Just getting started reloading, have lots of questions….

[Wager]

Ok, I’m sure you guys get this about 3 or 4 times a week but couldn’t find the threads when looking through the forum so I’ll ask them again. 
 

Just got an XL750 to start loading and have some questions I’m hoping some of you would be willing to help with. A little background, I will be loading 9mm for a Masterpiece Arms DS9 with a ported barrel and without a ported barrel (I swap them out to shoot different divisions). My experience with reloading - zero or less if that’s possible. 
 

Questions:

1. What brand bullets do you guys recommend?  I’ll be getting all weights just to test with but have no idea what is a good brand to start with.

2. What brand of powder?  I’m sure there are a ton of options here and they are all probably application specific but for someone just starting, what would be a good one to start with?

3. Im sure there will be differences between the powders that I should use for the ported and non ported barrels, any insight or tips?

4. Where do you guys order this stuff from or do you get it locally?

 

thanks for any help you can provide. 

[PhotoRecon]

I recommend you start with a good reloading manual such as Hornady or Sierra or others. Good reading about the process and lots of load data.

[shred]

Find out what's most popular and start there.  USPSA publishes surveys of what people at Nationals use.  You'll find a zillion people singing the praises of this or that oddball thing, but you'll pretty quickly realize some things come up over and over.

 

If you're loading 9 major, do double the amount of reading and ask a lot of questions.

 

 

[Joe4d]

no point in testing,, its all been done.. Most brands of bullets are good,, been a long time since crappy bullets have hit the market..QC or MFG techniques have gotten pretty standard.
No brand of powder is bad,,  for one there are only a couple left.. But every brand has powders suitable for different applications.
Local prices can be very high or reasonable.. Generally I get powder from Powder valley and order in bulk to make up for the hazmat shipping fee.
750 is a heck of a press to be a beginner on,, way better to start with a single stage and figure things out.
What are you loading ? for what guns ? for what application ?

 

[Guy Neill]

I've not worked with ported barrels, but I would expect they fall somewhere between plain barrels and compensated barrels in performance.

 

For plain barrels you are commonly looking for the smallest amount of powder that will drive the bullet to the needed velocity. This says a fast-burning powder.

 

For compensators to be most effective they need a larger quantity of gas. This indicates a slower burning powder. The more powder, the more gas.

 

The powder gases comprise a significant part of recoil, unless countered by a comp.

 

Overall, it comes down to a load and bullet you feel good with. I've generally favored 124/5 gr bullets in the 9mm, but many favor other weight bullets.

 

I would think of a ported barrel first as paralleling a plain barrel to begin with and let your experience after shooting it a while direct you to changes if felt necessary.

 

[Wager]

1 hour ago, Joe4d said:
750 is a heck of a press to be a beginner on,, way better to start with a single stage and figure things out.
What are you loading ? for what guns ? for what application ?

yeah the 750 will be a big learning curve but i want to be able to work my way up to a more automated setup. I know me and I’m lazy. I won’t load if it’s a tedious chore. 
 

I’m loading for a 9mm Masterpiece Arms DS9 which is a 2011 for USPSA and IDPA competitions.  For the non ported barrel I will be using that for limited optics for USPSA and the ported barrel will be used for open division and IDPA. 

[MikeyScuba]

To simplify>

 

Basically you have a choice of either a 124 or 147gr projectile in either plated (ok), coated (good) or jacketed (best).

 

powder

 

titegroup (dirty and cheap)

hp-38/w231 (good midrange)

N320 (cleanest and most $, though I found it expensive and dirty)

 

primers-whatever you can find, 2011’s will eat anything 

 

remember not to over or UNDERcrimp.

 

And after you get comfortable and think “I’ve got this” , things will loosen up and ruin your day!  No matter how much you spend on a press (looking at you MarkVII)

[GrumpyOne]

3 hours ago, Wager said:

Ok, I’m sure you guys get this about 3 or 4 times a week but couldn’t find the threads when looking through the forum so I’ll ask them again. 
 

Just got an XL750 to start loading and have some questions I’m hoping some of you would be willing to help with. A little background, I will be loading 9mm for a Masterpiece Arms DS9 with a ported barrel and without a ported barrel (I swap them out to shoot different divisions). My experience with reloading - zero or less if that’s possible. 
 

Questions:

1. What brand bullets do you guys recommend?  I’ll be getting all weights just to test with but have no idea what is a good brand to start with. There are many different brands, with many of them very good. Since you are a new reloader, I would have you start with a jacketed bullet, as they are more forgiving as far as crimp goes. Some good ones are RMR, Precision Delta, Roze Distributing. 

