How do you reload to chronograph new loads?

[IHAVEGAS]

4 minutes ago, MemphisMechanic said:

Different brass manufacturers have different wall thicknesses, and you might be surprised how much variation there is in the length of cases.

 

I will try it. Without data I just figured that since the stroke of the press doesn't vary brass variance would result in variance of exposed surface of the bullet above the brass instead of in oal. 

 

Live and learn. 

[RePete]

19 hours ago, 57K said:

 

You are aware, I Hope, that case-makers do not make cases all to 1 specified size. Some of the foreign made junk can have appreciable thicker case-walls. So, would you expect the same results when you fire 10 rounds over the chrono when internal case capacity is most certainly different? No matter if rifle or pistol, as cartridge pressure increases, things get more critical and some Major 9 is not that far away from rifle pressure depending on the cartridge. Maybe even higher than some like .30-30 Win or .45-70.

 

Some may believe that, or that OACLs of +/- .010" don't matter. Start adding these things up and I guarantee that they matter. All you need to is observe the stats from the chrono. If you want great Match loads and you are trying to keep standard deviation below 10, or even down to 5, good luck! Or maybe count on an uber-fast burning powder not being as reliant on internal combustion dimensions in the case of Minor loads. Your chrono will let you know so long as it provides SD.

 

Stick has it right! And, it's easy to do even if you loaded with multiple headstamps of similar size cases. Just pick those of the same headstamp out of the box when you load 10 or whatever, into your magazine.

 

I am, but we are talking mainly about pistol.  

 

I forgot to add that I, along with most other PPC shooters, used the same 38Sp brass.  I preferred Federal, and none of it was from the same batch, while others preferred Winchester and some liked Remington.  Shooting 50 meters one needed all the help one could get.

 

 

[RePete]

19 hours ago, 57K said:

 

You are aware, I Hope, that case-makers do not make cases all to 1 specified size. Some of the foreign made junk can have appreciable thicker case-walls. So, would you expect the same results when you fire 10 rounds over the chrono when internal case capacity is most certainly different? No matter if rifle or pistol, as cartridge pressure increases, things get more critical and some Major 9 is not that far away from rifle pressure depending on the cartridge. Maybe even higher than some like .30-30 Win or .45-70.

 

Some may believe that, or that OACLs of +/- .010" don't matter. Start adding these things up and I guarantee that they matter. All you need to is observe the stats from the chrono. If you want great Match loads and you are trying to keep standard deviation below 10, or even down to 5, good luck! Or maybe count on an uber-fast burning powder not being as reliant on internal combustion dimensions in the case of Minor loads. Your chrono will let you know so long as it provides SD.

 

Stick has it right! And, it's easy to do even if you loaded with multiple headstamps of similar size cases. Just pick those of the same headstamp out of the box when you load 10 or whatever, into your magazine.

 

I am, but we are talking mainly about pistol.  

 

I forgot to add that I, along with most other PPC shooters, used the same 38Sp brass.  I preferred Federal, and none of it was from the same batch, while others preferred Winchester and some liked Remington.  Shooting 50 meters one needed all the help one could get.

 

 

Edited January 31, 2018 by RePete

[Sig0431]

A lot of great information here. Thanks to everyone so far. I little off / on topic. I want to double check what I am loading for the chrono this weekend. Since there is very little information out there, can someone recommend the min / max load for Prima V and N320 for the following:

 

9mm

124

135

145

147

160

 

I want to keep records of all this information and this is a data point that I have not been able to find with any consistency. None of my loads for this weekend go over 4.0gr I am just trying to develop data.

[motosapiens]

On 1/27/2018 at 8:46 AM, armydad said:

The more you fire of a particular load will give you a better/more accurate SD. I’d shoot at least 20 of each load.

 

 

I'm good at math, so I typically only load 6 or so of any particular load until I get it dialed in for power factor. I think the op is embarking on a pretty ambitious project (lots and lots of variables), so my question is what is hoped-for result? Trying to figure out what is 'best'? good luck, lol.

 

I find it pretty difficult to put a load together that won't run as accurately as anything else in my guns (much more accurate than I can actually shoot), so i don't stress too much about group size as long as i can put just about every shot into the upper a-zone at 15 yards. We're not shooting bullseye, so the difference between a 2" group and a 2.5" group doesn't matter nearly as much to me as reliability and the predictable return of the sights. Not sure I could even measure the difference between a 2" and 2.5" group anyway, since I can't aim that well at 25 yards.

 

You're using powder that is well known for metering well and having low SD, so I wouldn't do anything special to ensure that. Honestly, unless you just have time and money to burn and are super interested in the process, I would probably just pick 1 bullet weight at a time, get a nice 132-135 pf load dialed in that groups well, and then test that load with different springs. find the best combo for that bullet before moving on to the next load. My head would get muddled with all the data you are going to collect.

