Load data

TonyD

One Shot One Maggie's Drawers
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I've searched our forum, perused a few other reloading web-sites, consulted manuals, and even spoke to the manufacturer.

Now, I want to know what you folks are loading;

9mm 115 gr FMJ with w231

45 230gr FMJ with w231

I'm looking for your charge weights using only w 231 with the above bullets.

Thanks.
 
Funny you should ask. The was the first pound of powder I used on 9mm and .45. For 230 gr FMJ I used 5.2gr of 231... works just great IMO. I only reload 9mm with 124gr FMJ so I don't have load data for 115 FMJ... However 231 in 9mm stinks IMO. Even at max load of 4.7gr, it seemed weak still... again this is with 124gr bullets, it might be better with 115gr FMJ.

Good luck!
 
Funny you should ask. The was the first pound of powder I used on 9mm and .45. For 230 gr FMJ I used 5.2gr of 231... works just great IMO. I only reload 9mm with 124gr FMJ so I don't have load data for 115 FMJ... However 231 in 9mm stinks IMO. Even at max load of 4.7gr, it seemed weak still... again this is with 124gr bullets, it might be better with 115gr FMJ.

Good luck!

Thanks, I appreciate the info.

A little more as to why I asked this. None of the data I found has been consistent as to min/max on this powder. A big reloader locally (from whom I get my powder and primers) says he loads 5 grains in 9mm and 6 grains in 45.

The horses mouth (the manufacturer) stated 9mm was 4.7 - 5.1 and that there was no data for 124 grain stating it was too heavy and required WSF.

.45 (in 230 fmj) is 4.2 - 5.3.

I'm sure you can see my confusion.
 
Yeah... you'll get all kinds of load data... all over the place most of the time.
However here is the website for winchester powders:
http://www.wwpowder.com/data/handgun/

As you can see- there is clearly load data for 124gr FMJ there!

Yeah, but according to them (it's actully Hogdon who manufactures Winchester powder) there is none. I spoke to their tech guy at about 1600 today. I was at their site before I called.
 
I load my 9mm 115gr fmj's with 4.7 gr of win 231 and it is very accurate. As someone else mentioned, it is a bit light. For a hotter load with the same accuracy I go to 6.4 gr of power pistol. Both at 1.13 OAL.
 
Yeah, but according to them (it's actully Hogdon who manufactures Winchester powder) there is none. I spoke to their tech guy at about 1600 today. I was at their site before I called.

I'd say the 125 gr. SIE FMJ is likely close enough to the 124gr FMJ IMO... that's where I started.
 
I load my 9mm 115gr fmj's with 4.7 gr of win 231 and it is very accurate. As someone else mentioned, it is a bit light. For a hotter load with the same accuracy I go to 6.4 gr of power pistol. Both at 1.13 OAL.

Bingo. Power Pistol is what I use now for 9mm and .40S&W.[wink]
 
Tony,

I don't load 9mm. It's still cheap enough where I don't mind buying it.

For 45 ACP, with a 230 grain Rainier bullet I use 5.5 grains of W231. I realize that this is a bit hotter than most, but I tried lots of different charge weights (from 4.5 to 6.4) and that's the one that was the most (or close to most) accurate in the guns that I shoot (S&W 625, S&W 1911, and S&W 4506).

The published data for this powder/bullet is all over the road. Here's what I have for FMJ 230 grain bullets:
Lee Modern Reloading: Min - 4.8, Max. - 5.1
Speer Manual No. 13: Min - 5.6, Max. - 6.2
Lyman 3rd Handbook: Min - 5.2, Max. - 5.8
Winchester Website: Min - 4.2, Max. - 5.3

The lower end of the charge weights were a bit more accurate in the revolver, the 1911 worked best with 5.5 grains, the 4506 shoots absolutely everything with identical excellent accuracy.

