techj

CMC's have worked well for me.

I always re-use them but mark the rounds so that I only use them for plinking...although I have yet to have a problem.

Bad idea -- the FCD isn't meant to resize your bullet...in fact if it is then it's too tight of a crimp. The purpose is to apply the correct crimp on the brass and to remove any distortions/bulges in the brass case.

+1 on Power Pistol. It's my preferred powder for 9's. I've also been OK (for plinking) with AA#5 & VV340.

230gr RNFP coated (I use the Blue Bullets)...use this for both plinking and competitions.

I'm using them in 9 & 45 without a problem...other than some blue dust in the collator. The only adjustment that I had to make was to spread (very slightly) the lower collet on my 9mm die. The 45 die was good-to-go as it was. FYI -- I had been using both for a couple of years now with FMJ's. To me the only downside is that I prefer to seat and crimp separately with lead bullets and that means no powder cop...but I have always looked into every case anyway so it doesn't bother me.

Looks like the Montana gold bullets that I use for 357magnum. Just make sure that you load them hot enough so that you don't get jacket separation... don't ask how I know.

I've used 6.0gr with Montana Gold 230gr FMJ RN @ 1.260 result was 780fps in a 5" 1911. +on starting low and working your way up...be safe! It's OK and I only used it as it was the only powder that was close to what I needed at the time.

I prefer green - easier to spot quickly with my eyes.

You can also try the blue bullets (thebluebullets.com). They have small sample packs that aren't very expensive to try in different weights & profiles. They have what appears to be a powder coat vs polymer coating and while I notice some odor I think it's better than some of the polymer coated ones that I tried. FWIW I've shot now a few thousand in 9 (125gr RN) as well as in 45 (230gr RNFP) and have been very happy with them. The only downside is that you will get a little blue dust on your fingers if you're placing the bullets manually. I have been able to use them on my HornadyLNL with the bullet feeder and only had to spread the lower collet a slight bit to get them to feed vs jacketed.

+1 on Ballistol - also I don't' have to worry about getting any on the grips and the wife doesn't get (as) mad at me when some gets on my clothes. If I'm not going to detail strip but want to get the internals clean I do use the Hornady 1-shot aerosol cleaner/dry-lube. And for firing the firing pin channel just some 90%+ Isopropyl alcohol.

The only things not to like are #1 not for sale yet (it's been a looong time); and #2 it's expensive.

Sometimes you just need to organize the heavy bits first. Even though I have a pickup, getting everything in and out can still be a pain. What I did was make a box (open top) for the plates (I have 5) out of 1/2" hardwood plywood with a plywood divider between each plate. All of the plates are stored at the same height by placing a filler strip of plywood at the base of the slots for the smaller plates. I also placed some tie-down brackets around the box so it could be secured in any position that I wanted. Having the box made it much easier to retrieve and store the plates and also took a lot less room.

It makes it easier on your arm if you lube the cases. I ultrasonic clean my cases then lube & de-prime (with a Lee universal) and resize in large batches on my progressive. Then I run the resized cases through the U/S to get the lube off and any additional deposits/primer pockets. After drying I store the cases for when I reload. Just find it easier for me this way but usually do 1,000+ at a time. Yes, I know that I'm running everything through the press twice...but, I'm retired so extra time doesn't bother me. On the other hand, I don't run into having to stop the press while reloading due to a decap pin breaking or being pushed out (due to either a crimped pocket or debris) or a bad case that wasn't noticed until after resizing. Also, I can typically go 400-500 rounds without cleaning the stations due to powder debris as everything runs so much more smoothly.

I believe that it's a combination of better seal and less friction that allows lead/coated bullets to achieve the same MV with a lower powder charge. Less powder charge means less energy being generated and therefore the recoil will be less. More important to me, less powder - and a cheaper bullet - means less $$$ to shoot the same number of rounds.

I have the Midway bag and while it is not close to the Shooters Connection bag that my friend has, mine was only $39.99 on sale...so I can live with that . Besides, by the time it is loaded with 3 handguns & ammo it is too heavy to carry very far so I usually put the ammo into a 30cal box and call it good.

Thanks!

Regarding the shaved coating, what I find is that if the bullet isn't perfectly straight going into the seating die that you can get this minor shaving. For me, it rarely happens when I use a bullet feeder die vs. manually placing the bullet. In my personal experience I haven't seen any leading (glock oem barrel for 9's and 1911 45's). If odor is a problem you can also try the blue bullets. They use what appears to be a powder coating and while there is some smell it doesn't bother me and doesn't smell like burning plastic. Of course I only shoot outdoors so don't know how bad it would be at an indoor range.

I use wiley-x glasses and now I need to get an RX insert - I have my eye doc's RX but need to have recommendations as to where to order the lenses for the insert online (my doc doesn't do them). Any recommendations would be appreciated!

On my 1911's (45's, bullseye powder, coated bullets) I've been using oil without any problems...other than clean-up as the oil with powder residue seems to go everywhere. No reliability problems. Would switching to slide-glide (lite) on the rails and lugs reduce, make worse or no impact on the clean-up? FYI - I usually shoot about 200-300 rounds per range session and like to field strip/clean each time. Thanks!

+ for the LNL AP. Have had mine (w/bullet feeder & case feeder) for a few years and am very happy with it. I load 9, 357, 44, 45, 308 & 30.06 on it. If I only loaded 1-2 calibers and it was between the LNL and a 650 I'd probably go with the 650. But it didn't make sense $$$ when you look at a lot of different calibers. If I had to do it all over again the only thing that I would do differently would have been to go with a different bullet feeder as the Hornady one is very noisy and their bullet feeder dies can be a bit finicky to setup.

I've been very pleased using the blue bullets (coated lead) 230gr RNFP.

Mine never had a problem...until I shot it

I use the FCD with Blue Bullets in 45...adjusted them to just take enough to pass the plunk test. Haven't seen any damage to the coating after pulling bullets.

:devil:welcome from another in the 'couve