Help loading 40S&W Magtech bullets!

[adequinzio]

I purchased a bunch of Magtech 40S&W 180 gr. JHP for cheap. None of my reloading manuals have any Magtech information. Also, I cannot find anything online. Here is my main concern.

1. How far should I seat the bullet?
I know I don't want the OAL to exceed 1.135, but checking out other load data, I see the OAL ranging from anywhere between 1.085" and 1.135". I was reading that seating the bullet just a hair too deep can cause an extreme amount of unwanted pressure. This is my first time reloading; I don't want to blow myself up the first time.

If it helps I have these components available:

Winchester brass
Federal brass
Remington brass
Winchester small pistol primers
CCI small pistol primers
Winchester 231 powder

Right now I have my seater die pushing out an OAL of 1.125 - it seemed like a happy medium. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[rcmodel]

Seat them so they look like factory Mag-Tech 180 JHP ammo.
http://www.grafs.com/retail/catalog/product/productId/10986

SAAMI MAX length for any bullet in .40 S&W is 1.135".
SO, you cannot load longer then that and get them on most magazines.

Lyman #49 shows a similiar Seirra 180 grain JHP seated 1.115".
WW-231 Starting load is 5.0 grains.
MAX load is 5.6 grains.
Start at the starting load and work up.

Shorter OAL/seating depth is not going to blow you up unless you are already past the ragged edge of max pressure loads.

PS: Don't try for maximum velocity with WW-231 powder.
It is too fast burning for best performance in the .40 S&W.

rc

 

[LiveLife]

180 GR. HDY XTP Winchester 231 .400" 1.125" Start 4.1 gr (797 fps) 23,800 PSI - Max 5.0 gr (947 fps) 32,900 PSI

Hodgdon website is showing 4.1 gr as starting charge and 5.0 gr as max.

I shoot a lot of 40S&W rounds and W231/HP38. For jacketed bullets, I usually use 4.5 gr at 1.125" OAL for TCFP nose profile.

 

[Walkalong]

I load the Zero 165 & 185 Gr JHP's at the SAMMI max of 1.135 and they feed fine and shoot very well. My XD .40 mag will actually take a longer O.A.L. So did my Witness when I had it, but other pistols may not.

I would try 1.135 to start and see what it looks like, and as rcmodel suggested, seat them look like as close as you can to the factory ammo pic he linked to.

View attachment 525011

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