Winchester Auto Comp load data for 40S&W Lead..?

[CEDaytonaRydr]

Hey guys.

I went to the hodgdon website to try to find some cast lead loading data with Winchester Auto Comp for .40 S&W, but all they have on there is jacketed load data. My manuals don't have any Auto Comp data at all...

Anyone have any Auto Comp load data for lead cast (or copper plated) projectiles on .40 S&W?

Thanks

[noylj]

I doubt that lead bullets are the market they want for Auto Comp.
Contact Hodgdon/Winchester, but I'll bet they will "not recommend it."
As Winchester/Hodgdon says: "AUTOCOMP is extremely fine in the 38 Super, 9mm, 45 ACP and 40 S&W race guns. It’s just the perfect burning speed to feed the compensators with a higher volume of gas. With AUTOCOMP competitors get off faster shots with minimal muzzle flash, it’s a winner."
Ignoring the poor grammar, unless you really think you need "higher volume of gas," the powder may not be any better than HS6 and Silhouette, which are in same burn range.
I also think I am the only one that shoots lead bullets through ALL my comp guns.

[sargenv]

Naw.. I know at least 2 other ppl besides me that shoot lead in a 38 super open gun... looks like an old style steam engine..

[CEDaytonaRydr]

I doubt that lead bullets are the market they want for Auto Comp.
Contact Hodgdon/Winchester, but I'll bet they will "not recommend it."
As Winchester/Hodgdon says: "AUTOCOMP is extremely fine in the 38 Super, 9mm, 45 ACP and 40 S&W race gunsto feed the compensators

I have a Glock 22C, so I'm sure it will work great. I also happened to get a very good deal on an 8lbs jug. It was $99 from a place that was going to stop carrying reloading supplies. Couldn't pass it up!

I dunno, they have 200gr lead 45 ACP loads. I'm not sure why they would offer 45 cast load data and not 40 S&W.

[CEDaytonaRydr]

Actually, in looking at the Hodgdon website, there are no cast lead loads for 40 S&W at all! That's lame...

[sargenv]

You can do what I do.. picka weight, back off 10%, load that weight with that data.. lead, jacketed, whatever...

Say the data is for a 180 JHP.. I sub in a 180 SWC, adjust load down 10%, load a few, check pressure and leading when you shoot it, adjust powder up or down. Jacketed loads will tend to be a little higher pressure with the same charge of powder. More resistance, more friction than plain lead.

They put jacketed bullets in since lead bullets have so many variables.. They use something off the shelf that can produce the same results most of the time. Doesn't mean that a lead projectile doesn't work, they just would rather have repeatable results.

Some people are anal about what they load, then there are the rest of us too poor to load nothing but Hornady XTP's.

[CEDaytonaRydr]

You can do what I do.. picka weight, back off 10%, load that weight with that data.. lead, jacketed, whatever....

I was actually thinking the same thing. I was going to calculate the percentage of difference between cast loads vs jacketed loads and reduce the autocomp data by the average of the corresponding reductions. Maybe I'm over-thinking it, but I figured that might be a good theory, anyway.

Some people are anal about what they load, then there are the rest of us too poor to load nothing but Hornady XTP's.

Yeah, exactly. That's also why I bought the powder; I have a compensated pistol and I couldn't pass up the deal. 8lbs of any powder at $99 is a steal!!!

[CEDaytonaRydr]

So, I was trying to do some math, and figure out how to develop some Winchester Autocomp loads for a 180gr Rainier plated, using load data from other calibers and taking averages but this powder is all over the place.

As a general rule, going by the hodgdon website, the loads are between 8%-15% lighter for lead projectiles. However, in some cases, the load data for lead and jacketed are identical. Even more bizarre is the fact that some of the loads actually put the lead load data above the weight of the jacketed bullets. I think I might back off 12% and see what happens.

[sargenv]

The reason for the lead data being hotter is that Jacketed bullets by nature develop more pressure due to being harder to push through the barrel. More pressure than lead if they are both loaded with the same amount of powder, same case, same primer. Lead, by it's properties, is generally easier to push through the barrel than any jacketed projectile. Plated lead bullets almost always use the same data as lead bullets since they only have a thin coating of copper (.004"-.006") as opposed to an actual solid jacket which can be up to 3x thicker.

I speak from the experience of loading metallic cartridges since about 1988.. Back when you had to read (or should have) about the dynamics of reloading from various loading manuals and/or print media.