Is same round a problem to use again, and again

[hdtwice]

Somewhere I read, or heard it is not good to take the round that was put in the "pipe" and put it back in into the magazine and then re-insert that same round back into the gun over and over again when loading back up. Something about racking the slide on the same round numerous times can cause a problem?

Here is where and why that situation is coming up.
Here in the land of fruits and nuts, (California) I do not have a ccw permit which depending on where you live, it can range from difficult to almost impossible to get, I am working on it.

In the meantime, as a business owner, I want my handgun with me at my work where I am spend 10 to 12 hours a day. I also want my handgun at home.
To transport back and forth, the gun has to be unloaded and locked away which means I need to rack a round once at home, and unload and rack again at work. Is that same round that is getting ejected each time and re-inserted causing a potential problem? How many times is okay to re-rack the same round?

Thanks for any info on this.

 

[OKFC05]

Until it shortens, which varies.
I recommend checking it carefully each time, and shooting it in practice at least each month, even if it looks perfect.
Since the tendency to shorten varies with specific gun and ammo, there can be no general rule how many times is safe.

 

[Rpg]

The only potential problem is if the bullet is pressed into the case shortening the over all length of the cartridge and possibly compressing the powder resulting in higher pressures.

As a practical matter, if you check the cartridge you can tell if it’s shorter than the rest. Then use a new cartridge.

I unload my 1911 each evening, check the cartridge that was chambered then use it again the next morning if it hasn’t been compressed.

In a year, perhaps one or two cartridges get compressed so it’s not really an issue.

 

[HKSmith]

Yes, it can cause setback of the bullet which can cause misfeeds and elevated chamber pressure when the round is fired. During feeding the bullet hits the barrel ramp; if done repeatedly, the bullet can be pushed back into the case. This is not just my opinion, as it happened to me recently. It was a brand name .45 ACP round and had been loaded at the top of the magazine about 8 times. It was not a subtle effect and I have not fired the round. Needless to say, I don't do that anymore.

 

[hdtwice]

The only potential problem is if the bullet is pressed into the case shortening the over all length of the cartridge and possibly compressing the powder resulting in higher pressures.

As a practical matter, if you check the cartridge you can tell if it’s shorter than the rest. Then use a new cartridge.

I unload my 1911 each evening, check the cartridge that was chambered then use it again the next morning if it hasn’t been compressed.

In a year, perhaps one or two cartridges get compressed so it’s not really an issue.

Okay, sounds easy enough to look at the length. I do rotate that one round in with the plinking range ammo about every two weeks so it looks like racking the same round twice a day, and watching the length should be fine.
Thanks for the info.

 

[Nevada Ed]

Well I guess if you want to keep changing ammo in a magazine
for what ever reason.............. target practice etc.

There is always the option of putting the 1st round in the chamber and
closing the action and slide on it then inserting the magazine
to help minimize bullet movement, one way or the other.

 

[D Brown]

Somewhere I read, or heard it is not good to take the round that was put in the "pipe" and put it back in into the magazine and then re-insert that same round back into the gun over and over again when loading back up. Something about racking the slide on the same round numerous times can cause a problem?

Here is where and why that situation is coming up.
Here in the land of fruits and nuts, (California) I do not have a ccw permit which depending on where you live, it can range from difficult to almost impossible to get, I am working on it.

In the meantime, as a business owner, I want my handgun with me at my work where I am spend 10 to 12 hours a day. I also want my handgun at home.
To transport back and forth, the gun has to be unloaded and locked away which means I need to rack a round once at home, and unload and rack again at work. Is that same round that is getting ejected each time and re-inserted causing a potential problem? How many times is okay to re-rack the same round?

Thanks for any info on this.

The solution to your problem is really quite simple. Keep one gun at home, ALWAYS LOADED. Keep another gun at work, ALWAYS LOADED. Problem solved.

 

[bigggbbruce]

Get a revolver.

 

[hdtwice]

Get a revolver.

Already have it but I am not asking about that now am I

 

[kthom]

The solution to your problem is really quite simple. Keep one gun at home, ALWAYS LOADED. Keep another gun at work, ALWAYS LOADED. Problem solved.

I really believe the above advice is a simple, serious answer to your dilema. Kudos to MR. Brown for posting it up here. It would appear that your firearm is basically of no use to you during your commute to and from. It's never a bad idea to have a backup for your primary protection gun, and having two exactly the same or very similar keeps things simple.

Of course, there is the expense involved with the second one, but what is protection worth? Leave each gun loaded and locked up securely, one at home and one at work. Then reloading will be kept to a minimum. The problem with bullet setback after reloading is a real one. And there is no set number of times you can expect to be safe for doing so. It takes a visual examination to be sure after every time it is done.

A quick way to do this is to keep a cartridge that hasn't ever been reloaded handy and use it as a guide to determine if your loaded and unloaded round is noticeably shorter. If it is, but only a small amount, then put it in your box to go to the range next time out. If it's a lot, then destroy and do not shoot that round. That's my thoughts on the matter.

