New here/ reloading about 9mm

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fossitms

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Hi
I have read the abc’s of reloading and Hornady Edition 9+10, Lyman 50th and Sierra 5th. I have some other books also. In the books it give you load data based on there bullet, a set case, primer and powder. My question is I have lots of cases of mix headstamps from over time. I know there can be volume differences in them, but if you start at a starter load are you ok with any brand of case? I have googled the different brands for load data, also.
Thanks for any help.
 
Yes, mixing cases with different headstamps is no big deal....I do it all the time.

Just look at the published min and max....and stay within those published recipe's and you are fine. Sure start at Min ....or even at midrange ...to give you a little leeway + or - but strive for a very consistent drop .
 
fossitms, Welcome to the forum!

I try to sort by headstamp and load them together just to try and hold consistency. After a while you will collect a wide variety of oddball stuff. That stuff I'll save and load it all together for those times when I know I will be shooting somewhere that I know I won't be able to recover most of it. The slight difference you may find will not overly effect anything.
 
The only noticeable things i have come across from loading mixed 9mm brass is your flaring die will not always be consistent, so you need to find a good middle ground with the depth setting. OAL can be off a bit too, but i am not sure its thats just the tolerance of the seating die or the different headstamps throwing it off.

Either way, perfectly within acceptable tolerances for reloading. You just wont have stuff that is all (nearly) the same measurements.
 
As a side note, I once pulled 20 rounds out of a box of 9mm Winchester and measured them. OAL varied by .007" from longest to shortest. I hold tighter than that with my reloads.
 
Howdy, from Texas. Your approach of reading some reputable resources before starting reloading is a wise one. For starting out, just learning, there is no issue using mixed 9mm headstamp brass. If you are a competition shooter, then you would probably not want to mix as it MAY affect pistol accuracy to a very slight degree.
 
The only noticeable things i have come across from loading mixed 9mm brass is your flaring die will not always be consistent, so you need to find a good middle ground with the depth setting. OAL can be off a bit too, but i am not sure its thats just the tolerance of the seating die or the different headstamps throwing it off.

Either way, perfectly within acceptable tolerances for reloading. You just wont have stuff that is all (nearly) the same measurements
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Exactly on point. Sorting by head stamp is a waste of time. A couple of thousands difference in OAL is no big deal. Use the barrel of your 9mm as your gauge as we call it the plunk test with regards to OAL
 
All will go bang with mixed headstamps. Don't chrono or shoot for Accuracy because you will see the difference.

For Plinking, its great. Less worries.

I do like kmw1964, keep the oddball stuff for shooting where the brass will not be retrieved.

Case capacity, Neck tension, OAL, the age of the brass and times reloaded all have a little effect. Sometimes they stack up and make for fliers.

We are talking a couple shots out of a group, not off the paper.

Enjoy your new addiction.

David
 
Thanks for the insight.
I’m kinda OCD when I do things so I separated my brass. I’ve got this mix of materials.
1100-blazer brass
500-Winchester
600-federal
350-Remington
Hodgdon Titegroup- it looks like 3.9 grains is my starting load
Hornady 115 gr fmj-rn
CCI 500 primers
COAL is 1.169
I have a Hornady single stage LNL press and dies. Im excited to start reloading, but want to be safe. I’m starting with 9mm, .38/.357, .223, .308 and .30-30. Once I’m comfortable with 9mm then work on the others. Forgive my ignorance to being new.
 
fossitms, looks like you have a plan.

The OAL of 1.169" is the std. max for any 9mm. I normally load 115gr bullets at between 1.125" and 1.150" depending on the bullet. I do believe some of the hollow points get loaded even shorter than that but I don't load those so I'd have to check.

At 1.169" with those bullets you may get some very weak loads that may not cycle your gun. So you should double check your length before you begin.

Will be waiting to see how your first loads performed for you. Best of luck, have fun and stay safe!
 
Welcome to the wonderful, oft confusing and frustrating world of reloading.
First; reloading manuals are not hard and fast formula. They are published reports of what some test techs found when they used their components, in their equipment with the listed amounts. Bullet manufacturer's will use their bullets (of course) and their manuals are good in you choose their bullets/components. If you chooseHornady bullets, use Hornady data. After you get the basics and theory of reloading down, you can extrapolate load data from one bullet manufacturer to another if the bullet is the same weight and shape.

Mixed headstamps for reloads is no problem, and the only time I sort my handgun brass is when I'm working up a specific load or I'm realllly bored. Yes, the internal dimensions of cases can vary, but for new reloaders using book loads there is not a problem. If upper loads and deep seating bullets, then perhaps there could be pressure problems. My suggestion is to find a load in your manual(s), then buy components, start with minumum listed loads, use listed dimensions (OAL).

