9mm cast OAL

[AgentAdam]

I'm having some trouble loading Oregon Trail's 124grain laser-cast lead round nosed 9mm bullets. The load im trying came from Alliants website.

http://www.alliantpowder.com/reload...gtypeid=1&weight=125&shellid=1014&bulletid=21

It shows 4.9gr Bullseye for a lead 124 grain bullet with a minimum OAL of 1.15. I started off with 4.7gr Bullseye and the 1.15 OAL but the bullets would go to far into the rifling that the slide would jam forward you you would have to use a rubber mallet or shoot the cartridge to eject the case.

I then tried turned them down to 1.10 OAL where they would hand cycle threw my Taurus PT92 but still got stuck in my glock19 with a LongeWolf match grade stainless barrel. I would like to turn them down to 1.00 to get them to work in my glock but am afraid of over pressure as Oregon Trail said the OAL for the 124 LRN was 1.13 but they didn't say if it was minimum or maximum OAL.

I only have 250 loaded up out of 500 and would like to be sure that 1.10 OAL isn't to short. These must be some really long bullets. The Winchester or Remingon/UMC FMJ RN factory ammo i have measures 1.16oal. I don't think i will take them any shorter because i don't want to shoot lead threw my glock or berettas anyways unless i mold them myself.

 

[Galil5.56]

That bullet has a very long full diameter shank, and will have to be seated to a deeper than "normal" OAL... Rem and Win FMJ bullets have a much smaller full diameter section, but longer "nose" section and the reason why they can be seated much further out.

FWIW, I seat some bullets I cast 1.050" in order to allow proper functioning in my pistols, and it seems your Glock has a short leade and OAL will have to be set accordingly. One last comment. Although your loads are fine according to previous manuals, IMO, the charge weights you are using are too much for Bullseye and cast bullets in 9mm. Unless very mild charges (3.8-4 grains) are used, I don't like Bullseye in 9mm, and use propellants a bit slower with WW231 being about as fast as I go, and Unique being the sweet spot. Where you are now, you have VERY little room for error, and at those levels Bullseye is very unforgiving, especially if you are a new reloader.

 

[RustyFN]

I load RN bullets in 9mm at 1.135. That works in all of my 9mm pistols.
Rusty

 

[evan price]

1.115" is where I set my 125-gr RN lead bullets for 9mm. No issues.

 

[AgentAdam]

I'm using p+ once fired brass but bullseye is pretty snappy. I need to get a chrono.

I would prefer to buy 1000 jacketed FMJ or HP online or cast my own lead but that is all they had at Sportsmans Warehouse. I went cheap on the powder but i would like to try bluedot,powerpistol,or maby some cheap winchester. Im just trying to work up the cheapest loads. I went fancy with some Federal primers but i would like to go cheaper like Winchester or Wolf.

 

[zxcvbob]

The cheapest load will be with Alliant Promo. It actually works pretty well in 9mm. Ordinarily about 4 grains with 120-ish grain bullets, but as deep as you're seating them, 3.5 is probably about max.

Start at 3.0, (or even 2.8) work up 1/10 grain at a time. When you get to where it just cycles the slide reliably, go one more tenth and you should be there. Notice that there's not much difference here between a starting load and a max load.

 

[putteral]

1.125 is what I load my 125 and 147 gr cast bullets at and they feed flawlessly in my P95

 

[AgentAdam]

I turned them down to 1.050 and they will now feed threw my lone wolf distributors stainless match grade barrel and any of my other 9mm's.

I guess since laser-cast bullets have more meat towards the tip that they are shorter than other cast or jacketed 124g RN and need to be seated a little deeper. I found one guy who loads his 115 grain laser-cast silver bullets to 1.10.

I pulled one Oregon Trail laser-cast 124g LRN and it is .565 inches long.