How'd I do?-First time loading 9mm

[Spaceghost]

Do you have a case gauge? They are a needed investment if you don't have one. Unique is the only powder I use for pistol loads, it's a great powder for middle of road loads and is very forgiving unlike the faster powders that are out there. Your charge might be a little light, if your pistol functions with it and groups fine, you have a winner.

[09cs]

Do you have a case gauge? They are a needed investment if you don't have one. Unique is the only powder I use for pistol loads, it's a great powder for middle of road loads and is very forgiving unlike the faster powders that are out there. Your charge might be a little light, if your pistol functions with it and groups fine, you have a winner.

I lent it to my cousin but for the mean time I'm using the barrel as a stand in

I'll probably try firing this one at 4.3 to see if ti cycles, but part of me does not think it will or may be a squib I'll probably load the rest at a medium charge

[09cs]

Make sure and let us know how your loads shoot. Good luck and be safe...

Thanks! And will do!

[357magnum]

I have measured many different manufactures of 9mm 115 gr RN.
They range from 1.105"-1.165"
I load mine to 1.150", been doing this for almost 25 years now.
I have fired these from at least 7 different manufactures of 9mm firearms, with great results every time.

[stand125]

A good way to tell if the flare is removed and not to much crimp is to pull the round and look for a barely visible crimp line around the bullet. All the manuals say to not crimp, but if you pull a factory round, it have a very noticeable crimp line.

[opos]

Since you are new and moving along with some caution (congratulations!!) I might suggest one thing...as you begin to "balance out loads with crimping, etc" you might want to fire a couple of rounds of your test batch...then unload and measure the remaining rounds with a caliper to see if any of the bullets are "setting back" (with a revolver it would be moving forward) and your OAL changing...an old man (now I'm an old man) taught me that trick years ago and I catch myself measuring any new loads I work up, etc...just a simple little test that will assure you that your throat tension and "crimp" are doing their job..Sometimes guys that shoot high pressure loads like a .40 or 10mm at the higher ends of the scale do this as set back on those can be a real mess with over pressure...9mm and 380 can have the same situation if not caught...once you have checked a few magazines as you step up the "ladder" to find your happy load...you will be able to have the comfort of knowing you are crimping properly....happy and safe loading.

[09cs]

Since you are new and moving along with some caution (congratulations!!) I might suggest one thing...as you begin to "balance out loads with crimping, etc" you might want to fire a couple of rounds of your test batch...then unload and measure the remaining rounds with a caliper to see if any of the bullets are "setting back" (with a revolver it would be moving forward) and your OAL changing...an old man (now I'm an old man) taught me that trick years ago and I catch myself measuring any new loads I work up, etc...just a simple little test that will assure you that your throat tension and "crimp" are doing their job..Sometimes guys that shoot high pressure loads like a .40 or 10mm at the higher ends of the scale do this as set back on those can be a real mess with over pressure...9mm and 380 can have the same situation if not caught...once you have checked a few magazines as you step up the "ladder" to find your happy load...you will be able to have the comfort of knowing you are crimping properly....happy and safe loading.

I'll make sure to do that! That's a great idea for checking for any set back. I just tried loading one a couple of times and extracting it to check

That's another question... CRIMP! I crimped, what I believe is enough to remove the flare, besides what was said above, any other good advise on how to tell if you have enough crimp?

[Eljay]

1.165 is maximum for 9mm. There has to be a maximum so the people who make magazines know how big to make them. As the OAL goes down pressures go up which is why you don't want to push things past what they recommend for a particular load.

I ran 1.144 for a long time just because that's what the factory ammunition I had handy used...

[Grunt81]

Welcome to wonderful world of reloading 9mm. Not too long ago, I was in your shoes. Load, stay safe, go out and shoot, and you'll get all the experience you care to gain.

The amount of flare looks just fine, but let me give you a suggestion. Turn your powder trough flarine die out of the press about a 1/4, then flare a new sized case, and see how the bullet sits in the case before seating. If it still sits in there nice and easy, turn the die out another 1/4 turn or so. For all practical purposes, your flare is fine. However, I personally believe that too much flare can cause the bullets to be seated noncentrically, or kind of crooked.

