Author Topic: How many reloads? (Read 778 times)

vanbuzen9 · « **on:** May 20, 2005, 01:15:21 PM »

Hi all,

How many reloads can one get out of regular pistol brass (9mm, Rem or Win)? I've got a whole lot of it, so I just want to know how many reloads can be done w/ out resizing the brass (no resizer).

thanks,
vanbuzen9

Flash · « **Reply #1 on:** May 20, 2005, 01:58:08 PM »

Assuming that you're refering to reloading without a resizing die, the answer is none! You need to resize the case for it to grip the bullet again when it's reloaded. The 9mm has a slight taper and it's necessary to resize it. Unlike bottle necked rifle cases, handgun cases need to be full length resized especially in semi automatic weapons. To answer your other questions, Bullseye is a cleaner burning powder as is HP38. Unique leaves some serious grime behind and I try to avoid it. Cast bullets in the 9mm are fine and I try to keep plain base cast bullets below 800-900 fps to prevent leading. Good luck.

ButlerFord45 · « **Reply #2 on:** May 20, 2005, 02:18:50 PM »

Quote from: Flash

Assuming that you're refering to reloading without a resizing die, the answer is none! You need to resize the case for it to grip the bullet again when it's reloaded. The 9mm has a slight taper and it's necessary to resize it. Unlike bottle necked rifle cases, handgun cases need to be full length resized especially in semi automatic weapons. To answer your other questions, Bullseye is a cleaner burning powder as is HP38. Unique leaves some serious grime behind and I try to avoid it. Cast bullets in the 9mm are fine and I try to keep plain base cast bullets below 800-900 fps to prevent leading. Good luck.

Yep, and 231 is even cleaner than Bullseye in my limited test.

vanbuzen9 · « **Reply #3 on:** May 21, 2005, 04:35:55 AM »

Sorry guys, I ment trim the cases, I have all required dies.

thanks,
vanbuzen9

jd45 · « **Reply #4 on:** May 21, 2005, 04:19:13 PM »

I've read, here & on other forums, that trimming straight-wall & nearly straight-wall pistol cases is unnecessary, even after many reloads. If I'm wrong, someone please correct me, jd45

calvon · « **Reply #5 on:** May 22, 2005, 02:26:38 AM »

Brass length growth is a well known phenomenon with bottle neck rifle cases. There seems to be evidence that the growth occurs in the sizing die and not in the rifle chamber.

Length growth in pistol brass is entirely another matter. I was loading for a 9X19 mm and decided to do an experiment. I began with 20 pieces of new brass. I have one of those dandy electronic micrometers that reads to three decimal places when in metric mode. (That third decimal is one micron!)

First I measured the length of each piece of brass. Numbered it. Then loaded it with a full house load behind a cast bullet. Fired it. Remeasured it. Full length resized it. Measured it again. Repeated all this for twenty iterations. Interestingly, the brass invariably shortened during firing and lengthened during resizing. At the end of the twenty repetitions every one of the twenty pieces of brass was within SAAMI specs for length. None had been lost to neck splits, or loose primer pockets, or for any other reason.

On the strength of this I decided I wouldn't worry about trimming my pistol brass. I do, however, make random checks of length now and then just to reassure myself that my brass isn't growing.[/b]

Savage · « **Reply #6 on:** May 22, 2005, 04:44:02 AM »

Like calvon, I have done a bit of testing with pistol cases. My results were similar. I don't concern myself with case length in straight wall or tapered pistol cases. The case length can vary .010 and still be in spec anyway.
Savage

vanbuzen9 · « **Reply #7 on:** May 22, 2005, 04:45:51 AM »

Calvon,

what brand of brass were you using? Sounds like good stuff!

vanbuzen9

calvon · « **Reply #8 on:** May 22, 2005, 04:57:07 AM »

Calvon,

what brand of brass were you using? Sounds like good stuff!

vanbuzen9

Starline.

