9mm and 357mag bullet/powder help

brandon1977 · March 12, 2012, 07:56 PM

Im about ready to get ordering my reloading components. I have a Glock 19 and a Ruger GP100 4inch that I will be ordering bullets, primers, and powder for.

My thoughts are to order from Montana Gold and Powder Valley for everything.

For the 9mm I was considering ordering the 124 grain JHP, as I've read the hollow points are more accurate for some reason. Is there an all around good powder that can do 9mm, 45acp, and 38spc?

For the 357 mag I'm leaning towards Alliant 2400, small pistol primers, and the Montana gold bullet. The thing I'm most unsure of is which bullet weight to go with for the 2400 powder. Does 2400 work good for 125 grain and 158 grain bullets? Need opinions please.

zxcvbob · March 12, 2012, 08:04 PM

Bullseye, Unique, or WSF (use Herco load data for the WSF in rimmed cartridges) You'll be happier with 2 powders.

Jimro · March 12, 2012, 08:24 PM

If you are reloading for target work then one powder will do you. I chose Unique, lots of folks choose Universal Clays.

But if you want magnum performance out of that 357 you'll need a magnum powder. But Unique or Universal will push out 38 special level loads all day long and give you plenty of fun.

It depends on what you want to do with your pistols and reloading.

Jimro

overkill0084 · March 12, 2012, 08:44 PM

Quote:

Is there an all around good powder that can do 9mm, 45acp, and 38spc?

Bullseye &/or Unique, AA#5, 231 & any number of other medium burn rate powders. The list of powders that won't work might be shorter.

Quote:

Does 2400 work good for 125 grain and 158 grain bullets? Need opinions please.

It should work fine with either weight. I prefer 2400 to H110/296. Wider operating range.

Do you have any Reloading books? Not to put too fine a point on it, but a quick browse through nearly any reloading manual would have answered these questions in short order. I suggest the Lyman 49th edition.

Beau Bo · March 12, 2012, 09:17 PM

My suggestion would be to buy bullets that you can find load data for. The first time through is hard enough without having to figure out powder load and COL (at least for the 9mm).

brandon1977 · March 12, 2012, 09:34 PM

I'm having a real hard time deciding on a bullet for the 357 mag. I don't want any powder puff loads as that would defeat the purpose of owning the gun in the first place IMO. I plan on working up the load, not starting at the top. Safety first.....

I planned on buying Montana Gold bullets as they are jacketed, but they're so damn expensive. Are hardcast any good for magnum velocities. Berrys and Precision delta has hardcast, or should i just stick to jacketed only for magnum velocity?

Scharfschuetzer · March 12, 2012, 09:50 PM

Brandon,

The .357 handles cast bullets quite well. I've had good success with everything from 148 grain wadcutter target bullets at 800 fps to 180 grain cast bullets with a gas check at some pretty high velocites.

For recreational or target shooting I normally use either my own cast 150 grain SWC bullets or commercially cast 158 grain SWCs in my 357 revolvers. I use Unique powder almost exclusively in these mid level loads with excellent results at my targeted velocity of 1,100 FPS in the .357 revolvers. That has proven to be a reasonably comfortable load to shoot at the range and it drops jack rabits and other vermin quickly and has a pretty flat trajectory through 70 yards or so. Chamber pressure doesn't seem too high as cases extract easily and last a long time.

I'm sure that there are other powders that will do as well, Universal has a large following, but I've used Unique for over 40 years and I'm comfortable with what it does. I've also used Bullsey and Red Dot powders with good results back when I was more inclined to experiment. I may need to investigate Hogdon's Tight Group powder further as it seems to hold quite a bit of promise.

For the 9mm I also use Unique with both cast and jacketed bullets with good success and accuracy other than in my Golck 19. I've never been entirely successful in getting cast bullets to shoot out of my Glock without more leading than I want. In my Hi Power and 92FS (rifled with the normal lands and grooves) cast bullets shoot quite well over Unique powder.

I'd be interested in hearing from any loader that has had success with the Glock and cast bullets and what he's doing to achieve that. I keep thinking about just getting a normally rifled barrel for the Glock, but it's never very high on the priority list.

k9cougar · March 12, 2012, 11:59 PM

I started loading a while back for the same guns. I found W231 and montana gold worked great!

