9mm luger ?

[strut64]

Recently bought a 9mm pistol. Have started reloading. I have reloaded for rifle and shotgun for years but have questions about this style reloading.

Have been given some brass I need help with.. Headstamp is WMA, 20, and a circle with cross. Is this military? are the primers crimped? Seems like good brass but there appears to be a bit of crimp ring on the primer.

What is the tolerance on the headspace? I got a LEE trimmer. Do I have to trim the length each firing?

Been reloading with lead round nose and seems to be reasonably accurate. and low cost

Tried using standard Small Rifle Primers instead of pistol primers and everything seemed to go well.
I had a stash of SRP and at todays prices it tried them.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[turbo_guy]

wma headstamp is crimped primers. i cull those and throw them in the trash.

 

[Nowhere Man]

No trimming of straight wall brass is needed.

 

[Doug Casner]

Ive never trimmed a pistol case. 9mm headspace on the mouth but I crimp mine some. You just play it by ear . If you dont crimp enough the pistol will crimp it and you got a locked slide. Ive never crimped one too much but I guess you could. Theres a way to measure crimp maybe somebody could tell ya how. I just play it touch and go. Doug

 

[whatsupdoc]

Circle and cross is nato

 

[rijndael]

I generally toss NATO marked brass because the primers are too tough to seat, swaged or not.

 

[RegionRat]

1. Decrimp of primer pockets on pistol brass works the same way it does on rifle brass. If you already loaded and fired some of these, then someone has already removed the crimp.

2. 9mm Luger headspaces on the case mouth, and the design has a little taper as well.
Look up the specs and study the drawings to see the critical dimensions. Do remove the flare, but don't take the concept too far. For now, it is enough to study the case lengths you have, but very unlikely you would benefit from trim.



3. Case trim is not needed for all but the most picky bullseye applications. In number 2 above, the case length and taper combine to create some variation in workmanship with mixed cases or case lengths so only the precision shooters go as far as specifically matching up the batch lengths in order to control taper crimp. Remember, case length in a mouth headspace design is not like the ones that headspace on the rim, so don't trim unless you are well aware of the headspace issues.

4. You can get away with SRP in pistols, but some ignition issues can come up with statistical failures due to the higher activation energy requirements for rifle primers versus the relative energy available in striker fired pistols. It is a matter of testing and luck, but they can work.

ETA: Using your barrel for a "plunk" test is a handy technique to learn, and case gages can be useful too.

 

[DGP4]

I've loaded 1000s of pistol cases with SRPs without a problem. As others said no trimming is necessary. The thing I had trouble with when I first loaded pistol cases was to get the flare just right. Adjust your die slowly till you get the flare so that the bullet just sticks into the case. If you over flare the cases, the bullets will not seat straight. The other pistol reloading specific with a 9mm cartridge is to get the over all length right so the cartridge drops into the chamber. Make sure you perform the "plunk test" with the first round that comes off the bullet seating die.

 

[Ray123]

Some have used small rifle primers in pistol cases
But my two Glocks will not set the cartridge off in 9mm and 308 acp with the SR primers I tried once... some were rechambered 4 times and never fired, most took 2 to 3 rechambering tries ended up pulling bullets on those...these are striker fired pistols and hammer fired may have more luck... So I never use SR primers in 9mm. Certainly not trust my life to SR primers in pistol cases...that's why they make SP primers ...use them.
Never trim 9mm, and apply only a taper crimp, as it headspaces on the case mouth. Also do the Plunk Test with "your" barrel, and observe "your" magazines COAL.
After testing loads, I run auto loaders on the upper limit of reloading manuals for that bullet, so they function 100% even filthy dirty.
And finally Dillon 600 swage tool will take care of military primer crimp in 9mm... or toss them and use commercial. I use any brass case boxer primed from around the world for plinking, "range pickup", works with some rejects in the mix. American commercial brass would be better for serious work.
Get a 9 mm AR rifle with a mag adapter for Glock mags for even more 9mm fun...and 200 yds plinking fun plus huge velocity increases and 700 ft/lbs of muzzle energy...2497 fps 50 gr copper HP 9mm plus P or 1720 fps for 9mm 115 gr...even shoot 185 gr bullets in 9mm rifle...9mm is fun and economical...or ya just shoot it more.

 

[ebb]

Buy the Lyman small primer pocket reamer and cut away the crimp on the cases. Load and enjoy them and don't waste a good thing.

