My 9mm reloads are jamming my USP

Power Pill

Power Pill

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I've been reloading 9mm for a year or so. Unfortunately about every 50 round or so is jamming my hk usp.

The empty brass ends up stuck in the chamber and wont extract and locks the slide closed.
I end up having to work the slide pretty hard to get the gun open and remove the brass from the chamber
I've never had any issues with factory ammo..so I know something is going on with my reloads.

I know there are many things that could be causing it, but anyone have any ideas?

Thanks!
 
If the handgun is going into battery, I don't think it will be an OAL problem. Unless the case length OAL is to long and the recoil spring has enough pressure when it slams closed to "buckle" the case a bit. I would measure the case length of a reloaded cartridge versus factory new, trim a batch of brass if you have to and go to the range. Maybe the germans make a gun with the bare minimum for headspace.
 
Power Pill said:
I've been reloading 9mm for a year or so. Unfortunately about every 50 round or so is jamming my hk usp.

The empty brass ends up stuck in the chamber and wont extract and locks the slide closed.
I end up having to work the slide pretty hard to get the gun open and remove the brass from the chamber
I've never had any issues with factory ammo..so I know something is going on with my reloads.

I know there are many things that could be causing it, but anyone have any ideas?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

My guess is your brass is on the fat side going in, and then expands too much for easy extraction when fired.

Check your sizing die. Make sure you are making contact with the shellplate on the downstroke.
 
hoochie said:
adjust your crimp die
Click to expand...

Adjust it to what? The OP says he has been reloading for a year so I would assume he is using a correct powder charge without creating excessive pressure brought on by over-crimping. And if he was WAY over crimping I think he would see the effects sooner than after 50 rounds.
 
If I were you I would invest in a cartridge case gauge. After several reloads some cases tend to develop a bulge at the case head that resizing doesn't always remove. Checking loaded rounds in the case gauge will enabled you to pick out the ones that might cause problems.

Also, as per Canuck223's advice, make sure your size die is screwed in far enough. All it takes for a jam to develop is for the size die to not reduce a few thou at the case head. Since factory ammo runs OK my money is on insufficient sizing.
 
As pointed out above, put a shell in your press and raise the ram all the way. Check and see if you can see light between the shell plate and bottom of the die. If so, you will need to screw down your die a little more.

What dies are you using? If you are using Lee dies, the seating/crimping die in their 3die sets are a modified roll crimp die. It may be possible that you are adding too much crimp and slightly deforming the cases esp if you use cases of different sizes that aren't the same as the one that was used to calibrate the die.

Another option is to pick up a Lee factory crimp die for the caliber you are using. It has a carbide sizing ring that will ensure that your finished ammo will be factory sized. If you are finding that you have a lot of brass with bulges, you can pickup a Lee bulge buster to use along with that factory crimp die.
 
"...measure the case length..." Not likely. Handgun cases rarely need trimming. Check it anyway though. And like Canuck223 says, check the sizing.
"...brass ends up stuck..." What brand of brass? It's not all created equal. Are the rims getting damaged?
 
sunray said:
"...measure the case length..." Not likely. Handgun cases rarely need trimming. Check it anyway though. And like Canuck223 says, check the sizing.
"...brass ends up stuck..." What brand of brass? It's not all created equal. Are the rims getting damaged?
Click to expand...

im using a random assortment of brass and the rims seem fine
 
Trinimon said:
As pointed out above, put a shell in your press and raise the ram all the way. Check and see if you can see light between the shell plate and bottom of the die. If so, you will need to screw down your die a little more.

What dies are you using? If you are using Lee dies, the seating/crimping die in their 3die sets are a modified roll crimp die. It may be possible that you are adding too much crimp and slightly deforming the cases esp if you use cases of different sizes that aren't the same as the one that was used to calibrate the die.

Another option is to pick up a Lee factory crimp die for the caliber you are using. It has a carbide sizing ring that will ensure that your finished ammo will be factory sized. If you are finding that you have a lot of brass with bulges, you can pickup a Lee bulge buster to use along with that factory crimp die.
Click to expand...

im using : HORNADY 9MM LUGer 3-DIE SET SERIES II TITANIUM NITRIDE
 
All advices are right on the money its like 2+2=4. However what you should look at is the powder. Not the quantity, but how fast is its burn rate. I had few issues like you and the fast burning powder was the cause. Powders like Bullsey or Tight group which are popular choice now a days, have super fast burn rate for 9mm. Try some slower burning powders and load close to max charge, 115gr suppose to be hot. I switched to HP38 in my loads and problem went away.
 
In my opinion, as stated before your sizing die is not reaching close enough to the case head. If you inspect your reloads you may see a ring just above the case head. I use Dillon dies and run into this problem occasionally. It will leave a bulge where the ring is. Lee does not make a bulge buster die for 9mm because as they state this case is slightly tapered. http://leeprecision.com/case-conditioning-tools/lee-bulge-buster-kit/ With 9mm range pickup brass you should inspect carefully before you reload it. You may find certain brands may size differently. Off topic but you may also find military brass where the primers are crimped in and the primer pocket must be delt with before priming.
 
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