TCWriter

I'm (sadly) in agreement with the above comments. My SD has been huge, and I'm going to order some VN320 and use the Comp for practice ammo. I really, really *want* to like it -- it's available, meters well, costs less than VN and shoots clean -- but I get tired of wondering what PF I'm shooting.

I switched from Extremes (I liked their 147 grain hollowpoints, but they cost a bunch more) to SNS Casting's 147 grain flatpoint and I'm happy. Started with Bayou's coated, but the SNS 147 grain bullet profile does away with the groove lube (which isn't needed), and I felt they loaded a bit easier and shot a bit more accurately. And yes, slightly less powder needed for the coated bullets, but powder isn't really the major expense in all this. I only had one odd moment; I had switched from the stock Glock barrel in my G34 to the Lone Wolf barrel in the midst of the shortage when all I could get was bare lead bullets. I kept using the LW when I shot plated and then coated with no issues -- until one day I hadn't cleaned in 500+ rounds, and I noticed keyholing in the targets. Somehow the Lone Wolf grooves were plugging up (presumably with the coating). It was easy to remove whatever was in the barrel, but I switched back to the stock Glock barrel, which -- several thousand rounds later -- hasn't shown signs of any kind of fouling from the coated bullet. I don't know what happened with the otherwise-fine Lone Wolf barrel, and while I keep telling myself I need to drag it out to the range and put 500 rounds through it in a session to see what happens, I haven't done so. YMMV. Good luck. TC

Forgot to mention: I was shooting 9mm minor (147 grain SNS coated) out of a G34 and G19. Maybe slightly stronger loads are more consistent.

After reading all the positive reviews from a couple years ago, I bought 16 pounds of RSC when it became available (it was one of the first fast powders I could get after the shortage). It's clean and meters well, but it's proven to be inconsistent, and the reverse temperature sensitivity turned my 129 power-factor, chronoed-in-the-winter load into a gamer load on a hot afternoon. I'm still using it, but now that I can buy VN320, thinking of using that for match ammo while burning up the RSC for practice rounds. I'd say it works, but the stuff I got is not in the same league as 320. Maybe the formulation has been changed.

I like my Classic Turret and have loaded 18K rounds on it over the last two years. It's a great way to start; only one thing is happening at a time so it's easier to learn and make reliable ammo, but once you've got it dialed in, you're still capable of making 200+ rounds an hour. Plus, it's affordable. At this point, I wouldn't say no to a Dillon progressive (it'd be nice to sit down and bang out 500 rounds in an hour), but I haven't yet pulled the trigger on an upgrade. Good luck with whatever you decide.

Can't get Glock 24s in California, so I was thinking of something similar; getting a LW 24 slide, finding an old G22 frame, and making a budget Limited gun. I liked the idea... until someone told me it wasn't legal in USPSA. (Time to dig into the rule book.) Good to hear the LW slides are reliable.

After I started shooting my Glock 19 carry gun in IDPA, I realized I didn't want to crunch my stock carry mags into the mud and gravel. Bought three of the California-legal 10-round ETS mags for compeitition. At first they wouldn't fall free easily, but after leaving them loaded for a couple days, that went away. Now they work fine, and because of the 8-round limit in CCP, the see-through plastic is nice to verify round count at a glance. I've been toying with the idea of building The Ultimate Budget Limited Gun That's Still Competitive using a G35, and a few of the ETS 140mm .40S&W magazines are a lot cheap than stock and baseplates.

The way your using the lee was why I was thinking it would be a good choice. I could use it to learn the loading process while I save up for a Dillon or Hornaday progressive. Then still have it for rifle and work up loads. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk I agree. Unlike a single stage, the Classic Turret can produce useful quantities of ammo while you learn (200-275 rounds per hour) and it's as affordable as the single stages mentioned. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

This is exactly what I'm seeing on my Lee Classic Turret. Almost everything gauges ok, but the lack of symmetry is disconcerting. I thought perhaps my bullet seating die was causing the problem; if adjusted per directions, the Lee seating die will crimp when it seats, which I didn't want. I'd backed it way out to prevent crimping, but maybe I'd gone too far. Farther up the thread, I noticed a couple folks suggested a bent/obstructed powder//flare die was the culprit, so I'm going to take mine apart. This a really good example of a useful thread. Thanks everyone who contributed.

Wanted to update my comment above where I mentioned a problem with the ETS magazines sticking in my Glock 19. Leaving me loaded for a couple days has done the trick; they drop free without any stickiness when I dry fire even loaded to capacity. Unfortunately, our range is snowed in so I can't confirm their live fire functionality. Soon enough... Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I have a Lee Classic Turret that fits that price range. I'm happy with it. At 250 rounds per hour, it's not as fast as the progressives (which exceed your price range), but it does make good ammo and it does so pretty reliably. Plus, I'm not the handiest guy on the planet and the Classic Turret really seems to minimize what I call "fiddle time" -- the time wasted messing around with a press instead of making ammo with it. Good luck!

