Load Increments

[jaybrown]

Hey guys, went to the range yesterday and fired my first batch of ammo. I started with some old factory rounds that I wanted to get ride of and then proceeded to shoot my reloads. I noticed that the gun was not cycling as well with my reloads. I'm shooting a 180g Rainier FP Plated jacket out of my Beretta 40 S&W. Since Rainiers only loading data was to use lead bullet data I used the following recipe.

http://www.alliantpowder.com/reloaders/RecipeDetail.aspx?title=Pistols%20and%20Revolvers&gtypeid=1&weight=180&shellid=1022&bulletid=445

I started with the 4.5grains but how should I increment my loads per batch so I can find the best load for my gun. Should I do 4.8g etc...? or is smaller increments better like 0.1grains? I'm really interested in more of a target round at this point. I want the most shooting for my money and extend my brass life. Thanks for the help, Jay

 

[Ares45]

For pistol I use 0.2gr increments. For larger rifle charges I use 0.5-1.0gr increments depending on the initial charge weight.

I don't shoot cast bullets, BUT IIRC, jacketed bullets require heavier charges than cast bullets of the same weight and similar BC. Plated being somewhere between the two. If I had to guess I'd say your powder charge is too low.