.  And since ya got one, picking up more as money permits is handy .  I've got a Hornady and a Speers book, and the non-reloading-table sections are very informative / helpful and are a required read IMHO.

Also, always start your load towards the bottom / at the lower range of the charges listed.

Try to match bullet weight, jacket type (if any), and primer type (regular vs magnum).

Also it's seemingly contradictory, but heavier bullets take less powder.  It's all about staying within pressure ranges.

Times to restart your calibration of powder charge / seating depth:

* Different weighted bullets
* New bullets from a diff manufacturer or different type from same manufacturer
* New primer manufacturer (ie: winchester -> cci, etc)
* New type of powder (kind of a duhhhh)
* New bottle of powder (powder batches might be slightly different, so a test batch starting at lower charge weights is good... or if you're making benchrest competition, ya should do this anyway for consistency)

The idea of starting with the lower charge weights and working your way up (a magazine or less at a time) - is you can find a charge weight that agrees with your pistol and STAYING WITHIN SAFETY LIMITS.

* with first magazine load if on a lower charge, always check the bore to make sure the round left the barrel.  some people load light and this can be an fatal problem.

* check for signs of excessive pressure (you just hit upper limit and should back off a bit.. dismantling your current magazine's worth of rounds is suggested)

* No failure to eject

* No feed issues

* if you're shooting lead, you can possibly find a charge weight that causes the least amount of leading in your barrel

* which charge is the most consistent and accurate for your particular pistol (each firearm has it's own unique personality)

Also, I've noted that my Sig p229 doesn't behave linearly at all with powder charge weight.  It's more like a curve / sine wave.  Adding / removing 0.2 of a grain can make it quite unhappy... but if I add/remove another 0.2 grain it's back to purring.

Mudnrox, Annnddd... as SFG has pointed out... most of us here are willing to help out and answer questions and stuff

[Mudnrox]

Thanks for the help

I am researching and putting stuff together as time permits. For some reason, work keeps getting in the way.

I hope to get some things figured out over the winter