 

[mikeinct]

Strut wrote :: [ Been reloading with lead round nose and seems to be reasonably accurate. and low cost] That is what it is made for.,practice Me. I just Play with it. Cops tell me it is effective w/ good ammo [the 9mm] I prefer the 40 short n weak or the 45 ACP . Have fun, carry what U can . be safe. mike in ct

 

[Minshooter]

All of the above nearly writes a complete treatise on 9mm loading.
I would add a strong endorsement for the Lee Factory Crimp die.
It has a carbide insert, much like a sizer die, that smooths out any
slight irregularities in the case. Always crimp separately, after seating.
I have run many 5 gallon pails of LFC'd 9mm loads, with the same
"Any boxer primed brass... from around the world" brass; some almost
100 years old, through a large variety of pistols, plus MP5's, Stens,
SW76's, MP40's, etc., with never an ammo caused glitch.

Worth repeating: Check your range pickup brass before sizing.
Much of the world's 9mm had/has Berdan primers. Very hard on decap pins.

 

[WVRJ]

Find somebody who will trade you SPP for SRP,especially as has already been mentioned,if you're going to use them in a carry or HD pistol.When I load for my carry guns,I don't mix brass headstamps,and I use good quality commercial brass.Plinking loads I tend to be a little less strict,but I still use brass that's made by the same company.9MM's not too hard to find,and even my plinking stuff is inventoried as serviceable for SD should the need arise.In other words,I try to make it all good enough to count on in an emergency.You won't likely have to trim it,and the advice on not expanding it any more than enough to start a bullet and a Lee factory crimp die is seconded by me.It's actually easier to load than rifle or shotgun stuff,so you'll do fine.

 

[TMc]

SuperVel ammo has a video on their web site that evaluates SPP vs. SRP. A very good scientific experiment which yielded very interesting results.

 

[tommeboy]

If the case has a date code it is crimped. Most pistols will fire SR primers just fine. Stay away from military or mag primers as they are thicker. 9mm bore diameters are all over the place. But it really only matters if you are shooting cast as to use the right size of bullet.

 

[DogBuster]

What I've learned loading not only 9mm...but 10mm & 45 ACP

Lyman makes an 'M' series expander die...expands in two stages

Lee offers a factory crimp die (FCD)

Add these to your pistol die sets...ammo runs flawlessly

Yes.....I have subbed SR primers for my SP calibers...Rem 7.5's

Striker fired Springfield's have no problems with 'em

Pistol Neck Expanding M Dies

A Lyman Original that Extends Case Life for the Reloader Improves accuracy of cast and jacketed bullet reloads. Doesn't stretch cases as does standard expander button. Extends case life. A "Must-Have" die for the cast bullet or flat-base bullet user. The first step expands the inside of the case...

www.lymanproducts.com

 

[Zero333]

crimped primers I use a de-burring tool to get rid of the crimp... I just have to use a wider de-burring tool instead of the slimmer ones. One that came with my Rock Chucker supreme kit works perfect for me.

Depending on how often you're gonna clean your pistols will depend on how close to max you'd wanna load them.

I clean my pistols every 700-1000 rounds,.. so I load them close to max so they function flawlessly from the very first to the last shot.

TiteGroup is my choice for powder. It just works with every weight 9mm bullet and is not position or primer sensitive. Most forgiving powder I've ever used, besides light loads can be a little dirty.

Edit:... I load all my 9mm on my xl650 and Titegroup meters like water.

 

[searcher]

Ive never trimmed a pistol case. 9mm headspace on the mouth but I crimp mine some. You just play it by ear . If you dont crimp enough the pistol will crimp it and you got a locked slide. Ive never crimped one too much but I guess you could. Theres a way to measure crimp maybe somebody could tell ya how. I just play it touch and go. Doug

Same here. I've trimmed very few - I measure each case quickly and if they spec. 003" under max trim - it doesn't get touched. I do run into cases needing trimming and best to check them

 

[The German]

I have been using SR primers in my 9mm loads without a problem for almost 2 years now. Supposedly, the cups have a bit thicker walls, but none of my 9mm guns failed to ignite them. Out of 15k rounds, I probably had 3 or 4 primers that did not go off, but that is something I can live with.
9mm brass should be readily available at any shooting range - at least at the ones I go to, almost nobody bothers picking these up (besides me )

 

[Lesloan]

wma headstamp is crimped primers. i cull those and throw them in the trash.

Why? You can use this brass easily if you either swage or ream out the primer pocket. I prefer swaging since I once used a primer pocket reamer on a bunch of bass only to find out later that I hadn't gone deep enough. So I bought an RCBS primer pocket swaging tool which quickly, easily and reliably solves the problem.