Help choosing a Powder for 9mm

231

I've had good results with Be-86 and True Blue with 124gr JFP and 135gr plated respectively.

I like win231 for 9mm, take your time and welcome to the addiction

I would probably start with Speer data for the Speer bullets... since that is a known. Once you have that down, work your way forward with the next bullet. I would be likely to start with BE-86, because it has a pretty good range of charge weights.

Pick one powder and one bullet and stay with that until you get it right and get comfortable with your process. Then you can move on to other combinations. I would start with the 231 and 124 gr bullets because that's what I am comfortable with but you can pick your own combo. You bought a lot of powder! A lb of powder will make around 1400 9mm shells.

A little hard to find sometimes, using N330 and 124 grain bullets.

I started out with 231/hp38 and its been pretty consistent for target loads using plated 124gr bullets. I am now working on some RMR 124gr hp multi purpose rounds using BE 86. I also have some Titegroup powder I plan on using for some budget target loads in the future but from what I have read and heard its not very forgiving if you overcharge so I would stay away from it until you are more comfortable. Almost everyone told me when I first started loading 9mm that 231/hp38 was there top or one of there top choices to start out with. I also prefer 124gr over 115gr bullets.

You have 2 on your list that are my go-tos. W231/HP38 for general shooting. HS-6 for full power jacketed 124 grain. The H-6 will also function for less than max 115s or 124s at the expense of slightly dirty burning and higher charge weights.

I'm currently working on some Power Pistol I got in an auction lot. I don't like it. Flash-BANG! hunt for your brass. If I were trying to soup the 9mm up to it's absolute maximum potential, that would be fine. For general shooting, I'll stick with the 2 above.

My reply ... would be to make a list of usable powders out of your reloading books( You do have several ...Right) ... take your list and see what you can find .... in my neck the woods .... we almost back to Obamo days where you shot what you could find .... It don't really matter how good a powder is ...if you can't buy it ...then it don't matter ..... There are a whole bunch of usable powders that will work good in the 9mm ....

Allen One1 said:

Pick one powder and one bullet and stay with that until you get it right and get comfortable with your process. Then you can move on to other combinations. I would start with the 231 and 124 gr bullets because that's what I am comfortable with but you can pick your own combo. You bought a lot of powder! A lb of powder will make around 1400 9mm shells.

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I have to agree with this post. After you experienced a squib, you'll want to focus on perfecting your order and technique. Then other loads will fall easier into place.
A charge of W231 with minimum charge in a 4" barrel should see your bullet exit the barrel. Work up your load. On a new to me load, I would find min. and max loads. Divvy up 5 different charges within that range. On the min. side, load only one round into the magazine. After firing, repeat. This is to determine if slide locks back. I go to the next charge and try, repeating until the slide locks back on last round. Then I know I can bump up a couple tenths or so on my load.

It's not a bad idea to bring a brass or wood rod that will fit your bore, to check that a bullet exited the barrel.

True Blue is my go to for 9, 40 & 45.

I would use N340 as N350 is "crunchy".

I loaded thousands of 9 with 231/HP38 and thought it was the best until I tried BE-86.
You can see the charge with BE-86. A double charge will overflow the case.

Like so many other I load a lot of 9mm. Not because it saves me money because it really doesn't. It was also the first I started with when I came back to the sport after many years away. From my point of view it would be easier to list the powders that DO NOT perform well in the 9mm.

As I recall you are loading on a Lee Classic Turret press and you have a Lee powder measure but off the top of my head I don't recall which one. Also that you were going to start with Titegroup powder. Every one of those powders you list will work very well with the 9mm and of those I too will suggest the 231 Winchester as it is a very forgiving medium-fast powder, measures very well in the Lee powder measure and burns pretty clean throughout the whole range from low to high. It is one of the mainstays on my bench. The HS-6 preforms better at the upper end of the range. The True Blue is also a great powder but you will use much less 231 powder to do the same thing.

