Reloading Question

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918collector
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Reloading Question

Post by 918collector »

The earliest reloading info for the 9x18 I came across was in some magazine articles: American Rifleman and Shooting Times as I recall, but any new manual from Speer or Sierra or any of the powder manufacturers' manuals should have data since it is now so common. Also, makarov.com has a reloading section.

New brass is available from Starline at pretty reasonable prices. I have tried their stuff in several calibers and it is all good. If you want to go cheap, you can always use 9mm Parabellum brass, trim 1mm off and resize as normal. This takes out the case wall taper. I did this when reloadable brass was unavailable but don't bother anymore. The only downside to this is the headstamp still says 9mm Luger or 9x19 or whatever. This can create a problem if you also shoot the 9mmP. You just have to be careful to segregate cases and keep your boxes labelled.

Since I cast, I don't buy jacketed bullets. I just reload to plink. The current wisdom is never to use reloads for "serious social situations" since there is a danger of legal repercussions if, God forbid, we ever have to actually shoot someone.
nbender
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Reloading Question

Post by nbender »

There's been a lot writen about the repercussions of using reloads for self defense. Not to hijack the thread too badly, but I've seen it writen that there never has been a case where a prosecuter made an issue of a shooter using reloads. That's just what I've seen in print; I don't really have a dog in the hunt.
918collector
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Reloading Question

Post by 918collector »

That's what a friend of mine says, that so far it hasn't happened in court. The gun mags used to discuss the issue quite a lot though.

I use the available factory hollow points. Speer or Hornady.

If I wanted to step it up, there is always Cor-bon.

If I did have to use them, I certainly wouldn't mention that they were reloads if I didn't have to.

Another issue is ultimate reliability. Essentially, this means we reloading hobbyists may load into the hundreds of rounds at most. The manufacturers load into the millions so their quality control has to be better than ours. This wasn't necessarily true in the past but is pretty much so now, especially for American-made ammo. I've had rimfires fail before but can't recall experiencing any misfires in centerfires.
nbender
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Reloading Question

Post by nbender »

918, I'll respond to your statement concerning hand-loaded vs. factory ammunition.

In Understanding Firearm Ballistics, Mulberry House Publishing, 6th ed., 2006, Robert Rinker writes:

"Hand-loaded ammo that is carefully and properly loaded will have better accuracy than factory ammunition. Always. (This is not an insult to manufacturers, but all production work has to have tolerances. Hand-loaders can strive for perfection.)"

and:

"Hand loaders can operate closer to the maximum safe allowable pressure by the use of better quality control than is possible in a factory environment."

I believe 1,000-yard target shooters just about all hand load, as do many shooters of closer range targets.
918collector
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Reloading Question

Post by 918collector »

I agree that a careful handloader can better factory loads at least as regards to accuracy. In the '70's, this was the rule more than the exception. It probably depends on the primary purpose of the cartridge. I expect few manufacturers give overmuch attention to accuracy on this cartridge as not many people use it for target purposes. Even in my casual shooting, I can tell my reloads outclass the old Chinese stuff I have. Regarding reliability, and I think this is more of an issue with machine loaders rather than a 1-round-at-a-time person like myself, I have seen 9mmP and 45ACP stuff that had things like reversed primers and such.
dolang1
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Reloading Question

Post by dolang1 »

I haven't reloaded the first bullet yet because I can't find brass locally. I'm going to the range today to make some. I know that is not economical, but I need to reload something.
I've already purchased the Lee Anniversary loader so this is not my question, but a friend wanted to know which press to buy. I gave him the info that ya'll had given me. His question, Why is the RCBS press so much more than the Lee? Rcbs rockchucker being $270. Lee $70.
I'm sure I'll be back this weekend with more reloading questions. Later Don
nbender
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Reloading Question

Post by nbender »

918, I'll agree that there are some boneheads out there. Every time this one guy brought his reloads to the range he would ask at the shop for them to remove a squib. But, given that everyone here is on top of things, there's no reason why you shouldn't be able to load better than factory rounds that have standard deviations of 25 and extreme spreads over 10% of the average velocity. Accuracy Is quality.
918collector
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Reloading Question

Post by 918collector »

Re: dolang1's question:
Lee's stock in trade is less-expensive reloading equipment. I can't fault them because it makes reloading more affordable. I use a lot of Lee stuff and usually have no problems. Most of my dies are Lee. My brother uses an RCBS Rockchucker that is built like a tank. Quality costs. The Mak round is undemanding so any press should work fine. If I loaded, say, magnum rifle rounds, I would not use my old Lee Turret press as it can be springy, mostly in the turret assembly. I suspect the problems I had with 7.62x25 load had to do with this but that is a far cry from a straight-cased, un-tapered affair like the Mak. If later you start loading 7mm magnums you will appreciate a heavier, more expensive press and premium dies.

Re nbender's post: Accuracy is indeed found in care and consistency. Chrono's have gotten cheap enough now that I guess I should invest in one. I'm still borrowing mine from a friend.
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Reloading Question

Post by abwehr »

I enjoy reloading; it is relaxing for me as I DO NOT allow anyone in the shop to distract what I am doing! The Lee reloading equipment is good stuff and I use a Lee 4-hole Turret Press but it is for pisto ammo only. I use an "O" Frame RCBS for rifle rounds because it will take the punishment without springing. I can use the RCBS for caliber conversion on rifle ammo without worry about warping the press.

When I buy a new piece of reloading equipment, I determine what it will be called on to perform and buy the one the suites the need. If Lee will work, I buy the Lee. I like their stuff!
kempin
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Reloading Question

Post by kempin »

dolang1,

Congrats on your purchase and good luck! There is some great advice from these guys here. Just remember: never rush, and never exceed the manual unless you absolutely, absolutely know what you are doing. It is just not worth it.

My two cents: Get a Lee case trimmer and make a bunch of 9x18 brass from 9x19 cases. Not only will this be useful, but it will also give you something to do with the excitement of getting started as a hand loader!

My personal favorite load for the p-64: 3.3 gr. Hodgdon Universal over a 95 gr. bullet. It is a marvelous target load in both of my p-64s.

God bless and straight shooting,

-Kempin
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