New reloader here, in search of some help.

[bigcountry5150]

Hello everyone, I’m both new to this forum, and new to the world of reloading, and in search of some help, and some advice. As a heads-up, I’ve made some rookie mistakes, and I’m kind of stuck. I’m reloading 9mm cartridges for my Taurus G2C, 3.25” barrel. I have Berry’s 124gr Target Hollow Point bullets, with Hodgdon HS-6 powder (the only option I had available, supplies can be scarce in my area). With Berry’s website saying to use load data for either jacketed or lead rounds of the same grain, I used the load data in the 2022 Hodgdon Manual for Berrys 124gr HBRN since it’s the same grain plated bullet, which is starting at 6.0grs for HS-6. Now for the rookie mistakes. It also has the COL of 1.150 with that data as well, and not taking my time to do a plunk test, or use a dummy round, I loaded the rounds to that COL, to find that they don’t fit the barrel properly, and don’t cycle properly either. Going back and loading a dummy round, I found that at 1.040, the round plunks and cycles as it should. My question is: would seating the bullet to that COL with the same charge be pushing the pressure limits? Or would it be ok to fire? I have not done that, I’ve left the rounds alone, I’m just asking. Or does anyone have any suggestions as to how much powder to use for that COL? Any suggestions or advice would be helpful.

 

[tominboise]

If you are at the starting charge weight of HS6, the risk is low, IMO, if you seated the bullets 0.010" deeper. I'd seat a couple to that length and shoot them, to verify no issues.

 

[GeoDudeFlorida]

Hello everyone, I’m both new to this forum, and new to the world of reloading, and in search of some help, and some advice. As a heads-up, I’ve made some rookie mistakes, and I’m kind of stuck. I’m reloading 9mm cartridges for my Taurus G2C, 3.25” barrel. I have Berry’s 124gr Target Hollow Point bullets, with Hodgdon HS-6 powder (the only option I had available, supplies can be scarce in my area). With Berry’s website saying to use load data for either jacketed or lead rounds of the same grain, I used the load data in the 2022 Hodgdon Manual for Berrys 124gr HBRN since it’s the same grain plated bullet, which is starting at 6.0grs for HS-6. Now for the rookie mistakes. It also has the COL of 1.150 with that data as well, and not taking my time to do a plunk test, or use a dummy round, I loaded the rounds to that COL, to find that they don’t fit the barrel properly, and don’t cycle properly either. Going back and loading a dummy round, I found that at 1.040, the round plunks and cycles as it should. My question is: would seating the bullet to that COL with the same charge be pushing the pressure limits? Or would it be ok to fire? I have not done that, I’ve left the rounds alone, I’m just asking. Or does anyone have any suggestions as to how much powder to use for that COL? Any suggestions or advice would be helpful.

Welcome aboard. Since you are still at the starting load, yes it should be fine. The target hollow point is shorter than the hollow base round nose so what you’ll be doing is correcting the seating depth, which should be close for both bullets.
By the way, seating depth is the critical measure. We typically go by overall length because it’s easy to measure. If you know or can find out the length of a bullet for which you have data and compare it to the bullet you have on-hand, you can calculate the difference in seating depth between the two.
Hope this helps.

 

[Mark_Mark]

Double check your charge with different sources. My 9mm HS-6 record shows 124g starting was 5.8g and max was 6.6 for normal 9mm pistol

 

[GeoDudeFlorida]

Oh, and looking at data from Western, it seems the Target HP is identical in profile to the Hollow Base Flat Nose, not the round nose. Look for data for that bullet and it will be much closer.

 

[lgjhn]

Double check your charge with different sources. My 9mm HS-6 record shows 124g starting was 5.8g and max was 6.6 for normal 9mm pistol

I’ve got the same data as you have. There’s only .8 grains difference between starting and max loads with HS6.
Since he’s got 6gr in there, which is near the starting load, and he knows he’s seated too high, correcting it shouldn’t be too bad.
But he may be a tad too deep at 1.040” though. My records show 1.105” for a somewhat similar bullet (115gr Berry’s RN).
As suggested in post #2, I’d gradually reseat a couple and keep checking em. Once they pass the plunk, give em a try; all the while looking for signs of any over-pressure.
IF he’s really at 6gr, there shouldn’t be a problem as long as he’s doesn’t go overboard on the seating depth.

