LegionShooter Posted May 7, 2014 Share Posted May 7, 2014 So I have my 550b set up and everything ready to go, minus powder. I almost had 4lbs of Power Pistol ordered until I discovered that Natchez SS doesn't sell or ship to TN, so now it's back to square one...any last minute advice before I press my first live rounds? I've loaded a handful of dummy rounds to check chamber function and get the press set. Currently using Winchester brass with 180gr Precision Delta loaded to 1.155" OAL. I took the manual's measurement and split it with the most popular OAL on the forum which seems to be 1.18". Using Win SP primers whenever I get to load live. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
earthshine402 Posted May 8, 2014 Share Posted May 8, 2014 So I have my 550b set up and everything ready to go, minus powder. I almost had 4lbs of Power Pistol ordered until I discovered that Natchez SS doesn't sell or ship to TN, so now it's back to square one...any last minute advice before I press my first live rounds? I've loaded a handful of dummy rounds to check chamber function and get the press set. Currently using Winchester brass with 180gr Precision Delta loaded to 1.155" OAL. I took the manual's measurement and split it with the most popular OAL on the forum which seems to be 1.18". Using Win SP primers whenever I get to load live. Please be mindful that the most popular OAL on the forum of 1.18" is for STI's. These rounds will not fit in Glock and other mags that are intened to shoot factory length (more like 1.13") .40. What gun are you loading for? I think 1.155 might fit in a Glock mag, but I think that is pushing the limits. Please don't "split the difference" with stuff like this - it is important to know your application and pay attention to other data points of a similar application. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LegionShooter Posted May 8, 2014 Author Share Posted May 8, 2014 Loading for a CCG 2011. OAL was gtg for mags and chamber. Completely understand the attention to detail with reloading and tolerances, perhaps it was a poor choice of words. 1.155 OAL will give me more case volume than the standard 1.13 in the manual so using the same powders and data at the factory length will give me less pressure. Was going to use that as my starting point before I tried to load out long. Let me know if I'm on the right track. FYI I ended up with Winchester SPP and the only powder I could find in stock specifically mentioned in either of my manuals was VV 3N37. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob01 Posted May 8, 2014 Share Posted May 8, 2014 Running an STI Eagle and started at 1.155" and then went back to 1.135" and there was no change in velocity or performance and they ran fine at both lengths. I am sticking to the 1.135" so i can use them in my Glock 35 as well. Try different lengths and see what works best for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LegionShooter Posted May 15, 2014 Author Share Posted May 15, 2014 (edited) Well I just ran my first batch of reloaded ammo. Everything seemed to go alright and it took forever to run 50 rounds because I was manic about double checking OAL, powder charge, and crimp. So after all the reading websites and manuals I set my first batch at an OAL of 1.178, using Precision Delta 180gr over 6.0gn of VV 3N37, which is all I have at the moment. I had some things that I questioned along the way so maybe one of you has an answer for me. I set the OAL on the press with dummy rounds at 1.178. I ended up with rounds ranging from 1.175" all the way to 1.181" I re-ran the 1.181" back through the seating die and they came out to 1.179"-1.180". Is this from inconsistent pull on the handle of the press? Or is this just the way I'm holding the rounds in the micrometer that provide variations in the measurements? I spot checked powder charges and got a low of 5.97gn and a high of 6.03gn on the scale. The scale has a wind cover which I didn't use, although when I weighed the same charge it was very different with the cover on. As an example a 6gn charge without the cover on weighed 5.7 with it on. Why is this? I calibrated and rechecked using a test weight without the cover and all seemed good. I checked about every five rounds for crimp and it came out to a very consistent .421" This weekend will be the big test. Chrono comes tomorrow and I'll test fire and record what I have. I'm feeling like I won't make major PF on this batch, but it'll be a good start point. Have to admit I'm pretty nervous to run my own ammo through this expensive of a gun for the first time. Hopefully this feeling will pass with time and experience on the bench. Is it a good idea to take factory ammo to compare to my hand loads, or to have on hand in case the gun won't function reliably on what I produced (or to put through the gun as it's first rounds anyway)? I'll take all advice, this is my first reload, my first Limited gun, and my first time shooting it since I got it. I'd hate to blow it up on the first go round. Edited May 15, 2014 by LegionShooter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterthefish Posted May 15, 2014 Share Posted May 15, 2014 I set the OAL on the press with dummy rounds at 1.178. I ended up with rounds ranging from 1.175" all