[Sig0431]

25 minutes ago, motosapiens said:

I think the op is embarking on a pretty ambitious project (lots and lots of variables), so my question is what is hoped-for result? Trying to figure out what is 'best'? good luck, lol.

 

Very good and valid question. Honestly there are a few reasons why I am doing this (to continue my education into reloading etc.) but I wanted to do something to help other shooters like myself that are still new to the sport and or reloading. I have spent countless hours researching loads, bullets, powder, recoil spring weights etc etc. I find a little data here and there so I wanted to try and give something back to the community that has been huge in helping me in my development.

 

I plan to post all of my initial Chrono's in the Sig section in hopes that it may help someone out in the future as well I hope that I can get some involvement from other members with adjusting loads, OAL etc and then posting the findings.

 

What I also did not mention is that when I have loads for all these bullet weights narrowed down to meet PF requirements (with a buffer) I am going to produce video's to post showing the recoil so we can compare each load. I have already created a striped background for known distance and I am creating a vice to hold the P320 with the same amount of pressure that I do.  With recording even at 60fps I will be able to show and evaluate the recoil of each load. This is the point where I will then adjust the recoil springs and post videos for that.

 

Who knows, maybe no one will care, maybe a lot of people would like to view this information and provide additional tests. The cost for doing this is low, this weekend I am shooting 5 different bullets and each bullet has 5 different reloads (in 0.2gr increments roughly) with 2 different powders. I purchased 100 bullets in each weight for about $8.00 each and will still have 50 more bullets for the next test after this weekend. I think it is a sound investment even if I am the only one getting any benefit out of this but I know many shooters running a P320 that would like to see someone post this level of detail with this many bullet weights.  

Edited February 2, 2018 by Sig0431

[motosapiens]

makes sense. sounds like something you are curious about and you will learn some stuff.

 

you probably already know this, but be careful about making judgements about 'recoil' based on anything other than being able to shoot accurate follow-up shots quickly. I've spent a fair amount of time and effort searching for the magic load in both 9mm and 45, and I've come to the conclusion that the load makes less difference than grip, practice, and watching the sights so you can learn how to better grip and practice.

[Sig0431]

1 hour ago, motosapiens said:

makes sense. sounds like something you are curious about and you will learn some stuff.

 

you probably already know this, but be careful about making judgements about 'recoil' based on anything other than being able to shoot accurate follow-up shots quickly. I've spent a fair amount of time and effort searching for the magic load in both 9mm and 45, and I've come to the conclusion that the load makes less difference than grip, practice, and watching the sights so you can learn how to better grip and practice.

I fully agree I just want to provide some data that will be beneficial to everyone. I will be taking videos for my own use taking note of my grip and evaluating actual recoil vs perceived recoil. Sadly where I am I do not have anyone to work with on my shooting. Reading this site, driving people nuts with questions and watching videos of myself trying to point out flaws when I have little experience compared to most is about all I have.    

[Darrell]

On 1/27/2018 at 12:00 PM, iflyskyhigh said:

 

Darrell, how do you modify the case to work with the Hornady OLG? I assume you drill and tap, but could you provide a little detail if you have time? In a new thread if need be...

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I drill and tap, but I have to go look at the tap I think its 5/16-36

[iflyskyhigh]

 

On 2/5/2018 at 12:12 PM, Darrell said:

I drill and tap, but I have to go look at the tap I think its 5/16-36

 

How do you open up the case mouth uniformly to allow a bullet to slide in and out?

[Darrell]

On 2/6/2018 at 8:45 PM, iflyskyhigh said:

 

 

How do you open up the case mouth uniformly to allow a bullet to slide in and out?

First I resized the case, thenI chuck the case in my lathe and ream the inside with a hone. Then drilled and tapped it. Works great. Have one made for .45 and .40 too. 

[PhillySoldier]

I recently learned just how much a difference this makes. Over the last few weeks Ive been working up a new load and ransom rest testing @ 25 yrds - 10 rnd shot groups. On my first testing of different powder weights I was super happy w the results and was avg 1.3" groups. 

 

Last weekend I went to fine tune it futher and test varying seating depths in 0.01" increments. Although my testing was consistent over 200 rounds my shot groups grew 0.5 to 0.75". When I considered the reason I realized that I was using different brass than my first test. I honestly didnt think it would make much of a difference as long as I wasnt mixing different brands of brass together. In my first test I had used all starline brass and in my second test I had used all blazer brass. 

 

Ransom rest testing is pretty tedious and long. Takes me at least an hour to set up, get on target, fire 20 settling shots etc and thats not counting hauling probably at least 70 lbs of gear around and testing being at least a 5 hour day for me since I have to run and change targets after every 10 shots or play with re-positioning the whole rest to a new target. Anyway now im just ranting about having to repeat the whole test all because I switched brands in brass. I guess its a good thing but most of the things ive learned from the ransom rest testing so far are all things ive wouldve chalked up to my shooting skills or an off day etc in the past