EDIT: You're right; Hodgdon does make Winchester powders. Hodgdon HP-38 is identical to W231 and according to their website, they recommend 5.3 grains of HP-38.
 
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I see people not including the OAL with the min and max charges. OAL can have an effect on pressure along with the lead vs. jacketed which can account for some of the difference.
 
Thanks, Eddie. Is the Rainier any different than fmj? And, since I do notice a huge difference in COAL just for the 230 gr, what length are you loading to? I was assuming the SAAMI specs of 1.275 and 1.169 when I started the thread.

BTW - I was going to try PP but it was not available locally and was hoping for one powder for both loads. These are not going to be bullseye loads but rather for IDPA / IPSC and general training purposes.
 
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I see people not including the OAL with the min and max charges. OAL can have an effect on pressure along with the lead vs. jacketed which can account for some of the difference.

Good point.. more important with 9mm and .40S&W of course.

Here are mine:

9mm COL 1.150 for all loads/bullets I posted/use.
.45ACP COL 1.265 for all loads/bullets I posted/use.

I try to stick to a COL that is safe and works well in all my guns.
 
Thanks, Eddie. Is the Rainier any different than fmj? And, since I do notice a huge difference in COAL just for the 230 gr, what length are you loading to? I was assuming the SAAMI specs of 1.275 and 1.169 when I started the thread.

BTW - I was going to try PP but it was not available locally and was hoping for one powder for both loads. These are not going to be bullseye loads but rather for IDPA / IPSC and general training purposes.

The plated bullet mfg's say to use load data for cast lead bullets (I assume because the "jacket" is so thin). I've noticed that the Rainiers get a little higher velocity than true FMJ's with the same charge. Also, since it's easier to shove a plated bullet through the barrel (than an FMJ), it's a bit more forgiving when you load it.

I use round nose bullets so I load mine to 1.250". The bullet shape is the determining factor for OAL. As a rule, you'll want to stay near the high end of the spec for round nose bullets. If you're loading hollow points, flat points, or truncated cones you need to get shorter. The bullet mfg is the definitive source for the proper OAL.

Personally, I don't like the idea of using one powder for both 9mm and 45 ACP because the pressures are so different. If I had to pick one, I'd use Titegroup over Power Pistol because it's much cleaner and you need less.

For general purpose plinking loads, Titegroup is like the Swiss Army Knife of pistol powders. It's my favorite powder for .32 ACP and .500 S&W Mag. A little goes a long way, and it is volume-insensitive. It's probably the most consistent burning powder when putting a light charge in a big case.
 
Regarding OAL, the load data for Hogdgon Titegroup from the manufacturer asks for an OAL of 1.19 or 1.2 depending on the bullet weight. This is in .45. That is quite short for .45 and the powder charges required are significantly smaller then the load data given in the Lyman manual which asks for an OAL of around 1.26. The pressures are listed in both books and the Hogdgon pressures are higher and the resulting velocity at max charge is lower then with the Lyman data.

Why Hogdgon chose an OAL of 1.2 for a 230 grain FMJ in .45 I will never know. The OAL effects pressure in .45 though not much. I don't sweat pressure and max loads much because most manuals have max charges that are bellow the peak pressure allowed for the cartridge.
 
Why Hogdgon chose an OAL of 1.2 for a 230 grain FMJ in .45 I will never know.

I know.

The bullet specified is 230 GR. Hornady FMJ FP. The FP stands for "Flat Point":

45187_pis_bul_45-230_FMJ.jpg

It is shorter than the round nose 230 grain bullet. OAL is all about the bullet shape.

For example, the Winchester site has load data for .38 Special with 148 grain and 158 grain lead bullets. The charge weight for W231 is 3.5 and 3.1 grains respectively. The C.O.A.L.s are 1.16" and 1.475". That's a difference of more than 3/10ths of an inch! The reason? The 148 grainer is a flush-seated wadcutter, the other is a semi-wadcutter.
 
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