1st 20 reloads. what did i do wrong?

[corpsedub]

so i loaded up my first 20 9mm reloads. the load data was:

Winchester small pistol primer in Winchester brass
n-350 5cc(scooper from lee) i don't know the exact gr. weight at this time.
124gr rn projectile
OAL was a little shaky since i was getting used to the system. the minimum OAL for n-350 is 1.142 inches(per their pdf). i set the OAL to roughly 1.145 on most.

when firing, the rounds where very weak. they where not able to cycle the slide at all. in addition i had partially burnt powder fall from the chamber when i manually cycled.

what am i doing wrong?

[spencerhut]

Your OAL is close enough, a .003 variation is fine.

Your charge weight should be enough for ~1100FPS, so that should be good enough to cycle most normal guns.

Might want to get a scale and weigh the charges as you are dipping them as a test. You may be conservative on your dipping technique resulting in a charge too low to cycle the action.

[doc1buc]

Definetely get a scale. The lee dippers, I have them myself, are great time savers once you get a feel for the dip dip tap method. ONce you get practiced at it, that will make ALOT of sense.

[sonnyt650]

Page 707 of my Lee manual indicates that N350 in a 0.5cc dipper yields 5.1 grain on average, while page 533 says 5.6 grain is the start load and 6.1 is the maximum for your 124 grain bullet. You're roughly 20% down from the maximum load depending on your scoop technique, though a scale is much better at telling you how far off your powder charge is.

BTW: for under $50 you can get both the Lee scale and drum powder measure, much better than gambling by adjusting the load visually. The scale is a no-brainer (any is better than none) but you have some choice in powder measures. Lee has a 0.3cc dipper in their dipper set (<$10) which in theory you can dip twice, but the Lee Perfect Powder Measure (~$20) can be adjusted to any volume and has +/-0.1 grain throw consistency for my H322 and Varget.

[corpsedub]

sweet. that's for the replies! im definatly gonna get a scale now.

[Bug Splat]

I dislike those dippers. The only time I use them is to dip the powder into the scale to weigh the charge. I've seen weight differences of 1gr using some powders. I don't trust them.

[cortayack]

1st as it has been said already "get a scale"....What reload books or information are you using to get the data to safety reload...Its very important to know what your doing is correct and not a guessing game....!

2nd if your getting unburnt powder or alot of fouling then you are not crimping or crimping too light.....Also different powders burn at different rates, this can make a difference in how much crimp is needed also...
I would advise you to seriously read up some more before reloading anymore...

Be safe............

[gose]

I assume that you're talking about Vihtavouri 350 and that you shot them in your G19?

If so, 350 might be a little bit on the slow side for a 124gr bullet in that fairly short barrel. If the powder is too slow to burn cleanly, you'll get the effect you're seeing.

I'd look into using a faster powder, like 320, instead.

[Beelzy]

Quit using the scoop.

You got lucky with an undercharge, the next time it could be an overcharge.

Scoops are for kids!

[Corbin Dallas]

so i loaded up my first 20 9mm reloads. the load data was:

Winchester small pistol primer in Winchester brass
n-350 5cc(scooper from lee) i don't know the exact gr. weight at this time.
124gr rn projectile
OAL was a little shaky since i was getting used to the system. the minimum OAL for n-350 is 1.142 inches(per their pdf). i set the OAL to roughly 1.145 on most.

when firing, the rounds where very weak. they where not able to cycle the slide at all. in addition i had partially burnt powder fall from the chamber when i manually cycled.

what am i doing wrong?

First off, chuck the scoop. It's highly inaccurate and is only volumetric not weighted.

Second, I would start looking for a new powder, one that has a OAL that is not at the outer limit. The reason being is you want to be able to fine tune your charge by lengthing the OAL. Since N-350 is at the end, there is no room for adjustment and still be able to fit the round in your glock mag.

Lastly, buy a digital scale if you are loading one at a time. This way you can be consistant with each round.

Also, a sign of unburned powder is a sign of low case pressure. (EG too long oal)

[ar15barrels]

First off, chuck the scoop. It's highly inaccurate and is only volumetric not weighted.

Powder measures are volumetric too.

[Corbin Dallas]

Powder measures are volumetric too.

Very true, but you check the volume by weight.

If my dillon powder drop was "X" amount of turns, I would not trust it by volume because of the difference in powder size.

EG - Unique .5cc cup will weigh less than Win231 .5cc cup.


I have no problem with the dippers as long as you check the weight according to the manufacturers specs.

[juelz919]

gotta get a scale.

i do like the lee scoops but you need to weigh them first because they usually throw light

[Sunday]

I first reloaded in 1977 and I am still learning. Take your time, do a good job and have fun .

[sonnyt650]

BTW2: my Hornady manual indicates 9mm headspaces on the case mouth so light to no crimp, and the max load for their bullets is 5.2 grains. Makes me glad I chose rifle cartridges to learn how to reload!