# About to be a Reloading Newb



## falshman70 (Jul 13, 2006)

My wife gave me a Dillon 650 for Christmas and I've been getting all the additional stuff I need since. I signed up for a metalic cartridge reloading class in early Jan. and had to cancel, but plan on taking it when it is offered next.

I plan to initially reload 9mm, .40 S&W and .45 ACP and have a good starter supply of once fired brass on hand.

Any powder recommendations?

As it's a progressive press, I deprime and prime on the same stroke, so no cleaning the primer pockets. Is that OK?

9mm has a slight taper - do I need to use case lube on these?

I've alredy learned to segregate the brass before putting it in the tumbler - it's amazing that 9mm cases can fit in a .40 and a .40 in a .45. Generally I learn the hard way. All tips gratefully accepted.


----------



## Redwolf (Nov 29, 2008)

look at titegroup, you can load all 3 with it. as far as lube depends on what dies you use. for pistols its ok not cleaning primer pockets, get a scale and check your weights and you'll be good. Tell your wife I have a birthday coming up soon and would like to have a dillon too good luck getting started.


----------



## Bisley (Aug 24, 2008)

Unique will be good for the .45 and 9mm. I don't shoot .40, so I don't know about it. But I have used Unique for .357 Magnum and it was fine, so it would likely be good for .40 S&W.


----------



## tekhead1219 (May 16, 2008)

falshman70 said:


> Any powder recommendations?


I use Bullseye for both my 9mm and my .45 ACP reloads. Make sure you get several reloading manuals for referencing.:smt023


----------



## JeffWard (Aug 24, 2007)

Research the major powder manufacturers online. They all have specs on their products, and what its good for. They also have load data for almost any weight/type of bullet. Most have ranges for the charge, and estimated velocities for each. Start at the low end, and load 10-20 rounds at various charges, I load in 0.2gr increments, and work up. Shoot the lightest charges first, and check your point of impact, and group size off a bench at 10 yards. Then move up to a bit hotter, etc. Find which charge with which powder shoots the tightest groups in YOUR gun. Save 5-10 of each load.

Next, load up two softer loads, and two hotter loads in one mag, and feel for the recoil difference. The load you choose will most likely be the comprimise between most accurate, and softest shooting. Mine is.

Example:
I started with 125gr ZERO (brand) JHPs. I loaded to an "average" OAL of 1.125". I loaded 20 rounds with 3.8gr of TiteGroup, 20 with 4.0, 20 with 4.2, and 20 with 4.4gr of TiteGroup.

3.8 is right around 1000fps in a 4" gun (and mine is 5" so a bit faster).

All four loads functioned fine in the gun, with no major pressure worries. The faster loads shot tighter groups, the lower power loads were faster in recovery (back on target), with less recoil. I chose the 4.0gr load as the best over all. Accurate enough... powerful enough to make Minor Power Factor for USPSA, and pleasant to shoot.

The 4.4 gr load was laser accurate, but it kicked like a 40...
The 3.8gr load shot the biggest groups, and kicked like a hot 22LR...

I'm also testing 147gr bullets that shoot even softer, but I need to work on the accuracy.

Next step is different powders, with different burn rates... and different OALs...

The ultimate goal is a load that will shoot inside 3" at 25yards, and recoil like a 38 Special in a large frame revolver...

A friend sent me a recipe for 1.15" groups at 15 yards in his M&P PRO, with Power-Pistol powder... That's my next purchase!

Have fun!

Jeff


----------



## falshman70 (Jul 13, 2006)

Thanks, guys. I appreciate the advice. I'll let you know how it goes.


----------



## DevilsJohnson (Oct 21, 2007)

I've found titegroup to be a little too dirty in a 45 but I love it in a 9mm and 40. Right now in my 45's I'm using Accurate and Alliant (leaning more to Alliant). I'm using several slugs at the moment looking for the magic mix that will work best in full size 1911's 4" 1911's, and a Sig P220.

heh..If I ever find it I'll post :smt023


----------



## gmaske (Jan 7, 2008)

tekhead1219 said:


> I use Bullseye for both my 9mm and my .45 ACP reloads. Make sure you get several reloading manuals for referencing.:smt023


I'm another Bullseye user. It meters very well through powder measures and a little goes a long way. It burns pretty clean also. The only thing you have to watch is that you can double charge a case and still not fill the case to the point were it is obviously a double charge. Excellent for target and plinking. I've shot some wonder groups with my S&W 586 with hollow based wadcutters in the past. Great powder.


----------



## TOF (Sep 7, 2006)

VihtaVuori powders, N320 and N340 have worked quite well for myself and some friends in 9MM, 38Spl., .357, .40, 44Mag and .45ACP. They burn very clean and produce consistant and accurate loads. We use others for Hot Magnum loads but N340 is our primary powder.

Titegroup caused our revolvers to jam due to unburned particles and left crud particles in the auto's, Win 231 worked but was dirty.

We tried Titegroup in our revolvers for a couple of IPSC matches and had to brush the cylinder and ejector star between matches or we couldn't open, close or rotate the cylinders reliably. I will never use it again.

We are able to shoot hundreds of rounds reliably between cleanings with the VV powders.

Get a spray can of Hodgdon case lube and use a small qty. on your 9MM cases. 9MM is a tapered case and will require much more force to size than the others unless lubed. Don't soak them though. I place a paper towell in the bottom of a box to spread the cases onto then give them a quick spray. You can lube the others but it is not as necessary as for 9's.

I punch old primers out prior to cleaning.

Have fun but stay safe. :mrgreen:


----------



## JeffWard (Aug 24, 2007)

TOF said:


> VihtaVuori powders, N320 and N340 have worked quite well for myself and some friends in 9MM, 38Spl., .357, .40, 44Mag and .45ACP. They burn very clean and produce consistant and accurate loads. We use others for Hot Magnum loads but N340 is our primary powder.
> 
> Titegroup caused our revolvers to jam due to unburned particles and left crud particles in the auto's, Win 231 worked but was dirty.
> 
> ...


I lube cases by spraying the lube into a 1-gallon ziplock bag. Enough to coat the inside of the bag. Dump in 100 cases, seal it up, and roll it around on the bench-top, then dump them into the bin you're loading from. Then I seal up the bag and stuff it away. The next 100 use a bit less lube as the old lube lasts forever, sealed in the same bag... I've loaded 500-600 rounds with this method, using about 10 pumps of spray lube... No mess.

My next powder purchase will likely be VV... I'm fanatical about accuracy, and hate cleaning!

JW


----------



## falshman70 (Jul 13, 2006)

I was lurking at Brian Enos' site and folks there were raving about the VV n320. Guess I'll give it a try. Again, thanks all for the info and tips.


----------



## GED (Feb 4, 2009)

I use CLAYS for both 40 and 45 s . .40 S&W 175gr FN clays 3.4 to 3.9 loads. .45 acp 200gr wc clays 4.3 to 4.5 load. less flash and decreased recoil .


----------