 

[bigcountry5150]

Thank y’all for your responses and input. I’ll definitely adjust some of them to specs of the dummy round, and see what happens, if they run fine, I’ll do it to the rest of them. Definitely learned some lessons on this one.

 

[P Flados]

The info from Berry's site is "much less than desired".

I have Quickload and one nice thing it does is determine seating depth.

The Berry site shows their HP bullet length as 0.567". Loaded to a COAL of 1.040" gives a 0.281" seating depth with a 0.754" long case.

For the Hodgdon data with bullets in the Quickload database, it told me that the loads had seating depths of:

Sierra 125 FMJ (0.581" bullet, COAL 1.090") seating depth: 0.245", max charge for HS-6: 6.8 grs
Hornady 124 XTP (0.576" bullet, COAL 1.060") seating depth 0.270, max charge of HS-6: 6.1 grs

As you can see from the above, with the increased seating depth of 0.270" (0.025" difference) the max recommended charge dropped a lot (0.7 grs).

At your desired 1.040" OAL, your seating depth would be quite a bit deeper than either the two Hodgdon loads. To go up another 0.011" over the Hornady depth, would indicate a potential need to drop the max down another 0.3 grs or 5.8 grs for a max. Starting charge would be reduced to around 5.3 grs.

Have you tried a COAL closer to 1.051". Your 1.040" seems shorter than seems typical. If a COAL of 1.051" works in your gun, your seating depth would be very close to the Hodgdon load for the Hornady 124 XTP. You should still work up from their starting load (5.6 gr), but you may find you could "save" some of you already loaded ammo.

 

[Mark_Mark]

Thank y’all for your responses and input. I’ll definitely adjust some of them to specs of the dummy round, and see what happens, if they run fine, I’ll do it to the rest of them. Definitely learned some lessons on this one.

how many did you already load???

I want to introduce you to a Hammer!

 

[lordpaxman]

@bigcountry5150, welcome to THR!
Is it just me, or….

It also has the COL of 1.150 with that data as well, and not taking my time to do a plunk test, or use a dummy round, I loaded the rounds to that COL, to find that they don’t fit the barrel properly, and don’t cycle properly either.

Going back and loading a dummy round, I found that at 1.040, the round plunks and cycles as it should.

My math has the OP’s ending COL to be 0.110” less than the published data. Not .010”.

Granted, the published data is for the hollow base bullet, which is problematic in deciding how much that cavity plays in total volume. I’m with @P Flados, I think I’d look at the published 124 XTP data instead, realizing the bullet OAL is different. I also don’t have any experience with HS-6, with regards to how well behaved it is or isn’t. I’m presuming it’s way better than TG with shortened COLs. Good luck.

 

[snowman357]

Always plunk test and load a few to test fire also. Nothing like loading 500 or more rounds and find out they don't cycle well.

 

[Zendude]

Hello everyone, I’m both new to this forum, and new to the world of reloading, and in search of some help, and some advice. As a heads-up, I’ve made some rookie mistakes, and I’m kind of stuck. I’m reloading 9mm cartridges for my Taurus G2C, 3.25” barrel. I have Berry’s 124gr Target Hollow Point bullets, with Hodgdon HS-6 powder (the only option I had available, supplies can be scarce in my area). With Berry’s website saying to use load data for either jacketed or lead rounds of the same grain, I used the load data in the 2022 Hodgdon Manual for Berrys 124gr HBRN since it’s the same grain plated bullet, which is starting at 6.0grs for HS-6. Now for the rookie mistakes. It also has the COL of 1.150 with that data as well, and not taking my time to do a plunk test, or use a dummy round, I loaded the rounds to that COL, to find that they don’t fit the barrel properly, and don’t cycle properly either. Going back and loading a dummy round, I found that at 1.040, the round plunks and cycles as it should. My question is: would seating the bullet to that COL with the same charge be pushing the pressure limits? Or would it be ok to fire? I have not done that, I’ve left the rounds alone, I’m just asking. Or does anyone have any suggestions as to how much powder to use for that COL? Any suggestions or advice would be helpful.

was your load that plunks 1.140 or 1.040?

 

[Hugger-4641]

I have a G3c and also cannot load 124xtp or RMR hollow points at recommend coal. 1.065 is what I load to. With 6.4gr of HS-6 I get about 1100fps, which is comparable to most factory target ammo, but I'm not recommending you go to 6.4gr, that's just whats working for me.

