Collateral

Here is easy way to sort out if it is ammo vs the gun. Try to separate the upper & lower then pull the BCG out. Insert a loaded round by hand into the chamber. If it feels like it is sticking stop, don't force it in farther. It should not stick and should fall right back out. If it sticks you can easily remove it with a cleaning rod inserted in the muzzle end, and it will easily tap it back out. The cleaning rod technique seems to clear a stuck round much easier than mortaring if you have one available and is less severe on your optic. If it sticks, try the same test with some factory ammo. If only the reloads stick take a close look at sizing process. It could be shoulder set back as others mentioned or bullet run out. The scratches look like they are from the feed ramps and are likely not contributing to the issue.

I have run over 5 thousand of the Fiocchi SPP lead free in a stock Glock 17. They have run 100% for me. It is an easy way of avoiding lead exposure when possible. They definitely seat harder than Winchesters or Federals in my press. Seem close to a CCI?? No negative affects on velocity or accuracy. These are my preferred primer.

You mentioned a Glock 31 with a Storm Lake 9MM conversion. I have a lot of rounds down range thru a Glock 17 which is a 9MM with the same barrel length. I find that in the G17 I have have had much better luck with 124 or 147grain bullets compaired to the 115 grain. I would consider the Hornady 124XTP or 125HAP bullets to be very accurate in in mine with VV N320, Titegroup or Power Pistol powder. I have had better results with shorter OAL's between 1.10 to 1.13 in the factory barrel, can't comment on what would be good in a Storm Lake though.

G-Man Bart you have a valid point as I didn't have the load data that you had. Actual load data trumps a software algorithim. He mentioned being a begining reloader, it wouldn't take much bullet setback or variance in the measured charge before things got interesting with this powder so I advocated a conservative approach. On the other hand if a person can put out consistant reloads that follow published data then there is little to worry about.

Jon The chrono will not tell the whole story. The last load you mentioned is still in +P territory at the 1.09 OAL. To get to normal pressures you will have to keep dropping the amount of powder to the point where velocity suffers. If you are forced to have a very short OAL you may want to invest in Quickload (trust me is is worth it)if you are committed to using fast powders like Tightgroup. Tightgroup seems to react more in a more linear fashion when you get to OAL's like 1.125 or greater. Loaded short TG is flat out unforgiving. At short OAL's with TG there is no working up, you go from ok, to hot to dangerous in one or two tenths of a grain. There is a big difference in how this powder acts at 1.09 vs 1.125 OAL. I am not trying to rain on your parade, I just saw trouble on the horizon and wanted to help you avoid it. Another thought would be a switch to a lighter, shorter bullet which would increase the amount of combustion space in the brass. This would help a little bit. By the way a slower powder like Power Pistol which is very accurate in a lot of 9mm pistols is much more forgiving with the OAL's you are at. One last thought is ask for suggestions on the Brian Enos Factory Pistol CZ section of the forum. The CZ shooters have a lot of experience in dealing with very short OAL's and could likely help. Good luck & be safe

Jon I saw your post, noticed short a OAL and fast powder and it got my attention. Quickload came back with a pressure north of 43000 PSI on one of them which is way beyond SAAMI max. I like Titegroup along with many others on the forum, but it is a fast powder and what seems like a very small change to OAL or a .1 grain change in powder has a huge effect on pressure therefore safety. I would pull them and start over. P.S. It was shocking to me how big of deal little changes in OAL affect pressure in 9MM when you try different combos in Quickload. Even the length of the same weight bullet can be pretty significant. What kv501 said in his post is on the money.

You could try a undersize sizing die. I use a old lee carbide sizing die in my 550 and have never had a failure to feed due to sizing in a wide variety on guns. The undersize die probably reduces brass life a little, but 9mm brass is very easy to pick up off the ground. I never have to case gauge with this method.

Just wondering have you ever tried a shorter OAL for that load in the Glock 17? I have worked up the same load bullet and powder, but with mixed brass and federal primers and noticed accuracy improved as I reduced OAL with very good results at 1.12

I am planning on trying this as well. Sinclair International also sells it.

I have a feeling this this may help explain what is going on. Per Chris at cpwsa.com, I discovered this when I bought my sights from him. "All Glock model Warren Tactical and Sevigny sights are designed for a six o'clock hold with the .215 tall front, or to shoot point of aim/point of impact with the .245 tall front sight at 20 yards. Remember that Glocks and M&Ps are production guns, so there could be slight variations in each of them, and further affected by ammo, shooter tendencies, etc. M&P and 1911 sights are designed to shoot point of aim/point of impact." Link to 6 oclock hold He helped me select the correct combination for my G17 and am very pleased with the results.

