Working up loads first time

[ras_oscar]

Set up my press last night. YouTube showed me that I had installed the auto prime bracket upside down . Made 3 dummy rounds ( no primer, no powder) to dial in the seat and crimp dies. The dummy carts pop right in and out of the cartridge gage.

Please check my process and help me verify I haven't missed anything silly

Looked through all the references available to get the start and max loads to start my testing.

9MM luger
IMR 800X powder
Berry's plated bullet, 115 grain (load as lead round nose)
CCI standard small pistol primer

Objective: make cartridges comparable to factory standard loads for my PX4 storm and 92SF.

1. Checked all available references for load data. Found the following:

Lee: 4.5 Start 5.3 max
Hornady: no data
Lyman: No data
Hodgdon: 4.5 start 5.3 max
Alliant No data
Western No data

(How can one source have a "never exceed" charge that is the same as the start charge of another?)

1. The plan: make 5 rounds each with 4.5, 4.6, 4.7, 4.8, 4.9, 5.0, 5.1 grains
2. Load rounds in the PX4 mag in staggered fashion (one of mine, one factory, one of mine, one factory.....)
3. After for first "mine" round, verify the firearm cycled properly and that the barrel is not obstructed
4. If projectile does not clear barrel, abandon remaining rounds at that "step" and continue with next higher step
5. Continue until felt recoil is equal to factory round.

 

[Uncle Duke]

OP, charge weight data spread you're listing here is concerning. It is unusually large.

Are you positive about the data you listed? Correct charge weight, bullet weight and powder? What volume of Lee manual?

I can't check this minute but I can check my manuals in the next hour or so. My very best guess is that something is amiss here.

 

[Russ D]

4.5-5.3 is Hodgdon's published data. You will often find some wide ranging powder charges when cross referencing loading data. Some manufacturers are increasingly conservative compared to older published data. Just be sure to start low and work up and you will be fine.

 

[Traveler]

It is important you take note of COAL, grains of powder, and bullet weight / lead or copper. I had to build an Excel spreadsheet to capture all the variables. I also agree on the difference in old / new manuals. The older Speer #14 manual was a bit toasty.

 

[Uncle Duke]

Setting the raw numbers aside, OP is noting a very large percentage variance between start and max charge weights here. VERY unusual that spread is this extreme IMO. I see Hodgdon's data also, but SOMETHING isn't adding up here. Very interested in knowing what that "something" is, but what I see here is a red flag that something somewhere is either out of whack, or OP had older and out of date load data, perhaps relating to the plated bullets mentioned.

 

[Whitty Whit]

A very well respected southern maryland reloader taught me to always start with the half way point when it comes to powder weight if im loading for a semi auto. I would be concerned anything lower wont cycle the gun.

 

[GHETTO BLASTER]

My Lee manual says 4.5 start to 5.3 max with a 1.100 min.OAL for IMR800X and 115 gr lead bullet.Mine is the Lee 2nd edition.

 

[Uncle Duke]

My Lee manual says 4.5 start to 5.3 max with a 1.100 min.OAL for IMR800X and 115 gr lead bullet.Mine is the Lee 2nd edition.

Indeed sir! That's exactly what I'm seeing also. A dead match to the current Hodgdon data.

I don't have a Lee First Edition manual, but I'm curious to know where OP's data came from.

 

[BigDaddy]

My Lee manual says 4.5 start to 5.3 max with a 1.100 min. OAL for IMR800X and 115 gr lead bullet. Mine is the Lee 2nd edition.

Mine too, it was "revised/reformated in 2011" and reprinted 2013.

 

[ras_oscar]

Yup, Lee 2nd edition 4.5-5.3. I have no Idea how I made that kind of mistake. I will correct the OP.

 

[Uncle Duke]

Oftentimes, it's not about the answers you have, but rather the questions you think enough to ask. You absolutely asked the right question in your opening post when you asked about the data spread you thought you had. That's a DAMNED good question to be asking where you see percentages of charge weights that wide. Tells you to stop and check out why.

One of many reasons also why multiple data sources are valuable. So is checking and double checking what you're reading, what your various settings are etc.

Good luck OP! Let us know how your loads work out!