You probably just spent a good chunk of cash on reloading gear. Go ahead and learn what you need to learn and you'll know when you're ready to upgrade anything. I stareted making 9mm on a Lee hand press and weighing every charge. I would use the Lee dipper to get close and then use the Lee dipper has a trickler by tapping it. I now have a Lyman T Mag II Turret press with a Lee Pro Auto Disk Powder measure mounted on the powder through expanding die. I love that dam thing! With a nice ball powder, it is so consistent, I don't even feel the need to test weigh every5th round or even every 10th round anymore. Once I get the powder nice and settled in the hopper, I make 50 rounds without feeling the need to check the charge. At all heights of powder levels, with no baffle, they are all consistent.


As far as OAL, remember, published OAL is a minimum length for the published maximum. You can seat longer without worrying about over pressure, just don't seat shorter without making a lower max charge. I've seated my 124 and 147 grain RN out to 1.155 - 1.162" with good results. I've never loaded 115 grain anything.

[09cs]

Welcome to wonderful world of reloading 9mm. Not too long ago, I was in your shoes. Load, stay safe, go out and shoot, and you'll get all the experience you care to gain.

The amount of flare looks just fine, but let me give you a suggestion. Turn your powder trough flarine die out of the press about a 1/4, then flare a new sized case, and see how the bullet sits in the case before seating. If it still sits in there nice and easy, turn the die out another 1/4 turn or so. For all practical purposes, your flare is fine. However, I personally believe that too much flare can cause the bullets to be seated noncentrically, or kind of crooked.

You probably just spent a good chunk of cash on reloading gear. Go ahead and learn what you need to learn and you'll know when you're ready to upgrade anything. I stareted making 9mm on a Lee hand press and weighing every charge. I would use the Lee dipper to get close and then use the Lee dipper has a trickler by tapping it. I now have a Lyman T Mag II Turret press with a Lee Pro Auto Disk Powder measure mounted on the powder through expanding die. I love that dam thing! With a nice ball powder, it is so consistent, I don't even feel the need to test weigh every5th round or even every 10th round anymore. Once I get the powder nice and settled in the hopper, I make 50 rounds without feeling the need to check the charge. At all heights of powder levels, with no baffle, they are all consistent.


As far as OAL, remember, published OAL is a minimum length for the published maximum. You can seat longer without worrying about over pressure, just don't seat shorter without making a lower max charge. I've seated my 124 and 147 grain RN out to 1.155 - 1.162" with good results. I've never loaded 115 grain anything.

Thank you! I am using a lee turret press, but started out using it as a single stage press so I don't rush things and take my time I will be setting up the lee autodisk when I'm ready and comfortable to. Not sure how it will meter with flake powder though :/

That is one of the reasons I was trying to seat them near 1.15x ish, to keep the pressure safe

[opos]

I'll make sure to do that! That's a great idea for checking for any set back. I just tried loading one a couple of times and extracting it to check

That's another question... CRIMP! I crimped, what I believe is enough to remove the flare, besides what was said above, any other good advise on how to tell if you have enough crimp?

On occasion if I have some question about crimp I will take my inertia puller (old Frankfort) and take a known "proper" crimp or throat tension...like a factory load..then see how many whacks it takes to dislodge the bullet...then I try my handload...this is probably not a really good test as I've always found the factory loads to be stuck tighter than anything I load..they may use a sealer, or be on the safer side...but if a factory round took 5 whacks to come loose and mine sort of fell out after one...I'd probably be a bit suspicious....don't want to over crimp but taking out the bell and making sure you have throat tension is the way I work the best....and the magazine check for any set back as you work up the "ladder" developing a load is probably a better test..at least has given me the confidence I needed...You can also take you caliper and check the cartridge mouth after loading and see where it measures compared to a factory round or to the SAAMI specs..Again, sort of a quick check....

With a roll crimp as in a revovler round I just eyeball the crimp and run my fingernail over the edge to see how the crimp is working but for a pistol round that's no good.

[Grunt81]

Thank you! I am using a lee turret press, but started out using it as a single stage press so I don't rush things and take my time I will be setting up the lee autodisk when I'm ready and comfortable to. Not sure how it will meter with flake powder though :/

That is one of the reasons I was trying to seat them near 1.15x ish, to keep the pressure safe

I was wondering the same exact thing: how would the Pro Auto Disk work with flake powders....Soooo I called my brother over to bring his bottle of Unique. If I remember correctly there was about a +/- 0.1 grain variation, so cases can come out with anywhere from 4.6 - 4.8 grains, you get the idea. As long as the highest charge you get from the disks, is under max or, as you've done, compensated for overpressure by seating longer, you're fine. But I wouldn't dare mass load anything without doing an accuracy and reliability test. What I also did when testing consistency was to cycle the turret to make sure you are simulating what would actually happen if you used it as a turret press. Moving the turret, with a little force or jolt, or even just tapping on the hopper or somewhere, should help settle the powder in the disk the same way each time.

