Vectan A1 powder - 9mm 115gr bullets: TEST LOADS WITH PICTURES

DarkSkyx

DarkSkyx

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I've been using a 'new' powder, Vectan A0 for 40S&W with great results. 4.7 - 5gr of A0 will put a 180gr flat nose copper plated bullet pretty much continuously through the same hole, at 50ft, using JR Carbine w/red dot. Shoots fine out of my Jericho 941 pistol too, but I can't shoot for poop with that thing for some reason.

So I figured I'd try Vectan A1 powder for 9mm. At first I heard it could be used for 9mm, so I bought 3x 1lb bottles, then I read that people have also used Vectan A0 successfully with 9mm. GRR. (I'd rather have one powder that can be used on more than one caliber that I use). Anyway...

Using Vectan A1..

Gun: Sig Sauer P226 Enhanced Elite w/Browning red dot

I made 60 rounds.

10x 3.0gr
10x 3.1gr, etc, etc...
.. up to 10x 3.5 gr.

Results:

3.0gr and 3.1gr failed to cycle the slide properly, and the round that fired was either stovepiping, or wasn't ejecting from the chamber at all. Not all the time, but probably 50/50.

Bullets: Campro 9mm 115gr Plated RN/FCP

10 shots of each load per target. It was hot, and my safety glasses were blurring up. but 'most' shots had the red dot on bullseye at the time of firing. :)

Remington factory load:


3.0 grains Vectan A1:


3.1 grains Vectan A1:


3.2 grains Vectan A1:


3.3 grains Vectan A1:


3.4 grains Vectan A1:


3.5 grains Vectan A1:


3.2 up to 3.5gr cycled without failure.

I haven't chrono'd any of it as I don't have one. 'Bought a Caldwell chrono last night from Cabelas. I'll test 3.4/3.5gr loads on the chrony when it comes in, and possibly go up to stronger loads.
 
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Fahi said:
The Vectan powders are French, and here one is used many... many...
I reload with A1 powder calibers 32acp (Walther PP) - 9mm (Glock 17 Beretta 92) - 38Sp/357mag (S&W 13 Rossi mod. 67) and 45acp (Para 1911 SSP) !
If you want to reload : http://http://www.vectan.fr/FR/tables-de-rechargement?type_arme=poing
Click to expand...

Yah I used their listing for A1, but they only had load data for 125gr bullets. I'm using 115gr. I think they had 2.8-3.4gr for 125gr bullet, and I started at 3gr but 3.0 and 3.1gr weren't enough to cycle the slide back properly and eject the spent casing on many rounds. Probably due to the lighter bullet not creating enough back pressure on the bolt. 3.2gr up to 3.5gr (my max) cycled the action fine. 3.4 and 3.5 seemed to be most accurate.

I have a chronograph coming to me in the mail. When it gets here I'll keep upping the loads by .1gr and stop either at around 1400fps (which is equiv to many +P loads), or when accuracy starts going off. Which ever comes first.

I just want to be running hotter stuff through a chrono to make sure there's no pressure spikes starting, as the loads start to get up there.
 
Cancelled my chronograph order from Cabelas.ca - what a mess those people are.

YESTERDAY:
1: I made the order *8* days ago - still don't have email saying it's shipped, and no charge has been put through to my credit card.
2: I noticed orders over $99 are free shipping if you use the 99promo promo code. I forgot, I emailed support saying I forgot and asked if they could refund the shipping.
3: They said I was NOT charge for shipping.
4: I copy/pasted my bill to them, which clearly showed $15.64 or something for shipping, and I asked when it was shipped, and told them I had not yet been billed.
5: They said the shipping has been refunded to me, ignored my question on when it was shipped and why I had not yet been billed.
6: I told them to cancel the entire order, and that I would order it through Amazon instead, since Amazon orders only take 2-3 days to get to me (usually 2, sometimes NEXT day), and that anything Canada-wide is usually 3-5 days. It's been *7* biz days and aside from my original order confirmation on the 20th, I've had no updates.

TODAY:
6: No email response from them, so I called them, asked when my order was shipped. Lady on phone said it was 'currently being processed'. I told them to cancel it. She said she would email them with cancel request.
7: I ordered it from Amazon.ca right after I hung up the phone, and will continue to look for products on Cabelas, then order through Amazon. Cabelas online shopping is a complete mess. Good web site, good layout, but everything I have ordered from them has taken forever to get to me. And I live in southern Ontario... not NW Yukon or NFLD.