March 12, 2012, 07:56 PM	#1
brandon1977 Junior Member Join Date: January 15, 2010 Posts: 4	9mm and 357mag bullet/powder help Im about ready to get ordering my reloading components. I have a Glock 19 and a Ruger GP100 4inch that I will be ordering bullets, primers, and powder for. My thoughts are to order from Montana Gold and Powder Valley for everything. For the 9mm I was considering ordering the 124 grain JHP, as I've read the hollow points are more accurate for some reason. Is there an all around good powder that can do 9mm, 45acp, and 38spc? For the 357 mag I'm leaning towards Alliant 2400, small pistol primers, and the Montana gold bullet. The thing I'm most unsure of is which bullet weight to go with for the 2400 powder. Does 2400 work good for 125 grain and 158 grain bullets? Need opinions please.

March 12, 2012, 08:04 PM	#2
zxcvbob Senior Member Join Date: December 20, 2007 Location: S.E. Minnesota Posts: 4,720	Bullseye, Unique, or WSF (use Herco load data for the WSF in rimmed cartridges) You'll be happier with 2 powders. __________________ "Everything they do is so dramatic and flamboyant. It just makes me want to set myself on fire!" —Lucille Bluth

March 12, 2012, 08:24 PM	#3
Jimro Senior Member Join Date: October 18, 2006 Posts: 7,097	If you are reloading for target work then one powder will do you. I chose Unique, lots of folks choose Universal Clays. But if you want magnum performance out of that 357 you'll need a magnum powder. But Unique or Universal will push out 38 special level loads all day long and give you plenty of fun. It depends on what you want to do with your pistols and reloading. Jimro __________________ Machine guns are awesome until you have to carry one.

March 12, 2012, 09:50 PM	#7
Scharfschuetzer Senior Member Join Date: January 28, 2012 Location: Puget Sound Posts: 293	Brandon, The .357 handles cast bullets quite well. I've had good success with everything from 148 grain wadcutter target bullets at 800 fps to 180 grain cast bullets with a gas check at some pretty high velocites. For recreational or target shooting I normally use either my own cast 150 grain SWC bullets or commercially cast 158 grain SWCs in my 357 revolvers. I use Unique powder almost exclusively in these mid level loads with excellent results at my targeted velocity of 1,100 FPS in the .357 revolvers. That has proven to be a reasonably comfortable load to shoot at the range and it drops jack rabits and other vermin quickly and has a pretty flat trajectory through 70 yards or so. Chamber pressure doesn't seem too high as cases extract easily and last a long time. I'm sure that there are other powders that will do as well, Universal has a large following, but I've used Unique for over 40 years and I'm comfortable with what it does. I've also used Bullsey and Red Dot powders with good results back when I was more inclined to experiment. I may need to investigate Hogdon's Tight Group powder further as it seems to hold quite a bit of promise. For the 9mm I also use Unique with both cast and jacketed bullets with good success and accuracy other than in my Golck 19. I've never been entirely successful in getting cast bullets to shoot out of my Glock without more leading than I want. In my Hi Power and 92FS (rifled with the normal lands and grooves) cast bullets shoot quite well over Unique powder. I'd be interested in hearing from any loader that has had success with the Glock and cast bullets and what he's doing to achieve that. I keep thinking about just getting a normally rifled barrel for the Glock, but it's never very high on the priority list. __________________ Scharfschuetzer US Army Distinguished Rifleman Washington State Distinguished Rifleman NRA Police Distinguished Expert Last edited by Scharfschuetzer; March 13, 2012 at 12:20 AM.

March 12, 2012, 09:17 PM	#5
Beau Bo Member Join Date: January 1, 2012 Location: Colorado Posts: 24	My suggestion would be to buy bullets that you can find load data for. The first time through is hard enough without having to figure out powder load and COL (at least for the 9mm).

March 12, 2012, 09:34 PM	#6
brandon1977 Junior Member Join Date: January 15, 2010 Posts: 4	I'm having a real hard time deciding on a bullet for the 357 mag. I don't want any powder puff loads as that would defeat the purpose of owning the gun in the first place IMO. I plan on working up the load, not starting at the top. Safety first..... I planned on buying Montana Gold bullets as they are jacketed, but they're so damn expensive. Are hardcast any good for magnum velocities. Berrys and Precision delta has hardcast, or should i just stick to jacketed only for magnum velocity?

March 12, 2012, 11:59 PM	#8
k9cougar Member Join Date: February 21, 2010 Posts: 74	I started loading a while back for the same guns. I found W231 and montana gold worked great!