I have a resized case that I put a spent primer in, and use it exclusively to check powder consistency....after about 20 throws of powder, it gets a nice graphite buildup inside the case, so powder flows out easily. There are two ways you can check powder throws:

1) Physically dump your powder charge from the graphite-coated case, into your powder pan. Tap the case and look to make sure it's all out.

2) Put your resized case with spent primer on the scale, tare/zero the scale, put the case in the shell holder, before throwing a charge, do your turret tapping/moving routine, charge the case, and put it back on the scale.

I've use both methods before but I lean towards method number one. I've found that my cheap Frankford Arsenal scale works better with the weight of the powder pan on it. My powder pan weighs exactly 109 grains. If this number doesn't come, I know the scale is off and should be tared or recalibrated.

[09cs]

I was wondering the same exact thing: how would the Pro Auto Disk work with flake powders....Soooo I called my brother over to bring his bottle of Unique. If I remember correctly there was about a +/- 0.1 grain variation, so cases can come out with anywhere from 4.6 - 4.8 grains, you get the idea. As long as the highest charge you get from the disks, is under max or, as you've done, compensated for overpressure by seating longer, you're fine. But I wouldn't dare mass load anything without doing an accuracy and reliability test. What I also did when testing consistency was to cycle the turret to make sure you are simulating what would actually happen if you used it as a turret press. Moving the turret, with a little force or jolt, or even just tapping on the hopper or somewhere, should help settle the powder in the disk the same way each time.

I have a resized case that I put a spent primer in, and use it exclusively to check powder consistency....after about 20 throws of powder, it gets a nice graphite buildup inside the case, so powder flows out easily. There are two ways you can check powder throws:

1) Physically dump your powder charge from the graphite-coated case, into your powder pan. Tap the case and look to make sure it's all out.

2) Put your resized case with spent primer on the scale, tare/zero the scale, put the case in the shell holder, before throwing a charge, do your turret tapping/moving routine, charge the case, and put it back on the scale.

I've use both methods before but I lean towards method number one. I've found that my cheap Frankford Arsenal scale works better with the weight of the powder pan on it. My powder pan weighs exactly 109 grains. If this number doesn't come, I know the scale is off and should be tared or recalibrated.

Thanks for checking! By chance do you remember what disk you used?

I like that idea of using an old case! I've used the turret feature before with 223 loads, once I was comfortable with those, so the hopper has been used before.

I have a beam scale right now but have been meaning to get a digital one as well

[09cs]

On occasion if I have some question about crimp I will take my inertia puller (old Frankfort) and take a known "proper" crimp or throat tension...like a factory load..then see how many whacks it takes to dislodge the bullet...then I try my handload...this is probably not a really good test as I've always found the factory loads to be stuck tighter than anything I load..they may use a sealer, or be on the safer side...but if a factory round took 5 whacks to come loose and mine sort of fell out after one...I'd probably be a bit suspicious....don't want to over crimp but taking out the bell and making sure you have throat tension is the way I work the best....and the magazine check for any set back as you work up the "ladder" developing a load is probably a better test..at least has given me the confidence I needed...You can also take you caliper and check the cartridge mouth after loading and see where it measures compared to a factory round or to the SAAMI specs..Again, sort of a quick check....

With a roll crimp as in a revovler round I just eyeball the crimp and run my fingernail over the edge to see how the crimp is working but for a pistol round that's no good.

I'll check a factory load vs. mine for now, then the set back test once I have some loaded up!

[Grunt81]

Thanks for checking! By chance do you remember what disk you used?

I like that idea of using an old case! I've used the turret feature before with 223 loads, once I was comfortable with those, so the hopper has been used before.

I have a beam scale right now but have been meaning to get a digital one as well

I don't remember since we did this several months ago. We were both shooting 147 grain bullets as well, so whichever disk we used would have a smaller volume than the proper disk for 115 grain bullets.

Usually, the disks go in increment of 0.3 - 0.4 grains. There's also the charge bar which is better suited for fine tuning larger calibers than the 9mm.