For the bullet that 124gr jacketed is going to be easier to start with than the cast lead. Also to be honest I would not be afraid to use those Berry's you have with the 231 powder. Again I recall you could load those to 1.050" OAL which is only .010" shorter than Western publishes for a length and the 1.060" length is what I use with great success.

That's my suggestion. Good luck

The best powder/bullet combo will be what you decide works best for you and your handgun. Here's the fun part about reloading........Start working up loads with each bullet / powder combo and do your own testing. Start a log book to keep track of the results. Most importantly........Be Safe!

► I always recommend 231 as the first powder. The reason being is that it's so forgiving. The load range is something like 1.2gr, so if you haven't got your technique 'down' just yet and your load wanders off the mark by 0.1 or 0.2gr, then it's no biggy. It also happens to meter very well and have good case fill. Is it the best 9mm powder ? No, but neither will it sit on the shelf for 20 years after the first week. 231 (aka Hodgdon HP-38) is almost THE universal handgun powder.

► Of your list, you really can't go wrong with BE-86 either. It's a good bit slower and so it compliments 231. Whereas 231 is great for plinking and target work, use BE-86 when higher velocities are desired. If you wanted to build practice ammo that mimicked the expensive law enforcement or home defense ammo, then I'd use BE-86. Again good metering and great case fill.

Actually you can't go wrong buying both.

W231 is a great powder, very flexible. It shoots well in the 9mm and functions my pistols well. It has been a staple in the 45 ACP and 38 Special, so you can't go wrong with this powder.

Powerpistol is the powder recommended by David Sams for 50 yard Bullseye Pistol shooting. The bullet, a 115 grain I think, had to be pushed between 1150 and 1200 fps to achieve 50 yard accuracy. I tried Powerpistol and it worked well.

I have used a lot of Win 231 and 124grn FMJ's. Prior to that I used a lot of Unique and cast lead 124grn bullets.

WB

As many have already stated W231 works great in the 9mm. I also use it in 38 Special and 9 x 18 Makarov.

You BOUGHT ten different powders? Good grief.
Of your list I can agree with others that W231 is good for 9mm. I am loading with HP38, the same stuff with a Hodgdon label.
I found Power Pistol to give high velocity at the expense of loud blast and bright flash.
HS6 will give high velocity but is awful dirty if reduced much. Only powder I have ever had to coke up a chamber to the point of malfunction at factory equivalent velocity.
700X is a good burn rate but is a large flake powder and does not meter well in pistol loads; I quit using it after getting some one grain loads as it bridged in the measure. Never a zero powder "squib" but not really usable in my CH or Dillon.
3n37 is too slow burning for regular 9mm.
I have not used the other powders mentioned.

Probably the best combination I have found is BE-86 and a 124 grain bullet. I load for 5 different 9’s and make 3 different loads for them. BE-86 was the easiest powder to work up a load I have tried in quite a while. Just got into my 14th pound of it.

bullseye308 said:

Probably the best combination I have found is BE-86 and a 124 grain bullet.

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That's been my experience also. I have yet to find a better powder for 9mm than BE-86.

Acc#2 or power pistol ??

BE-86, 700X, True Blue, American Select, HS-6, W231, Universal, Power Pistol, 3N37 and N350

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What are you after? Plinkers/practice loads of Full power loads?
I don't recall seeing data for American Select in 9mm off the top of my head but there may be data available.
Never used 700X, should make good plinkers, but large flakes so probably does not meter well. For a new reloader I would say set it aside for a while, you want something that meters well to start with.


For Plinkers to mid power I would say W231, Universal
For mid to Full power BE86, Power Pistol, never used True Blue but would guess it would fit well here.
I have never used HS6, N350 or 3N37 but would guess they would all be happier in the Full power loads

W231 meters a bit better for me so I would say start with it.
I would suggest staying with middle of the road loads until you have some more experience under you belt.
A heavy charge (for whatever reason) say +.2 grains is a lot less likely to bite you in the middle of the road than if you loading Full power close to max charges.

Any of the bullets will work, the coated lead ones might be a hair trickier to load, but then I started off loading 9mm with lead bullets because I hadn't heard it was a bad idea to start with lead, and had no problems.