I bought three of the ETS Glock 19 ten-round magazines (I live in CA) thinking I'd use them for IDPA CCP matches instead of beating up my carry magazines. Hard to load at first (but that's normal even with Glock 10-round magazines). At first my magazines wouldn't drop free unless I downloaded them one or two rounds. Left them loaded for three days and just checked, they're falling out now though a little sticky. Going to keep using them for dry fire and see if they get rid of the stickiness entirely. The ETS mags are very tight in my Comp-Tac mag holders. They seem to work fine in my beater Uncle Mikes mag holder. They seem to be loosening up in the comp-tac holder, so I'll keep checking. I wouldn't carry them right now, but after some breaking in time and dry fire, think they're fine for comp. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I've got about 16K rounds through my LCT, and I really haven't had any problems with the priming system, though I did put a piece of tape across the raised bit on the base that activates the primer lever when the ram is lowered. It was activating the lever a bit late so the primer would sometimes catch on the bottom of the shell holder. Problem solved. I get 220-250 rounds per hour, so five hours of loading would put you in the 1000+ rounds neighborhood, not 500. I sometimes look at progressives, but the LCT produces really good ammo with an absolute minimum of fiddle time. Good enough.

My experience too; I liked the Bayous just fine, but bought some SNS grooveless in 147 just to see if the grooveless design loaded easier (less bell on the case). I was surprised when they seemed to group better (from a regular bean-bag rest).

This. I got 3100 of SNS' coated, no-lube-groove 147 grain flat nose bullets for just under $218 shipped. That gets you right at $0.07 a bullet. Think Blue Bullets is offering a 5% discount code (triangle).

I'm not the handiest guy (I know computers, not loaders), so when I started reloading a year ago, I bought the loader that made the most sense to me -- the Lee Classic Turret. Only one thing is happening at a time, and the whole shebang was right at $300. 16,000 rounds of 9mm later it's been great; I don't make ammo any faster than 225 rounds per hour (a bit of a problem when I'm shooting a lot), but I was productive on it right away, haven't had any real hiccups, and the quality of the ammo has been excellent. Even the people who move up to a high-zoot progressive seem to leave their Lee turret press set up for the ammo they load less frequently (changing from one caliber to another really is a trivial job).

I believe the Lee seating die (in the four-die set) also crimps, but by backing out the die in the turret and screwing down the seating adjuster, you stop crimping and just use it as a seating die (it's in the directions). I did that; my seating die seats, and I bought a standard Lee taper crimp to replace the Factory Crimp Die (FCD), which many people suggested was a poor choice for my slightly oversized coated lead bullets.

I have them on my G19 carry gun (not on my G34 competition gun). Bought them so I could differentiate between my G19 and G17 mags at a glance, but now I just like them. They make it far easier to strip the magazine out of the gun in a hurry. The need for that is rare, but I did need the extra grip when I was shooting some leftover, underpowered test rounds through the G19 -- couple of times the mag froze in the gun and I had to yank it.

I've loaded many thousands of Xtreme 147 grain round-nose bullets, and while they load easy (and clean), I was getting less-than-spectacular accuracy at 20-25 yard ranges. The new Xtreme Hollowpoints did better, but I bought some Bayou 147 grain FP bullets for testing. My accuracy testing is hardly scientific, but in side-by-side comparisons, my Bayou groups were essentially the same as the Xtreme Hollowpoints. What I didn't expect was the sizable difference in velocity. Using 2.9 grains of Winchester Super Handicap (all I could get, so I got a lot), I was getting in the 870-890 neighborhood with the Xtremes. The same load with the Bayous ran 930-940 fps. A little more than I need. I've got a couple hundred more Bayous to test, but so far, I haven't seen any fouling. (Note: shot some 147 grain Precision coated lead bullets loaded by a friend; the accuracy was excellent, but there was some fouling in my Glock 34 barrel). The price of the Bayous -- compared to the hollowpoint Xtremes -- is nice and the glitter disco-ball gold finish definitely impresses the babes. More testing, but so far, the Bayous work well and they're cheaper.

Instead of a standard vertical magazine pouch, I've been using the Safariland Horizontal mag pouch, and I'm liking it. It attaches to your belt via a velcro wrap, and it holds the mag in place with a velcro flap over the end of the pouch. Since it's vertical, it doesn't dig in when I sit down or bend over, and with a little practice, I can get the mag out fairly quickly. Plus, it looks like a pouch for a Leatherman (the mag is fully enclosed). It's not too expensive ($18 MSRP). I carry my G19 in a Theis EZ Clip IWB holster, which isn't quite as comfortable as his two-clip hybrid style holster, but it's a *lot* easier to get on and off.

Let me know how it works for you. I found a bare minimum of pistol loading data for this powder, thought did find a report by someone who called Hogdon and was told it "had no pistol applications." But it's working for me, at least in the midst of a shortage that has made it largely impossible to get the other powders.

I was down to my last pound of N320, so bought some Winchester Super Handicap. It's dense, powerful stuff. Here's what I got: Powder: SHDCP Load: 2.9 grains Bullet: 147 gn X-treme plated COL: 1.142 Gun: Glock 34 (Lone Wolff barrel) Vel: 870 fps average (3.2 grains produced a 905 fps average)

I've seen the same effect (slower rounds impacting higher) on my G34 and G19, and assumed the "time in barrel" explanation was the reason. Fortunately, my G34 sights (Sevigney with the tall front FO) are right on with the 147 match loads. My G19 carry gun (Warren night sights) shoots a little high with 147 grain defense loads, so I'm ordering some 124 grain defense rounds to see if they are closer to point of aim. Good luck.

I'm down to my last pound of N320, so I'm going to find out if Winchester Super Handicap works. Burns only a little slower than WST (which a lot of people like), so here's hoping. I like shooting, but I sure do get tired of the shortages. TC

My mistake. The Safariland Deal (the 50% off part) is good through December, but the IDPA deal (where they send you the discount card along with your new membership) was only for a couple months. Sounds like you missed it.