Reloading for a 9mm

[Pelon]

Hello All,
I've been reloading for my rifles for the past 20 yrs or so but only consider myself an experienced novice... so I'll throw this to y'all.

I have acquired 2 Dillon presses (Square Deal B) at an estate sale and sent them to Dillon to be refurbished and now have them set up in 9mm and .45.  My wife has a Kimber (in 9mm) and it is too much power for her dainty little arms.  (Don't tell her I said that).  I am trying to come up with a load that will cycle the action but lose some recoil.  So far its been all or nothing.  Too much bang or not enough to cycle...  I know a solution is out there, she shot a Colt 1911 and had no trouble with it.  He was using lite loads but I don't know what it was.  I would prefer to use Titegroup (as I have quite a bit onhand) but will change it if needed.  Also I have 115 grain bullets but will change that if it will correct the problem.

Pelon

[floydf]

I use HP-38 for my wife.  Quite a bit softer than TiteGroup.

[Guntuckian]

 The .45 load was probably a Bullseye recipe.  Great for punching paper, but that's about all.  Good for building confidence, though.

My wife found all 9 mm loads for a Baby Glock 26 to be too much for her.  She also had problems with limp wristing even when I downloaded handloads.  She switched to a full size .357 Magnum revolver, and all the problems vanished.  Manageable recoil with .38 rounds, no malfunctions, and very accurate.  But, .357 Magnum rounds were too much for her, too. 

If she had tried a full size 9 mm, then the outcome might have been different


Good luck!

--gb

[Pelon]

Thanks GB and Floydf.
I'm going to get some HP-38 and some Bullseye this weekend and try that.

We'll see how that works for her...   

Pelon

[jmdavis]

The light loads in the 1911 might have used a different recoil and or mainspring.

You could try some different recoil springs in your wife's guns with various loads starting at the low end. But accuracy and the 9mm tends to be around 1000fps, due to barrel twist.

If the starting loads for 125's wont cycle the gun, try a lighter recoil spring.

[Guntuckian]

One popular NRA bullseye recipe is 3.5 gr Bullseye under a 230 gr LRN.  It usually works with most .45 ACP pistols without having to go with a lighter spring.  It is very light shooting.  If using 200 gr LSWC, 3.9 to 4.2 gr Bullseye usually avoids FTE and stovepipes.  The 3.5 gr Bullseye  230 gr LRN is often more accurate.

Verify these load data in a published reference.  Normal legal disclaimers apply. Etc., etc.  Also, be careful not to double charge, as this is possible with such small amounts of Bullseye.

-- gb

[jmdavis]

3.5 with a 200 will not cycle my .45 ball gun. It takes 3.8 with lswc and 4.0-4.2 with 185 JHP to be reliable. The ball gun has a 16lb recoil spring. It is built tight, but so far at least 2 people have gone distinguished with it.

My wadcutter gun with ultradot shoots 3.8 of BE with a 185 lswc. Those are the only loads that it gets these days and they will hold <2 inches at 50 yards from the Ransom Rest and even out of my hand they have turned in a couple of 191+ timed and rapid strings at 25 yards.

The point of all of that is that the OP is going to  have to test the loads in his guns and will likely need to adjust the springs to match the loads that his wife will want to shoot.

[Guntuckian]

I prefer not to change springs, so that only an ammo change is required for switching back to self defense use.  But, if one wants to dedicate a pistol for just the shooting sports, switching springs makes perfect sense.

An optimal solution for each shooter exists. 

I personally cast my own 230 gr LRN, and lube them.  The smaller amount of  Bullseye is then also more economical.

YMMV

-gb

[d2331]

I'm late to this party but as I'm sure you know titegroup has narrow spread between starting and max loads I'm not sure you could find a soft enough load with it.  I've only been loading 45 for my 1911 for a few years but a shotgun powder that can be used in 9mm may work well for you.  You may also want to go to hodgdon's website and see if they have any useful data for your purpose.

[Pelon]

Thank you all for your input.  I will check the Hodgdon website shortly.
I'm still open to other thoughts anyone may have.

Pelon 

[TomM1Thumb]

http://www.hodgdonreloading.com/data/pistol

You may have to go to a lighter Bullet weight, so that Your 9mm Luger can Mimic 9mmKurz or 380.

I do hope You Find a Load, That works For You and Your Wife. Do You also have a 22 cal auto pistol for Her to Practice with?

That might help.

[Pelon]

Thanks TomM1Thumb. 
I picked up some powder this weekend and when I get back to town I'm going to load some up.
She does have a .22 to practice with and she's a pretty good shot.
Pelon

[hawkeye]

That 1911 had standard springs from Wolff  springs. I use bullseye powder and 124 grain FMJ on all my loads. I'm sure that's what your wife shot, that pistol has thousands of rounds through it but shoots well enough for the long range matches that I shoot. I have shot this same load since the late 1979 and it works fine in all my other 9mm firearms. Steve

[Pelon]

Thanks Steve,
She loved your Colt...  i'd still buy it if you would sell it.   

That Kimber I bought her is almost too much for her.  I'll keep experimenting until I get it right.  I have been traveling so much I can't get time to load any rounds for her.