3 gr. of Unique in 45 acp

[shaynster]

I was loading some 45 on a progressive press with 200 gr. swc and 5.8 grains of unique. I was checking my powder weight every now and then and every thing was ok. Then I noticed one of the cases didn't have enough powder in it, so I measured it and there was only 3 grains of powder. Now I'm worried if I missed any other light loads. Will the bullet get stuck in the barrel with only 3 grains of Unique? I loaded up 3 rounds with only 3 grains of powder to see what would happen, should I shoot them to see what happens? I would just pull them but I loaded a lot of them.

Thanks,
Shayn

 

[Dr.Who]

Here's what I would do.... Take your batch of loaded ammo and get one emtry case that matches each of your head stamps on the rim. Weight them and give each a value. (Note: all weight should be in grains.) Next get a new bullet and weight it to be sure that it is the weight on the box. Now add the Case weight, bullet weight and what the powder charge should be together. (Make sure that the unloaded cases has a primer in place for the weight.) If your batch has 4 different cases, then you will have 4 different wieghts. These 4 weights are your "No-Go" scale. Now weight each assembled bullet and verify that it is within 5% of the "No-Go" weight. If any are not, the bullet puller comes out and the bullet is removed and componets are checked, new powder added, bullet seated and crimpped.

The reason you measure the cases for each head stamping is due to each case being manufacured differently which results in different thicknesses in the brass.

Not sure if 3.0 grains will stick a bullet in the barrell... but the likelyhood is it could and I would not want to take a chance.

 

[GRIZ22]

I measured it and there was only 3 grains of powder. Now I'm worried if I missed any other light loads. Will the bullet get stuck in the barrel with only 3 grains of Unique?

I think 3 grs of Unique in a 45 ACP wouldn't get it out of the barrel. Dr Who's solution may work but you may find almost 3 grs variations between empty cases.

I'd pull them all.

This is one of the problems with progressive presses. Pull the handle 50 times and you have a box of ammo. Many of the problems reloaders have are those using progressives. I've been reloading about 35 years and still use a single stage press completing each stage in batches. Slow, sure but no problems with my ammo either.problmes

 

[Walkalong]

I think 3 grs of Unique in a 45 ACP wouldn't get it out of the barrel

I agree.

Weighing them is not a sure thing with only a 2.8 gr difference. It will not get them all.

Unless your measure got out of adjustment, I am thinking the powder bridged in the measure. The scary part is you may have some loaded with more like 7.5 to 8.0 Grs of Unique. If it was bridging, it went somewhere on the next throw or so.

Pull them.

I still eyeball every charge I seat a bullet over. I am not out to set any speed records with my Progressive. Easy does it is still pretty fast with it.

 

[dpwilson]

I'm new to reloading and have a hornady lnl ap press. I was cleaning down all the overly lubed (from factory) components of the powder drop. I saw that in the powder rotor there is a hole machined out for your adjustment. This in my eyes would not allow a large overcharge by design. I could see a potential undercharge but not significantly over if your adjustment had not been disturbed.

 

[modwerdna]

I loaded some 9mm for accuracy with lead hard cast using 158 double ended wadcutters and started a 2 grains of bullseye. Of course they didn't work the action but not one stuck out of 10. I ended up increasing the load to 2.7 -3 grains and the accuracey is amazing! and they work my p89 ruger awesome. If your not counting on using them as carry fodder why not make 5 @ 3 grains on purpose and try them ONE AT A TIME and see if they all go bang. if you get a muzzle report it's out of the barrel. BUT CHECK and see each one has left the barrel and have a hardwood dowel ready in case one sticks, it will tap out fairly easy. Pulling bullets is no fun and ruins good slugs. Any one agree?

 

[SASS#23149]

A brass rod beats a 'hardwood' dowel any day of the week for bullet smacking,imo.
everybody should have a drift rod in their shooting kit,for sure.

 

[Walkalong]

A brass rod beats a 'hardwood' dowel any day of the week for bullet smacking,imo.
everybody should have a drift rod in their shooting kit,for sure.

Absolutely! Wood can splinter and jam things up even worse.

Mine came in very handy recently during some "powder back, powder forward" testing in light loads.

 

[rcmodel]

Pull the bullets and start over again.

DO NOT shoot them!

As Walkalong said, if you lost 2.8 grains in one load due to powder bridging, the next one very likely got 2.8 grains more then it should have!

And there is NO WAY to tell by weighing them all as suggested earlier.

You can easily have way more variation then 2.8 grains in cases & lead bullets alone.

rc

 

[modwerdna]

will a 45 case even hold 7.8 grains of unique ? I would think it would be spilling allover. Isn't unique those huge red laced flakes?

I use a rcbs auto 4x4 and watch every shell to see charge height. That is a really great practice for all reloading. I read it in the handbooks when I started, and it makes great sense. Especially large capacity cases, I can not tell you how many times a chunk of tumbling media in the bottom was discovered in my rifle stuff that way.

