i am new to the forum -- as you can see-- i have a question regarding reloading for the .40 cal SW. . .. i have read info about guns coming apart. barring blatant stupidity on my part, are them some gun mfg. that I should NOT fire reloads in?

There seems to be a school of thought that you shouldn't shoot lead bullets in a Glock, but folks do it all the time. I personally shoot lead bullet reloads in all my pistols, but I clean them religiously after every shooting session.

Fully resize the case--this can be done only by pushing case thru a die. Several companies make the equipment.

Head space every reload. Dies are available for this too, or remove the barrel from your gun and use it for a gauge.

Any cartridge that soes not head space, junk.

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the world is round everywhere

All manufacturers say not to use reloaded ammunition in the guns. This is a liability issue. If you follow the data in reputable loading manuals your loads will be safe in any good quality gun.

Glock specifically states not to use non-jacketed bullets in their guns. This is due to the polygonal rifling used. Lead bullets will not damage a Glock but my skid in the barrel and destroy accuracy and lead the barrel. That's what I've been told I don't own or shoot a Glock so I can't say for sure.

Glock is a leading offender for KB's in 40. especially reloads.
the case head is not fully supported in a bid to improve feeding. add to that the fact that 40 operates at fairly high pressure and the brass gets pretty well worked over (you will on occasion hear reference to "Glocked cases")
Glocks and lead don't mix well due to their polygonal rifling. this is also true of HK's such as the USP.
However, aftermarket barrels with traditional rifling solve this problem

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it just needs more voltage

The 40 SW is no different loading than the 9mm. The problems occur in guns that do not have fully supported chambers such as the Glock 40 and the Browning HP (40).
As Venom mentioned if the case is not unsupported (by the case head) it can bulge and after repeated reloads it gets weak and can rupture. The 40 is a high pressure round so it occurs more often when loading max or "hot" loads or if an accidental double powder charge.

The lead in poly rifling is a different issue.

What brand 40 SW do you have or want to load for??

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Still Running Against the Wind

Partially unsupported chambers, polygonal rifling and an inadequate taper crimp to prevent potential bullet setback when it hits the feedramp seem to be the leading cause of worries with loading the 40 S&W (aside from the more usual double charge/wrong powder errors). Overworked brass, particularly that having been shot in chambers that are not fully supported and possibly oversize anyway, especially if it continues to be used in such chambers, is also a concern. The 40 is a pretty high pressure round already. You can't do much to improve it, and it tends to work brass pretty hard at max level loads.

Avoiding guns like Glocks in 40, which has two out of three of those issues, and possibly HKs because of their poly rifling (although I don't recall hearing much about HKs in 40 blowing up, if anything at all) will ease your worries.

More importantly, choose a powder that fills the case to the base of the bullet (high load density), perhaps even slightly compressed to lessen the chance of setback and be sure to use a firm taper crimp.

I've been loading 40 since it first appeared in 1990. Brass was scarce back then. I had some cases that are very well used from that period. They were all shot in S&Ws, and kept to about 95% of max. I have had good luck and good success with the cartridge sticking to those basic principles.

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" I said, good DAY! "

If you use any current manufacture good quality gun, there is not an issue with commercial .40 S&W ammo. If you use only your own brass and follow the cautions of VAdoublegunner, above, there are no issues with reloads.

Using brass from unknown sources is the real problem with loading .40 S&W. I use "range trash brass" and typically anywhere from 1/4 to 1/3 of the .40 S&W brass I get cannot be returned to spec by ordinary sizers. Therefore I use a push-through sizer and get rid of the over-expanded case problem before trying to reload. Unlike 9mm cases, .40 S&W cases will NOT be sized by ordinary sizers when expansion extends into the web area.

Over-expansion ranges from the "smileys" near the case head from older Glock .40 barrels to the "jugged" chambers of competition guns. Any case that shows signs of extensive use, like faint head stamps, damaged or dished case heads, etc., goes into the trash.

The reason "guns come apart" is people try to shoot .40 S&W reloads with expanded heads that WILL NOT CHAMBER FULLY, but fire slightly out of battery, blowing out the case. If the reload will not drop freely into a case gage, DON'T TRY TO FIRE IT!!

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Science plus Art

["The reason "guns come apart" is people try to shoot .40 S&W reloads with expanded heads that WILL NOT CHAMBER FULLY, but fire slightly out of battery, blowing out the case. If the reload will not drop freely into a case gage, DON'T TRY TO FIRE IT!! "]

That's the best explanation of the "kaboom" phenomenon I have heard. Thanks! Couple that with a possibly setback bullet, and you have potential for a blown up pistol.

Sound reloading practices will overcome that, but you have to keep your wits about you when you reload.

I have shot thousands of rounds of reloaded shells with 180 gr lead bullets, home cast out of wheel weights and 2% tin, in my Glock 35.
I am using an after market barrel. No problems.

Yes you can shoot lead bullets in the orginial Glock barrel and Yes it will lead up. Prolonged use of lead bullets can not only lead up the barrel but the increased leading will increase pressure that can lead to a KA-Boom.

I used range pick up brass and use Dillon dies, which appears to erase the Glock bulge. I just dump them in the hopper, on my 650 and load away.

No failures to feed YET.

I load on the low side for IDPA getting around 800 FPS with my reloads which meets the power factor required.

I have no experience loading the .40 on the high side. If I decide to use the Glock for SD/hunting/? I use Factory loads.

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Semper FI

i own a Springfield EMP; a friend of mine has a Taurus Millenium both are .40 cal and i had intended to load for both. i've been collecting a lot of brass; mostly winchester i believe to be once fired - - not positive. mostly range stuff. .

You're good to go. Have fun and be safe.

I have seen some push-through style sizing dies that can take a .40 S&W case that literally looks like a belted magnum and resize it to look as good as new. The "belt" is gone, but what happens the next time you load this piece of brass hot and shoot it out of an unsupported chamber?

I have shot thousands of handloads out of my Glock 35 with factory barrel. I use only plated and jacketed bullets. The hottest I load is USPSA Major PF (which is not quite the power of factory loads) and I use what I know is once fired brass when I do this. I never have any problems. But the .40 S&W is the one and only cartridge that I refuse to load hot. A 180 gr. factory loaded FP will do all that needs to be done with this cartridge and I can not think of any way to improve that performance.

Dave Sinko

I have had no problems shooting my cast bullets in the Glocks that i have had in 40 S&W as well as the 9mm, 45ACP, and 45GAP.

I feel that the polygonal rifling makes it easier to clean the barrel after shooting.

In my experience the traditional rifled barrel is more likely to lead than the polygonal Glock barrel.

elfego

I agree and disagree with some of the above. Regardless, from my reading on the issue and years of reloading (including 40 S&W and shooting reloads through Glocks), I think the issue of guns "coming apart" is most often related to poor reloading practices and not the guns being used.

Agreed. The only way brass is going to look like some of these images is due to hot loads. I do not shoot a Glock 40 (had one) but i do have a lot of brass that has been fired through a Glock 40. I have seen minor bulge but never any of these nasty looking ones.

https://www.google.com/search?q=gloc...w=1400&bih=694

Actually the pictures on the blue tape are mine from another thread. Nothing disappears on the internet!

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Still Running Against the Wind