 

[Mark_Mark]

I have a G3c and also cannot load 124xtp or RMR hollow points at recommend coal. 1.065 is what I load to. With 6.4gr of HS-6 I get about 1100fps, which is comparable to most factory target ammo, but I'm not recommending you go to 6.4gr, that's just whats working for me.

You like Hott 9mm! my too!

I’m currently doing 9mm, 7.0gn of Auto Comp with a 95gn .380 SP doing 1450fps. I call them laser beam rounds

 

[film495]

I always make a set of dummy rounds when working on a new cartridge, just always. Saves time and nrg down the road cause you can run into cycling issues and need to work the kinks out or make small adjustments.

 

[Hugger-4641]

I even use a Wilson case gauge on every round and rounds that plunk fine in it still won't plunk in my G3c until I lower the seat depth.

 

[tominboise]

@bigcountry5150, welcome to THR!
Is it just me, or….



My math has the OP’s ending COL to be 0.110” less than the published data. Not .010”.

Granted, the published data is for the hollow base bullet, which is problematic in deciding how much that cavity plays in total volume. I’m with @P Flados, I think I’d look at the published 124 XTP data instead, realizing the bullet OAL is different. I also don’t have any experience with HS-6, with regards to how well behaved it is or isn’t. I’m presuming it’s way better than TG with shortened COLs. Good luck.

You are right - I misread that. I wouldn't seat them 0.110" deeper and go for it without better information, as other posters have provided.

My misread would be a classic example of why using loading data or information from internet strangers might not be a good idea and should be verified from multiple reliable sources...

 

[Guns&engines]

I've been working up some loads for the berry's 124 hollow points recently as well. I got a little wrapped around the wheel with overall lenght as well. Here's what I found for me.

My sig p938 has the shortest chamber of my 9mms, so that's what I use to set my oal. The max oal for my p938 is 1.110 with the berry's 124. So I load at 1.090" oal. The berry's 124 hhp bullets measure .537" long, the berry's 124 hbrn bullets measure .620" long, and hornady 124 xtp measure .570" long.

My Lee loading manual and the Hodgdon website list the same load data for 124, although I'm loading with cfe pistol powder. They have the berry's 124 hollow base round nose (hbrn) listed at 1.150 oal with both cfe and hs6. That puts seating depth at 1.150 - .754 case length - .620 bullet length = .224 of bullet seated into the case.

With the 124 xtp at 1.060" oal, the seating depth works out to .264".

With the berry's 124 hhp at 1.090 oal, the seating depth works out to .201, so at my oal the bullet is seated less deep than the 124 hbrn, so I use that load data.

If we adjust for the variation in bullet lengths to get the same seating depths, then it should be safe to seat the berry's 124 hhp as short as 1.067" oal and use the 124 hbrn load data. Or seat the 124 hhp as short as 1.027" and use the 124 xtp load data.

I think your 1.04 sounds likely shorter than necessary, but if that's what you want to load at, then I'd suggest using the 124 xtp load data which for HS6 is 5.6gr start and 6.1gr max.

To find my guns max oal for 9mm, I like to find a fired unsized case where the bullet that I'm checking slides into the case with only slight resistance. Using that case, put a bullet into it seated way long, and push it into the chamber until fully seated. Then carefully pull it out and measure overall length. Do this several times to get confidence in you measurement and back off about .020" from that measurement for your loads in that gun.

 

[GeoDudeFlorida]

Thank y’all for your responses and input. I’ll definitely adjust some of them to specs of the dummy round, and see what happens, if they run fine, I’ll do it to the rest of them. Definitely learned some lessons on this one.

Probably should have asked before first response but exactly how many of these did you assemble?

 

[Rule3]

The lesson from this is that there is a difference in Berrys bullets. They have like 6 of them.The 124 HBRN TP is not the same bullet as the HBRN
So COL is going to be different as a Flat Nose or trucated nose will be different than a RN
Yes the bullet weight is the same but the profile is different.

Always do a plunk test and make up dummy rounds,

I think your 6gr of HS 6 will be fine even after seating them a little more. It is a medium slow powder and you have ,6 gr leeway

 

[lightman]

Welcome to the Site and to reloading!