I do sort my brass (actually unnecessarily) for my "special" loads, for my heavy 44 Magnum loads I use the same brass each time. For my "accurate" loads I usually keep the load to one manufacture of brass, but that's just me and my OCD. :cool:

Go slow. Double check everything. And most important, have fun...

FWIW, prolly the easiest, most forgiving round to reload is the 38 Special. As long as the load is safe and your reloads fit the cylinder, you're good to go. Reloading revolver ammo is simpler than semi-auto because as long as the cartridge goes into the cylinder, quite easy to achieve, it'll work, but semi-auto ammo needs to be able to feed and chamber and cycle the action. Seat bullets to the crimp groove for your revolver and forget measuring length. I started reloading in '69 with a Lee Loader in 38 Special with Lee's instruction sheet and successfully loaded for about a year before I got more "sophisticated"...
 
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I haven't sorted a 38, 357, 9mm or 45 ACP brass by headstamp in over 35 yeras of reloading. But then, I also never load to some uber-max load; I prefer accuracy over pure speed for the sake of speed. I always start at the midrange load and go from there.....YMMV
 
Welcome to TFL fossitms.

Here's my (attempted) quick opinion; based on 34 years of loading. But not a ton of experience with 9mm. 9mm is relatively cheap; and I find myself just buying factory for my needs. I rarely shoot the 9 recreationally; to me, it's mostly a utilitarian cartridge.

if you start at a starter load are you ok with any brand of case?
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I think so.

I generally load the 9 using mixed brass. If my application requires running them hot, I'll use like brass (usually R-P cuz I have a lot of it).

The 9mm cartridge has a confining volume for the propellant (that's fancy talk for "it's a small case" :p). And so differences in case design can significantly affect internal volume, and thus, pressure upon discharge.

So when I am just loading range shooters; I use mixed brass. And when I'm loading hot defense style rounds, I use like brass.
 
"...based on theIr bullet..." Typical of all bullet maker's books(Lyman doesn't make bullets or powder. Their manual far more versatile than any bullet or powder maker's book. Read the Reference chapters too.) Fortunately, you do not load based on a specific brand, construction or shape of bullet. You load for the bullet weight and cast or jacketed. The brand of brass doesn't matter either. The biggest difference is the velocities. That's because the data are averages of data found on the day of the test(done by ballistic engineers) using the exact components listed in the manual.
"...COAL is 1.169"..." Been using that with cast 121 grain, Truncated Cone, bullets for eons. Haven't ever had any failures to feed in 40 years.
 
In my experience the 9 is a bit harder than others to load, especially on a progressive. The small case is hard to see into and there are occasional crimped primers which are a pain. I once sorted brass but gave up on all but accurate rifle loads long ago. For 9, 40, 38/357 and 45 I can’t notice a difference. This is a good thing to add to your firearms hobby. Good luck and have fun.
 
Don't chrono or shoot for Accuracy because you will see the difference.
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Absolute nonsense and horse poop. I make chrono without issue on ALL my reloads using mixed head stamps regardless of caliber. All I will add is remove your barrel and do the plunk test. 1.169 is rather long for OAL. some chambers will not accept rounds that long depending on the olgive of the bullet
 
For 9mm Amerc, Maxxtech, Freedom Munitions, Xtreme, and Ammoland had the stepped cases for a while. Because of these I started sorting my brass about 10 years ago. I added CBC, TulAmmo, Wolf, B-West, SK, TCW, and TPZ as headstamps that get immediately tossed in the recycle bin - they all are very soft brass. I know some people that have loaded these headstamps but the headache it can cause it is just not worth it.

I will load Agila and Perfecta brass once to be used at an indoor range that has a slanted floor that tends to push most brass in front of the firing line. I have had an Agila case separate at the knurling on about the 5th reload. The Perfecta primer pocket gets too loose to hold a primer after the third or fourth reloading.

Every time I go to the range I know what brass I have loaded up. If anything other than that headstamp makes it back to my bench I will give it a close examination before I add it to my inventory.

For 45 I sort for SP and LP. I am swapping all of my LP out with SP.
 
I sort for stepped brass, steel cases, crimped primers and NT (non toxic) cases.

Some of the NT cases have crimped primers but all have enlarged flash holes. They load up fine for normal loads though.

Other than this I don't worry about headstamp for normal pressure loads.
 
So I've been receiving the free brass promo from XTREME and so far have 380, 9mm and just received my 45acp. I have no complaints with it.
 
One caution to note if you don't sort your brass. Federal "FC" 9mm brass is quite thin. Using a standard sizer and expander can leave you with inadequate case tension when loading many .355" bullets, leaving you open to possible set-back of the bullet. A warm load and enough bullet set-back can easily blow a case.Case tension is critical in 9mm and taper crimping is almost useless as a substitute for good case tension.

If you decide not to sort, I recommend an undersize sizing die. Use it on all the brass.
 
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