Bullet questions...

[alnitak]

I have about a thousand of these 125 gr bullets, sized at .358". Based on the crimp groove, I'm assuming these are designed for the standard .357 load.



Is there any way I can shoot these out of 9mm? If so, how far should I seat them? Just below the crimp groove, or just above?

[rond]

I've loaded a lot of those in .38 Special.

[Tycer]

You can try, but they might get caught in the throat causing feeding issues. A .357" sizing die could fix that. If you do find you need to resize for the 9 and don't have a die, PM me, I might have one you can borrow. Remember that factory Glock barrels are not recommended for cast bullets.

[mikld]

Check your reloadng manual, 9mm 125 gr lead loads, to find a bullet with a similar shape to get the OAL. Don't worry about the crimp groove and just lightly taper crimp (just enough to remove any flare you put in the case mouth to aid bullet searing). Make up a few dummy rounds to check for chambering (you may have to size to .357" or play with OAL). I shoot a similar bullet in my 9mms, .38 Spec and .357 Mag., revolvers get sized .358"+ and semi-autos .357"...

[Griff]

If it were me loading them... I would load them shy of the crimp groove. The 9 headspaces on the mouth, no crimp, plus you need a bit of nose exposed for proper feeding. Lastly, you're going to generate a bit more pressue with those .358s vs .355s, so seating them too deeply will only exacerbate that.

[stretch]

What the other guys said. I'd strongly consider resizing 'em to .356 or .357,
depending on your particular gun's bore.

Do NOT seat them to the crimping groove! It's too deep for the
9mm, and you will increase pressure. Pressure goes up fast
in relation to seating depth in the 9 because the case capacity
is so small. You can mark the bullet at the case mouth in a
round loaded with a 124 gr. projectile. Pul the bullet, measure
from the base to the mark and record that dimension. Now mark
your 125 LRN bullet from the base with that measurement. Seat
to the mark, and measure your new OAL. You may or may not have
feeding troubles, depending on the geometry of your firearm.

-Stretch

[J Miller]

At one time my step son had a Ruger P9. I taught him to hand load his ammo and when he ran out of bullets he asked me if I had anything he could load in the 9mm. All I had was some 158gr SWC bullets. We hunted down some loading data and loaded them.
When range time came his P9 digested those loads like nobodies business. So I suspect that unless your pistol has a minimum chamber it will feed those bullets just fine.

Joe