Not Getting The Needed Velocity Out Of My Loads

[ezterra]

Hello. New member here, and this is my first post. I'm also new to reloading. I recently bought a Dillon 550 and worked up some loads in .45 ACP. I am shooting it out of a Kimber Warrior. According to my load manual, the maximum powder charge is 6.0 grains which should give a velocity right around 850 fps. The hottest load I made was 5.9 grains and I got only 719 fps (average of 5 shots). Here's the info on what my loads were:

Bullet: Berry's 230 grain RN

Powder: Hodgdon Universal

Primer: Federal #150 Large Pistol Primer

Brass: Mostly Winchester White Box-All once fired

OAL: 1.270"

I double checked my scale, and it's calibrated. I shot factory Winchester white box through the chronograph and it read just under 850 fps, so the chrono is working. The crimp appears to be tight enough, with no bump where the brass meets the bullet. The measurement right at the crimp is .470". Am I missing something? I want to get a power factor of 170, which is 739 fps. So I want a velocity around 740-750 fps.

I did see on Rainier's web site that they have some load data, and according to their data, the maximum powder charge they have is 7.1 grains for the 230 gr RN. Should I work up loads above 6 grains? I'm just real hesitant to do so before I confirm that there isn't any other factor that might be causing my bullets to be so slow. Also, I didn't know if there is anything I should be concerned about when increasing the powder above 6 grains.

Thanks for any help and suggestion.

[HSMITH]

If you didn't buy a big can of Unversal pick up a can of regular Clays, start at 3.8 and work up to 4.0 if needed with the same die settings you are using now. It will feel a lot softer than what you are shooting now even at 172 PF.

Some guns shoot slower than others. Plated bullets aren't lead bullets and they aren't jacketed bullets. They are a lot closer to lead but you can't use lead data one for one, the lead data is closer to correct than jacketed data though.

edited for spelling

Edited March 20, 2006 by HSMITH

[LPatterson]

Second on dump Universal for regular Clays, then I would shorten the OAL to 1.250. I haven't tried the Berry's yet but 3.8 w/Laser Cast 230 gave averages of 742 in 1 gun & 748 in another.

[Bear23]

Exactly what Lpatterson said.

Plus Clays makes for a good minor load in .40 if you have one.

[ezterra]

Thanks for the responses. I will look into going with regular Clay's. So, nothing sounds out of the ordinary with what I was doing, right? Sounds like my gun just shoots slower, huh? I just wanted to make sure before I looked into switching powders or something. I was also recommended Alliant Pistol (I think that's what it's called). Would that be a good way to go too?

[Guy Neill]

The Berry bullet, as I recall, is a plated bullet. Plated bullets tend to push through the bore easier than conventionally jacketed (such as the Winchester bullets), so velocities will be lower for a given powder charge compared to the conventionally jacketed bullets.

The Speer Manual, for the 45 Auto, Universal and the Speer 230gr plated, shows a maximum charge of 6.3gr giving 841 fps from a SIG 220 (that normally gives somewhat lower velocities than 1911's). From the Speer data, the expected velocity would have been about 785 fps, but the Speer data had the bullet seated 0.010" deeper than you.

Unless you are seeing signs of high pressure, you should be able to increase the load somewhat, though go slow (small increments). Also, velocities will run higher when the powder is next to the primer, so you may want to tip the gun up before firing the shot through the chrono for consistency. ALternately, tip the muzzle down to get the worst case velocities for the load.

You may want to check the bullet diameter as well - espcailly as it relates to the bore diameter. If the bullet is small for the bore, it will give lower velocities.

Guy

[Front Man]

I wouldn't shorten the OAL of a cartridge that functions.

But that is JMHO.

My SS likes .452 lead and .451 jacketed

I shoot open but why am I drawn to these 45 reloading threads like a moth to a flame?

FM

[ezterra]

The Berry bullet, as I recall, is a plated bullet. Plated bullets tend to push through the bore easier than conventionally jacketed (such as the Winchester bullets), so velocities will be lower for a given powder charge compared to the conventionally jacketed bullets.

The Speer Manual, for the 45 Auto, Universal and the Speer 230gr plated, shows a maximum charge of 6.3gr giving 841 fps from a SIG 220 (that normally gives somewhat lower velocities than 1911's). From the Speer data, the expected velocity would have been about 785 fps, but the Speer data had the bullet seated 0.010" deeper than you.

Unless you are seeing signs of high pressure, you should be able to increase the load somewhat, though go slow (small increments). Also, velocities will run higher when the powder is next to the primer, so you may want to tip the gun up before firing the shot through the chrono for consistency. ALternately, tip the muzzle down to get the worst case velocities for the load.

You may want to check the bullet diameter as well - espcailly as it relates to the bore diameter. If the bullet is small for the bore, it will give lower velocities.

Guy

Thanks Guy. I've inquired about this on another forum and my local IDPA forum. The overwhelming consensus seems to be to try another powder. I think I will do that, then maybe later try working a load with the Universal. I also gathered that Universal is probably not the best choice for pistol powder. Rainier bullet's load data, as tested by Midway USA, shows a maximum powder of 7.1 grains, IIRC, for the Rainier plated bullet. And with the 7.1 grains, they got 900fps out of a 5" barrel.