Sizing 9mm cases

[Franchi20/28]

Originally Posted by Brick

1. As for flaring or belling the case mouth, use it sparingly and only flare enough for the base of the bullet to just enter the mouth without shaving.

2. In any kind of a match or SHTF scenario you don't want to have to deal with any kind of a failure.

3. I don't generally get very many that fail either the gauge or the dismounted barrel. 10 out of a 300 round reloading session would be many more than usual, so I'll check for obvious faults like cracks, bulges, length, out of round. Then I pull the bullet and recover what components I can, sometimes the case is salvageable, sometimes not.

4. So to answer Franchi20/28's question if they fail the gauge they don't get used.

1. Agreed.

2. Agreed. to expand upon. If it's that big a deal for you (you are competing at an advanced level) don't use reloads in a match. For SHTF I personally would only cashe factory ammo. Same for SD, but for different reasons.

3. Agreed. any ammo with obvious defects should NOT BE USED.

4. For me personally, if they fail a case gauge, with no obvious defects, I would throw them into the "practice ammo" box. Nothing like an actual "FTF" to reinforce immediate action drills when not expected, to enhance your performance if it happens in a match or SHTF situation. Any way of inducing this "deliberate duds (no powder and primer or spent primer)" will be obvious and you will look for them and anticipate them when loading mags and will thus lose their effectiveness as a training aid. Most will probably function fine anyway.

Do not shoot anything you are uncomfortable with. Is "probably OK" worth a finger, hand or an eye?

I do not own a case gauge. I use range pick ups. All the ammo that passes a visual inspection functions just fine in my .40 cal Taurus.

I am a cheap, stubborn bastard and hate to give up on anything. Probably be my downfall one day.

[phill]

We shoot 9mm range brass all the time. Some of the cases have an area just ahead of the extractor groove that will be expanded enough to cause this problem. My sizing dies will not get all of this out and will cause the case to fail in the gauge. Try some in practice and see if this is a problem. Two out of three of my 9's digest them fine the Para with the supported barrel is the exception.

[Brick]

Originally Posted by phill

We shoot 9mm range brass all the time. Some of the cases have an area just ahead of the extractor groove that will be expanded enough to cause this problem. My sizing dies will not get all of this out and will cause the case to fail in the gauge. Try some in practice and see if this is a problem. Two out of three of my 9's digest them fine the Para with the supported barrel is the exception.

This "bulge" is tyical of firearms that have chambers that do not completely support the case. Glock is well known for this and it is one of the reasons why using reloads in Glocks isn't such a great idea unless you are very careful about your loading and watch the cases closely and limit the number of times a case is reused. Most people use carbide sizing dies for pistol calibers and those dies do not full length resize. Purposely they are made to "neck size" only, which brings us back to the reason for using a case gauge to begin with.