If overcharging is possible tear them down, bummer (what is a max load ?-vs- what is max case capacity) ....

 

[rcmodel]

Yes it will hold it, especially with a 200 grain bullet.

You can load 8.2 grains with a 185 JHP for instance!

Red flakes would not be Unique.
It would be ---- Drum-roll please ---- Alliant Red-Dot!

rc

 

[Devon]

I load 7.8gr of unique under 185gr gold dots for target practice, very accurate load for my Commander. Just for fun, sometimes I'll put a 10 lb recoil spring in it and shoot a load I've developed, 4.5 gr unique under a 155gr lead swc. I dont have to look very far for my cases, they fall right by my right foot.

 

[Mal H]

I think 3 grs of Unique in a 45 ACP wouldn't get it out of the barrel.

I agree.

What??!! I think 3 grains of Unique will not only get the 200 grain lead bullet out of the barrel it will send it downtown at 400 to 500 fps.

Let me hasten to add, that I agree you shouldn't necessarily shoot them because, as pointed out, you may have made the opposite mistake on other rounds. But, to say 3 grains of Unique would be a squib load just isn't right. 3 grains of H110 in a .44 Magnum? Definitely a squib load.

As others have pointed out, there are too many variables to trust weighing rounds to determine the amount of powder in them. Lead bullets alone can vary as much as the apparent lost powder weighs.

 

[Mal H]

... and to put my money where my mouth is, so to speak, I just loaded up a single round with 3.0 gr of Unique behind a 200 gr. Laser-Cast SWC. I fired it out of my CZ-97B (on a just-in-case basis; I wasn't about to mess up any Colt's ).

The report was loud, the recoil was very light as expected, and the shell FTE. But, I can assure you the bullet came at a fast, probably deadly, speed. I fired from about 10 yds. and the POI might have been 1/2" lower than the POA. But, with only one round to go on, that is not significant one way or the other (IOW, could have been aimed poorly).

Case closed, at least for me.

 

[Walkalong]

Well now, that is proof positive. I like that, no more guessing, but I am surprised.

Now I wonder if 3.0 Grs of Unique would push a jacketed or plated bullet out of the barrel?

 

[shaynster]

update

Update
I shot the 3 rounds loaded with 3 grains and all the bullets left the barrel. There was hardly any recoil. The gun didn't cycle at all. I shot at a peice of wood about 10 yards away and it went into the wood. That makes me feel a little better, but not a 100%. I think the next thing I buy will be a powder cop die.

Thanks,
Shayn

 

[modwerdna]

oh yea duh, red laced- mmmmmm red dot, blue laced-- mmmmm - i know i know blue dot maybe?.

It's been a while.

 

[1911Tuner]

The problem wouldn't come with the light charges. The problem would come with possibly having the rounds following the light ones having a 2.5 grain overcharge...which can happen when a measure drops powder erratically.

The time wasted in pulling is a drop in the bucket compared to going through the rest of your life with fewer fingers on your hand than you were born with...or without binocular vision due to losing an eye.

Pull'em.

 

[arizona98tj]

I loaded on a single stage press for 30 years and bought a progressive press a little over a year ago. Since then, several thousand 9mm and 45ACP have gone down rage.

I guess I don't understand why anyone would not apply the appropriate checks and balances while using a progressive press just as they would using a single stage press.

I still eyeball every powder charged case prior to putting a bullet on top of it for seating. I can tell when a primer is not seating properly on my Dillon the same as I can tell when my old RCBS priming tool failed to properly seat one. As a final QA check, each round is examined as it gets placed in the plastic ammo box.

Can we start blaming the guy pulling the lever and leave the choice of hardware out of it? Blaming a progressive press for reloading issues is about as silly as saying guns kill people, IMHO.

 

[shaynster]

I guess I don't understand why anyone would not apply the appropriate checks and balances while using a progressive press just as they would using a single stage press.

I still eyeball every powder charged case prior to putting a bullet on top of it for seating. I can tell when a primer is not seating properly on my Dillon the same as I can tell when my old RCBS priming tool failed to properly seat one. As a final QA check, each round is examined as it gets placed in the plastic ammo box.

I do check every case as I put the bullet on that's how I caught it. I guess I'm just second guessing myself.

Shayn

 

[Master Blaster]

I'm new to reloading and have a hornady lnl ap press. I was cleaning down all the overly lubed (from factory) components of the powder drop. I saw that in the powder rotor there is a hole machined out for your adjustment. This in my eyes would not allow a large overcharge by design. I could see a potential undercharge but not significantly over if your adjustment had not been disturbed.

Clean out the oil completely. The Hornady measure on my LNL las a long drop tube under the rotor (case activated linkage etc) That is where the powder may be bridging, so a 3 grain drop is probably followed by a 8 grain drop. I would pull them all. But heck one of them may have a 1 grain drop followed by a 10 grain drop. Stick one in the barrel halfway and then blow the gun up with the next one.

 

[tango2echo]

I would pull-em.