need data on 230 gr remington fmj bullets

William_IV · November 1, 2009, 06:31 PM

On comparing the remington fmj bullets to sierra #8815 tournament masters
I noticed a difference in overal bullet length.

Sierra measures .634 while Rem measures .6570 = difference of.023

am i practicing rocket science here for no reason? Or should the bullet be seated with a little longer oal than sierras recommended oal of 1.270 I'm worried seating this longer bullet will increase load pressures.

Got the remington bullets from dillon as sierra is virtually impossible to get right now. Now I can't find a recipe that uses the rem bullet.

rg1 · November 1, 2009, 08:47 PM

Looking at my Midway 45ACP LoadMap manual which compares 14 different 230 grain bullets, it looks like pressures are nearly the same for Rem and Sie 230 fmj's. Pressures are within 500 psi with some powders showing slightly more pressure with the Sierra 230gr and some showing slightly more psi with the Remington. Both were tested at the same overall length. The maximum overall length for .45ACP is 1.275". In my .45's I seat 230fmj's to 1.265" as the longest length. Unless your present load is hot or maximum the same powder charge should be fine but it's always best to work up when switching any component. Midways LoadMap does indicate that the same charges can be used with either of your bullets but pressure and velocity will vary just slightly depending on which powder you use.

William_IV · November 1, 2009, 09:19 PM

Thanks you were just in time!

I also noticed a slight cup in the rem bullets on the bottom wheras the bottoms of the sie's are flat this would put them closer to the same lengths

Back to loading and hoarding!

William_IV · November 1, 2009, 11:11 PM

which load map manual are you referring to? do you have a link for it?

rg1 · November 2, 2009, 09:43 AM

In the late 90's, 1997-1999, Midway published some data manuals for .44Rem Magnum, 9MM Luger, 45ACP, and 357 Magnum. They were supposed to do more calibers but didn't. Don't know if it wasn't profitable or what. Anyway, the manuals were good especially for comparing different bullets. The only complaint in the 45ACP LoadMap is that they seated most bullets to the maximum length for testing. They also used only one primer, RP 2 1/2. They tested 12-14 bullets for most weights and 9 different powders. I've found the Midway LoadMaps are pretty accurate with the loads I've tested with their data.
They are out of print and can sometimes be found on internet auction sites.

November 1, 2009, 06:31 PM	#1
William_IV Member Join Date: March 4, 2005 Location: Phoenix AZ Posts: 76	need data on 230 gr remington fmj bullets On comparing the remington fmj bullets to sierra #8815 tournament masters I noticed a difference in overal bullet length. Sierra measures .634 while Rem measures .6570 = difference of.023 am i practicing rocket science here for no reason? Or should the bullet be seated with a little longer oal than sierras recommended oal of 1.270 I'm worried seating this longer bullet will increase load pressures. Got the remington bullets from dillon as sierra is virtually impossible to get right now. Now I can't find a recipe that uses the rem bullet.

November 1, 2009, 08:47 PM	#2
rg1 Senior Member Join Date: November 6, 2001 Posts: 1,125	Looking at my Midway 45ACP LoadMap manual which compares 14 different 230 grain bullets, it looks like pressures are nearly the same for Rem and Sie 230 fmj's. Pressures are within 500 psi with some powders showing slightly more pressure with the Sierra 230gr and some showing slightly more psi with the Remington. Both were tested at the same overall length. The maximum overall length for .45ACP is 1.275". In my .45's I seat 230fmj's to 1.265" as the longest length. Unless your present load is hot or maximum the same powder charge should be fine but it's always best to work up when switching any component. Midways LoadMap does indicate that the same charges can be used with either of your bullets but pressure and velocity will vary just slightly depending on which powder you use.

November 1, 2009, 09:19 PM	#3
William_IV Member Join Date: March 4, 2005 Location: Phoenix AZ Posts: 76	Thanks you were just in time! I also noticed a slight cup in the rem bullets on the bottom wheras the bottoms of the sie's are flat this would put them closer to the same lengths Back to loading and hoarding!

November 1, 2009, 11:11 PM	#4
William_IV Member Join Date: March 4, 2005 Location: Phoenix AZ Posts: 76	which load map manual are you referring to? do you have a link for it?

November 2, 2009, 09:43 AM	#5
rg1 Senior Member Join Date: November 6, 2001 Posts: 1,125	In the late 90's, 1997-1999, Midway published some data manuals for .44Rem Magnum, 9MM Luger, 45ACP, and 357 Magnum. They were supposed to do more calibers but didn't. Don't know if it wasn't profitable or what. Anyway, the manuals were good especially for comparing different bullets. The only complaint in the 45ACP LoadMap is that they seated most bullets to the maximum length for testing. They also used only one primer, RP 2 1/2. They tested 12-14 bullets for most weights and 9 different powders. I've found the Midway LoadMaps are pretty accurate with the loads I've tested with their data. They are out of print and can sometimes be found on internet auction sites.