Reloading .40 S&W?

[colorado_handgunner]

I was wondering about the feasibility of reloading .40 S&W. I have heard that since it is a high velocity (supersonic often times) round, it is extremely important to do it exactly right or risk a kaboom. I have also heard that kabooms are more likely with reloaded .40 than 9mm or .45. Can anyone shed some light on this? Thanks.

 

[General Geoff]

That's mostly because of certain firearms without fully supported chambers, which tend to warp/weaken the brass after firing (due to the .40S&W being a relatively high-pressure round). Using weakened brass is a big liability.

Long as you have fresh and/or known good brass, you should be fine.

 

[bensdad]

That's mostly because of certain firearms without fully supported chambers, which tend to warp/weaken the brass after firing (due to the .40S&W being a relatively high-pressure round). Using weakened brass is a big liability.

Or have a gun that fully supports the case. I've reloaded a bit of 40. No problems yet (Taurus 140MilPro).

 

[colorado_handgunner]

Got an XD subcompact, so support is not an issue.

 

[Rodentman]

I am new to reloading. I did a few hundred .38's which worked fine, and then went on to the .40's which also worked fine. I have a Sig P229 and Kahr PM40. I didn't load near max and paid attention to max length.

 

[D. Manley]

IMO, reloading .40 is no different than loading most other pistol rounds. Just follow good reloading practices, use vetted load data and stay within the load limits of the round. It's fine to use internet forums for informational purposes but get your "real" data from reputable sources...the powder companies and published manuals. An awful lot of information you glean on user forums is likely to be a combination of internet lore, misinformation (albeit, offered honestly) and personal bias of one type or another.

 

[commodore]

.40 cal brass issues

Look at this article and you will get a better idea of what poorly supported chambers do to .40 brass.

http://frankwjames.blogspot.com/2009/04/advisory-for-40-s-reloaders.html

I just received 1000 "once-fired" .4o cases and I can ever so slightly see where the cases have been deformed. I ordered them from wideners in case you were wondering. If you plan to collect brass that you did not shoot yourself or buy once-fired brass try to get the stuff with the crimped primers. I say this because if the primers are still crimped in place you know they have not been reloaded.

 

[Redneck with a 40]

Nothing tricky about loading 40 S&W, just watch your charge weights and bullet seating depth's. Don't reload "glockified" brass, lol. I shoot my reloads in an XD, so I expect to get 15-20 loadings out of my brass, with mild loads.

 

[Floppy_D]

I've loaded several thousand rounds of 40, no problems thus far. Stick to published data and you have nothing to worry about.

 

[bfoosh006]

I agree with everyone elses answers, and I have loaded up plenty of rounds, from mild to hot, 135gr -180gr, lead and jacketed.Follow the reloading manuals info and you should be fine. If you do have a firearm without a fully supported chamber, the Current "Lyman" reloading manual has plenty of mild-mannered full velocity loads.

 

[freakshow10mm]

Well, the .40 isn't what I would call a high velocity pistol cartridge. Like anything else, use quality components, watch your variables and go on with life.

 

[steve4102]

The 40 S&W runs at the same pressure as the 9mm(35,000psi), no need to be worried, just follow safe loading procedures and you will be fine.

 

[D. Manley]

.40 cal brass issues

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Look at this article and you will get a better idea of what poorly supported chambers do to .40 brass.

http://frankwjames.blogspot.com/2009...reloaders.html

I just received 1000 "once-fired" .4o cases and I can ever so slightly see where the cases have been deformed. I ordered them from wideners in case you were wondering. If you plan to collect brass that you did not shoot yourself or buy once-fired brass try to get the stuff with the crimped primers. I say this because if the primers are still crimped in place you know they have not been reloaded.

The author is posting his opinion which IMHO, is misinformed and misleading. He states the bulged cases were fired from his own Browing Hi-Power after previously being fired from a Glock pistol. This may be entirely true but where he goes awry is assuming the problem was being initially fired from the Glock. I would suggest there is a lot more issues at play with his problem than simply the gun that fired the cartridge initially.

I've ran several thousand rounds through a Glock .40 caliber and have never experienced anything remotely similar to that described in the article not to mention, thousands of range pickups fired from Glock pistols. It is true that some of the early production Glock pistols had less chamber support at the 6-o'clock position (feed ramp) than some other weapons but even then, the bulge produced by hotter rounds did not resemble those in the article. Current production Glocks do have a generous internal chamber dimension but causes no particular problem in firing or reloading as it does not approach the case head. I am yet to see a feed ramp bulge produced by a current production Glock using ammunition within nominal SAAMI pressure limits.

As to his quote about Glock management being adamant against firing reloaded ammunition, it's a bit ridiculous. Virtually every other manufacturer has similar prohibitions/admonitions as they rightfully should...what reasonable person could expect a manufacturer to waranty their product using ammunition produced without controls or standards?

Again, loading .40 caliber is no different from that of most other pistol rounds. The .40 S&W runs at the same SAAMI pressure and standard 9MM (less than 9MM+P) and less than 10MM. It is no where near as difficult to load as is a .357 Sig or a few others. Most of the hysteria regarding reloading .40 stems from internet myth, user error and the sheer preponderance of .40 shooters.

 

[Baneblade]

Between my father and I we have reloaded thousands of rounds of 40 without any problems. Most of the brass was fired from a Glock. We have not had any problems.

HOWEVER, we load them pretty light. Just enough to reliably cycle any Glock, Sig, or XD. I don't want you to think I have just blown off the risk. I minimize it by loading light. It makes target shooting a little more enjoyable too.

The only KB I personally know of was on a double charge reload. Glock 22.

 

[flynlr]

I have not tried this yet but Redding has the solution to Glocked Brass

http://www.redding-reloading.com/pages/grxpushthru.html

 

[inheritor]

fully supported chamber

i have a s&w .40 sigma i havent seen any bellied or dameged brass but i dont know if the chamber is fully supported does anyone else know

 

[Doug b]

D.Manley read your reply with great interest as I have been following this "Glock bulge"thing for some time now.Reminds me of the old Federal 9m/m 124 gr.FMJ factory load that bulged a case so bad you had to stand on the press handle to size it.Had a Star BKS 9m/m even had a bulge like the Glock 40 at the feed ramp with this round.I'm starting to wonder if people aren't trying to reproduce this bulge in there handloads and running into problems.

 

[D. Manley]

D.Manley read your reply with great interest as I have been following this "Glock bulge"thing for some time now.Reminds me of the old Federal 9m/m 124 gr.FMJ factory load that bulged a case so bad you had to stand on the press handle to size it.Had a Star BKS 9m/m even had a bulge like the Glock 40 at the feed ramp with this round.I'm starting to wonder if people aren't trying to reproduce this bulge in there handloads and running into problems.

Who knows...?, the "Glock bulge" thing has been elevated to epic porportions via internet lore and for the most part, is a non-existent problem for the reloader. When fired reloads produce a 360 degree bulge around the case head when fired in another pistol (ala, the linked blog post above), don't try to tell me it's a result of being originally fired in a Glock.

 

[Walkalong]

40 caliber is no different from that of most other pistol rounds. The .40 S&W runs at the same SAAMI pressure and standard 9MM (less than 9MM+P) and less than 10MM. It is no where near as difficult to load as is a .357 Sig or a few others.

I would have to agree.

 

[lgbloader]

quote:
40 caliber is no different from that of most other pistol rounds. The .40 s&w runs at the same saami pressure and standard 9mm (less than 9mm+p) and less than 10mm. It is no where near as difficult to load as is a .357 sig or a few others.

I would have to agree.
__________________

yup

lgb