 

[CA Escapee]

One other issue with re-chambering a round is it can shake the priming mixture loose in the primer. I read an article by, I believe, Mas Ayoob and he had asked one of his sources at a major amunition company that same question.

The explanation the ammo rep gave was to not chamber a round more than twice because in a worse case situation the g-forces can shake the priming mixture apart and it could cause a misfire. Who knows what those odds are?

That being said, a round can misfire for any number of reasons, so practice your tap, rack, and roll drills 'til it's second nature, kids.

Bill

 

[ispcapt]

There is always the option of putting the 1st round in the chamber and
closing the action and slide on it then inserting the magazine
to help minimize bullet movement, one way or the other.

Not a real good idea. This practice can result in chipped extractors. I've seen that happen on more than one gun.

 

[ameridaddy]

Every few weeks, I unload, field strip, clean (mostly lint) and inspect my EDC, and I've noticed over the years that the the hard cast bullets I that use that have been chambered multiple times get pretty beat up. I had not noticed any setback, but then I wasn't looking for it specifically either, nor had I thought about disintegrating primer mixture.
Many thanks to the OP and all you commenters for bring the issue to my mind. Even with the loooong odds of having to use my EDC, the possibility of having a malfunction on the first shot is nothing to take lightly.

 

[Hang-Fire Hank]

ANOTHER SOLUTION

HDTWICE: Before switching to ARX ammo for self-defense, I noticed a couple of my .45acp Golden Sabre rounds had seated deeper in their cases. Using a kinetic bullet puller, I gently tapped it until the bullet came back out of the case. Measuring a factory round for OAL, I seated it to the proper length, & then re-taper crimped the cartridge. Worked fine & I couldn't think of this procedure being harmful in any way.

Best Wishes, Hank M.

 

[SMSgt]

A few years back I decided to test the setback story, so I took a Speer .45 Gold Dot, a Win PDX1, and a LRN round nose reload--all 230-grain bullets--and cycled each 10 times through my Glock 30.

The reloaded LRN set back .01". That was not unexpected, the case having an unknown number of firings and resulting loss of case tension. Still .01" is not very much.

The Speer Gold Dot also set back .01", a bit surprising.

The Winchester PDX1 set back a few thousands.

Each round fed and fired with no noticeable difference than any other round of the same make. I don't make much of the setback concerns that others might express.

As for the concern about primer failure, I've had new primers fail also, so unless someone can prove those recycled rounds would not have failed on the first chambering, I can't put much merit into that theory. My experience has demonstrated otherwise.

Having said all that, Murphy's rules prevail, so to avoid any chances of inducing a malfunction, I restrict my rechambering of SD rounds to a minimum by leaving my rounds chambered until necessary to unload them. I don't have any set number of times I recycle before removing a round from service. If it gets dinged up, I pull it from service. Until then...

 

[mrmike7189]

I try to find the 50 round boxes of HST hollowpoints,and I buy extras, so that I can always replace my defensive ammo as needed even if just one round at a time. Gives me peace of mind

 

[Mack]

What kind of weapon? One with a floating firing pin that puts a small dent on the primer will kill or desensitize primer after enough cycles.

 

[hdtwice]

Lots of great input here... Thank you all.

MACK... The weapon in question is a shield 9mm.

 

[Steve912]

A few years back I decided to test the setback story

I don't make much of the setback concerns that others might express.

Setback from chambering isn't a myth or story. Whether it happens or doesn't depends on the ammo and the pistol. Some rounds are more susceptible, and some pistols give a rougher ramp-ride. Put them together and it'll happen.

 

[WR Moore]

OK, little history lesson here. BTW, inertial firing pins with retraction springs generally don't touch the primer during the feed cycle. If you notice this touching, that's a clue it's long past time to replace that spring.

Once upon a time, virtually all pistol ammunition had cannelures either on the bullet or the case in addition to bullet crimp. The intention being to minimize bullet movement either from recoil or the feed cycle.

Times changed, demand soared and the bean counters got control. Cannelures appear to be featured on very few cartridges these days. Now a crimp of some sort and case tension are what holds bullets in place in most pistol ammo. If you look around you can still find ammo with cannelures. Or, you could purchase your own cannelure tool and add it to your ammo (case cannelure at the base of the bullet).

The bullet setback issue became a big deal with .40 S&W. Even without setback, the cartridge has some impressive pressure spikes with 180 grain bullets and some powders. When the bullets set back, the pressures go higher and over pressure events have been documented. They've also been duplicated under laboratory conditions with documentation on how pressures change with deeper bullet seating on several different cartridges. Reaching destructive levels can also happen with other cartridges but seems to be more rare. I'll also mention that some handgun designs seem to be more prone to bullet setback than others.

What we were advised before I retired was that after 4-5 feed cycles, the cartridge should be retired to range use. Checking bullet setback is a good idea but isn't a guarantee that you might not have a problem. I'll admit that using ammo with case cannelures, I've done enough feed cycles that in one instance the case rim started looking like a puppy teethed on it. When I noticed this, I trashed it, even though OAL hadn't changed. No, it wasn't .40.