John Hearne

After years of shooting 231, I picked up some Clays in hopes of cleaner burning loads that make major but not much more. I'm loading mixed brass, Federal large pistol primers, and Precision Delta 230 gr FMJ. Overall length is 1.248 to fit in Sig magazines. Rounds are from a 5" P220 (not a typo) I started out at 3.8 grains and averaged 679 fps I bumped to 4.0 and averaged 707 fps I bumped to 4.25 (10 throw average) and am getting 773 fps averaged. It seems that if I back it down to a ten throw average of around 4.2, I should be close the 750 fps I'm looking for. My only concern is that this exceeds the factory maximum load. What I'm reading on the forum seems to indicate that I'm not far off but wanted to check before starting to load for volume. Any thoughts?

I've been saving for a P226 Enhanced Elite in 9mm to shoot Production in USPSA and possibly SSP in IDPA. I just found an Enhanced Elite in 40 S&W for a really good price. I was wondering about the wisdom of shooting a 40 for Production and the possibility of using a 9mm barrel in it. The slide is not marked with a specific caliber so I think a 9mm barrel might be "legal." As a final consideration, I have access to a bunch of 40 S&W brass for free but not so with 9mm. Any ideas?

I'm doing ten throws and then dividing by ten. The powder I'm weighing has been sitting in the powder measure for a week or so. I had loaded the rounds and then chronoed them several days later. I was thinking that the powder had sucked up some moisture while sitting in the measure. I was thinking any thermal degradation had occurred earlier and separately from the moisture.

I'm in the process of dialing in my Dillon 550 for 45 ACP after it was refurbed. I ran a batch of fifteen rounds with a measured 5.51 grains (10 throw average) of Winchester 231 and chronographed them yesterday. My chrono showed the bullets running about 65 fps slower than expected from my Sig P220 (4.25" barrel) at 674 fps with a standard deviation of 18. The only change in components is the use of Precision Delta 230gr FMJ's versus Winchester 230 grain FMJ's. I crimp them just enough to fit a Midway case gage so I suspect crimp is roughly the same as the old rounds. I'm using Speer brass and Federal Large Pistol Primers and a Dillon beam scale. Today, I went to load another batch with the intention of bumping the powder charge up. When I did a ten throw average, I got a weight of 5.64 grains. I did it again and got 5.64. Being a skeptic, I ran it again and got 5.64. I have a Unique Tek Micrometer powder bar and the setting/adjustment has not changed since the last loading. I was a bit confused by this and can only think of humidity and degradation as explanations. My reloading bench and my supplies are in my garage which is heated but not cooled. My 10 lb jug of 231 has been sitting in the garage for a Mississippi summer. It has been in direct sunlight but has been as warm as the garage. The bench is by rollup garage door and humidity is high based on rust on the press and other accessories. So, what do the more experienced of you think about the decreased velocity and increase in powder weight? Can heat degrade powder enough over a year to cause the 65 fps loss in velocity. Do you think that the increase in powder weight is due to humidity (almost 2" of rain yesterday)? Should I load another batch of rounds with the charge that now weighs at 5.64 and see if the muzzle velocity is the same? Any other ideas?

I am looking for a set of adjustable sights for a Sig P220. I never knew how many differnent companies made adjustable sights including MMC, Meprolight, LPA, Dawson, Millet, and a few more I'm forgetting. I'd like to know which company makes the most durable sights. From internet reading the MMC's and the Meprolight seem to get the knod but there are apparently some issues with the tritium vials used by MMC. Any experiences or opinions on this subject?

I shot my first USPSA match this weekend and had a great time. I really enjoyed the complexity of the shooting problems and the challenges presented - much more interesting than IDPA from that standpoint. However, I've been shooting P220's for close to ten years. It's my duty gun, my off-duty gun, and my IDPA gun. I am also financially locked into the P220 at this time, owning four of them, a P245, and a ton of magazines and holsters. I had a couple of rule questions regarding the P220 in USPSA. As I understand it, my only division options are production with downloaded ammo and a capacity handicap and L-10 with 10 round magazines which I can get easily. I also own two 5" P220 slide/barrel assemblies with night sights that I'm in the process of setting up as a duty weapon. I really like the 5" slide assembly and was thinking that it on an Elite frame would be a great L-10 gun as there is no weight limit for the Division that I can find. Is my limited reading of the rules correct that a 5" P220 would be allowed in L-10? There aren't many of the night sighted 5" slide assemblies out there and I didn't know if there were any production minimums associated with the division. Thanks in advance.

FWIW, my carry gun is an stainless Elite P220 and its the gun I shoot in matches. I ditched the factory wooden grips and installed the "thin" P220 grips. In this configuration, with an empty 8 round magazine and a welded overtravel stop, the gun weighs 40.489 ounces.

I recently purchased a used 550 and accessories. I haven't reloaded any rounds since I'm taking my time and doing a lot of reading, gathering materials, etc. Before I get started, I was thinking about stripping and cleaning the press. It has been used a fair bit and I'd like to start with a clean slate. My question is - where do I find detailed disassembly instructions? I've googled the Dillon sight and can't find anything but the manual itself. Any suggestions???

I just mounted my 550 using the strong mounts. The maximum distance you can place the mounts from the edge is 2.75 inches. I'd go 2.5 inches to allow a little wiggle room.