.40 load with Rainier 155 & 165

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sublimaze41

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Good two days coming up. Finished my work week, got 2,000 caliber 40 Rainier bullets with plenty of powder and primers. Oh yea, the wife's blessing.

Need some help. I came into some WST. I am planning on loading the first 1,000 up with 5.6 grains at OAL of 1.131, these will be with the 155 grain Rainiers.

My question is this, will this load of WST work with 165 grain bullets? I don't have any data for this powder and the 165 grain bullet seats the same as the 155. The load range for WST behind 155 grainers is 5.5-6.0

I have 1,000 of the 165 grain bullets and would be very happy if I didn't have to adjust the dies.

Thank You :)
 
Try checking Winchester's site for the powder data for WST. Generally you can use data from a lead bullet of the same weight for the Rainiers. Instinct tells me I would back off the charge at least 10% from what you have. The next listing I have for a close weight is a JHP 170gr at 4.2 starting load, 5.0 max at 1.135". I think this would probably be around your range to start with, as Rainiers can be flexible. Better to err on the side of caution. Load up 20 or so at 4.2 and work up from there.

Oh, Hodgdon now supplies Win powders. Go to their site. http://data.hodgdon.com/cartridge_load.asp
 
Winchester Data page for .40 S&W.

They do not give start loads, only max loads for WST.

I have shot the Ranier 155 and 165 gr bullets with the same charge. It was not max for either. I have switched to slow 180 Gr loads in the .40. They are less "snappy" or "torquey' to me, thus more comfortable to shoot, to me anyway.
 
I found 1,000 rounds of the 165 grain bullets in the back of the closet. Heck, they are still good so I might have to skin the cat with a different powder. I have oodles of reloading books but i was hoping to use all the WST for runs of the 155 and 165. I didn't have data specific to the 165 bullets, just the 155.
 
OKAY,
how about a dovetail question. I loaded up several 155gr Rainier .40 cal bullets with 5.6 gr WST (load range per Hodgdon is 5.5-6.0). They cycyle well in my P229 with no outward signs of overpressure. I usually chrono most loads, but winter is here and that makes it difficult.

Would you begin production, or would you wait to chrono them?

Any opinions are most welcome! Thanks
 
I'm not sure how temperature sensitive WST is, but some powders have a slower burn-rate when the ammo is cold. I don't see any reason to hold off, but I would definitely look for higher pressures when the temps warm up.
 
I do all my load testing in small lots long before I start making up 1000 load lots. Especially if you are just trying WST just because you fell into some, why don't you just do some testing and then see what you need to do?

I know in my .40 it just happens to like 180bullets way better than the lighter ones. I also found my happy load using Titegroup since my .45 practice load is 200gr Ranier TC over 5.0gr. That load happens to shoot lights out in every .45 I have. I did a little checking and came up a satisfactory load in the .40 that is just as accurate.

I know none of that has to do with your direct question, but just thought I would share some findings per chance it would help you out.

Mark
 
Thank you for the ideas. I always consider closely what people post in this section, the knowledge base is very good.

When I load Rainier bullets in my revolvers I tend to "work" the charge towards the higher, safe side. With automatics I usually go for the lowest charge that will cycle the gun. Since you (as I understand) can't use much more than a light roll crimp on CP bullets pushing them too hard doesn't make me comfortable. Now that FMJ are the same price or lower I will start to buy more of them. The option of working towards a higher charge when needed makes it a no-brainer.

Any attraction I had toward CP bullets is gone sinve they raised prices comparable with FMJ. I don't shoot inside and CP is not necessary.

Before the last 2 price increases I bought 7,000 CP bullets so I will be loading CP for some time. Why Rainier has priced themselves out of the market in some calibers is beyond me:scrutiny:
 
Price is all about the metals costs. Copper has gone up. Lead has gone up a lot, and more by percentage than copper. So, where jacketed was (just tossing out numbers for example rather than realism) 2cents copper 1cent lead, it's now 3cents copper 2cents lead. Plated, previously 1 cent copper, 1 cent lead is now 2cents copper, 2cents lead. They're still cheaper, but not as much as they were. There's still some cast lead bullets out there that are cheaper, but don't expect that to last.
 
Glad this thread came up. I'm getting ready to start loading .40 with Rainier 165gr TMJ. I'm going to be playing with Titegroup and Power Pistol so any input would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry, not meaning to hijack the thread. :D
 
Dang possum. We sure did not respond to that one. Bad on us. Good info. Just what sublimaze41 was looking for too.
 
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