ChemistShooter

Fairly new loader here. I started out on the 550B, 3700 rounds loaded and fired so far without any real problems. Just don't be in a hurry. Go slow, read a lot, ask lots of questions, make sure.

Will check them all out. Springer looks like they have what I want but don't specifically say it will fit a 3.8. A phone call won't hurt. Thanks to all.

I own a 9mm XDM 3.8 full-size. I've put about 7500 rounds through the gun plus at least twice that many dry-fire clicks, and the trigger is starting to feel mushy and I'm starting to get light strikes and failure-to-fires. Yeah, I need to replace the striker springs. I called Springfield for advice and that was a disaster. I thought I was ordering a striker assembly but what I got was a recoil assembly, which is the wrong damn thing. So I need to know who to call and what to order to get the striker assembly working again. Springfield is obviously totally lost and I am too.

Took my brand-new Caldwell Chronograph to the range for the first time and shot 50 rounds of various loads through it. The Caldwell survived its trial by fire without a scratch, although I am saddened to report it has taken to strong drink to keep the nightmares at bay. I'd like to post all the data in a legible format, but the forum software keeps crushing the formatting, so I will just post the results: SA XDM 9mm 3.8 Full-size, 115gr Hornady FMJ, .355, OAL 1.151, TiteGroup 4.1: Avg:1091, SD 20.1, ES 68,PF 125 SA XDM 9mm 3.8 Full-size,Bayou Bullets 115gr coated, .356, OAL 1.161, TiteGroup 3.9 gr: Avg:1037, SD 7.0, ES 23, PF 115 SA XDM 9mm 3.8 Full-size,Bayou Bullets 115gr coated, .356,OAL 1.161, TiteGroup 4,1 gr: Avg:1080, SD 11,2, ES 37, PF 124 Hmm, only Blazer brass was used. Don't really know how to interpret the data, although AFAIK it shows I'm within safe parameters. For comparison purposes I shot some Blazer 115gr FMJ plinking rounds and some Federal Champion 115gr JHP self-defense rounds. I was considerably bemused to discover the JHP's had a detectably greater kick despite having the lowest average velocity. (Increased air resistance caused by air being rammed into the hollow points?) Blazer 115gr FMJ, .355: Avg:1117, SD 33.7, EX 107, PF !28 Federal Champion JHP, .355: Avg:964, SD 7.5 ES 24, PF 111

This is a chemistry question. The answer is yes, adding fresh cleaning solution will result in cleaner brass. A slight caveat.: The difference may be slight. It depends on how efficient the cleaning solution is. If the solution is very efficient, you won't be able to see a difference, even though there must be one. Extraction (cleaning in this case) works on a percentage basis. Let's say the solution is 99% efficient, and there are 10 grams of crud on the brass to start. On the first extraction pass, the solution will remove 9.9 grams of crud, leaving 0.1 grams behind. On the second extraction pass (adding fresh cleaner), the cleaning solution will remove 0.099 grams of crud. You won't be able to see this.

One of the primary design considerations for a soap is that it be easily rinsable. Multiple rinsings should leave zero residue behind. That said, the taste test is a not a bad idea and not one I would've thought of.

I get the water off with denatured alcohol. Pour drained brass out of beaker onto towel to remove most of the water. Back into the beaker and cover with alcohol. Shake a little to mix. Let sit for a minute. Pour alcohol back into container for next time. (It's reusable.). Pour brass onto dry towel or paper towel. Spread brass out. It'll air-dry in an hour or two.

Ah. That's what I'll do if this one doesn't work. Surely the factory will have one that works.

Tried it in the morning, no light but diffuse sunlight through the blinds. Still couldn't detect a bullet. It would trigger about half the time if I ran a flashlight over the sensors, something the Website recommended. My results indicated the rear sensor had lost most of its sensitivity. Back to Amazon for a replacement. Hopefully I'll have better luck. If not, move up to a CED M2, I reckon. Thanks to all.

I bought a Caldwell Ballistic Premium Precision Chronograph off Amazon and paid for a new one. Box showed up half-ass sealed on one end with clear tape, which made me think this was somebody's returned unit. I set it up in my apartment. Installed the IR lights. The little red lights came on, and it went through its start-up sequence. And surprise, surprise, it doesn't work. At least as far as I can tell. I set it up in my apartment, regular light, no flourescents and tossed some some of the cast bullets I just bought directly over the sensors, front to back. And nothing, not a twitch. Damn thing couldn't detect a cannonball. I went crawling through the manual, but couldn't find anything. It'll go through its start-up sequence, but that's just about all it will do. Sometimes it'll throw an error message. I wiped the sensors with a Q-tip, no effect. Tried the manufacturer's Website, no revelations there. The smartphone app also will not detect the unit. I'm guessing it got dropped somewhere along the line. Unit's probably DOA, but I thought I'd ask here and see if anybody knows something I don't about how to make it work.

I do a one-minute rinse with denatured alcohol. Spread the brass out and it will air-dry in an hour or two. The alcohol is re-usable and can be poured back into the container. Make sure it's a well-ventilated area so the fumes can disperse. Acetone will dry even quicker, but it's volatile and flammable, so be careful. (Yes, so is alcohol, if not as bad as acetone, but most people are familiar with alcohol.)