2. What brand of powder?  I’m sure there are a ton of options here and they are all probably application specific but for someone just starting, what would be a good one to start with? You will want to start with a powder that is somewhat bulky, which will make it obvious if you make a double charge. Fast powders generally use a very small charge, and many times there is room in the case for both charges and it won't be instantly seen. VV N320, Alliant Power Pistol are good ones for that.

3. Im sure there will be differences between the powders that I should use for the ported and non ported barrels, any insight or tips? Non ported use a faster powder, ported use a slower powder. Go online and download a powder burn rate chart, and look up Jeff Maass IPSC loads.

4. Where do you guys order this stuff from or do you get it locally? Primers from wherever has them right now, but if they ever come back in great supply, you can powder and primers from Powder Valley.

 

thanks for any help you can provide. 

 

[HOGRIDER]

1 hour ago, Wager said:

I’m loading for a 9mm Masterpiece Arms DS9 which is a 2011 for USPSA and IDPA competitions.  For the non ported barrel I will be using that for limited optics for USPSA and the ported barrel will be used for open division and IDPA. 

This is the current load specs I'm using in my MPA LOC for Limited Optics:

Powder:  VV N330

Bullets:  Precision Delta 124g JHP

Primers:  Federal Match

Cases:  Winchester fully processed

 

Once you narrow down the specific bullet weight and power factor you wish to start with, then others can chime in with recommended components that works for them!

 

Lot of good data here on their various powders and load data:

 

https://www.vihtavuori.com/reloading-data/handgun-reloading/

 

 

A recent bench rest test............

Edited September 3, 2023 by HOGRIDER
update

[RangerTrace]

^^^this guy will cost you money!!  

[Boomstick303]

3 hours ago, Wager said:

yeah the 750 will be a big learning curve but i want to be able to work my way up to a more automated setup. I know me and I’m lazy. I won’t load if it’s a tedious chore. 

 

Maybe something to keep in mind, if you are looking to automate, make sure you do you research.  I have heard that the 750 does not play well with the Mark 7 automation.  If you intend to go with Dillon and Mark 7, I would look at a 1050 or 1100.  

[ysrracer]

Walk before you run.

[Zachjet]

I load on a LNL for about a year now,  I was Nervous about the process. Just start slow,  don’t use a case feeder or bullet feeder,  understand the process and make mistakes. Learn what each f*#kup feels like and looks like. 
Im about 9k rounds in and when I’m not distracted I can pump out 4-500 an hour without rushing. Don’t let the reloading process intimidate you.
 

i shoot a tanfoglio 4.75” barrel 

135TC blue bullet

n320 3.3g 

1.135

my PF was 131.3 at A8 match 

 

 

Edited September 4, 2023 by Zachjet

[RangerTrace]

18 hours ago, Wager said:

Ok, I’m sure you guys get this about 3 or 4 times a week but couldn’t find the threads when looking through the forum so I’ll ask them again. 
 

Just got an XL750 to start loading and have some questions I’m hoping some of you would be willing to help with. A little background, I will be loading 9mm for a Masterpiece Arms DS9 with a ported barrel and without a ported barrel (I swap them out to shoot different divisions). My experience with reloading - zero or less if that’s possible. 
 

Questions:

1. What brand bullets do you guys recommend?  I’ll be getting all weights just to test with but have no idea what is a good brand to start with.

2. What brand of powder?  I’m sure there are a ton of options here and they are all probably application specific but for someone just starting, what would be a good one to start with?

3. Im sure there will be differences between the powders that I should use for the ported and non ported barrels, any insight or tips?

4. Where do you guys order this stuff from or do you get it locally?

 

thanks for any help you can provide. 

Find a local  friend who has a lot of reloading experience and have them set up your press for you.  Buy them dinner for their trouble.  Have them watch you load a couple hundred rounds.

 

My most accurate load, while not the softest is 4.9 grains of N330 under an RMR 124 grain TC Matchwinner to 1.125".  Insanely accurate out of P320s or Staccatos.  

[HOGRIDER]

14 hours ago, RangerTrace said:

^^^this guy will cost you money!!  

Me and the @RangerTracelike sharing the fruits of our labor!  

 

[HOGRIDER]

57 minutes ago, RangerTrace said:

Find a local  friend who has a lot of reloading experience and have them set up your press for you.  Buy them dinner for their trouble.  Have them watch you load a couple hundred rounds.

 

When the @RangerTraceoffers advice, LISTEN CAREFULLY!

 

[IVC]

20 hours ago, Wager said:

yeah the 750 will be a big learning curve but i want to be able to work my way up to a more automated setup. I know me and I’m lazy. I won’t load if it’s a tedious chore. 

A progressive press is all about setup and QC. Once you have it running, it will produce ammo that is consistent with how you set it up. The knowledge goes into the setup.