Graybeard · « **Reply #9 on:** May 22, 2005, 09:37:54 AM »

I've been reloading handgun rounds for over 40 years. Never trimmed one yet and don't plan to before I die. But on semiauto rounds like the 9MM I lose them long before I wear out a case. Have never yet in all those years found all I fired at any one session.

ricciardelli · « **Reply #10 on:** May 22, 2005, 12:28:54 PM »

I have never trimmed a straight-walled handgun case, and I have been loading them all since the early 1960's.

Bottle-necked cases are a different story.

As for how long will they last? Over 40 years...

Graybeard · « **Reply #11 on:** May 22, 2005, 05:17:32 PM »

Yup Steve them dang bottleneck cases sure do like to be trimmed. I had so many needing it for my upcoming prairie dog shoot I ordered me one of those RCBS power trimmers. It sits beside my old RCBS Trim Pro and I let it trim a case while I deburr the one it just did on the trim pro. Without rushing I timed myself at about four per minute and a whole lot less work than the old Forster I've used for so long.

I've got .44 Mag cases that have been loaded over 100 times for sure, how many over I have no clue. Never been trimmed and don't need it now. They are still going strong. Now them silly semiautos lose them too fast for me to ever wear out a case. :lol:

ricciardelli · « **Reply #12 on:** May 22, 2005, 08:59:32 PM »

Damn, Bill!

Don't your arms ever get tired of holding up those two hoglegs? :roll:

And I have a very personal question for ya...

Why is it that all you "ol' timers" (other than me) wear cowboy hats and have long gray beards? Do you really wanna look like "Fuzzy" or "Gabby", or have you started going bald and are too lazy to shave? :-D

On the serious side for a minute. I don't do that much trimming of cases. As I have already mentioned, I have never trimmed a straight-walled case. And, I keep the trimming of bottle-necked cases to a minimum. How do I do that? When I order 500 or 1000 new cases I trim them all to the length of the shortest case (after a full-length sizing, naturally). Even after 6 to 20 loadings I have not noticed enough "growth" to require another trimming. But, I only neck-size them (and only around 1/2 to 2/3 of the neck) after the initial sizing.

The RCBS goody might be something for me to look into when I order my next batch of cases (sometime around 2025 or so).

Flash · « **Reply #13 on:** May 27, 2005, 03:07:03 PM »

I have trimmed 357 cases in the past and was amazed in how the accuracy improved. As a rule, I never trim handgun cases either but the only thing that would be greatly effected by a case being too long is the crimp during reloading. With 9mm Luger cases, I reload them over and over but with cast bullets.

Graybeard · « **Reply #14 on:** May 27, 2005, 04:07:50 PM »

Quote

Why is it that all you "ol' timers" (other than me) wear cowboy hats and have long gray beards? Do you really wanna look like "Fuzzy" or "Gabby", or have you started going bald and are too lazy to shave?

Wal now Steve I stopped shaving in 1975, so the beard has been with me a day or three. Back then I was "redbeard" tho not graybeard. Reason I stopped is the skin is very sensitive and shaving irritated it something fierce. One day I just said ENOUGH and stopped doing it.

As to the pair of Colts that photo was taken when I was doing a review of the equipment in the photo back in my short run of CAS shooting. I attended the grand total of one match before tiring of it. Another GBO member now owns the guns and leather.

ricciardelli · « **Reply #15 on:** May 27, 2005, 07:16:37 PM »

I can understand the sensitive skin because you are (were?) a redhead.

I had a lady friend that was a redhead and she had to stop shaving also...

As for the brace of Colts...I wish I had a lady friend who had a pair of them instead of a pair of .38's!

Badnews Bob · « **Reply #16 on:** May 28, 2005, 02:29:50 PM »

You ole geezers are sure funny sometimes, altho Who am i to talk I'll be lucky to have any hair left by sixty.

Tom W. · « **Reply #17 on:** May 28, 2005, 05:48:58 PM »

There's no need to trim pistol brass. If it's for a semi-auto, you're really just renting the brass anyway!