the way to 1.181" I re-ran the 1.181" back through the seating die and they came out to 1.179"-1.180". Is this from inconsistent pull on the handle of the press? Or is this just the way I'm holding the rounds in the micrometer that provide variations in the measurements? I spot checked powder charges and got a low of 5.97gn and a high of 6.03gn on the scale. The scale has a wind cover which I didn't use, although when I weighed the same charge it was very different with the cover on. As an example a 6gn charge without the cover on weighed 5.7 with it on. Why is this? I calibrated and rechecked using a test weight without the cover and all seemed good . RE OAL, there will be some slop on a progressive. +/- .003 is fine. What type of seating die stem are you using. When I use RN stems that seat on the ogive OAL may vary more than those seated with flat stems. On the charge weight, static drawing the scale pan towards the wind cover is probably the culprit if there's no airflow and the readings are stable. Happens with my RCBS chargemaster. If so the correct readings are those with the cover off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
earthshine402 Posted May 15, 2014 Share Posted May 15, 2014 Yea, on the OAL: I find that seating the flat points with the appropriate seater insert that contacts the flat tip of the bullet gives the most consistent OAL. This was on a Dillon 650 with a Dillon seating die. I used to load 9mm JHPs and the contact point was on the ogive, and as peter the fish says, the ogive seated OAL's vary more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LegionShooter Posted May 15, 2014 Author Share Posted May 15, 2014 I'm using the standard Dillon seating die that came with my 550 setup. I'm using the smaller of the two ends of the insert. As a side note I also have some BBI 180s which seat to a noticeably longer OAL than the PDs do. I only loaded a few dummy rounds with those as I don't want to adjust everything until I'm out of the PDs. Again, not quite sure why the difference unless it's just the bullet shape thats causing it. As for powder charge there was no airflow and all readings were stable so the static makes sense. I'll probably just stick with leaving the cover off from here on out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hi-Power Jack Posted May 15, 2014 Share Posted May 15, 2014 I wouldn't try to load .40 major right away - get everything working properly with .40 minor loads, and work up slowly - just the way I'd do it. Matter of fact, that's exactly how I approached 9mm major. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LegionShooter Posted May 19, 2014 Author Share Posted May 19, 2014 Hit the range with the chrono yesterday, all went well. Here was the end result: Gun is a 5" LDC CCG Limited. Load 1: Precision Delta RNFP 180gr jacketed Winchester brass and SPP VV N320 4.4gr OAL 1.18" Avg velocity 776 PF= 139 Load 2: Precision Delta RNFP 180gr jacketed Winchester brass and SPP VV N320 4.6gr OAL 1.18" Avg velocity 827 PF= 148 Load 3: Precision Delta RNFP 180gr jacketed Winchester brass and SPP VV 3N37 6.0gr OAL 1.17" Avg velocity 836 PF= 150 All in all not too bad for my first reloads ever. Did have some large variations between shots in a couple strings, some I'm sure was on my part loading, but my chrono sat in direct sunlight and if I understand that can have an effect as well. 3N37 seemed to have the most perceived recoil, although not significantly greater than the N320, but noticeable. I've been shooting a Glock 19 in production with factory ammo and that seems to have significantly more recoil than any of these did. Going to load up some more rounds shortly and use my day off wisely...at the range... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LegionShooter Posted May 19, 2014 Author Share Posted May 19, 2014 Just got back from range round two this morning: Precision Delta RNFP 180gr jacketed Winchester brass and SPP VV N320 4.8gr OAL 1.18" Avg velocity 897 PF= 161 Precision Delta RNFP 180gr jacketed Winchester brass and SPP VV N320 5.0gr OAL 1.18" Avg velocity 919 PF= 165 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tac_driver Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 when you first setup the press make adjustments with a case in every station for best results i get a +- 3 that way on OAL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gandog56 Posted May 25, 2014 Share Posted May 25, 2014 So I have my 550b set up and everything ready to go, minus powder. I almost had 4lbs of Power Pistol ordered until I discovered that Natchez SS doesn't sell or ship to TN, so now it's back to square one...any last minute advice before I press my first live rounds? I've loaded a handful of dummy rounds to check chamber function and get the press set. Currently using Winchester brass with 180gr Precision Delta loaded to 1.155" OAL. I took the manual's measurement and split it with the most popular OAL on the forum which seems to be 1.18". Using Win SP primers whenever I get to load live. Natchez also does not ship to Georgia and Alabama. Something to do with the parent company only selling to distibuters an those states. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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