In order to participate in the GunBroker Member forums, you must be logged in with your GunBroker.com account. Click the sign-in button at the top right of the forums page to get connected.

40 S&W reloading question.

sandwarriorsandwarrior Member Posts: 5,453 ✭✭✭
This past week on my days off I reloaded 50 40 S&W cases. The intermittant problem I had was that some of the rounds didn't feed all the way in. They would stop about 1/8" out. A push with my thumb to seat the slide all the way in was all it took to put the round in where it fired and ejected normally.

I also had Remington UMC rounds fail to feed but those were right at the bottom of the feed ramp. A forward flip of the pistol and the rounds seated without a problem.

My question is what are your thoughts of where I should troubleshoot this. I noted the sizer came down to about the distance the slide was stuck back. but I can find no real 'lip' that would catch. Also, the crimp was set back to even with the case. I thought the flare was a bit big for this so I backed it off a little. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Comments

  • chunkstylechunkstyle Member Posts: 2,463 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I had a problem like this with .40, too. I made the next batch a little hotter, so the recoil spring had more impetus to push forward after each shot, problem solved. It mostly occurred when I was using 155 gr. bullets, but not when I went to 180 gr. More recoil, I guess.
  • BHAVINBHAVIN Member Posts: 3,490 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    When you don't get your sizing die set all the way down it doesn't always create a lip but will leave a slight bulge that can be hard to see. If you are using brass that was previously shot out of an unsupported barrel (ie Glock and many others) this can cause a bulge at the bottom of the case when fired that can be hard to get out if you don't have that die set right. I would reset your size die usually thread it down until it hits the shell plate and then another 1/4 turn until you feel it cam over. Also some resizing dies have looser tolerances and will also make it hard to resize out the bulge mentioned above.
  • dcso3009dcso3009 Member Posts: 2,350 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I had a similar problem with 40's. I changed 2 things at the same time and now everything works well. I exchanged the RCBS dies for Lee dies, and went from Berry's to Rainer bullets. Lee dies seem to size down closer to the base of the case. I am in the process of switching to all Lee dies for my pistol rounds. The Berry's seemed to be just a little oversized/egg shaped and often the crimped mouth of the case would be burried in the soft plated bullet.
  • richbugrichbug Member Posts: 3,650
    edited November -1
    Sounds like they are loaded a little long. can you eject the live round from the chamber after it hangs up? Are there rifling marks on the bullet?
  • temblortemblor Member Posts: 2,153 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Lee makes a fourth die to use on handguns for Post Sizing use. They have a carbide sizing ring in them which does a final check of outside dimentions. Anything that goes thru them will feed in the chamber, and they can be purchased separately to use with your existing dies. They work well for autoloaders.............[8D] -- I'd set my resizing die down a little to iron out any slight bulges near the case head. Fourtys seem to be bad for that, especially if you get once fired brass from somewhere else ( off a range, etc. ). Alot of the police type guns that are frequently shot at these places don't fully support the case and they bulge near the bottom of the case ( which can also be a safety issue )...........best.........[8D]
  • sandwarriorsandwarrior Member Posts: 5,453 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Guys,

    Thanks for the reply's. I did wonder about the recoil spring not being actuated all the way because I definately don't feel the slide hitting the backstop. I suspect it was light loads even though I am using 180's right now. When the same round that holds up 1/8" out is put back into the magazine and I manually pull the slide back all the way they fed perfectly every time.

    richbug,

    I checked the c.o.a.l. right from the start and made sure I wasn't going into the rifling.

    temblor,

    Good point about the case support at the head too. My pistol is a CZ-40P. Kind of a predecessor to the P01. It has a compact CZ handle angle and grip shape unlike their other CZ-40's which look like compact 45's. I don't know how well the case head is support during the firing sequence.

    dcso3009, bhavin
    The dies I use for this pistol are Lee carbide dies. I'll check again next time I size them that it is all the way down. What kind of bulge do you normally encounter when you get them? say like sticking out 1/64th" or so and from top to bottom how big? If it's not just too light loads I think this is where I'll look next.