The 9MM can be a challenge sometimes, compared to other cartridges. I would not be afraid to seat those bullets a little deeper but I would only do a few until I test fired them.

Its always a good idea to only load a few for testing before loading a large quantity when starting to load for a new cartridge or bullet. Its better to have a few mistakes than a few hundred!

 

[mdi]

Welcome to the wonderful, oft confusing and frustrating world of reloading! First off, K.I.S.S.! Use same (approx.) data for a similar bullet for your OAL, or better yet would be use good bullets and the manufacturer's data (Hornady bullets-Hornady data). I don't care for plated bullets as I've experience problems with designs and quality and most never worked in any revolver I tried them in. I have seen and purchased Hornady JHPs lately as they seem to be readily available and of course RMR 124 JHPs are quality and available.. Begin with starting loads you'll be safe (extra high pressures because of seating depth are way over thought and normally only become a problem with bullet set back, waaay back. I don't crimp any semi-auto handloads, just "deflare", as neck tension holds the bullet in place as too much crimp often loosens case/bullet tension).

A good text to have when getting into reloading is The ABCs of Reloading. It covers almost all aspects of reloading from the "how and why" to equipment and components.

My cautionary suggestion to new reloaders; most forum members are trying to help answer your questions , but often a question thread will morph into deep theory, personal opinion and "they said" repeating . Reloading forums are helpful, but think about using info you see as some may work for a specific person in a specific gun under specific conditions. (Many years ago I fought getting my handloads to fit a cartridge gauge but the real answer came from an old member on a reloading forum; "Do they fit in your gun?". They did and now I use the Plunk Test on all my semi auto handloads.).

My #1 Rule is I pay no attention to any load data I see on any forum, "my favorite load" websites, hear from any range rat, gun counter clerk, good intended friend, or gun shop guru. I get 98% of my load data from published reloading manuals from powder, bullet manufacturers and known good publishers (Lyman comes to mind). I also use load data from bullet and powder manufacturer's websites. While 99% of forum members are trying to be helpful, I first go to my texts when I have a problem, then ask for info on a forum. I started reloading in 1969, waaaay pre-web, with info from my Lee Loader instruction sheet and trips to the local library. Hanging out in the local gun shops I determined old reloaders are like old fishermen; Groups get smaller, velocities get higher, DRT shots grow in distance and loads get hotter with retelling, so I'm careful what data/info I use. Been working for me for over 40 years...

Go slow. Double check everything. Most important, have fun!

But then, I'm just one of those anonymous screen names giving advice!

 

[bigcountry5150]

Sorry I’m so late getting back, it’s been quite the busy day. First and foremost, thank y’all for all of the replies, and the helpful advice. I appreciate y’all taking the time to offer a newbie like me some advice. Haven’t had any time to make any adjustments since my original post, but I’ve read all the replies, and will be working on them later tonight, so I’ll give y’all an update when I try to solve this issue. As for how many I loaded up, it was 50 of them. A rookie mistake for sure. I’ve definitely learned some lessons from making these mistakes. I’m sure y’all will probably see more questions from me coming up.

 

[Mark_Mark]

Sorry I’m so late getting back, it’s been quite the busy day. First and foremost, thank y’all for all of the replies, and the helpful advice. I appreciate y’all taking the time to offer a newbie like me some advice. Haven’t had any time to make any adjustments since my original post, but I’ve read all the replies, and will be working on them later tonight, so I’ll give y’all an update when I try to solve this issue. As for how many I loaded up, it was 50 of them. A rookie mistake for sure. I’ve definitely learned some lessons from making these mistakes. I’m sure y’all will probably see more questions from me coming up.

50… Pull the bullet a start over

I would like to introduce you to our buddy the Hammer!

50 is nothing, 500 is a weekend of pounding

 

[bigcountry5150]

Yep. Was already looking at them, a trip to Cabela’s is on the docket for tomorrow. In making some adjustments to a couple of the made rounds, the only way I can get these to chamber and eject properly, is with COL at 1.05 and some tinkering around with the factory crimp die. Every other adjustment I tried, the round would chamber, but racking the slide back to eject it, it would get stuck and I’d have to rack it back and forth. So I definitely have to them at 1.05 COL. So the question now is: pull them all and go with a different charge amount, or seat them deeper and fire them?