OAL Problem

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ohman11
July 22, 2008, 04:58 PM
I have a sub compact .380 that I am trying to make shells for. I used a recipe that called for 3.3g of Bullseye and a OAL of .975 well my pistol will not cycle them, they are too long. I got some Remingtons factory loads and it works perfect with them. They measure .961 so just to check things out I set a few of my reloads to .961 and they cycle perfect but this is .014 shorter...Any suggestions ? Just to be clear I did not fire the reloads that I shortened, I just cycled them.
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Afy
July 22, 2008, 05:05 PM
I would check the load with the shorteneded OAL against something like Quickload.
If the pressures are in the safe range... wouldnt worry about it.
Also try and get somehere between .961 and .975 where the pistol does cycle... and check your load data for that OAL in quickload.

I dont have enough experience with pistols or reloading to offer any better advice.
rcmodel
July 22, 2008, 05:14 PM
.984" OAL is the SAAMI max length.
.975" OAL is the max length that will fit in most guns magazines.

Without knowing what bullet brand & weight you are loading, I can't offer much more help then that. But 3.3 grains of Bullseye is near max or over max in most of my books with any jacketed bullet weight.

So shorteng them .014" without backing off and working back up is probably not advisable.

Most .380 pistols are not noted for great case support or strength.

If we knew what brand & weight of bullet you are using, we might be more helpful on taking a guess at your loads safety!

rcmodel
ohman11
July 22, 2008, 05:48 PM
100g berrys plated rnhb and it is a Bersa Thunder.
rcmodel
July 22, 2008, 06:00 PM
Well, in that case, I probably wouldn't shoot them without working up to it very carefully.

Lyman #47 shows:
3.1 grains Max with a 100 grain JHP at .955" OAL.

2.7 grains Max with a 100 grain lead at .885" OAL.

3.3 with a 100 grain plated bullet has gotta be quite warm at the recommended .975" OAL!

rcmodel
ohman11
July 23, 2008, 10:34 AM
Thanks RC! I find it interesting that the reloading books vary so much. My Hornady book says 3.1gr and a oal of .980
rcmodel
July 23, 2008, 12:09 PM
Your Hornady book isn't talking about Berry Plated Bullets.
Big differance.

rcmodel
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