Cast bullets in the 9mm?

[lafayne]

I posted previously about loads for the XDm9 and received good responses.

I am still a bit confused. Is it feasible or practical to load cast bullets in the 9mm? Not that I plan to do this a lot, but I have a quantity of E & E 125 grain bullets on hand.

Is leading more of a problem than any other caliber. I load cast in .38, .357, .41 mag, .44 mag, .45 AR, .45 Colt and also in my old 38-55.

 

[lafayne]

I posted previously about loads for the XDm9 and received good responses.

I am still a bit confused. Is it feasible or practical to load cast bullets in the 9mm? Not that I plan to do this a lot, but I have a quantity of E & E 125 grain bullets on hand.

Is leading more of a problem than any other caliber. I load cast in .38, .357, .41 mag, .44 mag, .45 AR, .45 Colt and also in my old 38-55.

 

[Paul5388]

More than likely, the leading issue is due to the bores being bigger than the supposed .355" called for in the specs. I have some Lyman Devastators in my Walther P1 right now. However, I don't think they're even .356", probably more like .357" or bigger.

 

[Dew]

`I shoot a 120 grain cast bullet of Lynotype. Lyman number 358262. It does just fine with 4.5 grains of WSF and it is very accurate without any leading. I shoot it from my WWII Radom VIS made in Poland with slave labor. It is so much cheaper to cast and shoot than to buy jacketed stuff these days.

 

[mstuhr]

Hi lafane,
I shoot Missouri Bullet Co. "Smallball" cast bullets in a steel plate gun at some what under factory velocities and also in bowling pin matches at factory velocity and have no problem.
I'd try cast bullets if you have them.
Good luck
Mike

 

[lafayne]

Thanks for the info. These bullets mike about .357. I'll give them a try.

 

[Duskykiller]

What is a good load for the Missouri small ball? I just got a 100 sample pack from them? I plan on using Bullseye.

 

[epj]

I'm loading 9mm with 120 gr. TC bullets from a Lee mold sized to .356. I don't have much problem with some loads that are a bit under factory velocity, using 231 or Clays. Tightgroup was a disaster, leading the barrel so badly in just a few rounds that the bullets were keyholing.

 

[Skip Sackett]

I got so frustrated with trying this that I solved the problem by going to plated bullets!

I may revisit this issue this year but what I am wondering is if I need to get different barrels for my firearms. It might be that the rifling is too fast for my lead bullets.

I have gone from .355" to .359", soft, hard and everything in between. I even use a friend's load that they say was developed in their firearms with no leading at all. Leaded mine like crazy!

FWIW

 

[lafayne]

The only reason I considered cast bullets in the 9 is because I have them - may be more trouble than it's worth.

 

[lafayne]

I'm going to wait until I have to before I try the cast bullets. I haven't loaded the 9mm in a long time, but still have some Sierra 115 JHP and even found a can of WW 230 and 1968 load data - loaded them up today.

 

[2152hq]

Been using Clays in 9mm cast bullet loads and not having a problem. Alot depends on the individual firearm and bore as to wether it leads or not, not so much as to the caliber. They all have limits of course.
The bore can look perfect to the eye, but lead up quickly in some instances. Another that looks just as good inside won't lead at all with the same load.

 

[Forrest r]

I just use hill pickings to cast lead bullets. Load the 9mm with 124gr rn cast bullets & clays for plinking. I'd start to see leading after 100+ rounds, don't know if it was because of the junk mix, the .356 sizing or the low velocity of the load.

I bought a molyfussion kit & treated the barrel. No more leading problems.

 

[walnutred]

I'm having no leading problems with my 9mm. But to be honest I only shoot 50-100 rounds at a session with it. If I let it go longer between cleanings I might develop a problem. I have been told by friends that shoot a lot of lead in competition that is is important to get the copper wash out of your bore. The copper wash left by jacketed bullets can contribute to leading.

 

[NFrameFred]

Bullets need to be properly sized and sufficiently hard. Absolutely NO swaged bullets ! Hard-cast is a must.

And guns with polygonal rifling ( i.e. Glocks) should not be used with lead. Some odd-ball designs such as some of the H&K offerings of the past that actually use gas ports in the barrels should not use lead.

Depends on many factors and it pays to do your research before you jump in too far too fast. Powder choice, velocities, bullet hardness, bore/bullet size, etc., etc., . . . .

 

[scattershot]

FWIW, I use 124 grain cast TC bullets over 5.0 Unique, with no leading from a Ruger SR9 and an Argentine Hi Power. They are sized to .356. I also have a Springfield XDm in .40 that I shoot cast bullets in with no problems.

These are used primarily for casual plinking and recreational target shooting, though. I would imagine they would lead if used in a match firing a lot of rounds, causing the barrel to heat up significantly.

 

[Double-O-Dave]

My only 9mm is an H&K PSP. Because of the polygonal rifling, I plan to reload only jacketed or plated bullets.

Regards,

Dave

 

[perrazi]

last year ran a little test on a walther p-1. shot 1500 lead reloads at 1075fps. all were 125gr. rn of hard alloy. little leading, no failures of any kind during the 1500rds.

 

[Duskykiller]

Just got back from the range I had a 100 sample pack of 9MM small ball from Missouri cast bullets. Shot them all up with 3.5 grains of Bullseye. Had no leading and shot 12 of them into 3" at 25 yards from the a rest.An old Ruger P85 I took along did not like them and shot about 10" groups with the same load.But I had no leading with this load.

 

[lafayne]

This is really interesting input. I will try a small batch of the lead bullets sometime. I was also thinking of Unique with them.