If you take the powder bar off with powder in the hopper, powder starts flowing everywhere. Ask me how I know this. The powder dispenser has to be empty before you can slide the bars out. So you have to empty the hopper first, which means that bushing has to come out. "screw the wingnut off the failsafe bar to allow the powder measure to lift off the toolhead" Fudge. That's it. Such a simple solution. No forcing necessary. Thank you , Mr. G. I just ain't mechanical. Sarge, I went real light. Aluminum scratches easy. A couple of passes with a paper towel and I was done. Thanks to all.

I noticed my powder bar seemed to be sticking and consulted the Dillon manual. It oh-so-casually mentioned the powder was going to need cleaning every once in a while due to a build-up of powder residue, and that some powders were worse than others. TiteGroup apparently is one of the better powders as it's been around 2500 rounds now. So off I go to do what appeared to be a ten-minute job. It looked easy. Pull the little white bushing out. Take fail-safe rod off. Take powder measure off and dump powder back into container. Loosen that little screw to push the thingies back so the bars will come completely out. Pull out little plastic pin on the spacer bar. Pull spacer bar and powder bar out. Clean with acetone and re-install. I couldn't get past step one. That little white bushing would NOT come out, no matter how hard I tried. I had pliers on the damn thing at one point. I couldn't yank too hard as I was scared of destroying it or bending the fail-safe rod. I finally gave it up, took the whole damn 550B off the Strong Mount and emptied the powder measure that way. Took two solid hours, a lot of cursing, and powder scattered everywhere. Dillon failed to mention the spacer bar would have powder in it. Or the white square plastic thingy that would come off and by pure blind luck happen to land in my lap. But I got it done, and it needed it. The paper towels turned gray, and the action is much smoother now. I can't believe this is supposed to be such a circus. If there is some trick to getting that bushing out, I'd really like to know. If by chance there is some UniqueTek powder apparatus that is easier to maintain, I'd like to know that too so can put it on my wish list.

Thank you for putting it together, TSi. It's gonna be a big help.

Surgeon needed a bit of prompting, did he? Healing vibrations.

And waddya know, a Caldwell Premium Chrono and a thousand 115 gr Bayou Bullets both landed on my doorstep today. Don't tempt me.

Good solid info. This work needed doing. It would've been a shock to find a lot of variation. A random comment: As a wild guess, I would think uniformity would affect accuracy more than bullet diameter. How closely the bullet conforms to the ideal bullet shape.

VERY useful. Copied to my maintenance SOP. It has been amazingly difficult to find the information to put together a maintenance schedule. Springfield will replace what I break? That explains why I can't find anywhere to buy spare parts. I normally shoot two one-hundred-round sessions per week. just FMJs so far but I'm about to switch to coated. I have put 6476 rounds through my gun so far and a lot more than that dry-fire clicks. I clean it after every session. I don't know about other powders, but TiteGroup leaves a mess behind. Really not looking forward to taking that striker assembly apart, but it's going to have to be done one day. I swear the trigger spring is starting to feel mushy, or maybe my finger is just getting stronger. I ordered me one of those mats that has an exploded XDM diagram.

Ah. Now that is a help, particularly the chopsticks. Link stored.

Yeah, 9, I know the primary route of ingestion for lead (for shooters) is breathing it in. It doesn't go through the skin. Overthinking? Guilty as charged. You should see my reloading SOP. Every session so far results in a couple of new lines. Every once in a while it pays off.

Bachelor's.

I've had the same thought, hammer. Can't find a single thing, although the hundred-round case gauge combined with bullet boxes isn't bad. I have been thinking of what it would take to make something that would work but inspiration has not hit yet. Although I would still case-gauge in any case. Just trying to save minutes here. Hmmmm, something like a primer flip tray . . . with holes in it somehow . . . I have gradually evolved a system of doing everything by the hundred-bullet bullet box. This makes accounting for every single cartridge and primer easy. No chance of a loose round hiding somewhere or primers being scattered on the floor. Storage is easy too. I have made two Dillon bullet-box orders and STILL don't have enough bullet boxes.

It doesn't BOIL until 1749C (3180F), when its vapor pressure equals atmospheric pressure. Lead's vapor pressure steadily rises with temperature, i.e. the hotter the lead is, the more lead vapor you are being exposed to. Consider water. A cup of water will evaporate totally even if not heated. This is due to its vapor pressure. Water molecules are leaving the water at a certain (temperature-dependent) rate, and eventually it all disappears, no matter its temperature. Same thing with lead, although the required temperature is a LOT higher. Let's get nerdy for a second: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vapor_pressures_of_the_elements_(data_page) Lead is element 82. Edit: I have the feeling "Lead vapor does not become a health hazard until it hits 1200 degrees." is what is being said. It fits. The vapor pressure probably does not become significant until then. And really I wouldn't know, because this is actually toxicology, not chemistry.

Speaking as a chemist, if you use lead to slug a barrel, make sure you do it in a WELL-ventilated area. Lead will cause long-term problems. Edit: Read the article. Okay, they don't melt the lead. so no vapor problems. Nevertheless, be careful. You're going to get lead chips in the air. Again, do it in a well-ventilated area.

Makes sense. Lead is a soft metal. I've got some Cerrosafe but haven't gotten around to slugging the chamber yet. I have read good things about Eggleston. Taken under consideration. Thanks to all.