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Old June 7, 2011, 05:41 PM   #1
1badz
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1st time Unique & 9mm

I have been loading 38 spl and 45 for some time, just ventureing into 9mm.Last night got small batch ready and set measure to throw 5gr. and wow that is a full case,I am using 115gr berrys did some measuring and i dont think it will compress powder.Is it ok if it does? my 2 load book do not say anything about that. I also tried 4.2 of 231 and that didnt fill the cases that full. But I was looking to use up this unique. Thanks.
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Old June 7, 2011, 05:59 PM   #2
serf 'rett
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Have you weighted your charge?

I recently loaded some test rounds using Berry's 115 grain RNDS with Unique, 4.6 to 5.4 grains in 0.2 grain steps, but I don't remember the case being overfull or approaching a compressed load.
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Old June 7, 2011, 06:59 PM   #3
rg1
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I load 5.0-5.1 with jacketed 124 grain bullets and 5.4 grains of Unique with Speers 124 Gold Dot HP bullet. Unique does fill the case well and 5.0 grains should be about to the base of the bullet. Slight compression won't hurt and may actually be best.
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Old June 7, 2011, 10:12 PM   #4
1badz
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Yes I have weighed the charge and checked zero on my rcbs beam scale but i dont have another 2 check aginst,with the other cal. I have been reloading they have much more free space in case than the 9mm does. the bullet measures .550 and when seated to 1.130 there is about 220 ish in the case.They just seemed full to me compared to my 38 and 45acp loads. Thanks again.
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Old June 8, 2011, 12:00 AM   #5
chris in va
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Unique is very 'fluffy' and has large flakes. I really don't care for it, much prefer Universal.
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Old June 8, 2011, 01:29 AM   #6
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I use 4.6 gr behind a 122-125 gr LFP, at 1.090". It's a full case in Win brass, but runs from 90% to 105% in other brands.

Slight compression of Unique has been safe, in my loads. You'll have to test for yourself, if you need to know exactly how that load will perform.
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Old June 8, 2011, 06:18 AM   #7
Topload
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I'm currently loading 5.1 gr. of Unique under 125 gr. Hornady bullet and yes the case is mighty full (90%). It appears that the bullet may, in fact, crush the powder just a bit but the respone of these loads on the range is very acceptable. I haven't experienced any over pressure signs - having shot 300 of these rounds.

All legal disclaimers apply here, your mileage may vary....etc.
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Old June 10, 2011, 06:49 AM   #8
Gregad
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Been reloading 9mm for some time now. 115gr Berry's plated RN. Used Unique 5.6 gr. ( trial loads I found grouping was better at 5.6 grns). No problems. Yes it filled case up. Started using PP 5.6 gr. Easier to measure the fine grains and fills cases better.
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Old June 13, 2011, 06:55 AM   #9
Jim Thompson
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Unique is a great powder for all handguns. I've used it or years with my 124 cast bullets. I've used 5.7 and its has always performed well. It's just not quit as economical as Bullseye so recently, I've changed to that powder.
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Old June 14, 2011, 02:23 AM   #10
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Strange ... the Alliant web site shows 6.3 grains Unique as maximum for 115 grain GDHP and nothing about a compressed charge is mentioned. I'd be concerned about the actual weight of the charge you are loading.
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Last edited by Hook686; June 14, 2011 at 02:40 AM.
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Old June 15, 2011, 12:37 AM   #11
medalguy
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I load 5.9 gr Unique under a 115 gr FMJ bullet which yields about 1090 fps.

OAL is 1.130 inches.
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Old June 15, 2011, 07:38 AM   #12
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A Berrys 115g TCJ-RN is not a 115g Gold Dot.
They just weigh the same.
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Old June 15, 2011, 09:17 AM   #13
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I use Unique in my 9mm behind Berry's 115gr bullets. I load 4.5gr and 4.9 gr Unique. Neither makes the case particularly full. I'm nut sure exactly how much but i now there is space between the powder and the bullet with the 4.9gr loads. I'm planning on loading some more tonight, I'll try to remember to measure about how far down the powder is although with Unique it varies quite a bit depending on how the flakes settle. As others mentioned, you are actually weighing the charges right? Do you have a test weight to check your scale (I keep a 5gr one handy). I always weigh each charge with Unique. I scoop into those little paper candy wrappers (like the ones you get in a box of chocolates). This way I can always put an empty one on to re-zero the scale if I think it might be off. Kind of slow which is why I'm thinking of trying W231 but I have no complaints about the way Unique performs.
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Old June 16, 2011, 01:15 PM   #14
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So busy today, I almost forgot to post back. Here's what I came up with. I had been loading 4.5gr and 4.9gr of Unique in 9mm but as I really couldn't tell the difference, I decided to simplify my life and just load 4.7gr. So that was last nights batch.

Using 4.7gr of Unique in Federal casings the powder was about 0.235" down from the top. It varied from about .220 to .239 but if I settled them a little it was pretty close to .230 to .239. The cases are about 0.746" long and the Berry's 115gr 9mm are 0.547" long. I shoot for an OAL of 1.160". This seats the bullet in about 0.130" and leaves about 0.105" of space between the powder and the bullet. Going to 5gr wouldn't change much, maybe about 20 mils or so. I would still get about 0.080" of space between the bullet and the loose powder.
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