How Well Does it Shoot?

Ganderite

Ganderite

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When I change powders or when I acquire a new pistol, I shoot a series of loads in it, ranging from too mild to cycle the action to max in the book - usually in 0.3 gr increments.

I just got a new drum of powder and am now testing my pistols with it. In this case, I shot the old "Best" load and 2 loads of the new powder, to confirm what a previous test had indicated.

For my Canik TP9 SFX (the 5" match version) my old load was 3.1 gr of Ramshot Competition under a DRG 135 LRN bullet. This is the group on the right. The groups were shot fairly quickly at 25 yards.

My new powder is a non-canister powder with a grain structure like 231, but the speed of Unique. Most of my 9mm pistols shot best with 4.5 gr of the new powder, but in a previous test the Canik was best with only 4.0 gr. This test was to confirm that finding.

4.0 of the new powder is the group in the middle. It is better than my old best load and better than the new powder with an extra half grain.

OCmLKRq.jpg


I have run this type of test, usually with 5 increments per pistol, several hundred times, and for most pistols there is a load that stands out clearly as better than the others.

If you roll your own, make sure to try several different powder charges (I use 0.3 gr increments) to see what works best. I usually find the best load is about half way between Start and Max, or a bit less.

if you shoot factory, try several brands to see if your pistol has a favourite.
 
Thanks for all the good information you pass along Ganderite.
Lots of learning, years of experience and experimentation will get one the same knowledge that you so willingly post.
 
Always appreciate your posts Ganderite!

I read the sticky you wrote on pistol loads a while ago and now mimic what you advised with great results.
 
Compare the middle and left targets. Just a half gr difference!

The first test had a similar result, so I was repeating it, just to be sure it was not just an accidental difference.

I post this result because I get the impression a lot of guys just take a recipe out of a book and stick with it, not knowing a bit more or less powder might be much better.

Testing assumes the shooter is capable of enough accuracy to actually see the differences. I used to test off a sandbag but have recently discovered that I get better groups by standing, hips braced against the bench, and just shooting two-handed.
 
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Hello Gander, I just ordered 6000 Fiochi SPP,I'm currently using CCI SPP.

Loading 9 mm ,124 g, berrys and Campro bullets.

Do Primer brand make much of a difference?
And,is one brand better than the other?

In regards to accuracy/speed,etc.


Thanks

Oh,when you say drum of powder, do you mean 8 lb plastic bottle? Or s 45 gallon drum? :)
 
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Ganderite said:
...I post this result because I get the impression a lot of guys just take a recipe out of a book and stick with it, not knowing a bit more or less powder might be much better.
Click to expand...

Well, you got me. Guilty! Excellent post, Ganderite.

I always load as close to full/maximum. Have gotten good accuracy from all my loads (using home cast bullets) in 9mm, 40cal, 38spl, 357mag, 45acp, except 9mm using Lee 125 grain Truncated Cone bullets, where 15-20% keyhole. at 15 meters.

You are optimizing loads for accuracy, while I just load to approximate factory loads. Two different approaches but yours make more sense. Accuracy should take precedence over velocity. Hits are always preferred over misses. If you can achieve greatest accuracy with the highest power, that will be great but not always the case.

Without really comparing different loads, i.e. trying minimum to maximum powder loads in .1-.2 increments, there is no way of saying if the loads are optimized for accuracy in a given pistol. I known and done this in my earlier reloading days, but have gotten lazy in the last 16 years.;) Thanks for the reminder.
 
A drum is a cardboard thing that holds either 20KG (45 lb) or 60 lb.

A drum of pistol powder lasts long enough that it is worthwhile to test all the pistols with 4 or 5 loads and make a note of what it likes. This involves about 75 pistols, so it gives me something to do.

YLUu6On.jpg


Brass also comes in drums

hbhzs5H.jpg


The secret is ordering it from the manufacturer by the ton.
 
Ganderite said:
A drum is a cardboard thing that holds either 20KG (45 lb) or 60 lb.

A drum of pistol powder lasts long enough that it is worthwhile to test all the pistols with 4 or 5 loads and make a note of what it likes. This involves about 75 pistols, so it gives me something to do.

YLUu6On.jpg


Brass also comes in drums

hbhzs5H.jpg


The secret is ordering it from the manufacturer by the ton.
Click to expand...

Oh I like the approach, go big or go home.

Candocad
 
Brianma65 said:
Hello Gander, I just ordered 6000 Fiochi SPP,I'm currently using CCI SPP.

Loading 9 mm ,124 g, berrys and Campro bullets.

Do Primer brand make much of a difference?
And,is one brand better than the other?

In regards to accuracy/speed,etc.


Thanks

:)
Click to expand...

I just bought 12,000 Fiochi. I have used Tula, S&B, WPA, CCI and Federal.

I buy what is the cheapest at the time, plus Federal. I have a few pistols that will not ignite anything but Federal. All the others work with anything.

The only difference I have noticed is that some brands run through my lee Autoprime smoother than others. CCI are excellent. The Russian primers not so good.
 
Thanks for posting, Ganderite.

I'm about to start reloading for the first time, and am setting up the press today. I have a couple Shadows, (IPSC shooter), and will be deciding on the COAL. I was reading a post where a person suggested to find the max cartridge length to the lands/grooves, then subtract at least 0.015" to find your desired COAL. I don't want any functionality issues, so with press tolerances, I was thinking of erring on the side of going a touch shorter.

I'm curious if in all your testing, you have found situations where there is clear poor accuracy from too short a cartridge?
 
I don't have a Shadow, but I do have a CZ75. The throat is short. I load ammo for it at 1.10" (OAL will vary by bullet make and shape).

Load long, drop the slide on a round and note the rifling marks on the bullet. Seat a quarter turn deeper and repeat. When you get to the stage where there are no marks, note that as your MAX OAL with that bullet. Then seat a quarter turn deeper (which is about 12 thou) and use that as your load.

Going deeper may not be an accuracy issue, but it might be a reliability issue. Some of my guns won't feed deep seated bullets.
 
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Thank you very much!

I have some commercially reloaded ammo that uses a broader bullet, and loaded to a length of 1.14+", and some of those rounds won't allow the slide to close. I'm using Berry's, which are quite tapered. It will be nice to have reliable, accurate ammo. :)
 
Ganderite said:
Load long, drop the slide on a round and note the rifling marks on the bullet. Seat a quarter turn deeper and repeat. When you get to the stage where there are no marks, note that as your MAX OAL with that bullet. Then seat a quarter turn deeper (which is about 12 thou) and use that as your load.
Click to expand...

Just out of curiosity why don't you use/advise the push method for finding a handguns max OAL? It only takes a few seconds.
 
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