9mm Bullet Weight

[johes]

I'm into my last 1000 rounds of 9mm Remington UMC from Dick's and with the prices of ammo on the rise, I think it's time to switch the 550 back over to 9mm. I've only loaded 147's and they worked well for me, but before I buy a case of 147g, I want to make sure I'm not missing something. What's your favorite bullet weight? I'll be using Montana Gold (don't want to replace glock barrels to shoot lead). They'll be shot primarily in a Glock 34 and sometimes a 17 and used for IDPA SSP.

Thanks

[HSMITH]

I like 124's for production loads. They put a little snap back in the gun and the sight track is what I want to see while still shooting pretty soft.

[ChrisStock]

I am very partial to my 147GR loads, but I use a mix of 124's and 147's for practice out of cost necessity.

[Joe4d]

124 or 115 HB's winchesters when I shot a lot of 9mm. They work in all my guns. Ive had problems with 147's keyholing in some guns when loaded to 128ish pf. Some guys here have pointed ut some fixes that I havent tried because I dont see any advantage for me. If I was loading exclusively for my wifes SIG 9mm I would use 147's they were scary accurate out of it. But in general my 9mm loads get dumped in a gallon jug and are used in quite a few different guns.

[warpspeed]

Call MG and ask them to send samples of them both. They will send you a pack of 5 or 10. Load em up and see if one feels better or gives you accuracy than the other.

[Lexor40cal]

I too am a 147Gr JHP over Titegroup 9mm loader for Production, but I have a few Production shooting buddies (GM & M class) that used to shoot the same (147's), but all have just switched to 125Gr JHP overs Clays, they report it is even softer. But you have to have a full supported barrel with calys, it will bulge the brass badly in a standard Glock barrel

[HSMITH]

I have shot thousands and thousands of 124's over Clays at mid 130's power factor in stock Glocks, never a bulged case or even a flat primer. I do go the extra mile to prevent setback, if you set the bullet back in the case pressures go up dramatically and even catastrophically. You CAN blow the gun up if you set one back enough and there is room to severely overcharge a case using Clays. 147's and Clays are as soft as it gets but the gun gets sluggish feeling and you are right on the edge of pressure problems.

[bufit323]

I have gone through 10,000 rounds of 147 and have recently gone to 124s. I find that it is not quite as soft but cycles the gun a little faster and "feels" like it is bringing the sights back better.

YMMV

[PracTac007]

I shoot a production G34 and use the 147gr JHP reloads by Atlanta Arms. Love em.

http://www.atlantaarmsandammo.com/

Hope that helps.

[oddjob]

I used the 147 loads and the 124/125 loads and I like 124/125's over N320 better. As others have stated I like the snappier feel than the 147's......but what do I know since I suck anyways....before I forget ...the 125's are more accurate than the 147's ....out of my SP-01. Good luck & Merry X-mas!!

[revchuck]

Lately, I've been using whatever is on sale.

The best accuracy for me so far has been Zero 125 grain JHPs (1.5" @ 25 yards from the factory barrel of my CZ-75B).

147s are problematic. Some guns don't like them, having problems with tumbling. This makes no sense, since .38 Specials have been shooting heavier bullets at lower velocities from slower rates of twist for over a century with excellent accuracy. My 9x19s (CZ and Beretta, 1-10" twist factory barrels) have no problems with them.

[buddy_fuentes]

A friend was using Clays and a 147 grain lead bullet in his Glock 34. He was experiencing tumbling, too. I shot the load in my Kimber and it was unbelievably accurate and very soft shooting.

I started loading the 147 grain LRN with WW 231 and it is about as soft as the Clays load with a 144 PF and very accurate. I have 3 Glocks in 9 mm and they like the load as much as my Kimber and Springfield 1911's.

Buddy

[Graham Smith]

If you are going to be looking at MG, then don't overlook the 121 IFP. It's a pretty darn good bullet.

[BayouSlide]

I started out with WWB and Blazer 115 grainers, back when that ammo ran $4.99 and $3.99 per 50 at Academy. Ahh, the good ol' days when it wasn't worth reloading for 9mm. I then switched to 147 gr. loads from Atlanta Arms and never looked back. With the continuing rise in ammo prices, I jumped into reloading.

I prefer a recoil push over the muzzle rise from snappier 115 gr loads. I now load 147 Zero JHP over approx. 3.27 grains (approx. average) of Titegroup and am happy as a clam. When I loaded a little softer I'd begin to have some slide velocity problems---occasional but rare stovepipes---on the lighter loads from a batch. This load will chrono in the area of 136 - 138 PF.

Granted, the higher velocity 115 loads cycle the slide faster, but I find I regain the front sights quicker with less muzzle rise and that's more important for my aging eyes. If I felt faster slide cycling was more important to my shooting, I'd just load 147 gr up to the 142+ PF level or so for more velocity. I actually started with hotter loads with Vihta Vouri powders when I started development of "my" load and preferred the softer loadings.

A much better shooter than me gave me some of his 124 gr. loads and they felt like my hot 147 grain loads...just didn't do it for me.

My loadings are still higher than some of the real soft loads I see posted: I sorta feel I get the best of both worlds for my shooting with what I'm running. YMMV.

[herky]

I'm using 4.6 gr of IMR 7625 under a 124 or 125 FMJ, runs about 136 pf out of my Glock 17. Works very well and I like the way the gun feels.

[SA Friday]

I prefer the 147 gr Zero HP in my Glock 34 and 17, but they have become... impossible to find. Lately, I have been messing around with 147 gr Precision bullets in both Glocks. They shoot fine, no tumbling, no leading, but I have to clean the barrel more often. Considering the savings in price, the cleaning is worth it. I have shot the Precisions with TG, Solo 1000, SR 7625, and Ramshot Competition. The RC seem to smoke the least and are accurate.

I have also shot 124's, 125's and 115's out of the Glocks. I haven't had anything tumble except plated bullets. The lead was just too soft inside the plating and the 147's would get squished when seated. The 115 plated worked OK.

In a perfect world, Zero would get their machine fixed and have ootles of 147's on the market and lead prices would go back to normal. Short of that, I am sticking to the 147 Precisions.

[00bullitt]

I prefer the 124 and 125 loaded over Clays. I tried the 135 and 147 bullets over Clays with bad case bulging and high pressure problems and poor accuracy to boot. Currently I load a 125 JHP Zero over 3.6 grains Clays to 1.14" oal with WSPM primers. PF is 129 and the slide tracks beautifully. It is an accurate load as well. From my experience....I've found that Clays does not like anything heavier than 125's in 9mm so I use 3.4 grains of Titegroup under a 135 Zero FMJ loaded to 1.135" and WSPM primers for a 127-128 PF. I think the TG load would run slightly better at 3.5 but have not tried it yet. I load 3.3 grains TG under a 147 Zero JHP at 1.125" for a 130 PF. After going to the 125 over Clays.....the 135 and 147 feel too sluggish to me. Now that Zeros have become impossible to get without a 6 month wait and my supply has dwindled miniscule proportions.......I am switching to the Montana Gold 124 JHP. Should be close to the same results as the Zero 125 load.

[ranger]

I worked up some loads yesterday for my G34. A 124FMJ over 3.5 Clays shot very well.