G29 Failure to Feed Hard Cast

[Lunker]

I just shot my G29 with stock barrel and had a few failures to feed with DoubleTap 200grain wfn hardcast lead bullets. I could usually clear the problem by tapping the rear of the slide. I thing the wide, flat profile is causing the hangup. No problem with the 200 grain fmj bullets. Anyone else have problems feeding this ammo in their G29 stock barrels? Switch ammo or get a KKM barrel?
Thanks


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[tommac919]

It may be the OAL with the flat head

[my_old_glock]

The bullet diameter may be too large. Hardcast bullets are usually oversize. FMJ 10mm bullets are .401" diameter. Hardcast 10mm would be .402"-.403". Measure your bullet diameter. You may also need a stronger recoil spring, or liberally oil your gun.

You can mark the bullet with a permanent marker pen, then do a plunk test, and see what part of the bullet has the permanent marker rubbed off. You will know where the tight spot is.

See attached picture of what to measure.
.

[attachment deleted by admin]

[sqlbullet]

The ones I cast myself are that big, but commercial jacketed are .400" (Nosler are often .399") and commercial cast are generally .401"

[The_Shadow]

Double Tap 200 grain wfn hardcast bullets, are usually loaded to a cartridge overall length of 1.2420" - 1.2450" because of the Wide Flat Nose Hard Cast MEPLAT 0.3235" (they are usually very squared at the edges) and that hampers the tipping and feeding angles.  If they are seated longer they will likely hang up sometime.  The last 230 grains were found loaded longer at 1.2550", I'm sure they would have tipping angle issues in tighter chambers.

This is the DT 200 WFN bullet


You need to insure the cartridges are fully seated to the rear of the magazines as much as possible.  Tap the back edge of the mag against your palm or thigh to improve the stack.  When loading a Glock magazine fully if there are cartridges rattling it should be unloaded and then reloaded.

[The_Shadow]

Lunker one other question...What recoil setup are you running? Factory? Aftermarket?

I run a Wolff Gunsprings (non captive) two piece rod and dual 21 lbs springs.  It works well with the higher impulse ammo.
I also have the 23 lbs spring set to work with as well.

[Lunker]

Everything on the gun is stock.
Thanks for all the info. The rounds I fired were from a several year old box of DoubleTap. I have a new box. I will have to break out my reloading micrometer and see the diameter. What is the stock spring weight?


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[The_Shadow]

Stock spring is 18 lbs for the G-29.
Check cartridge length as well, 1.245" - 1.242" were were they fed more reliably.
Remember Glock factory barrels are some what loose for reliability, chamber should be 0.434".

[kilibreaux]

I just shot my G29 with stock barrel and had a few failures to feed with DoubleTap 200grain wfn hardcast lead bullets. I could usually clear the problem by tapping the rear of the slide. I thing the wide, flat profile is causing the hangup. No problem with the 200 grain fmj bullets. Anyone else have problems feeding this ammo in their G29 stock barrels? Switch ammo or get a KKM barrel?
Thanks


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Hardcast won't feed as "slick" as do jacketed bullets, and this sucks some of the feeding energy out of the slide and recoil spring.  If you are shooting anything more potent than the mid-range loads in the 550 fpe range, you should switch to a 23-24 pound non-captive recoil spring...available from Lone Wolf Dist.  This not only makes your gun more reliable with the hotter ammo, it also delays slide opening which translates into smaller ES numbers, greater velocity, AND, greater closing force!  This will eliminate the slide being just shy of fully locked up due to the lower weight factory spring combined with the captive guide rod.

The OEM captive guide rod has a very small slide closing force.

Bear in mind that when you're shooting "real" 10mm loads from a G-29 the entire reciprocating system mass is considerably less than that of a stock G-20.  Also, even with the heavier spring install you can still shoot mid-range loads just fine, and even generic 40 S&W loads without swapping out springs.

[Lunker]

I just shot my G29 with stock barrel and had a few failures to feed with DoubleTap 200grain wfn hardcast lead bullets. I could usually clear the problem by tapping the rear of the slide. I thing the wide, flat profile is causing the hangup. No problem with the 200 grain fmj bullets. Anyone else have problems feeding this ammo in their G29 stock barrels? Switch ammo or get a KKM barrel?
Thanks


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hardcast won't feed as "slick" as do jacketed bullets, and this sucks some of the feeding energy out of the slide and recoil spring.  If you are shooting anything more potent than the mid-range loads in the 550 fpe range, you should switch to a 23-24 pound non-captive recoil spring...available from Lone Wolf Dist.  This not only makes your gun more reliable with the hotter ammo, it also delays slide opening which translates into smaller ES numbers, greater velocity, AND, greater closing force!  This will eliminate the slide being just shy of fully locked up due to the lower weight factory spring combined with the captive guide rod.

The OEM captive guide rod has a very small slide closing force.

Bear in mind that when you're shooting "real" 10mm loads from a G-29 the entire reciprocating system mass is considerably less than that of a stock G-20.  Also, even with the heavier spring install you can still shoot mid-range loads just fine, and even generic 40 S&W loads without swapping out springs.

Thanks very much. I was just on the Wolff website looking at spring setups. You recommend 23lbs over 21lbs? That is a big jump from the factory 18lbs.


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[frankt]

It may also be the angle of the ramp. I found out trying to shoot SWC and RNFP  bullets in the G30/G21  G29/G20 guns.

The small guns would not shoot them reliably and the bigger guns ate them right up. I was told the ramp angle is different resulting in poor feeding.

[Lunker]

So I bought the Wolff 23lb non-captive spring setup and tried it with 200 grain Doubletap FMJ and hard cast. I got hangups with both. The FMJ works fine with my stock spring setup. I am wondering if 23 pounds is too stiff because it seems like the nose of the bullet ends up going nearly straight up in the hood of the barrel chamber.
I am going to polish up the feed ramp with some flitz and a rag, then buff it up with my dremel. I will see if that improves the situation. Sucks to not have a reliable heavy woods load setup.


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[Lunker]

Stock spring is 18 lbs for the G-29.
Check cartridge length as well, 1.245" - 1.242" were were they fed more reliably.
Remember Glock factory barrels are some what loose for reliability, chamber should be 0.434".

This was it! I broke out the calipers last night and my Wilson Case Gage. The 200grain FMJ bullets all slipped in and out of the gage easily and passed the plunk test. They measured between 1.242-1.244".
The 200grain hard cast bullets often needed and gentle, sometimes hard, tap to fit the case gage. Many failed the plunk test. All dropped in pretty well, but some did not spin freely. The OAL on them ranged from 1.246-1.249".
I am giving the folks at DoubleTap a call today. My understanding is that they have excellent customer service.


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[Kimber-45]

Glocks are not designed to shoot lead.
Aside from that your failure to feed issues could be from the non "slick" nature of hard cast lead.
Get a KKM barrel and polish up the feed ramp. You'll be fine.

[Patriot]

Glocks are not designed to shoot lead.
Aside from that your failure to feed issues could be from the non "slick" nature of hard cast lead.
Get a KKM barrel and polish up the feed ramp. You'll be fine.

There is a difference between hard cast and lead. Glock released a statement years ago telling people to only shoot jacketed bullets from their pistols. Other companies use polygonal rifling in their barrels but have not issued the same warning. In my experience, pure lead bullets are a bad idea due to fouling. But a hard cast bullet should not be a problem if sized correctly. However, it is important to note that Glock has come out and made it clear that only jacketed bullets should be used. Using a hardcast bullet will most likely void the warranty.