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220 grn bullets in a .40? Custom Barrel that will work?
- Thread starter Dmanlore
- Start date
I remember reading an article about one of the major manufacturers, maybe more than one, changing to a faster twist rate for their .40 barrels?
I think 10mm is 1:16, and I know people are using 200+ grain bullets in 10, so shouldn't a faster .40 rate work better with heavier bullets?
Is there any load data for 220gr bullets in .40?
I think 10mm is 1:16, and I know people are using 200+ grain bullets in 10, so shouldn't a faster .40 rate work better with heavier bullets?
Is there any load data for 220gr bullets in .40?
Unless the bullet itself is over 1.2'' long, a 1:16'' twist should stabilize a 220 grain .40 cal bullet. Especially if it's cast lead, which would be shorter for weight than a comparable weight jacketed bullet. It's more about length than it is weight when we're talking about stability.
If the 220 grain (cast) bullet ends up the same length as a 200 grain jacketed bullet, the heavier bullet will actually have more stability than the lighter one. Heavier bullets don't always need a faster twist. Longer bullets tend to..
If the 220 grain (cast) bullet ends up the same length as a 200 grain jacketed bullet, the heavier bullet will actually have more stability than the lighter one. Heavier bullets don't always need a faster twist. Longer bullets tend to..
Wiki says the standard twist rate is 1:16, but new M&Ps are apparently 1:18.75, and Glock, 1:9.84.
I don't think anyone expected bullets heavier (longer) than 180 to be shot in .40, so the twist rate may have been optimized for the lighter end of the range, but that doesn't explain the wide range of rates.
I don't think anyone expected bullets heavier (longer) than 180 to be shot in .40, so the twist rate may have been optimized for the lighter end of the range, but that doesn't explain the wide range of rates.
Walt Sherrill
New member
Note: I'm not into reloading, but find the discussions interesting.
Here's a link to a site where some folks were talking about that very round, and one of the respondents spoke about his experience with it.
Most of the participants seemed wary, but the guy who actually shot 220 used a standard barrel and got good accuracy. He didn't explain the advantages, if any, of using the heavier round.
Here's one excerpt about WHY some tried it, but I added the underlining, below:
Sounds like a heavy-weight wad-cutter... Read more at the link below:
http://www.xdtalk.com/threads/40-s-w-220gr-lfn-bullet-question.125786/
Here's a link to a site where some folks were talking about that very round, and one of the respondents spoke about his experience with it.
Most of the participants seemed wary, but the guy who actually shot 220 used a standard barrel and got good accuracy. He didn't explain the advantages, if any, of using the heavier round.
Here's one excerpt about WHY some tried it, but I added the underlining, below:
"Bullets like this were designed (a while ago) for custom high cap limited guns used in USPSA. The chamber throats were cut to allow for an OAL of 1.200-1.250. The idea was to slow down the slide velocity and get the recoil impulse more like a 45 acp. When the power factor got lowered to 165, bullets like this were pretty much abandoned."
Sounds like a heavy-weight wad-cutter... Read more at the link below:
http://www.xdtalk.com/threads/40-s-w-220gr-lfn-bullet-question.125786/
Last edited:
Long-loading .40 for hi-cap 1911-style competition pistols (STI, SVI) was to help improve feed reliability.
The 1911 was designed feed rounds of ~1.25" OAL, and shorter rounds don't run as reliably.
I've never heard of it being used to reduce pressures (though it could achieve that), and everyone I knew who was long-loading their .40 was using 180gr bullets.
The 1911 was designed feed rounds of ~1.25" OAL, and shorter rounds don't run as reliably.
I've never heard of it being used to reduce pressures (though it could achieve that), and everyone I knew who was long-loading their .40 was using 180gr bullets.
I've loaded some 220gr .40's both for plinking purposes and just to see what the .40 could do with them.
They're mostly designed for plinking since with a small dose of powder it can really be a fine gaming load with light recoil. For that purpose I kind of like 200's better, and under small doses of TiteGroup makes for a very low recoil load (at normal .40 OALs)
I've loaded the heavy 220's to around 1100 fps in the .40 too for a potential woods load but still preferred the 180/200gr for that purpose.
They're mostly designed for plinking since with a small dose of powder it can really be a fine gaming load with light recoil. For that purpose I kind of like 200's better, and under small doses of TiteGroup makes for a very low recoil load (at normal .40 OALs)
I've loaded the heavy 220's to around 1100 fps in the .40 too for a potential woods load but still preferred the 180/200gr for that purpose.