Old School Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 So I took my new 9MM Open Gun out today for a test run. It ran fine, actually better than expected. We have just have a few things to tweak and then all is well. I read many of thread on BE and came away with a few loads that I tried and I am happy with. I have settled on a 124gr Berry HP bullet and HS-6 for powder. I worked up a 7.9 and 8.1 load but haven't chrono'd either as of yet. The gun cycled fine with a 9# spring. The slide has not yet been lighten (next phase) I have my OAL at 1.165 which is where my my question comes in. I think the rounds are too long. .I am using STI 9mm mags with spacers. In my Eagle I run 1.165 round nose minor loads. With the flat nose, I feel I need to shorten them up. How short can they get before they will start impacting pressures The frame is an STI 2011 frame, Scheumann barrel and STI slide. Round Nose Minor bullets fed fine, the JHP at this length were nut very smooth, hence the question. I want to thank all of those on BE that have shared their knowledge thus far. You have been a huge help to me. It is my hope that one of the 9MM Major Gurus will help me a long on this one. God Bless, OS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianATL Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 1.155 OAL max with the spacers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old School Posted October 19, 2010 Author Share Posted October 19, 2010 1.155 OAL max with the spacers Ah'ha! Thanks, brother. At 1.155, I will still be OK on pressures? OS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianATL Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 MY load at 1.155 with HS-6 is 8.2 grains with a 125 Zero JHP(170 PF). Your results may vary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Adamson Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 1.155 OAL max with the spacers Ah'ha! Thanks, brother. At 1.155, I will still be OK on pressures? OS I run 8.1 of HS6 in a 5" no holes gun at 1.165, if you are going to 1.155, I'd suggest you start at that 7.9 amount. But be warned, Berrys bullets are plated I believe and you may have problems peeling the plating off given the velocities you'll be running, better to run a fully jacketed bullet like a Montana Gold or Zero. YMMV, Alan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Adamson Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 MY load at 1.155 with HS-6 is 8.2 grains with a 125 Zero JHP(170 PF). Your results may vary Ya, Brian runs a shorty at times so not sure which load this is for.... in my case, as mentioned a 5" scheumann with no poppel holes and a 3 port cone comp, 8.1 with a 124g Montana Gold JHP give me right on the mark of 170PF at 1.165. Alan ps. see how different load/barrels/comps can be... you have to start low and work it up specifically for your particular equipment, etc. btw, in my case, I liked either Silhouette or True Blue or 3n38 or sp2 better than HS6, in fact, I liked my Autocomp load better than HS6 again, just different strokes for different guns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SLM Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 First, for the price of the Berry bullets at $83.47 a thousand you can get Montana Gold jacketed (not plated) bullets cheaper if you buy a case of 3750 bullets. They are $300.00 per 3750 which breaks down to .08 cents each and you won't have to worry about the plating separating. Second, I run the Montana Gold jacketed hollow points at 1.175" in STI mags with Joe Hardey stainless steel spacers. One of the things I've noticed on several is that people don't take the time to properly fit the spacers to the mags. The spacers won't sit flat against the back of the tube unless you do some work on them. Right from the Shooters Connection web site about the Hardy spacers... "Back edge that sits against back of mag needs corners rounded or beveled for proper fit." To go along with that Beven Grams told me that the spacers need to be glued or welded in place. Again, my experience is with the Montana Gold bullets, NOT the Berry bullets. If or when you change bullets, length, bullet weight, etc drop your powder charge back down and work up using a chrono again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PINMAN44 Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 Old School I used to run my 9's at 1.165 to 1.169 with 115's and HS6 for Major. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianATL Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 (edited) ... Edited October 19, 2010 by BrianATL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lcs Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 I know from experience---do not run Berry bullets in an open gun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old School Posted October 19, 2010 Author Share Posted October 19, 2010 Thanks to all. I bought just a box of Berry's for the sake of testing. In talking with the good folks at Scheumann, because of the barrel purchased, they felt the plating would remain intact. That said, since I need to get this right, I will pick up some Montana Gold Bullets. As for length, I will drop to 1.160 and see how thing go. Still need to chrono, etc. You guys are great. See you on the range! OS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old School Posted October 19, 2010 Author Share Posted October 19, 2010 Old School I used to run my 9's at 1.165 to 1.169 with 115's and HS6 for Major. At 1.169, how much of the bullet was in the case? Not much I am guessing. OS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PINMAN44 Posted October 19, 2010 Share Posted October 19, 2010 Old school plenty of bullet was in the case. Sometimes I ran my 9's out to 1.195 at that point you start to have very little bullet in the case. With Hs6 as a powder you don't need to run them as long as I once did. 1.165 is about the OAL for factory winchester white box ammo. I used 115's because they were the flattest shooting bullet for me. I wouldnt buy the berrys just because you can get jacketed bullets for a few bucks more per thousand and push them MUCH MUCH harder than the Berry's plated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old School Posted October 19, 2010 Author Share Posted October 19, 2010 Old school plenty of bullet was in the case. Sometimes I ran my 9's out to 1.195 at that point you start to have very little bullet in the case. With Hs6 as a powder you don't need to run them as long as I once did. 1.165 is about the OAL for factory winchester white box ammo. I used 115's because they were the flattest shooting bullet for me. I wouldnt buy the berrys just because you can get jacketed bullets for a few bucks more per thousand and push them MUCH MUCH harder than the Berry's plated. Cool. My case of Montana Gold 124gr JHP are on their way and should be here by the end of the week. Nice! OS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PINMAN44 Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiggerJJ Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 Althou others here (and myself) use loads that are WAY over specs for the powder you are using, I would HIGHLY suggest you stop shooting the ammo in question that is loaded over spec until you have a chance to crono it... better to be safe than sorry... And I also suggest you start down in the mfgrs specs with your load developement...see www.hodgdon.com for FREE data. the MAX load in the Hodgdon manual for a 124gn lead bullet (which is the data you should use for the Berry plated) is 4.7gn of HS-6! The MAX load for jacketed 125fmj is 6.8gn of HS-6... You should always work up to a load for your gun from mfgr published data. Althou HS-6 and major 9mm seem to be one of the few combinations that work and work well, doing it blindly (without a crono) is just asking for trouble... and you did make a good choice by going with Montana gold. I believe Berry says their max velocity is about 1200fps, way below major with 124s. You will be able to push the Montana golds up to major with no problems. Watch for pressure signs; flat primers, etc. and I highly suggest using pistol primers for load development, that way the pressure signs will show earlier that when using rifle primers. I use pistol primers ALL the time in my major 9 ammo, and FWIW, I feel that if you HAVE to use rifle primers to avoid pressure signs, you as asking for trouble... JMHO...get a crono and enjoy the fun of load developement! jj Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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