I'm going to call back Cabelas now to get confirmation the order has been successfully cancelled. They dont' seem to know what's going on over there...

Edit: talked to some east-Indian guy who slurred and mumbled through his broken English, and from what I could piece together from those broken words, my order *is* being cancelled. Lesson learned. Don't buy from cabelas.ca if anyone else has it online. And man I wish their was a good gun store near me (oddly enough Bass Pro doesn't carry chronos except ones for archery)

[OFF RANT]


Anyways, somewhat off-topic, but those who are waiting for my speed tests of the Vectan A1 for 9mm, will have to wait a bit longer (as will I) :(

Update:

Difference between Cabela's and Amazon: placed order on Cabelas and still not shipped 9 days after making the order.

Placed order on Amazon yesterday afternoon: Your Amazon.ca order of "Caldwell ###31 Ballistic..." has shipped!

Sep.1 Update:

I started a new thread for this debacle, here: http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/foru...17-Cabelas-ca-MESS-UP?p=11721234#post11721234
 
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Vectan A1 powder for 9mm chronograph update:

Just tried my new Caldwell chrono for the first time. Here's the results for it:

115gr round nosed copper plated bullet:

9mm, 3.3gr of Vectan A1, 115gr round nose copper plated shot out of Sig Sauer P226 Enhanced Elite (average: 895 fps)


9mm, 3.8gr of Vectan A1, 115gr round nose copper plated shot out of Sig Sauer P226 Enhanced Elite (average: 1,024 fps)


Other loads:

3.4gr FPS:
969
926
896
903
811
894
904
950
855
927
Avg: 913.5

3.5gr:
919
939
894
915
965
974
988
971
948
932
Avg: 944.5

3.6gr:
910
956
992
943
944
963
1008
1022
936
940
Avg: 961

3.7gr:
1021
970
1001
982
1012
998
968
978
998
950

** Note: I was using a Hornady Auto Charge powder dispenser, which if it goes over 0.1gr, it will still beep saying it's good. So many of these shots may have been loads that are actually 0.1gr more than what the group load says. (ie: some shots in the 3.6gr group may have actually been 3.7gr, etc..) Which would account for the larger variations in FPS numbers.

Since 3.8gr was averaging just over 1000 fps, I'm going to keep going higher. 9mm +P can go as high as 1500fps, so I'm still WAY down the lower end of things. I'll probably do 4.2, 4.4, 4.6, 4.8, 5gr next.
 
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Thanks for the report. Is it readily available at around the same price as others? Pistol powders from the US seem to be erratic. Really want to find a reliable source, set up my machine for .40 S&W/180g and crank the handle.
 
Scooter Money said:
Thanks for the report. Is it readily available at around the same price as others? Pistol powders from the US seem to be erratic. Really want to find a reliable source, set up my machine for .40 S&W/180g and crank the handle.
Click to expand...

rustywood.ca and thebulletbarn sell the A series; check for availability.

A0 would work too in the 40.
 
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kg said:
rustywood.ca and thebulletbarn sell the A series; check for availability.

A0 would work too in the 40.
Click to expand...

Yep, I've been using 4.7 - 5gr of A0 for 40S&W (flat nose copper plated 180gr bullet) for awhile now. Works well.
 
I shot 10 shots of 3.9gr -> 4.5gr of Vectan A1 today. 115gr RN copper plated bullet, Sig Sauer P226 Enhanced Elite. Chrono about 12' away:

3.9gr: (I had to use the other 7 shots setting up the chrono - 'forgot to bring some extra ammo for that :( ) :
error
1014
1022
avg: 1018 fps

4.0gr:
1042
1031
1031
1011
1029
1024
1067
1054
1031
1039
avg: 1035.9 fps

4.1gr:
1048
1057
1036
1057
1038
1060
1044
1054
1011
1054
avg: 1045.9fps

4.2gr:
1079
1041
1033
1045
1068
1095
1075
1079
1062
1048
avg: 1062.5 fps

4.3gr:
1081
1055
1108
1087
1086
1085
1078
1090
1079
1081
avg: 1083 fps

4.4gr:
1091
1108
1066
1107
1112
1102
1106
1121
1090
1086
avg: 1098.9 fps

4.5gr:
1126
1097
1123
1157
1149
1149
1119
1118
1126
1098
avg: 1126.2 fps
 
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