SquirrelNuts
Member
A friend of mine just bought a very nice Russian Makarov. I read that 9x19 brass could be expanded and trimmed for 9x18 Makarov use. Has anyone had any success in doing so?
-SquirrelNuts
-SquirrelNuts
9x19 -> 9x18
- Thread starter SquirrelNuts
- Start date
- Status
Yup! It can be done...
But it's a LOT of work, trimming it, then belling the case mouth to accept the .366" bullet. The cases will then swell to fit the chamber dimensions on firing, which is called fireforming in the wildcat world.
Did you consider taking a look at starlinebrass.com? Factor in the dollar value of reforming 9mm Luger into 9mm Makarov, and you may well be ahead just ordering some new Makarov brass from them.
But it's a LOT of work, trimming it, then belling the case mouth to accept the .366" bullet. The cases will then swell to fit the chamber dimensions on firing, which is called fireforming in the wildcat world.
Did you consider taking a look at starlinebrass.com? Factor in the dollar value of reforming 9mm Luger into 9mm Makarov, and you may well be ahead just ordering some new Makarov brass from them.
RON in PA
Member
I did this several years back and it works if you don't mind the case trimming. As Gewehr98 stated, get the starline brass.
Mike Irwin
Member
Yes, but it's a pain in the butt.
New brass is widely available now, either loaded, or ready to be loaded.
New brass is widely available now, either loaded, or ready to be loaded.
Oberleutnant
Member
Squirrel Nuts!
The 9x19mm Parabelum, doesn't need 2 b xpanded, only trimmd 2 the length of the 9x18mm
Makarov,preimd,then loaded,es hav a bullet seated. The deis will take care of the slight
xpansion if any, es they werk vy well. I'v loaded over 1K of them,es they r no problem in
chambering either.Make sure U don't lose any wen ur @ the range,then u'll anly hav 2 de-
preim,drop a powder charge,es seat a new bullet.4 best results as self defense rd.,use lrn.
sted of jaketed.-Charlie..........
The 9x19mm Parabelum, doesn't need 2 b xpanded, only trimmd 2 the length of the 9x18mm
Makarov,preimd,then loaded,es hav a bullet seated. The deis will take care of the slight
xpansion if any, es they werk vy well. I'v loaded over 1K of them,es they r no problem in
chambering either.Make sure U don't lose any wen ur @ the range,then u'll anly hav 2 de-
preim,drop a powder charge,es seat a new bullet.4 best results as self defense rd.,use lrn.
sted of jaketed.-Charlie..........
rcmodel
Member in memoriam
And an even bigger pain in the butt when you get the trimmed 9mm brass mixed in with your real 9mm brass!
I hate when that happens with range pick-up 9mm brass!
Whoever did it ought to be tarred and feathered with old Russian powder!
rcmodel
Shoney
Member
Years ago, the only way to reload 9x18 was to trim down 9x19 by a silly millimeter, long before Starline made brass for it.
It is not hard to trim, a drill on the trimmer makes it easy, then load as normal.
Oberleutnant wrote,”Make sure U don't lose any wen ur @ the range”
Since the 9mmMak is probably the grand champion of the “far flung brass”, that is funny.
Rcmodel is correct about the near impossibility of mixing it with 9x19.
It is not hard to trim, a drill on the trimmer makes it easy, then load as normal.
Oberleutnant wrote,”Make sure U don't lose any wen ur @ the range”
Since the 9mmMak is probably the grand champion of the “far flung brass”, that is funny.
Rcmodel is correct about the near impossibility of mixing it with 9x19.
Marlin 45 carbine
Member
just buy Privi Partizan or Fiochii to shoot and reload the cases. I've bought Starline too, good stuff!
Jim Watson
Member
Boxer primed 9mm Makarov will run through a Dillon set up for 9mm P with nothing to tell you anything is wrong unless you notice there is more bullet showing outside the brass than usual. Buying "once fired" 9mm P WILL get you some Makarov (and 9x21.)
I gauge all my ammo so it is caught then. Just for fun, I loaded up a couple of Makarov cases loaded with 9mm P bullets and shot them. The .039" excess headspace did not affect a thing. The rounds fed, fired, functioned, and hit the target.
Not that I am recommending it as a regular practice. If the extractor did not pick up the rim in a controlled feed, you would have trouble.
I gauge all my ammo so it is caught then. Just for fun, I loaded up a couple of Makarov cases loaded with 9mm P bullets and shot them. The .039" excess headspace did not affect a thing. The rounds fed, fired, functioned, and hit the target.
Not that I am recommending it as a regular practice. If the extractor did not pick up the rim in a controlled feed, you would have trouble.
Marlin 45 carbine
Member
the Makarov (at least mine - Russian Naval Officer model, and others on the Makarov forum) is a very accurate handgun with the right loads and worthy of the best you can feed it. use good brass and ammo for it. I was pleasantly surprised when I fired Wolf 'Military Classic' in it but moreso when I ran a box of Win. 9X18 through it (saved the brass for reloads).
