Lyman 49th and HSM Plated Bullets

[insik]

Some weeks ago, I scored a good deal (or so I thought) of HSM Custom Bullets for 9mm plated, 115gr.

Now, I have just started reading Lyman 49th edition and in the 9mm Luger section, I did not found any reference to plated bullets.

The only 9mm Luger on this handbook are: 90gr JHP, 95gr FMJ, 115gr JHP, 125gr JHP and 147gr TMJ and a few cast bullets (I believed).

Where should I get the load data for plated bullets? Or is plated bullets come in between some of these data?

Please understand that I am very new to this and taking one thing at a time to understand it thoroughly.

thanks.

[NotEnufGarage]

You can load plated bullets slightly hotter then their lead counterparts, but not as hot as fully jacketed bullets. About 1200fps is the max you want to go before you'll start ripping the plating off.

The point of plated bullets isn't hotter loads. It's for cleaner barrels.

What powder are you planning to use?

[insik]

No idea on what powder to use yet. Before buying the book, I was under the assumption that I can use any 115 gr bullets if I want to reload 9mm 115gr ammo. Not quite so.

I think I would just buy the components suggested in the load data for now. I will set aside the HSM 115gr bullets that I already have and work on it when I will gain experience.

thanks.

[NotEnufGarage]

I load 115gr plated RN in 9MM using Alliant Bullseye and Tula small pistol primers. 4.0 to 4.2 grains of Bullseye gives between 1000 and 1100 FPS. It cycles my Glocks just fine and I haven't noticed any copper plating laying on the ground in front of me when I shoot.

Unfortunately, Alliant doesn't list many bullets on their website so you have to do some looking around to find loading data for lead and plated bullets.

Ammoguide.com is a good resource for loading data.

[Bill Steele]

You can use the start to mid range jacketed load data for the powder you want to load. That is, for your 115gr plated, just use the start load suggested in your loading book for the 115gr jacketed. The OAL will work as well for the same weight bullet. You can go half way up towards max load.

If you are unsure what powder to use/buy for those bullets, pick a powder that is listed in your load book that has as wide a load range as possible, that is, if there is a powder that is listed for 115gr jacketed that has 1 grain between start and max, that would be a good one to start with. On the other hand, a powder that has .2grs between start and max would be good to avoid for now. Make sense?

Good luck, have fun.

[insik]

Makes sense. I can see from Lymans guide of 115gr Jacketed HP that Bullseye has starting gr of 3.5 and max of 4.8 w/ velocity from 945 to 1184 fps.

Does it make a difference between the handbook referencing 115gr Jacketed HP and my bullets of 115gr Plated Round Nose? I am referencing the OAL length between the two bullets.

Thank you guys for all your response.

[NotEnufGarage]

Makes sense. I can see from Lymans guide of 115gr Jacketed HP that Bullseye has starting gr of 3.5 and max of 4.8 w/ velocity from 945 to 1184 fps.

Does it make a difference between the handbook referencing 115gr Jacketed HP and my bullets of 115gr Plated Round Nose? I am referencing the OAL length between the two bullets.

Thank you guys for all your response.

Therre are two differences to consider between two different bullet type ;

1) COAL - Cartridge Over All Length
Different bullet shapes (RN vs JHP) will measure differently because of the shape of the tip of the bullet. Imagine the JHP having a complete nose and how that would make it longer. In the case of your plated bullets, find a load for a 115gr Jacketed Round Nose bullet (JRN) and use that COAL.

2) Maximum velocity
The plated bullets can't handle the speeds for max power jacketed bullets. The plating would be ripped off as it is dragging in the barrel and the lead inside has all the energy. As the previous poster mentioned, it's usually safe to use the min to mid loading data for jacketed bullets when loading plated bullets.

If you want to be really, really super duper safe at first, start out with a powder like Hodgdon Longshot. It is extremely fluffy, and it has a wide spread between min and max loads, plus they list load data for lead bullets on their website, along with velocities. Remember to keep plated bullets below 1200 FPS.

Just as a general observation, unless you're loading to +P or +P+ pressures in 9MM, most of the load data out there is for the 1000 - 1200 FPS range, anyway. You won't see velocities much higher than that until you get into loading magnum cartridges, which can run up to about 1800 FPS for the common magnums and up to 2400 FPS for the S&W .460 Magnum, but that's a whole nother story...

What type of pistol will you be shooting these from? Glocks are rated for +P and I think some are even rated for +P+, so low pressure rounds in the lead bullet loading range present very little risk of overstressing your guns chamber, but your smart to be cautious.


Pick a recipe, load a few rounds and take them to the range.

You might want to remove the barrel from your pistol and make sure the rounds seat in the chamber correctly before you head out to shoot. It sucks to get to the range and find out your ammo won't fit. Compare your loads to factory loads for further verification.

[Bill Steele]

Makes sense. I can see from Lymans guide of 115gr Jacketed HP that Bullseye has starting gr of 3.5 and max of 4.8 w/ velocity from 945 to 1184 fps.

Does it make a difference between the handbook referencing 115gr Jacketed HP and my bullets of 115gr Plated Round Nose? I am referencing the OAL length between the two bullets.

Thank you guys for all your response.

If you keep your velocity below 1200fps, you can probably go all the way up to max for any given powder. Berry's plated says to stay below 1200fps.

As far as the minimum OAL, there is a difference between HP and RN bullets, HP tend to be a little longer than a RN bullet, so they seat a little deeper. I wouldn't worry too much about it though, just use the OAL number in your load data (or longer) and you will be fine. If you decide to start loading to max maybe load the HP bullets a little longer (I load all my 115/124 9mm to 1.142").

Good luck, have fun.

[insik]

I will be using a CZ75B and a PX4

What type of pistol will you be shooting these from? Glocks are rated for +P and I think some are even rated for +P+, so low pressure rounds in the lead bullet loading range present very little risk of overstressing your guns chamber, but your smart to be cautious.

[NotEnufGarage]

The PX4 seems to be rated for +P and +P+, but they don't recommend extended use of it in the owners manual. I can't find anything on the CZ75 that says whether it's rated for it or not, so I'd keep the loads light until I found out for sure.

Either way, for plinking and target practice you only need loads that will reliably cycle the action, so start with that as an initial goal and work them up if you feel they're less accurate than commercial ammunition. Load 5 or 10 rounds at whatever minimum you feel safest starting with and load the next 5 or 10 with .1 grain more until you reach what you've determined you'll use for your maximum. As long as they're not hammering the slide or shooting wildly, pick the feel you like the best. As you get to the hotter loads, check your brass for signs of bulging, splitting and flattened or pierced primers, however, 9MM is pretty low pressure so that isn't likely.


Be safe, have fun and don't make up more ammo than what you're willing to pull apart if you decide it's not a good load.

Remember, eye protection when you're reloading. Be aware of and prevent static buildup. Don't mix powders. No smoking. Don't reload while your talking to someone or watching TV. Be methodical and make sure your process is reproducable. Follow these steps and you'll have fun and save money.

[insik]

Thanks again NotEnufGarage. I will put safety above all things.

[stand125]

I have had very good results loading 4.7gr of W231 powder under a 115gr plated bullet. I have had 4 people shoot this load and really like it.