Gun not Cycling On First Reloads

[Jonzeey02]

I just reloaded ten shells for the first time and took them to shoot them to see if they would fire. I was happy with the ten shells i didnt blow the chamber up and i didnt blow my face up but i was noticing that they wouldnt eject out of the gun. i notice that people were saying that if your having that problem try bumping up the grain amount, im going by the starting grain amount they say in the lynman manual so i was wondering if anyone had this experience before and if the problem should go away if i bump up the charge. thanks.

[g.willikers]

Semi-auto??

[Brian Pfleuger]

We need to know the specifics of the situation....

Cartridge, bullet weight, powder, charge weight, OAL, gun type...

[BigJimP]

No, arbitrarily bumping up the powder ....is a really bad idea !!

There may be all kinds of reasons why they didn't eject...

What caliber, what gun ...what recipe...give us some more info...

[noylj]

If the gun functions with factory ammo, then the odds are that the starting load is too light for your gun and you will need to go up 0.3 grain. Did you fire any factory ammo during your visit?
However, details are always nice...

[BigJimP]

No, come on now....wait a minute here.....

...it could be a crimp issue causing the rounds to chamber incorrectly ..or an overall length issue.../ and he said "shell" ...maybe he really meant shells ..as in shotshells...vs cartridges....

we need more info here...before we suggest that loading more powder is ok...or it may be dangerous. There is way too much we don't know...

[tkglazie]

Shells?

[Jonzeey02]

Alliance bullseye, 185 gn bullet hp, remington 45 acp brass,and 3.5 gn of powder. thanks

[Jonzeey02]

* alliant powder sorry for little info my bad.

[Brian Pfleuger]

3.5gr Bullseye is way below Alliant's starting load for 185gr HP.

They show a max load of 6.4gr at an OAL of 1.2"

http://www.alliantpowder.com/reloade...1&cartridge=35

A 10% reduction would be 5.8gr.

You're barely at 1/2 of the starting charge.

Where did you get your starting load?

Frankly, your lucky the bullet made it out of the barrel. You could easily squib one and blow up the gun on the next shot.

[Jonzeey02]

i got the data from the lynman #49 manual. i check allient's website. thanks. by the way those 185 grain bullets are hornaday bullets do bullet manufactures that much im sure they do to a certain point.

[Brian Pfleuger]

The bullet brand can matter if the bullet are of substantially different construction, such as traditional lead/copper bullet versus the Barnes All-copper bullets, but in the case of one "normal" HP versus another, like you have here, they are interchangeable in the sense that if you start at the starting loads and work up you'll be fine.

I just checked my Lyman 49th and it does indeed show 3.5gr as the starting load at 1.175" under a 185gr HP. That seems incredibly low.

[BigJimP]

I'd do 2 things...

a. take the barrel out of the gun ....and make sure the cartridge drops in and out of the chamber in the barrel easily ...if it sticks going in or out ..then you need to go back and check the specs for the crimp and overall length. You can also do this with a 'case gague' ...

b. recipe you're using is way under any recommendation ...the online manual says 6.4 gr for that bullet...so 5.8gr is probably as low as I would go ...but take another look at your manual ..maybe there was a minimum and a maximum listed. You should never go below the published minimum or over the published maximum.

consult the manual ...and take some dimensions off of commercial ammo with a good caliper / and then take dimensions off of your reloads to see how they compare...

and be careful until you get this all worked out...

Note: I just saw Brians note on 3.5 in the manual ....I'd look at data in other manuals too ...and get some other input. I agree with Brian ...that seems really low...

but I might suggest some other powders as well....in the Hodgdon family of powders ...like Hodgdon Universal is a really good .45 acp powder.

[Walkalong]

That seems incredibly low

I agree, that is very very low. Errors happen, even in professional publications.

[buffalo]

I use Bullseye in my .45acp loads and that sounds low to me,i don't have my log book handy at the moment but i know thats lower than any i have done. I would also suggest checking some more load data lists on this one,after work tomm i will dig out my book and see what i was using last winter for mine.

[Jonzeey02]

Ok thanks i appreciate it.

[buffalo]

I just found this data from Nosler regarding the 185g HP .45acp and going by that your low powder wise http://www.nosler.com/Reloading-Data...85-Grains.aspx

[Jonzeey02]

Thanks guys im going to bump up my charge. Dont know why the starting charge is so low in the lynman manual.