I've owned several .380's none matched the accuracy of the Mkarov. I have the adjustable sight model. really socks 'em in there.
I've owned several .380's none matched the accuracy of the Mkarov. I have the adjustable sight model. really socks 'em in there.
evan price
Member
I picked up 2 gallons of mixed brass at the range lately and had to individualy hand sort out the hundred or so mixed 9mm Luger cases trimmed down to Mak. The good news is, the ones I missed were REAL easy to spot when I take the finished rounds from my press and put them into ammo boxes. The edge of the driving band is well exposed and it's easy to see when I look at my ammo.
Even worse, somebody had tried to make 9mm Mak out of .380 brass. THose cartridges looked terrible.
Even WORSE, today at the range I picked up brass and found a 9mm Luger that someone had reloaded as a .40 S&W- and it had been FIRED!
Even worse, somebody had tried to make 9mm Mak out of .380 brass. THose cartridges looked terrible.
Even WORSE, today at the range I picked up brass and found a 9mm Luger that someone had reloaded as a .40 S&W- and it had been FIRED!
GlowinPontiac
Member
am i the only one who had trouble reading this?
Sunray
Member
"...am i the only one who had trouble reading this?..." "i"? Pay your grade school teachers more. Snicker.
Don't bother making 9 x 18 brass. Starline makes it. Midway lists 100 pieces at $17.79. 500 for $79.99 and 1,000 at $154.99. RCBS makes dies. It uses a .363" bullet though. Hornady makes a 95 grain HP/XTP though.
Don't bother making 9 x 18 brass. Starline makes it. Midway lists 100 pieces at $17.79. 500 for $79.99 and 1,000 at $154.99. RCBS makes dies. It uses a .363" bullet though. Hornady makes a 95 grain HP/XTP though.
Marlin 45 carbine
Member
little off the topic but does anyone know of a source of cast slugs for the Mak 9X18?
FieroCDSP
Member
Meister Ballistics(http://www.meisterbullets.com) makes a 93gr RN that shoots just fine. $33.50 per 500 as of this posting. I made out like a bandit one day when I caught them in a pricing error (or maybe they just had an overstock). Got two boxes of 500 for $12 each, I think. (It was durn cheap.) It took them eight weeks to get to me, but I got them and they're fine hardcast.
FieroCDSP
Member
To stay On-Topic: When you load a newly trimmed case, us a slightly lower charge, as the volume difference from the 9x19's taper can possibly push a max-load over the edge. Once you fire it, though, it'll be a normal 9x18 case.
REM1875
Member
- Joined
- Feb 1, 2009
- Messages
- 2
Mark the cases
I also use a dremel to notch the base of the cases to avoid confusion with 9x19 cases. I use the cutting wheel and notch 3 opposing cuts in base. I do this for all reformed cases with different patterns for each type converted. The basic question about converting 9x19 to 9x18 is what do I have more of ? - money or 9mm brass and time - yes it is a pain in the butt and I wish I had more money and less 9mmx19 brass
At the very least use a a permanent magic marker and mark the case somehow- this works well on brass cases, not so well with nickel.
Even if you dont have a 9x19 yet you just never know what the future might bring so start a system to mark conversions now. ( I came upon this the hard way)
I also use a dremel to notch the base of the cases to avoid confusion with 9x19 cases. I use the cutting wheel and notch 3 opposing cuts in base. I do this for all reformed cases with different patterns for each type converted. The basic question about converting 9x19 to 9x18 is what do I have more of ? - money or 9mm brass and time - yes it is a pain in the butt and I wish I had more money and less 9mmx19 brass
At the very least use a a permanent magic marker and mark the case somehow- this works well on brass cases, not so well with nickel.
Even if you dont have a 9x19 yet you just never know what the future might bring so start a system to mark conversions now. ( I came upon this the hard way)
Last edited:
Beagle-zebub
Member
That's what Russia had the knout for.
After tuning up the cutter head on my Lyman Universal trimmer the trimming went pretty fast 10-12 sec. a case. I did use a chamfer tool to deburr.
The trimmed down 9x19 brass was a bit tight for Meister .365" LRN I suspect the thicker 9x19 case wall springs back a bit more, extra case flare seemed to help. The bullet base is likely to encounter the internal taper of the case, I seated these 93gr LRN to .974" with a little taper crimp.
I've only shot 50ct with the trimmed brass, and they worked just fine, in my E.G. Mak.
The trimmed down 9x19 brass was a bit tight for Meister .365" LRN I suspect the thicker 9x19 case wall springs back a bit more, extra case flare seemed to help. The bullet base is likely to encounter the internal taper of the case, I seated these 93gr LRN to .974" with a little taper crimp.
I've only shot 50ct with the trimmed brass, and they worked just fine, in my E.G. Mak.
- Status
