[another okie]

I've been loading .38, .45 ACP and a couple of rifle calibers, so I decided to go for it in 9mm. I bought dies and 3 bullets, a 90 grain FMJ, 125 LRN, and 147 Gold dot. On hand I had Win. 231 and N330.

1. One thing that caught my eye is how full the case is, especially with the recommended (Lee manual) load of N330, 4.5 g for the 125 LRN. It doesn't appear to compress the powder, but it sure is close. Is this common in 9mm?

2. Another question: all my loaded cartridges fit in the Glock barrel easily, but I also have an aftermarket barrel that apparently has a tighter chamber, because the cases are sticking at the bottom (the end near the primer.) They are .388, which should be within spec, which is listed as .391. I measured some factory loads and they were all in the .375 range at the base. The case mouth is apparently fine. Did I overdo the full-length resizing?

3. Why are the loads for VV powders so hot? The listed speed for 3.0 of Win. 231 (beginning load) for a 125 LRN is 910 feet per second, which is about what I'm looking for in a target load. The recommended starting load for N330 is 4.5, 1142 feet per second. Is it safe to scale that back?

Tomorrow I will chrono the four loads I put together today and make sure they will all cycle the slide. I may borrow a friend's S & W 9mm as a double check on the Glock.

[trickyasafox]

can't answer many of your questions, but i load 9mm with unique. nearly full cases are pretty much the norm in 9mm in my experience.

[Fatelvis]

Okie, I agree with Tricky about using Unique with that 125 leadhead. Give it a try, I bet you'll like it!

[armoredman]

Yep, case fills right up! I use AA#7 as my preferred powder, tried a few before I discovered that is a perfect 9mm powder. As for the case fitting, use a Lee Factory Crimp Die, and that might help resize the final product where you need it.

[Walkalong]

W231 & N330 both work well in the 9MM. You can get better velocities with the N330.

N330, AA#5, & WSF will give very good performance in the 9MM with plated or jacketed bullets. I shoot 115 Gr. plated RN bullets in the 9MM. I would be happy with any of the three powders I mentioned here. They all fill the case pretty well. The N330 fills it the most if memory serves me.

W231 will work very well with the 125 Gr. LRN bullets. I have not shot N330 with lead, but it may do just fine. N330 seems to be a bit finicky about where it works well. VV leaves it out of a lot of calibers/bullet weights and I have tried it in some areas they did not use it without success.

I recommend shooting 115 Gr. Plated RN or FMJ when you use up your 90 Gr. bullets. The 125 Gr. LRN is a good choice for lead.

I have a tight chambered EMP which will show pressures in 9MM before any of my other 9MM's. .388 is not overdoing it. How are they sticking? When you drop them in the chamber? O.A.L. to long? Are you sure it's the rear sticking?

[strat81]

How clean is your brass? It doesn't have to be mirror-bright, but cruddy brass can cause chambering problems. Can you measure the bore of that barrel in any way?

[Noxx]

It doesn't appear to compress the powder, but it sure is close. Is this common in 9mm?

I use unique for my 9mm, one of the nice things about that round is it's not at all possible to double-charge it.

I load my 9mm target ammo (124 RN plated) pretty cool, about 1,000 FPS, and it has no problem at all cycling the 226 or the Hi-Power.

The biggest beef I had / have with reloading 9mm is I occasionally buy brass buy the pound, and you really have to surf through it carefully to weed out the very similar Makarov and .380 cases.

[another okie]

The loaded rounds go in fine, but don't come out without some prying, so I'm afraid to use those in the aftermarket barrel for fear of damaging the extractor. The brass does have some crud on it, so that's a possiblity.

Just back from the range: They all shot OK, though the W 231 load is too light and wouldn't cycle. I also think almost all these loads need to be a little hotter for accuracy, so I'll try again somewhere in the middle of the power range.