need help troubleshooting a feeding issue

[overthetop]

I ran into a feeding issue with a batch of reloads and need help diagnosing the possible cause. I am reloading 9mm with Roger's Better Bullets 115gr cast round nose. OAL=1.125 gun: 1911 9mm.

The magazine is being loaded to capacity, and the first 2-3 rounds in this batch failed to load completely into the chamber. I had to apply a decent amount of force to rack the slide back and eject the unfired, stuck round. The rounds each had this groove scored into the lead. Any ideas what might be causing this problem? Is the OAL too long/short?

An extra detail: When I loaded the magazines with only 6 rounds rather than the full 9 rounds, I only had one stuck round out of the 50 or so that I shot.

I'm new to this reloading stuff, so any direction would be appreciated! Sorry for the grainy cell pics.

[2Late45]

Looks like the round is too long, and hitting the side while feeding. If you had a rifling mark I'd say it was hitting lands instead of headspacing on the casemouth. Hodgdon's site recomends 1.10" as OAL for your lead round nose, double check your powder charge and reduce if required...

[Guns N'at]

Looks like the round is too long, and hitting the side while feeding. If you had a rifling mark I'd say it was hitting lands instead of headspacing on the casemouth. Hodgdon's site recomends 1.10" as OAL for your lead round nose, double check your powder charge and reduce if required...

Agreed. If your 9mm 1911 is anything like my 3 GI spec in .45 ACP, the leade is very, very short. My Beretta, Walther P1, and BHP could probably chamber those rounds, but say a CZ75, nah. Use your barrel as a guide, and "drop test" your rounds; meaning in a very clean barrel, and clean ammo (no lube or gunk at the mouth), drop them in the barrel, and see how they fit/sound. Once you have them falling in all the way easily to the casemouth (headspacing on the casemouth) screw in the seater a bit more and see how they chamber.

It is very hard to impossible to set every possible variable when publishers state a recommended OAL, and I let all my guns tell me what they like, and it has always worked well. It might be just a fingernails thickness of the full diameter bullet shank above the casemouth that is the magic length you need. Glad to see in your picture, you have not gone crazy concerning crimping , and perhaps you could go a smidge more if wanted/needed so as not to hang up on feeding or chambering.

[overthetop]

Thanks for the info. I'll shorten the next batch up to 1.120 and possibly reduce the charge. I started with 1.125 since that is the length of factory Federal 115gr fmj's, and my 1911 eats those all day long.

Not sure about the crimping...the Lee set didn't come with a separate crimping die, so ergo, no crimp. I do wonder if the seating die also crimps...?

[Guns N'at]

Thanks for the info. I'll shorten the next batch up to 1.120 and possibly reduce the charge. I started with 1.125 since that is the length of factory Federal 115gr fmj's, and my 1911 eats those all day long.

Not sure about the crimping...the Lee set didn't come with a separate crimping die, so ergo, no crimp. I do wonder if the seating die also crimps...?

3 die sets have a crimp capability in the seater, what Lee used to and still may refer to as "a modified taper crimp"... It works, and can be done while seating, or as a seat then crimp operation as you might prefer. Do not do much more than remove the bell. Case neck tension/friction is what you want; too much "crimp" can cause the case to spring back, the bullet remain squished, and setback to happen. This can be very, very bad, and cause a case failure or worse.

[cephas]

guns'nat advice to use the barrel as a guide is excellent. Just to be clear, since it took me awhile to learn, is that usually means to field strip the firearm, hold the barrel vertical, and utilize as your reloading. Here's a link to Lee's site with some instructions for their products: http://leeprecision.com/instructions.html

[overthetop]

Use your barrel as a guide, and "drop test" your rounds

This was definitely excellent advice. I barrel tested my rounds and it turned out that it wasn't a feeding issue, it was definitely an OAL problem. The rounds were loading into the chamber just fine. It was that they were to long and that groove was the bullet getting pushed out of the chamber and into the barrel by the slide. I shortened the length from 1.125 down to 1.108 and the rounds slide easily into chamber with a nice flush headspace (just like the factory round). I made a small batch and will try it at the range tonight.

On a side note. I dropped the powder down 0.2 grains to compensate for the reduced internal capacity of the round. Probably not necessary since I on the lower range already, but I can always bump it back up.

[overthetop]

Worked like a charm last night at the range. I made a 50 rd batch with OAL= 1.108, which put the round flush with the headspace of the barrel. I also found that the Lee powder dispenser also puts a small flare on the case lip and the seating die wasn't adjusted quite right to "crimp" that bell out. A couple of adjustments and the rounds were feeding smoothly (and flush w/headspace) in and out of the chamber. All 50 rounds fed and shot great!

Thanks again for the advice. It worked great!

[Guns N'at]

Worked like a charm last night at the range. I made a 50 rd batch with OAL= 1.108, which put the round flush with the headspace of the barrel. I also found that the Lee powder dispenser also puts a small flare on the case lip and the seating die wasn't adjusted quite right to "crimp" that bell out. A couple of adjustments and the rounds were feeding smoothly (and flush w/headspace) in and out of the chamber. All 50 rounds fed and shot great!

Thanks again for the advice. It worked great!

That is great to hear; I love shooting lead in 9mm, from 100-158 grains, mostly bullets I cast myself. As you have found out, getting proper OAL is one of the biggest challenges for a new reloader, but now that you know how it works, all will be good for any other calibers you might reload.

Next biggest challenge I have found is proper bullet diameter for 9mm (and others). Many foreign made/foreign branded 9mm pistols will have groove diameters larger than the SAAMI .3555" spec. My pistols even when brand new, had groove diameters of .357"+, and I size my bullets .358" or even .359". This in combination with proper lube (not rock hard wax), affords accuracy as good as you can hold, and no leading.

"Super Hardness" many times is a nice buzzword for a lot of sellers, implying harder is always better, but in my experience this is seldom true for all but my highest velocity cast rifle loads. My experience tells me proper sizing, lube, and hardness within reason, in that order gets the best results. maybe your next step can be to make up some cast bullet deer rifle plinkers... Hell of a lot fun, and a nice way to get a beginner hunter used to the rifle, stepping up the velocity as the shooter gains experience. Heck, I even hunted small game with 150 grain cast bullets, driven to 950 or so fps in my 06 and 30-30, and accuracy is plenty good way out there. Good luck with your reloading.