.40 brass question

[Wanted]

Without starting a flame war and argument, I have a question about loading the .40. I know a lot of the more experienced loaders are sick of these threads. I have a few questions on the subject. Does my XD chamber "support" the round? I definately need a case gauge with this round? Will my new Dillon dies I got for Christmas size some of the "bulged" brass that I may or may not have? Thank you all for all the help you have given people like me over the past year.

[EkuJustice]

You could always use your barrel as a case ga

[Wanted]

Duh, I hate it when people make my complicated life simple. (dont know why that one escape me)

Edited December 26, 2010 by Wanted

[gng4life]

Yep, the barrel is the ultimate case gauge The Dillon dies should be okay, I used them for a decade and a half but then switched to the EGW U-Die and my case gauge/barrel days are gone. I haven't gauged a round in 2 or 3 years and never had a bulged case ruin my day...I usually do that to myself

[bbbean]

I haven't gauged a round in 2 or 3 years and never had a bulged case ruin my day...

You're either the luckiest guy I know or you're living on borrowed time. My U-die cut my Glocked brass problems from a few rounds per hundred to a few rounds per thousand, but they didn't completely go away. The gauge also catches the occasional poorly seated bullet, split case, or other oddball problem that slipped through sorting and cleaning without being caught. I don't always case gauge practice ammo (failure drills are important, too), but I've learned my lesson about shooting a match with un-gauged rounds.

BB

[Joe4d]

DOnt worry about the "support" thing you are reading in the manuals, just dont push the envelope on ur loads, really isnt any reason to. Its a .40 not a 10mm, The barrel removed from the gun makes the best case gauge, doing that will tell you if ur dies are ok, personally I did not have very good results with Dillon dies I got lots and lots of case gauge failures and quit using them.

[Warhammer4k]

Without starting a flame war and argument, I have a question about loading the .40. I know a lot of the more experienced loaders are sick of these threads. I have a few questions on the subject. Does my XD chamber "support" the round? I definately need a case gauge with this round? Will my new Dillon dies I got for Christmas size some of the "bulged" brass that I may or may not have? Thank you all for all the help you have given people like me over the past year.

I don't mind re-hashing this topic. It is something I had to think about a lot, and I hope that my experience can be of help to you. I began my reloading hobby with .40 S&W and have loaded & fired thousands of rounds over the years in a variety of guns.

The XD chamber does support the brass more than some other chambers, for example Glock. The only guns with truly complete case support are revolvers, but you shouldn't have any problems with "Glock bulged" brass from your XD.

Yes, you should use a case gauge. True, some don't bother with them, or they use the actual gun chamber as a "gauge." Here's why I use the case gauge: If a reload will fit in the case gauge, it will definitely fit in the barrel. Case gages are much tighter than production gun chambers, because case gauges are close to maximum SAAMI dimensions for the cartridge. That is helpful if you reload for more than one .40 S&W gun.

Even if you only reload for one gun, case gauging every round helps quality control. It is one more opportunity to eyeball each cartridge & notice defects. For example, the primer feeder on my Hornady Lock-N-Load AP occasionally flips a small pistol primer. If I didn't case gage, I might not notice the upside-down primer until I got to the range & was loading magazines. I'd rather catch it at home, where I can set the round aside for re-work.

I segregate my reloads into two groups, by whether they drop into the case gauge easily and loosely. If they resist going in the gauge even slightly, I put them in the "problem child" group, with a special marking (usually blue Sharpie across the head). I use those rounds when malfunctions are either not a big deal or actually somewhat desirable, e.g. for practice. The other, "A-OK" rounds get used in competition.

As for sizing: You should be OK with the regular Dillon size die. Give it a try at least. If you find that lots of your reloads won't fit in the case gauge, then you might think about another sizing tool.

[GrumpyOne]

Reloading several thousand rounds of 40 for my XDM (20k+ in total for my other 40's), no issues with Dillon dies. The barrel of your XDM is pretty liberal as well, so it really isn't an issue.

[gng4life]

I haven't gauged a round in 2 or 3 years and never had a bulged case ruin my day...

You're either the luckiest guy I know or you're living on borrowed time. My U-die cut my Glocked brass problems from a few rounds per hundred to a few rounds per thousand, but they didn't completely go away. The gauge also catches the occasional poorly seated bullet, split case, or other oddball problem that slipped through sorting and cleaning without being caught. I don't always case gauge practice ammo (failure drills are important, too), but I've learned my lesson about shooting a match with un-gauged rounds.

BB

You probably shoot a lot more than me than. I don't have time for regular practice so with practice and matches, I only shoot about 3K-4K a year in .40 (all customized STI's) and less in 9 and 38SC. I will probably get bit one day but I hate gauging all my rounds. If it's an Area match or better, yeah, that's different. I should do that but I've only made one in the last two years. However, I swear by the U-Die...and so does my daughter (who use to gauge a lot of my ammo). Take care and Happy Holidays!

Edited December 27, 2010 by gng4life

[Dan Hefta]

I case guage all fo my reloads, however I have never had a .40 SW reload that hasn't passed. I use all one fired brass that I get from a very good LE friend of mine, they shoot nothing but Glocks. I just can't seem to skip the case guage step... I have reloaded over 5000 .40's and have never had a bulged case... Is this because I am using once fired brass?

[Mark R]

I used once fired brass from a well known internet provider and had bulge issues with the brass. They informed me that the brass was Glock fired from a police range. I didn't care about the Glock-fired, but rather the bulge I was seeing on the brass. I was getting about 7-10% rejects from a case gauge at times (unacceptable as far as I'm concerned).

My remedy for .40 case bulge was to run each 40 case thru the Gr-X push-thru die mounted in a cheap $30 single stage press. Now I can skip the case gauge step, but for some reason I still do it. Except now, I get 99.9% cases "good to go" in 40.

But that was when I was shooting 40 last year...gone to the far side now...OPEN!

Edited December 27, 2010 by Mark R

[ThomasJ2772]

Your Dillon dies will not remove the bulg you get from guns like the glock. If you want to reload brass shot in a Glock you might think about getting a roll sizer. They work great.

Money spent on a case gage is money well spent. Not only is it quicker to check frequently while reloading, it's certainly safer.

Edited December 28, 2010 by ThomasJ2772

[G-ManBart]

I case guage all fo my reloads, however I have never had a .40 SW reload that hasn't passed. I use all one fired brass that I get from a very good LE friend of mine, they shoot nothing but Glocks. I just can't seem to skip the case guage step... I have reloaded over 5000 .40's and have never had a bulged case... Is this because I am using once fired brass?

All of my once-fired .40 brass comes out of factory stock Glocks, and I have to run it through a U-die to get it to chamber in my 1911/2011s. R,

[Wanted]

Thanks for all the support. I have always ran everyone of my rifle rounds through a case gauge. I will do so with pistol in the future. You all also made the loading of .40S&W less scary.Thanks