[tkglazie]

The Lyman 49th is a great manual for educational purposes and certainly a good manual to have on hand, but the amount of load data was a big disappointment to me. I was expecting much more, especially for the money.

[Jim Watson]

Lyman shows the lowest "starting loads" of any manual in the business. They go clear down to about 7000 psi or CUP which some sources say is the lowest you can go for a decent burn; what one shotgun loading guru calls "heat."

Most places are happy with "REDUCE RIFLE AND HANDGUN CHARGE WEIGHTS BY 10% TO ESTABLISH A STARTING LOAD." which I got from Alliant.

That said, if you want to shoot such a powderpuff load - which is not unusual in bullseye competition - you will have to use a lighter recoil spring. Brownells sells "Type A" springs with the old recommendation of a 10 lb spring for light target loads.

Me?
I am loading that light for IDPA ESP with mild .45 loads.
I have loads from 3.0 to 4.0 grains of Bullseye depending on the bullet and get good function with a 12 lb recoil spring.

You might get function with 4.0 grains of Bullseye and no spring change.
My gunsmith typically tested guns with a 200 gr SWC and 4.0 of B.E.
It is an easy check, you have the gun.

[oldreloader]

This was a response I got from Ben Ammonete at Alliant when I asked about 45ACP loads
45 Auto

180/185 gr Lead

Bullseye start 4.5 grs max 5.7 grs
Unique start 5.5 grs max 7 grs
Power Pistol start 6.5 grs max 7 grs

185 gr Jacketed Hornady XTP

Bullseye start 4.5 grs max 6 grs
Unique start 5.5 grs max 7.5 grs
Power Pistol start 7.4 grs max 8.2 grs

200 gr Lead

Bullseye start 4.5 grs max 5.3 grs
Unique start 5 grs max 6.5 grs
Power Pistol start 6.3 grs max 6.8 grs

200 gr Jacketed Speer Gold Dot

Bullseye start 5 grs max 5.6 grs
Unique start 6.5 grs max 7 grs
Power Pistol start 7 grs max 8 grs

230 gr lead or Jacketed

Bullseye start 4 grs max 5 grs
Unique start 5.5 grs max 6.5 grs
Power Pistol start 6 grs max 6.5 grs

Note: Always start with the minimum recommended powder charge and be sure they will properly cycle the action of your pistol before reloading a quantity.

[BigJimP]

Don't overlook Jim Watsons point on the weight of the recoil spring....especially as a side bar discussion in this issue / he makes a really good /often overlooked or misunderstood aspect on 1911's...

He mentioned making a light bullet - with a light charge working with a 12 lb recoil spring ...( where most 1911's in .45 acp will probably have an 18 lb spring in them / maybe a few with a 16 lb spring....).....

Changing the weight of recoil springs...is kind of a "competition shooter" thing to do .../ with the goal of getting it as light as possible ...but still retain the 100% functionality. I don't have Jim's experience in competiton ...and don't pretend to have all the answers on springs...but its another valid part of how a 1911 cycles.

....on my carry gun - a 1911 5" steel gun in .45 acp ..I went to a 16 lb spring - vs the stock 18lb spring - even with a 230gr bullet...making the slide much easier for my old beat up hands to manipulate the slide. The gun runs flawlessly - and a lot of guys test recoil springs at levels from 12 lbs - 18 lbs ...on 1911's to make them run a little smoother for their needs....and its this combination of recoil spring weight / maybe a lighter main spring (hammer strut spring ) that can make a good gun a great gun....
---------
I'm not suggesting the OP change his springs to make this initial load work...but its a good side bar issue ...and a reminder on how changing the springs, even a little, can affect how you like the way a gun cycles.

[Hoosier_Daddy]

From Hornady's Reloading Handbook 8th edition,
using Bullseye and Hornady # 45100 HP-XTP 185 gr. bullet
C.O.L.: 1.225"
Starting load is 5.4 gr.
Max load is 6.6 gr.

[Jonzeey02]

ok i will definitely bump the charge. I have the the lynman #49 manual but i want to by another so do you guys have any suggestions? I was thinking the hornaday manual or speer.

[Brian Pfleuger]

I don't bother with more than one printed manual. There is tons official load data available on-line for free.

Here is a thread I created some time back which lists all the official on-line sources I could find. One printed manual, essentially in case of The End of The World is all you need.