147gr 9 Major

[regor]

I think this is an appropriate forum for this, but me know if I should move this to the reloading forum...

 

I have a batch of 147gr bullets coming soon because I forgot to cancel a scheduled order. I was thinking of testing out some 147gr loads just to see what it felt like side-by-side with my current 115gr load. For those who have tried it before, is this a worthwhile exercise? What are the primary differences in feel? Does anyone have any slow-motion video of 147 side by side with 124/115?

 

I know conventional wisdom is slow powder + light bullet = more gas to work the comp, and the latest equipment survey from nationals showed only 6% of Open shooters use something other than 124/125/115, which I assume is mostly 147 though I suppose it could be 121s or 135s as well. That being said, a number of the commercial 9 Major options on the market use 147gr, which seems counter to the conventional wisdom, but I've always assumed this is due to liability/logistics of loading. A friend who is waiting on an open gun build asked me about this and I said I'd never actually tested it, so it got me curious, how many have actually tested the conventional wisdom on this? 

[aandabooks]

I tried some 147s a while back for major PF.  Ran about 100 through to give it a test and did not like it at all.  The dot was making a figure 8 pattern and was at times leaving the glass.  I normally run a 124gr bullet with SWMP in a poppel hole gun.  My normal load has the dot tracking straight up and down about 1/3rd of the overall glass size.

 

[gng4life]

My experience with 147s in Open is about the same. Back when we had the last big shortage, all I had was 147s at one point. I shot them and something is better than nothing but I really didn't like the dot tracking. It did not feel "violent" like the 115s, just had the funny dot wiggle and jump. So 124s have always been my go-to for Open loads.

 

However, everyone is different. Try some out and see what you think. If you don't like it, you can always sell ammo in these times. Good luck!

[zzt]

147s suck for Open.  Much more recoil and muzzle rise than with a 115.  Ugh!  So I used up all my 147s for PCC loads.

[echotango]

Same here.  Tried 200 rounds and didn't care for the feel and the dot was all over the place. 

Edited February 2, 2021 by echotango

[Silverscooby27]

Interesting that Atlanta Arms 9 major offering is 147gr and not 124.

[shred]

IIRC KC shot them for a while.  IDK why or if he still does though.

 

[Bakerjd]

7 hours ago, Silverscooby27 said:

Interesting that Atlanta Arms 9 major offering is 147gr and not 124.

I ran some of those and they ran pretty well. Made PF with some wiggle room. IIRC was about 175 in my gun. Full size open gun. I didnt like them as much as everglades 124s. About the same as everyone else says. Figure 8 pattern. 

[zzt]

16 hours ago, Silverscooby27 said:

Interesting that Atlanta Arms 9 major offering is 147gr and not 124.

 

Because you can make major with a 147 and still be under SAAMI pressure.  You cannot do that with a 124.

[Sarge]

19 minutes ago, zzt said:

 

Because you can make major with a 147 and still be under SAAMI pressure.  You cannot do that with a 124.

 

19 minutes ago, zzt said:

 

Because you can make major with a 147 and still be under SAAMI pressure.  You cannot do that with a 124.

They are just covering their ass.

 

https://blackdotammunition-com.3dcartstores.com/9mm-MAJOR-124gr-COMPETITION-GRADE-cartridges-br-READ-DESCRIPTION-CAREFULLY-WARNING-Not-for-use-in-standard-9mm-firearms-br-200-ROUND-BOX_p_18.html

[N3WWN]

51 minutes ago, zzt said:

 

Because you can make major with a 147 and still be under SAAMI pressure.  You cannot do that with a 124.

 

Depends on your powder and gun.  I make major with 124gr bullets and Blue Dot in a 5.3" barrel and am probably still way under SAAMI pressure since I am more than 0.5gr below Alliant's max published charge. 

 

Am I loading the published recipe exactly?  Not exactly, but I worked up slowly and really paid attention to how the gun acted and looked for any pressure signs.

[zzt]

6 minutes ago, N3WWN said:

Depends on your powder and gun.  I make major with 124gr bullets and Blue Dot in a 5.3" barrel and am probably still way under SAAMI pressure since I am more than 0.5gr below Alliant's max published charge. 

 

That's weird.  My Alliant manual shows 1238fps at max for 7.9gr Blue Dot and a 124gr Speer GDHP.

[MikeBurgess]

I tried some 147s once and really didn't mind them, they were a bit less snappy than the lighter bullets, if someone was going to give them a real trial they would want to do more than toss them in their gun that has been tuned for 115s or 124s play with recoil springs and maybe main springs and slide stops a bit and see where you end up, you may find you like it in the end, but at first all you will notice is its different,

 

different is not equal to bad 

[N3WWN]

12 minutes ago, zzt said:

 

That's weird.  My Alliant manual shows 1238fps at max for 7.9gr Blue Dot and a 124gr Speer GDHP.

 

Precisely my point   My gun/bullet/powder combination chronos a little over 1340 FPS (166 PF). 

 

The Alliant data is for a 4" barrel, so if you just use the "wet thumb in the air" estimate of 50 fps per inch of barrel, you may get 1303 FPS in a 5.3" barrel.

 

As always, don't rely on published data, test with your own gear.  Trusting published data is one reason why folks go sub-major/minor at chrono.