 

Automation replaces pulling the handle. You still have to do the "tedious chore" of measuring everything, confirming and QC. You still have to know what you're doing and why. If you aren't too eager to learn the process in depth, reloading might not work for you. 

[MikeyScuba]

Having an automated press makes life easy once it’s running and running for a while.  They are idiosyncratic beasts and one must have some technical proficiency.  I’ve have my Evo pro disassembled (except for the core) more than once. I just had to take apart the automated primer disc Friday as a primer got into the works.

[IVC]

To answer your questions:

 

Bullets: coated lead for your application (Blue Bullets, SNS, any other that are recommended). Coated bullets are the cheapest, need less powder and put the least amount of wear on your barrel. The only downside is that they are not suitable for compensated guns. 

 

Bullet weight: heavier bullets will give you much softer shooting gun. In your case, start with 147 and 124. The lightest bullets, 115, are for PCC and Open guns. They also work well for sub-minor loads, but that's not what you're looking for. 

 

Powder: Vihtavuori is a bit more expensive, but generally very clean premium powder. If in doubt, use N320 for any 9mm. All major brands work well, though, so pick one and stick to it. "Powder hopping" is a waste of time unless you're looking for something very specific. 

 

Powder types: fast powders use small amount, they build pressure quickly and produce little gas. Fast powders behind heavy bullets give you soft shooting guns. Slow powders require much more charge and produce a lot of gas. They are used to "work the compensators," where the gas minimizes barrel movement. With your ported barrel you might get some benefit from the extra gas, but I would doubt you could tell a difference. 

 

Start carefully, measure several times, figure out how it all works before you start cranking that handle. 

Edited September 4, 2023 by IVC

[Wager]

I really appreciate all of the help everyone. I talked to a couple of guys at my club who have been loading that I will con into helping me with the setup so that I can at least get it setup correctly.  I’m sure once I get into the rabbit hole that I’ll be back with more questions. Till then I’ll keep reading the manuals suggested above as well as the threads here on the site. 

[goneracin]

a good initial start is a 124 gr jacketed round nose (i used montana gold cmj until they became unobtanium) now i use rmr

titegroup power

mixed brass and primers

my 1911 likes a hollow point style, my plastic guns seem to prefer a round nose style

I measure 10 drops and take an average from that for my powder weight

then leave it there and do 1000 at a time

from normal ipsc and uspca distance 1/8" accuracy isnt needed.

I need to look into coated to see if i can save a little bit.

shoot coated in .38 spl

 

[mmc45414]

Pretty much already your question has been covered, but one thing I would advise is to not get too far ahead until you have really settled on a load.  Like when you are starting out, just start loading something you think you are going to like, and just do 100-200 and take them out and shoot them.  A while back I did several thousand rounds, and before they were all shot up I wished I had done something different. 

[m700]

Do you have any friends that can walk you through setting up and loading?

 

How ported of a barrel. You may want 2 different powders for your 2 barrels.

 

I load currently

125 Blue bullets.

CCI primers

VV n340 powder (comped guns)

AA2 (non comped guns)

 

Order online

 

 

 

[bigdawgbeav]

based on the games you stated above I would assume that you are looking at Minor loads.  I cannot even begin to tell you how much info is in these forums.  At this point projectiles are easily found whether coated, plated or jacketed.  It comes down to how much you are willing to spend.  I would recommend staying away from the coated for the ported barrel as lead could build up. 

 

Powder and primers are another story.  You can find online but you are going to usually have extra fees for HazMat shipping.  Not sure where you are located by many local gun shops stock some powder, just not in great quantities unless they have a large reloading section.  Everyone is going to have their favorite powders but I think it's going to come down to what you can find in stock. 

 

As I am a Steel Challenge shooter I don't have to make a power factor, but Through testing I know that I can make it by just changing the weight of my projos.  This way I don't have to mess with my powder drop.  Heavier bullets at a slower FPS will feel softer in recoil.  But many times it all boils down to what the gun likes and how it responds.

 

Welcome to the rabbit-hole of reloading.  

[JDalton203]

I started on a progressive as well, you'll be just fine and started with 9mm helps because it's not that difficult or complicated. 

 

Shameless plug for the RMR guys, they make an excellent projectile along with our local accura outdoors guys. I say this and run probably 50/50 between these two plated options and 135 blue bullets (I shoot mostly 3 gun though so like a little more knock-down power for plates/spinners, I shoot 124s/125s for USPSA).

 

I've had good luck with the slower (but dirtier) CFE Pistol for my ported barrels and tightgroup for my non-ported. 

 

I read a bunch of manuals when I got started and set everything up myself with the help of youtube, local reloading buddy came by and checked my setup though (cause I'm a little cautious haha), probably unnecessary.

 

The posts before me have tons of awesome knowledge and these guys are awesome, good luck and enjoy!