what am I missing about .40 S&W reloading

[midatlantic]

I've recently decided to start reloading 40 caliber Smith & Wesson for USPSA limited. Looking over the velocities of commercial 40 caliber they are usually 1000 ft./s with 180 grain bullet giving a power factor of 180.

 

If I reload to make major I need to have a minimum velocity of 920 to make 165. It's not much of a difference from 1000 ft./s. Cost aside, and .40 is not much more than 9 mm these days, is there any reason to reload? I do it in 9 mm and 45 ACP to make a softer shooting round than  commercial stuff, other than federals 150 syntek. What am I missing about reloading 40? 

 

I'm certain there is a lot, so have pity on me.

 

[HoMiE]

You can shoot 200gr bullets even slower for less felt recoil. 

[buckaroo45]

I strongly suggest running the brass thru a Redding GR-X resizing die to eliminate the "Glock bulge" and a chamber checker after the round is loaded. It saves a LOT of irritation when a round won't chamber when running a stage.

[SlappyMcTrigger]

32 minutes ago, HoMiE said:

You can shoot 200gr bullets even slower for less felt recoil. 

This. Use a heavy bullet and a fast powder. Bigger diff between 170pf-180pf than 125pf-135pf IMHO. I load my 9 minor to 140’s pf cause anything lower feels too slow with a 147 gr bullet. 

 

I use 200 gr blues over n320 for .40 major.  Recently picked up some Clean shot cause I’ve heard it works great and is a fair amount cheaper. 

 

OP— grab some heavy bullets and you’ll start to see a difference. 

[midatlantic]

Thanks all. Slow brain today on my part! heavier bullets, duh! Thanks for reminding me! and for the load recommendation. More accepted!

[Aggieddad02]

Every shooter is different and as such opinions vary. Myself, I run a 200 gr Ibejihead bullet over N320 with a PF of 170. Personally, I find this combination to have more of a push than a snap. Some shooters feel that the lighter bullets allow them to transition faster. Trial and error are your friends

[ttolliver]

No arguments at all with what's been said before, but don't be too quick to discount being able to dial in your own loads for absolute accuracy. Plus I do still have some savings even using higher cost components like FMJ bullets and buying once-fired brass.

 

If you didn't already have a press and know how to reload I'd have to admit it's a harder sell. But since you already have that investment made and skills I'd call loading your own 40 a no-brainer. Of course it's always easy to give advice. I should lose weight too.

[Hi-Power Jack]

5 hours ago, midatlantic said:

  Cost aside, and .40 is not much more than 9 mm these days, is there any reason to reload?  

 

Besides heavier bullets, you will still save $$$ by reloading - means you can practice live fire more often     

[IHAVEGAS]

4 hours ago, midatlantic said:

I've recently decided to start reloading 40 caliber Smith & Wesson for USPSA limited. Looking over the velocities of commercial 40 caliber they are usually 1000 ft./s with 180 grain bullet giving a power factor of 180.

 

http://www.ballisticsbytheinch.com/40sw.html

 

Was curious, usually fps specs are given based on a 4" barrel & most folks shoot with a 5".

 

For 180 grain 40 the difference is only + - 35 fps , less than I expected, another 20 or so for 6" guns. 

 

Regardless, your actual power factor is probably going to be around 187 (180 * 1040). To me 170 pf feels enough different that I think it would be an advantage.  

[MikeyScuba]

40 not much more than 9mm?  $150 diff per 1000.

 

The cost diff for reloads from 9mm to 40 is 1.7c

 

not to mention I’m using heavier bullets, clean powder and lead free primers.  My 1st case of new 40’s were filthy, factory  Speer with lead free primers.

[StuckinMS]

7 hours ago, buckaroo45 said:

I strongly suggest running the brass thru a Redding GR-X resizing die to eliminate the "Glock bulge" and a chamber checker after the round is loaded. It saves a LOT of irritation when a round won't chamber when running a stage.

Yes it does! 

[Rnlinebacker]

I've recently decided to start reloading 40 caliber Smith & Wesson for USPSA limited. Looking over the velocities of commercial 40 caliber they are usually 1000 ft./s with 180 grain bullet giving a power factor of 180.
 
If I reload to make major I need to have a minimum velocity of 920 to make 165. It's not much of a difference from 1000 ft./s. Cost aside, and .40 is not much more than 9 mm these days, is there any reason to reload? I do it in 9 mm and 45 ACP to make a softer shooting round than  commercial stuff, other than federals 150 syntek. What am I missing about reloading 40? 
 
I'm certain there is a lot, so have pity on me.
 

The ultimate goal is to build a load that fits YOUR recoil perception, is cheaper than factory WHILE still maintaining major pf and returns your sights to zero asap allowing you to push the speed limits in the Limited Division

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

[midatlantic]

Thanks all. To the folks who recommended the Redding die, wouldn’t the Dillon decapping resizing die accomplish the same?

[Sarge]

21 minutes ago, midatlantic said:

Thanks all. To the folks who recommended the Redding die, wouldn’t the Dillon decapping resizing die accomplish the same?