    thanks again all.
  • haroldchrismeyerharoldchrismeyer Member Posts: 2,213
    edited November -1
    Field strip your pistol, and try putting your reloaded rounds into the chamber. They should drop all the way in with no resistance. I agree that Lee dies are the way to go on pistol calibers, and as stated the sizing die must at least touch the case holder. There is also another die available from Lee, and you run all your loaded rounds through it. It finish sizes them to make sure they will fit the chamber.
  • CubsloverCubslover Member Posts: 18,601 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    I've shot a few hundred rounds of my loads through my CZ. I use 150gr Berry's FMJ's over 5.3gr Bullseye(min Load). I haven't had a problem. Knock on wood.

    PS. I too use Lee carbide dies, They are great.
    Half of the lives they tell about me aren't true.
  • sandwarriorsandwarrior Member Posts: 5,453 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Harold,

    That's a good idea...I'll try that.
  • dcso3009dcso3009 Member Posts: 2,350 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Sand the buldge everyone is talking about is very small normally. It is hard to see or measure, but is there. My RCBS dies left maybe 0.2 inch unsized. The Lee cuts that in half aprox. which makes for easier chambering. As for the extra factory crimp die I have them for some and not for others. 40 is one I do not have. I have not needed it yet. As soon as I find a gun that needs it I will be going over to Cabela's to get one.
    Hope this helps
  • Noah MercyNoah Mercy Member Posts: 43 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    This has been covered by others above, but I'll try to offer some clarification. Two kinds of bulges can appear around the base of the 40 S&W cases. The 40 is a very high-pressure round, and if the firearm it is fired in has an unsupported chamber (the feed ramp intrudes into the chamber slightly leaving a portion of the chambered round unsupported), a small crescent shaped bulge can form corresponding to that feed ramp cutout. This will be apparent before sizing. A circumferential ring after resizing is caused either by the die not being adjusted far enough down or the bevel leading into the die. The former is easy enough to correct...just screw the die down to touch the shell holder and 1/16 turn more. The latter cannot be corrected except by turning down the die in a lathe to eliminate the bevel. If you do this, it will make it more difficult to get the case started into the die, but it will be sized down further.

    I highly recommend you use the Lee Carbide Factory Crimp Die. They add one step to the loading process, but it is worth it. If you have bullets which are slightly oversize (don't laugh...I once got some Sierras that were .403" diameter) or are loading a long bullet which goes far enough into the case to cause a bulge where the case walls get thicker, the Lee CFCD will actually resize the seated bullet to ensure the finished cartridge is within tolerances. It will also help if a bullet is seated a little off from straight. When using one, you simple use your seating die to seat the bullet to the proper depth and eliminate most of the flare from the case mouth. Then you use the CFCD to crimp the cartridge and ensure the final dimensions are good.

    Hope this helps add to the previous posts.

    [:D]
  • chunkstylechunkstyle Member Posts: 2,463 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Actually, Sandwarrior described my earlier problem almost exactly. I loaded up some .40, and they cycled my Beretta 96, no problem. I, too, have a CZ-40P, and the same rounds would leave the slide out of battery, just like his. This was using light target loads, Lee dies, and Rainier 155's. Upping the charge fixed the problem, as did upping the bullet weight. Now I load Rainier 180's or lead SWC 175's. The Berry 165's were never a problem, either.

    What charge were you using, Sandwarrior?
  • sandwarriorsandwarrior Member Posts: 5,453 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Just a continuation of this post. I dropped the sized and unsized cases into the barrel. The sized ones easily go in all the way and the unsized ones drop in with a little tighter fit. I didn't have time to run the whole gamut as I've been doing a lot of overtime. But that's it so far.
  • mpolansmpolans Member Posts: 1,752 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    The problem you describe is often caused by the bulge occuring in .40 brass that is fired in an unsupported chamber (usually Glock). IPSC shooters have found two ways around this:
    1. Ordering an undersize Lee resizing die from EGW (www.egw-*)
    2. Using a Lee Factory Crimp die.

    These two things will greatly reduce the problem. In addition, because the case usually ends up in a slight coke bottle shape, fewer problems with bullet setback are experienced.
Sign In or Register to comment.