Your 9mm handload recipe.

[kmca]

I don't know what others are finding, but I'm finding 9mm just about the most powder dependent I've ever loaded for. One gun, I'll get 5 inch groups with one powder out of one gun, then 1-1/2 groups out of another.

[LloydXmas250]

Excuse my ignorance but what are plated bullets? Looking over some pages it makes me think they are copper bullets. Is that correct?

[Lead Waster]

plated bullets are lead bullets that have an electroplated coating of copper on them. The plating surrounds the entire bullet.

Pros - cheaper than FMJ (in general, preciciondelta sells some cheap fmj!)
-reduces or prevents leading in barrel like a lead bullet
-entirely encase so (in theory) no lead vapours when fired (fmj generally has an open bottom)

cons - can't shoot at same pressures/load/velocity as fmj because some people say the plating can seperate from the lead (no idea if this is true, since it's electroplated)
- more expensive than lead
- doesn't seal barrel as well as lead


I think they are a good compromise. Popular brands are "Berry's preferred plated bullets" and "Ranier Lead Safe bullets".

FMJ bullets are lead bullets that are encased in a copper jacket. Plated are lead bullets with a layer of copper deposited onto them, so the copper is not as thick, but generally covers the whole bullet.

[What Just Happened?]

I've heard that you should load plated bullets with power as if they are lead bullets, not FMJ. Anyone corroborate or hear differently?

[bohoki]

i use 3.5 bullseye with my home cast 124 grain

[landslide03]

I use the winchester cheapy 115 grain fmj bullets, I have experimented with the max 4.8 grns of Win 231 and the min 4.3 of Win 231. I actually found the min (4.3) to be more accurate then the hotter loads, between the min and max i really cant feel much of a difference of recoil. Just my 2 cents!

[Lead Waster]

The plated bullet manufacturers say to use lead data for plated, but it's OK to use starting to MID power (halfway between start and max I guess) for jacketed loads.

So I interpret this as, max = medium FMJ but start in lead territory. The bullet manufacturer usually tells you.

[LowSpeedHighDrag]

I've heard that you should load plated bullets with power as if they are lead bullets, not FMJ. Anyone corroborate or hear differently?

This is from Berry's plated bullets,

"Plated bullets occupy a position between cast bullets and jacketed bullets. They are soft lead, but have a hard outer shell on them. When loading plated bullets we have found best results using low- to mid-range jacketed data in the load manual. You must use data for a bullet that has the same weight and profile as the one you are loading. Do not exceed mid-range loads. Do not use magnum loads."

[pisarski]

i load 125gr lrn with 7gr of aa#7 it shoots well and no leading

[tANDa]

I'm using: 115gr Plated RN (berry's), 4.2gr titegroup. 1.125-1.130 OAL

But you shouldn't use this.
You should check 2+ reloading guides for a starting point then work up your recipe. But you knew that.

[surfinguru]

I'm using: 115gr Plated RN (berry's), 4.2gr titegroup. 1.125-1.130 OAL

But you shouldn't use this.
You should check 2+ reloading guides for a starting point then work up your recipe. But you knew that.

That's exactly what my M&P likes!

Now if anyone has data on some Hornady 124gr HP XTP info? Specifically, OAL numbers.

[ireload]

My plinking 9mm load 115 gr. Berry's flat point, 5.8 gr. Unique (yeah I know it's a tad dirty but love this powder), mixed brass, primer can be Win, Wolf, or CCI. For the life of me I cannot remember the OAL though.

[J-cat]

I don't know what others are finding, but I'm finding 9mm just about the most powder dependent I've ever loaded for. One gun, I'll get 5 inch groups with one powder out of one gun, then 1-1/2 groups out of another.

I agree. 9mm's are very finicky.

[Dubious_Beans]

Now if anyone has data on some Hornady 124 HP XTP info? Specifically, OAL numbers.

Well. the Hornady book says 1.060" for #35571 HP-XTP

[Triple R Munitions]

4.3gr Titegroup 115gr RN coal:1.150" ~ 1150fps 92FS

R