Load Data - Warning

[sliclee]

Correct me if Im wrong,brass fired from glock pistols are not supposed to be reloaded! Yes or no?
That bubble, bulge after being fired is now a weak link, yes or no.
I recently read a new designed die to push the bulge back to straight before being resized. That is FACT.
Is that brass now 100% perfect to resize,reload fire?  Lee

[sqlbullet]

Smiled cases that are buldged badly should not be reloaded.  Slight bulge or other brass from Glocks is fine to reload.  There is a sticky with pictures.

[DM1906]

Correct me if Im wrong,brass fired from glock pistols are not supposed to be reloaded! Yes or no?
That bubble, bulge after being fired is now a weak link, yes or no.
I recently read a new designed die to push the bulge back to straight before being resized. That is FACT.
Is that brass now 100% perfect to resize,reload fire?  Lee

Smiles are bad. Discard the brass. Period. Bulges (bubbles), on the other hand, iron them out with a Lee FCD bulge buster or Redding pass-through die. I've been reusing Glock-fired brass for 25 years. No problems.

[The_Shadow]

Here is the video link of the Redding GRX setup being used.  I also use the LEE FCD die with ts guts removed as a Bulge Buster setup....

[tommac919]

Vid showed pic of smiles but he didn't talk much about the problem of a damaged case...
But still explained the problem well enough.

When I need, I use the Lee sizer without guts, but it's only every now and then. Usu the regular sizing die solves the problem for me.

But looking at the price of the GRX die at $82 (carbide), I think I'd just opt for a LW barrel at $99.

[The_Shadow]

As I have mentioned before using the LEE FCD without the guts,I "pass - through" size all 10mm, 40S&W, 357Sig and 9x25 Dillon cases prior to regular sizing and depriming.  The reason is a simple one for me, I achieve 100% reliability of feeding and functioning, therefore it becomes the essential part of my handloading practices.

I also have utilized the "pass - through" sizing process with 380 ACP and 45 ACP using the appropriate LEE FCD dies. 

I am about the start "pass - through" for 9mm cases as soon as I can get the Lee Carbide Factory Crimp Die 9x18mm (9mm Makarov) to work with...

[gandog56]

Pass through for 9mm is a problem. It is actually not a true straight wall pistol case, it has a slight taper. Pass through destroys that taper.

[crazywednesday]

I have never seen a spec that indicated it had slight taper.

Justin

[Benchrst]

http://www.saami.org/pubresources/cc_drawings/Pistol/9mm%20Luger%20-%209mm%20Luger%20+P.pdf

9mm is a taper cartridge, and can be 'bulge busted' with a 9mm Mak FCD.

[kilibreaux]

Redline's question is the same as mine.  Even with very light loads, my stock G20 barrel produces case head expansion that is on the upper limits of what people consider "stopping" points.

Unfortunately case head expansion is not a valid indicator of total pressure.  A larger than spec chamber - GLOCKS, will allow a brass case that flows like plastic under high pressure, to expand to meet the chamber wall, then "spring back" as brass does.  This results in a "measured" greater than recommended case head expansion yet has in reality told you NOTHING about total pressure.  The case can ONLY expand to the limit of the chamber.  Different alloys of brass will result in different "rebound" or contraction amounts of the brass...so total case head expansion tells you nothing.  A fully flattened primer tells you a LOT more....as does a "smeared" primer that indicates the slide started unlocking even before the spring-loaded firing pin could get out of the way....except in a Glock or XD which has a spring HOLDING the firing pin forward as the slide cycles!

[sqlbullet]

I gotta dissent here.

Case head expansion is not a reliable indicator between guns.  e.g. you can't measure a case head from your gun and compare it to a generic chart and know anything.

But, for a given firearm, case heads will expand consistently as pressure increases (too a point).  I have seen this in all my guns.  And I maintain data for my guns for just this purpose.

That said, there are some very specific rules that have to be followed for this method to work.

1.  You have to use a micrometer that measures to ten-thousandths.  .001" is not good enough.
2.  You have to do all your tests with new brass from the same maker, ideally from the same lot.  Used brass will have work hardened to varying degrees and this will affect the outcome.
3.  It is useful to have some reference data.  Underwood loads at the very edge of SAAMI spec, and uses virgin starline brass.  I consider them a valuable reference for case head expansion on max loads.

I would also comment that 10mm is a high enough impulse round that it is not uncommon to get some firing pin wipe in many guns with perfectly safe loads.  My Witness guns, for instance, wipe every primer, every time.  This is because the slide acceleration overcomes the firing pin spring.

[gandog56]

http://www.saami.org/pubresources/cc_drawings/Pistol/9mm%20Luger%20-%209mm%20Luger%20+P.pdf

9mm is a taper cartridge, and can be 'bulge busted' with a 9mm Mak FCD.

Now THAT I never thought of. But sounds good. I have way over 1000 cases laying around that I just may try that with.

[DM1906]

http://www.saami.org/pubresources/cc_drawings/Pistol/9mm%20Luger%20-%209mm%20Luger%20+P.pdf

9mm is a taper cartridge, and can be 'bulge busted' with a 9mm Mak FCD.

The 9mm Luger is, in fact, a tapered cartridge. However, if you feel the need to "bulge bust" them, something is very wrong. Bulged 9mm brass is junk brass, and should not be reused. The 9mm case is robust, more so than the pressure it should ever be subject to (+P+). The brass is thicker in all dimensions (mouth, wall, web, and head), and volume smaller, than cases designed for significantly greater volume and higher pressure. If your 9mm brass is bulging, something is very wrong.

[The_Shadow]

It goes back to not all brass is created equal either!  The pressures for 9mm is all over the place Std pressure and +P and
+P+ as to are the chambers being anywhere from great support to loose as a goose...

[DM1906]

It goes back to not all brass is created equal either!  The pressures for 9mm is all over the place Std pressure and +P and
+P+ as to are the chambers being anywhere from great support to loose as a goose...

No doubt. Since the 9mm was/is the preferred and most prolific SMG cartridge (by a WIDE margin) for nearly a century, the current design is also that old. It remains essentially unchanged, dimensionally. Modern metallurgy and manufacturing processes further improve the durability. With a maximum +P+ pressure similar to the .40SW (35K PSI), it should be a moot issue. They easily withstand the exceptionally "loose" and fluted chambers common in hyper-cyclic rate SMG's with no issues. Flute embossing common with .40SW and .45ACP is rarely seen on 9mm cases. Bulged brass is either depleted (used up, by whatever means), or severely over-pressured. Either way, not suitable for reuse.