I compete with a Glock 17 as well and have been working up minor loads for a while. I tried Universal Clays after a recommendation from a friend. He was having great results with a longer barreled 9mm. I tried in vain to find an accurate combination with a 115 FMJ 9mm in the shorter Glock 17. You may have better luck with the heavier bullets that you mention, but if you don't see the accuracy you expect Universal Clays you may want to try a different powder. I have had great results with N320 and Titegroup with the 17. You may see tighter groups with jacketed over plated, but the 124grn is a solid choice. Buy a few good reloading manuals, a chrono and have fun with the hobby.

I also run a Glock 17 in production. I am still on the hunt for the best practice / match loads for FMJ 115 - 124 grain bullets. I have been working up loads with Titegroup and one of my favorites so far is Winchester 124gn FMJ over 4.1 grains of Titegroup at 1.120 COL. Avg 135pf soft and accurate.

I had a good friend recommend Universal for 9mm. He has had good success with his Glock 9mm G34 and this powder. The extra barrel length (5.3 vs 4.5 inch) seems to make a difference and he has a soft, accurate load. Unfortunately I have not been able to create an accurate load for my G17 with this powder. As our barrel lengths are close you may have similar results. I have had the best results with Tite Group which is soft and accurate. SR4756 is accurate but harsh. Currently evaluating AA#5 and VV320.

I have an older Lee (plastic top knob) and a newly acquired Hornady Custom Grade New Dimension seating dies. The Lee is an in line old school die and provides ok results. I had high hope for the Hornady Custom Grade New Dimension seating die, but it is a nested design with a fair amount of wiggle between the nested sleeves. I am considering moving to a Redding Competition seating die, and see how that goes. I expand just enough to fit the base of the bullet snugly, seat, and then remove the bell with a mild taper crimp. I find that I need to seat slowly and I usually need to rotate the bullet as part of the seating process. If I seat too fast, load long and don’t rotate the brass case halfway during seating I will get run out. In other words roll the completed cartridge across a table and watch the nose of the bullet wiggle. The rest of the Hornady set is nice, but I am considering moving to a Redding Competition Seating die. This is all on a single stage press. I am not sure why it is a challenge to prevent run out in the 9mm, but when it happens your accuracy totally goes away. What dies are you using. I just tried a Hornady with a in-line seater. I have to have the bullet placed PERFECT for it to work even close to right. My Lee seating die puts everything in the case much better. I find the 9mm a easy case to load.

That link has been a good reference for some of the loads I have been using to date (after doing a reality check with my load books). The load books in general cover a specific round. Well with the power of internet, why not take it further and try to get good data on a specific gun. In this case a Glock 17 with 115 - 124 grn FMJ's. 9mm seems to be quirky enough that I am looking for some feedback from the Glock 17 shooters out there. Plus a good opportunity to get to know a few Glock 17 fans out there.

I am new to USPSA with just a couple of matches under my belt, and am really enjoying my new hobby. One of the bonuses if the sport is reloading for my blaster. I have a lot to learn, but the process is fun. One of the things that makes reloading interesting is that it is not always very intuitive. I have been testing loads for a Glock 17 for a while and came to a few conclusions: - 9mm is very sensitive to OAL (overall length of the cartage) and crimp depending on the powder - The barrel length affects the load a lot. There is a pretty big difference between what runs good in a G34 vs. a G17. - The powder and OAL combination have a big impact on accuracy. SR4756 (very accurate, but on the edge of making minor) Titegroup (pretty accurate & soft shooting, I like this stuff) Universal (medium accuracy & soft shooting) VV N320 (?? Work in progress looks very promising) - I find it can be tough to prevent run out during seating. I have this mostly under control, but if I rush it crops up occasionally. - Recoil is greatly affected by powder type. This is is really noticeable when I am able to use my chrono. Sometimes a soft shooting load (Titegroup) has a high velocity and tight standard deviation. Then a load with much higher recoil (SR4756) has such low velocity it would barely make minor! It was surprising to me that recoil does not have a very direct relationship to velocity. - I tend to prefer the snap recoil of a 115 - 124 grain over the push of a 147. This is just personal preference. I have a new respect for loading 9mm. So far my favorite is 4.5 of TiteGroup on a 115 FMJ at 1.13. This is good, but could be better. I enjoy working working up loads as much as the next guy, but components are expensive and tough to get. So are any of you Glock 17 shooters willing to share any of your secrets and help shorten my learning curve? I am looking for highly accurate loads for 115 -124 grain FMJ loads. Please include powder type, powder grains, bullet, and the all important OAL.