Not even close. The GRX is a push through die that sizes the entire case. Standard dies only size so low and Dillon is the worst.

[buckaroo45]

The Redding die is a "push thru" meaning it resizes the entire casing. To the best of my knowledge all standard resize dies can't resize the full length due to the shell holder. The design of the Glock barrel is such that it creates a slight bulge near the case head when fired in one of their barrels. I'm sure others can explain it better but that's the gist of it. When you buy range brass you can bet there'll be casings fired from a Glock pistol in the pile.

[MikeyScuba]

I had one of those too, until I got fed up with hours and hours of pulling the handle and got a Roll-Sizer!

[muncie21]

If factory loads fit your budget and time allocation, roll with them, especially with the price of ammo relatively low. 

 

If you have a pistol that doesn't like factory ammo bullet profile or overall length (think CZ for OAL concerns) you may be a candidate for rolling your own.  Same is true once demand catches up (more inventory than demand currently) with factory loaded ammunition inventories.

 

Finally, I find reloading a great hobby that challenges one, when developing new loads and testing new component configurations.  Think of it as an almost endless game of 'what if', should you so choose.

[Novagunner]

I just use an EGW U die and never have any issues with case bulge. 

[IHAVEGAS]

9 hours ago, Novagunner said:

I just use an EGW U die and never have any issues with case bulge. 

 

On 45's I had issues with it, never on 9's and 40's, with the 9's I know I have reloaded a lot of Glock fired brass but I'm not sure about 40. 

[ebg3]

Just to give you some rough numbers...

.40 brass $25/1000

Primers $25/1000

Bullets $90/1000

Powder $15/1000

Total= $155/1000 rounds if you reload.  The prices vary depending on how you source the components.  It's not hard to find free .40 brass.  You also get more than one loading from the brass.  Powder can be under $10/1000 if you buy enough of it.  Bullets are where the money is.  Some coated bullets in bulk can be had for $80-85/1000, maybe cheaper.  Zero jhp's will be $125/1000.  Aside from the savings in reloading,  you can use faster burning/softer feeling powders for your loads.  Typically the faster burning, higher pressure powders will feel softer in .40 and may not be found in factory offerings.

A lot depends on your budget and how much you are going to shoot.

[MikeyScuba]

Not to mention using clean powders.  I used factory Speer 40’s for the 1st time on my brand new gun and boy were they dirty, really dirty.  

Edited November 27, 2018 by MikeyScuba

[glc]

On ‎11‎/‎26‎/‎2018 at 7:26 AM, Sarge said:

Not even close. The GRX is a push through die that sizes the entire case. Standard dies only size so low and Dillon is the worst.

 

Well, not sure what the deal is with my Dillon dies then. I have about 500 nickel once fired that I was going to scrap, but decided to reload them and not worry about picking up the spent cases. I just run them through my sizing die on my 550B and I get .422 to .424 around the head. The neck is .415 to .418. The case length is almost consistent .842.

I think I'm OK with these.

What you think?

[Sarge]

10 minutes ago, glc said:

 

Well, not sure what the deal is with my Dillon dies then. I have about 500 nickel once fired that I was going to scrap, but decided to reload them and not worry about picking up the spent cases. I just run them through my sizing die on my 550B and I get .422 to .424 around the head. The neck is .415 to .418. The case length is almost consistent .842.

I think I'm OK with these.

What you think?

Case length is not really a concern with pistol cases in my experience. I certainly don't ever measure them. Your measurements prove there is indeed a difference between your base and neck measurements. The 40 is straight walled so whatever the number, they should be very close to the same. So, your cases are not getting full length sized. Hope that makes sense. BUT, what matters is if they pass the plunk test in your barrel. If they are falling all the way in and spin freely then they are sized good enough provided they are not loaded too long for the bullet to hit lands.

  What I meant about the Dillon dies being the worst is, they have a larger radius at the bottom of the sizer ring so they don't size as low as most other dies. The large radius is there to supposedly assist with cases feeding into it but they feed fine into my LEE and EGW Udies too.

[glc]

7 minutes ago, Sarge said:

Case length is not really a concern with pistol cases in my experience. I certainly don't ever measure them. Your measurements prove there is indeed a difference between your base and neck measurements. The 40 is straight walled so whatever the number, they should be very close to the same. So, your cases are not getting full length sized. Hope that makes sense. BUT, what matters is if they pass the plunk test in your barrel. If they are falling all the way in and spin freely then they are sized good enough provided they are not loaded too long for the bullet to hit lands.

  What I meant about the Dillon dies being the worst is, they have a larger radius at the bottom of the sizer ring so they don't size as low as most other dies. The large radius is there to supposedly assist with cases feeding into it but they feed fine into my LEE and EGW Udies too.

Thanks for that info Sarge. I've read though the neck is a bit tighter number, and if using the Redding die or any push through, you still need to run them through your sizing die to get the neck in tolerance.

[glc]

I use the EGW case gauges, and they have always passed the plunk test too.