Hey all.  If you have been reading my other thread in the auto gun section I just bought a new 10mm Kimber target II gun a few days ago and had some minor problems the first day out. Fixed most problems with a re crimp in the taper die and it shoots better now. I didn't have the kimber mag with me at the range as it was lost in my back pocket, I did shoot a bunch in my Witness with no problems and the load I shot was 180 grain JHP Montana Gold 7.5 grains Power pistol, mixed brass. Nice load, I love Power Pistol as it works great in any round. I will work this load up as the Kimber improves. I guess thats it for now.    Craig

Yea Craig, you can push that charge weight quite a bit more, but heck given the shortages of supplies you may want to load light for conservation purposes...I have loaded 8.8 grains with the 180 grain JHP's and Cast @ 1240 fps.

Hey Shadow I was trying for light and the max is 7.8 I think so I can move up from 7.5. See ya!   Craig

Gee I missed your saying 8.8 as a max. I must have old data but I wouldn'tload to that level anyway.

Well after Mr. Shadows post I did some research and my Lyman 49th has the max for 180g jhp at 8.0 and Alliants web site doesn't even list 180g jhp with Power Pistol at all. So I went to Handloads.com and found a load listed at 8.7 so Mr. Shadow is correct at  8.8 for his load. I thought my load at 7.5 was light but I didn't want to move up too much as 10MM as you know can be a handful on the high  end. I will probably end up at around 8.0  Thats it for now.   Craig

I like 8.5gr of Power Pistol for a max load.  8.0gr is a very nice load for my Kimber STII.  Very accurate.  Not harsh but not light.  I've used 7.0-8.5 PP with great results in my Kimber..

Cool, that leads me to believe I am on the right track. I would like to end up with something I can shoot safely in the Witness and Kimber. Remember too I was trying different loads to get the Kimber to feed better but I think it needs more rounds run through it as it seems to me shooting better all the time.   Thanks for the input.  Craig

9.7gn of longshot under a honady fmj-fp at 1.26 with cci std primer is the hottest I've loaded. I stopped there because I'm pretty sure I've found the limit of once fired armscor brass(no blow out just flattened her out pretty good).

Well I just never seem to settle on max loads. Just under max seem to work better for me.    Craig

Was talking to a friend and he stated that he too had heard that guns that were  fitted tight like Kimbers have to be broke in with like 200 rounds or so. Today I shot more of everything I had and had no feeding issues at all. I like to shoot this gun as much as the nines I shoot a lot of. I am working on a brass netting system so I don't have to search for brass. :(Craig

  Well got an update. Went to my range today and shot a bunch of 10mm and I have some bad rounds as I took one apart and guess what ? :'( no powder and that makes a very soft round to the point it lodged a bullet in the Witness barrel. I got it out at home and did shoot some nice rounds in the Kimber. It wasn't the gun it was a few bad bad reloads or should I say the reloader was bad!!! No harm done and I didn't blow myself up so a good day all around. The Kimber is going to be the most accurate gun I shoot without a doubt!!!!  Craig

Quote from: gadabout on April 03 2015 02:10:02 PM MDT
Well got an update. Went to my range today and shot a bunch of 10mm and I have some bad rounds as I took one apart and guess what ? :'( no powder and that makes a very soft round to the point it lodged a bullet in the Witness barrel. I got it out at home and did shoot some nice rounds in the Kimber. It wasn't the gun it was a few bad bad reloads or should I say the reloader was bad!!! No harm done and I didn't blow myself up so a good day all around. The Kimber is going to be the most accurate gun I shoot without a doubt!!!!  Craig

Thanks for the update. I'm really glad that a follow-up round did not go after the squib!

That is a big wakeup call to remind us that looking inside every case, before placing a bullet, is essential.

Curious, did the squib round cycle the gun? Often the don't, but sometimes there is enough oomph from the primer to do it. That is when bad juju happens if one is doing doubles, or on the clock in a match, etc.

I pulled some of the questionable rounds and NO POWDER at all . Not really a squib round just the primer settting the bullet an inch or so in the Witness barrel. So I just missed some as I was loading different rounds for the Kimber and I guess I didn't powder up like 10 or 12. With a shortage of brass I have been filling in and reloading as I shot the Kimber so I ended up with a very mixed box of rounds and those missed ones were in there.     Craig 

P.S. I did hear the soft round or primer only round so I new what had happened.

I'm not trying to pick on you, just trying to understand the process that would cause a reloader miss so many charges. I look inside each case before placing a bullet. I am knocking on wood as I type this, but I have never loaded a squib nor double charge a case.

10 or 12 primed cases with no powder? 

After reloading for 40 years and moving my reloading stuff 5 or 6 times it is really no surprise to me that I could make a mistake like this. Also 4 years ago I was in a bad motorcycle accident that left me totally disable with slight brain damage. I reload many different rounds for myself and friends which adds to the confusion but all in all a mistake will sharpen you up to be more aware of what you are doing. I do load 50 rounds at a time and look into the fifty before the bullet setting but as I said above I was shooting and loading different weights of powder for the Kimber and I guess I missed one of the weights I wanted to try. I had loaded 7,5 grains 8.0 grains 8.3 and 8.5 and I am not even sure what one I missed as they all shot about the same. Being low on brass was also a factor. I was having to load 8 of one weight 12 of another 6 of another etc. I have a bunch of starline but don't want to use it until I have a good load that I can load 100 of. That's it just a mistake that I will work to avoid in the future.

Shot the kimber 10 a lot today and it ran perfect. I seem to be at 8.0 to 8.3  Power Pistol in my 180 grain reloads and they work the same. Also did quite a few 9mm and ran real good as I hadn't done to much with 124 grain jhp before. I seem to be over my hex in the reloading department as the rounds and especially the Kimber functioned perfectly. I guess that's it for now.  Craig