Chris - This is excellent information. I believe this is a true apple to apple comparison to my situation. Your barrel length, powder, and bullet type are right on. I appreciate you sharing this with me.

I have the 17RTF. I think the grip does break in after a week or two. The first couple of times it sands off some of the skin on your palm, but then the grip seems to slightly soften up and isn't so harsh. Overall I think the grip is excellent. My first Glock and I am very happy with it.

I must be missing something. I am only trying to achieve Minor. Sierra shows for a 115 1.10 OAL 5.0 grains running at 1150 fps, with a max load of 5.6 grains. The Sierra data seems pretty close to what I saw on my brief opportunity to chrono this ammo (117pf with 4.5 universal clays 115FMJ and 1.15 OAL). I estimate I would likely only have to run 1131 fps to equate to 130 pf. This is quite below a +P load would run, and the Glock 17 seems to handle those with ease. I likely only need to be a little hotter than standard factory ammo. I think 5.0 grains behind a 115 FMJ would do it. What am I missing? Collateral, The difference may be in the OAL. You mentioned that Sierra listed an OAL of 1.100". Your load was 1.150". That .050" could be the issue. It may be causing your load to run lower pressures and thus lower velocities. You have two options here. 1.) try moving the OAL back to the 1.100" as listed in the Sierra manual and re-test. 1.100" is a reasonable length and will not likely cause feeding or accuracy issues. 2.) gradually work up you load, looking for signs of excessive pressures. Go in .1 grain increments from 4.5 up to 5.0 grains and see what happens. Of course you will need a chrono for either option. I've used Universal clays a lot, in both .40 major loads and 9mm minor loads. I've never seen it do anything funny when working up loads. Unfortunately I've never loaded 115 grain bullets for 9mm minor. I did run this load for a while: 124 gr. FMJ (copper) at 1.100" OAL, 4.0gr. Universal Clay with Winchester small pistol primers. Gave me a 130-131 pf load from a G17. With that in mind, I'd bet you can safely make a 130 pf with 115 gr. bullets and Universal Clays. Just to clarify I am using "Hodgdon Universal Clays" not to be confused with "Clays" or "International Clays." I think this powder will safely reach minor, I will just work up slowly. The difficult part is I don't have a way of knowing when I am there with out a Chrono. I think for my next match I will shoot factory ammo and try to find access to a Chrono. I appreciate all of the comments.

I must be missing something. I am only trying to achieve Minor. Sierra shows for a 115 1.10 OAL 5.0 grains running at 1150 fps, with a max load of 5.6 grains. The Sierra data seems pretty close to what I saw on my brief opportunity to chrono this ammo (117pf with 4.5 universal clays 115FMJ and 1.15 OAL). I estimate I would likely only have to run 1131 fps to equate to 130 pf. This is quite below a +P load would run, and the Glock 17 seems to handle those with ease. I likely only need to be a little hotter than standard factory ammo. I think 5.0 grains behind a 115 FMJ would do it. What am I missing?

Thank you for the welcome. I have seen their data. From what the Hodgdon indicates I should already be there. Unfortunately that is not the case for my gun. I figure the answer lies somewhere 4.5 and 5 grains. I am less knowledgeable on the OAL. I do know that I have run all the way out to 1.155 without contacting the rifling. Anyone running this in a Glock 17?

I am shooting a box stock Glock 17. I am working up a new load with 115 FMJ, 4.5 grains of Universal Clays and a 1.15 OAL. I had a limited opportunity to chrono this ammo and was surprised when this only made a 117 power factor in my gun. My barrel length is shorter than my friend that I received the load data from. As I don't have a chrono I figured someone must have worked up this combo before. I want to safely make minor with at least a 130 power factor. What changes will get me there? How much more powder? Would a change on OAL have an impact? The gun is pretty forgiving on OAL seating depth and will feed what I give it reliably. Any feed back from Glock 17 owners would be most appreciated.