**Anyone know anything about reloading .40S&W for a 4th Gen Glock??

[steeps09]

Just needed some tips and such for reloading some ammo for my glock?

[demigod]

Building a cartrige like 40 cal is not a weapon model specific project.

I'm not getting why a load would be different for the glock than an M&P or something.

[Sevens]

Well... I can tell you this-- the newer the Glock, the better case head support you've got. They have "evolved", so to speak, and a Gen 4 Glock .40 cal is a much better platform for handloads than an early .40 cal Glock.

Tips for Glock... stick to jacketed or plated bullets. OEM Glock barrels are not friendly to lead bullets. Opinions do vary, but the prevailing opinion is that it's a bad idea to do any lead with a stock Glock barrel.

[steeps09]

Well from what I hear and what I've seen on my spent rounds, because of the lack of support in the chamber for glocks and the small feeder ramp the spent casings have a bulge in the which if you reload the brass it could expand and get lodged in the barrel causing probelms...sooo, I've got a stainless wolf barrel so I can shoot lead and its supposed to help with the buldge problem. Any thoughts??

[Sevens]

As I said, the lack of case mouth support in original Glock barrels is less now than it used to be. A big part of how "smilie'd" or "Glock'd" up your brass will get has to do with how hard you are hot-rodding the loads.

In any case, with a Lone Wolf aftermarket barrel, yes, you will be getting better case mouth support and yes, you can load lead if you like.

You probably should have mentioned that in the original post, eh? That's pertinent information for the discussion.

What other hints are you looking for?

[steeps09]

Sevens,
Lol yea well...I've got another thread were I'm talking about the lead reloads. But a short version is.....just started reloading, first time ever. I'm loading 155LRN from bulletworks on bullseye powder. Just started but I've got 20rds of bout 5gr and 25rds of bout 4.5gr and I'm gonna see what works out best

[jepp2]

Just be aware that Bullseye is a really fast burning powder for the 40. Your margin for error is considerably less than with a slower burning powder.

I'm sure you may get many responses by folks that swear by Bullseye, but they may have a lot more experience under their belt.

[steeps09]

Well I shot some reloads today that were 155gr LRN over 4.5 and 4.9gr of bullseye. Ended up being pretty much just a disaster. Both loads did not cycle or feed properly. Two/three rounds would fire consecutively, but after that the slide would just stuck and would not close all the way. I tried to take the slide off and the slide release did not even work. Just plain stuck, but eventually got it cleared. Now I was going by Steve's webpage I believe the name is, that I got from another thread for load data. I do not know why these tow malfunctions happened. Now these are my first reloads ever, so I guess I should expect this, but thats why I am asking the professionals.

4th Gen Glock .40S&W

[mehavey]

Everything I see/read says at LEAST 5.0 grains (up to 6.0) of Bullseye for the 40S&W. QL pressure curves confirm that.

(the `40 is a 30-35,000psi cartridge. 4.5-4.9gr Bullseye w/ a 150-ish bullet doesn't produce even half that.)

[Xfire68]

mehavey, has it^^

Sounds like your under charging your loads? Not enough powder can be as bad as to much.

Try 5.0-5.2g and chime back in.

[steeps09]

XFire,
Thanks alot for the suggestion. That what ill try

[steeps09]

Shot more reloads today and things went much better. Loaded up 50rds of 5.4gr and no problems. Recoil was still a little light and had probably 2rds not cycle properly. Gonna go up a little more to 5.7gr and I think it will be perfect.

[BDS-THR]

OP:
Anyone know anything about reloading .40S&W for a 4th Gen Glock??

- Gen4 Glocks have stiffer recoil spring set (dual springs) than Gen3 Glocks which have single recoil spring set (subcompacts have dual springs). Gen3 Glocks have stiffer recoil springs than Gen1/Gen2 recoil springs. This means that Gen1/Gen2 Glocks cycled the slide reliably with low-mid range load data, but Gen3 Glocks will require mid-high range load data. Gen4 with even stiffer recoil spring sets will now require high range load data to reliably cycle the slide.

- Gen3/Gen4 Glocks have improved chamber support at ramp area, but still have looser chamber inside diameter than other factory barrels. This will cause bulges 2/3 way down the case. Gen1/Gen2 Glock barrels with less chamber support at ramp area will cause "smiley bulge" at the case base - which is dangerous and often the cause of case base failure and the well mentioned "KaBooms".

If you get bulges out of Gen3/Gen4 Glocks, decrease your powder charge if you are at high range. If you are at high range and cannot decrease the powder charge because the lower charge will not reliably cycle the stiffer Gen4 recoil spring, you will need to change your powder.

Repeated resizing of bulged case will weaken the brass over time, not a good idea and I recommend you consider using Lone Wolf barrels with much tighter chamber and improved chamber support at ramp area.

If you are shooting lead bullets out of Lone Wolf barrels, be sure to use the lower "lead load data" instead of higher "jacketed load data". If you can't find lead load data, decrease the jacketed load data by 10% (Start/Max) and work up your loads at the "Start Load"

Recoil was still a little light and had probably 2rds not cycle properly. Gonna go up a little more to 5.7gr and I think it will be perfect.

Good job, but as I posted Gen4 with stiffer recoil spring set will require high range load data to reliably cycle the slide. Stove piping is the result of slide not being pushed back far enough for the spent cases to eject properly. Increasing the powder charge will fix this problem, but you are already at high-near max range for Bullseye. You may need to consider using slower burning pistol powder (Bullseye is one of fastest burn rate pistol powders and slower W231/HP38/Green Dot/WSF/HS6 may work better for you).


This Bullseye load data is from Alliant's website is for 155 gr jacketed bullet:

40 S&W 155 gr Speer GDHP OAL 1.12" Max 6.0 gr (1,023 fps)

Since they don't list lead loads, I would use 10% less as my max lead load - 5.4 gr. I use W231/HP38 for my match 155 gr loads at 1.125" OAL shot from LW barrels and W231/HP38 produce very accurate shot groups with 155/165/180 gr jacketed/plated/lead bullets. If you can't find W231/HP38, Green Dot works close but requires 0.2-0.3 gr more charge than W231/HP38.


Be safe and have fun!

[steeps09]

So I have run into a couple problems that make me want to throw out me reloads. If I put a full magazine in my Glock and close the slide everything works well and closes fully. If I try to eject the shell without firing the first loaded round it wont come out to save my life. I have no idea why this continues to happen and I have no idea why. My overall length in fine, its newer brass and all the specs are fine. The only way to get the round out of the chamber is to fire the gun. HELP!!!!

[Shoney]

steeps09
I will presume that you are seating and crimping at the same time. When the die isn't set up perfectly, the lead bullet is still going into the case while the crimp is starting. This shaves lead or imbeds the case into the bullet, which causes an enlarged cartridge at the bullet-case juncture.

If you inspect the cartridges, you may be able to see this. The result of racking the cartridge into the chamber is that it will tightly lodges there.

For better results and more accuracy, seat and crimp in separate operations.