I am not a new loader, but I am new to 9mm.
I am loading some 124 gr FMJ pulled bullets. They are a bit undersized at 0.354- 0.3455. They were very inexpensive so just looking for something that leaves the barrel and is minute of silhouette accurate.
I was using my single stage for the initial workups since I had not setup my die plate. One thing that jumped out right away is that W-W head stamp brass is thin. Thin like you can't feel the expander post going into the brass at all. The seating forces were very light, and neck tension is not there.
Out of about 8 W-W samples, all of them had retention issues. The necks are thin at about .008". The other head stamps, including WIN, were typically 0.010 - 0.012". I did not find any other brass to have similar issues, but I am dealing with a small sample of the brass that I have on hand.
I believe that the re-sizing die is in speck since re-sized cases all nicely dropped into a gage. The W-W cases slip into the sizer REALLY easily, and then you almost don't feel the expander stem at all. The expander is an RCBS M-Style set to just barely open the case mouth. With the same brass, bullets seat with comparably little effort.
So sorting brass for this bullet is going to be part of the deal. Thin brass, narrow bullets = no neck tension. The thicker walled cases are totally fine. R-P, WCC, WIN, FC, HRTRS, Starline, etc. had no issues.
So here is my question for the GT reloading veterans: What other types of 9mm brass are known to have thin walls? What types are known to have thick walls. I want to pre-sort brass before I transition to the progressive since I will lose some feel for bullet seating forces. After I run these test lots over the chrony, I will do a bigger run on the progressive.
Thanks!
First 9mm Reloads - Observations, Questions
I am loading some 124 gr FMJ pulled bullets. They are a bit undersized at 0.354- 0.3455. They were very inexpensive so just looking for something that leaves the barrel and is minute of silhouette accurate.
I was using my single stage for the initial workups since I had not setup my die plate. One thing that jumped out right away is that W-W head stamp brass is thin. Thin like you can't feel the expander post going into the brass at all. The seating forces were very light, and neck tension is not there.
Out of about 8 W-W samples, all of them had retention issues. The necks are thin at about .008". The other head stamps, including WIN, were typically 0.010 - 0.012". I did not find any other brass to have similar issues, but I am dealing with a small sample of the brass that I have on hand.
I believe that the re-sizing die is in speck since re-sized cases all nicely dropped into a gage. The W-W cases slip into the sizer REALLY easily, and then you almost don't feel the expander stem at all. The expander is an RCBS M-Style set to just barely open the case mouth. With the same brass, bullets seat with comparably little effort.
So sorting brass for this bullet is going to be part of the deal. Thin brass, narrow bullets = no neck tension. The thicker walled cases are totally fine. R-P, WCC, WIN, FC, HRTRS, Starline, etc. had no issues.
So here is my question for the GT reloading veterans: What other types of 9mm brass are known to have thin walls? What types are known to have thick walls. I want to pre-sort brass before I transition to the progressive since I will lose some feel for bullet seating forces. After I run these test lots over the chrony, I will do a bigger run on the progressive.
Thanks!
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