Load for 929 (Keyholing)

[missiondude]

Hey all-

I just got my 929 back from Apex after having it all smoothed out and rigged for ICORE. I took it to the range and found that almost everything I shot out of it short of 147 gr HST left a lot to be desired in the accuracy department. Most of the 115 gr ammo I fired went through the target sideways at 10 yards. Has anyone out there come up with a good accurate load that makes at least 120 PF for this beast? Anyone have one that shoots the lighter bullets well? Even my shooting partners 147 gr round nose had accuracy issues.

 

[Culina]

If the barrel has rifling, then you probably need a wider bullet.

 

[S&WIowegan]

What bullets are you trying? Jacketed, plated, coated with various substances, cast lead with old-fashioned lube, factory and/or handloads? I have a new 929 test-fired in mid-March 2015. I ran jacketed loads from 115gr to 147gr, both factory and handloads, through it last Friday and saw no keyholing at all. My guess is your barrel is the problem. Slug it and see what you've got. The crown may need cleaning up(Brownells has the tools).

Help us help you with more info.

 

[old&slow]

I've been running .356 , 147 gr coated cast & xtreme plated bullets at a little over 850 fps in my 929 and have been satisfied with the accuracy.

There was another thread on this forum about being a 9x21.. 9x21 cases will fit in my 929.. But I'm not sure what that has to do with the price of eggs in China ??

http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-revolvers-1980-present/428896-929-not-9x19-but-9x21.html

I'm using 9x19 brass,, 147 gr plated bullets, OAL 1.135, at about 850 + fps.
( same round out of my autos average about 950 fps)

 

[jtcarm]

I dunno squat about 9mm, but tumbling is usually the other way around: the bullet is too long for the twist and isn't stabilized enough.

But in your case, the heaviest bullet is working the best.

 

[Frank237]

.355" slugs down a .357" bore?

I'd wager a dollar that the slugs are undersized and the bore is .357" or maybe even .358".

Doesn't matter WHAT the twist rate is if the slugs aren't contacting the barrel.

 

[missiondude]

I guess I will slug the barrel when I get a chance. I looked at the crown, and although not the prettiest thing I have ever seen, nothing jumped out at me. If all the rounds were having issues I would think crown or oversized barrel, but the HST's were fantastic. I need to go back to the range when the weather clears and shoot some more groups. I was mostly checking power factor of various factory loads, checking one hand load and playing with my new toy. Thanks for the responses.

 

[jtcarm]

Doesn't matter WHAT the twist rate is if the slugs aren't contacting the barrel.

I never said twist rate was the culprit, just stating how tumbling often occurs, unlikely though it is in this case.

 

[theoneff]

Hard to imagine any bullet keyholing at ten yards. A thousand here or there wont cause that. Are you sure it not just the way a particular bullet is breaking the paper and backing

 

[9mmsubgun-m11]

I have been loading Extreme 115 plated over 3.5gr Win 231 for casual shooting with good results.

 

[S&WIowegan]

I've been running .356 , 147 gr coated cast & xtreme plated bullets at a little over 850 fps in my 929 and have been satisfied with the accuracy.

There was another thread on this forum about being a 9x21.. 9x21 cases will fit in my 929.. But I'm not sure what that has to do with the price of eggs in China ??

http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-revolvers-1980-present/428896-929-not-9x19-but-9x21.html

I'm using 9x19 brass,, 147 gr plated bullets, OAL 1.135, at about 850 + fps.
( same round out of my autos average about 950 fps)

I agree with your comment about 9x21 brass. It was created to circumvent restrictions on 9x19 loads, BUT the cartridge was often loaded to the same OAL so it would fit 9x19 magazines. Theoretically, one could load 9x21 brass to a longer OAL in revolver loads. I would never spend my money to buy 9x21 brass to do that.

 

[Frank237]

I never said twist rate was the culprit, just stating how tumbling often occurs, unlikely though it is in this case.

I wasn't denigrating You or your comment...NOT at all what I meant to do. You are 100% correct.
I simply threw that in as I wanted to reinforce that I think it's an undersized bullet/oversized bore issue.

FN in MT

 

[tjpopkin]

I'd be curious to find out if the 1994 .356TSW brass (9x21.5) will work. I have thousands of pieces of brass and loads…I have all the guns produced in that caliber….even had a couple re-barreled in 9x19.
My 929 came in today, but I had the dealer return the gun to address a horrendous trigger….11.2 lbs and 5.2lbs single action. So heavy there was an effort to cock the hammer with my off-hand. Factory told us that the gun was within spec….10-12lbs… my response was that, as a competition shooter, the gun was useless as is. They sent a call tag for a return. I do not want to spend any more money than the gun costs, since I realized after I ordered it, I had a 627 in .38 Super…could have shot 9mm in that….
I will see how it shoots…. my loads are perfect in the semi-autos, in fact the Tactical 3566 will group 2"@50yds (5-shots).
5gr. VV N330 over a 125gr.Montana Gold HP.

 

[9146gt]

Terry, I have tried 9x21 in both my 929's and the cylinder will not turn with 9x21 ammo.
Looks like the cylinder could be reamed to accept .356 TSW... 9x21.5.

Mine will shoot 1.5" groups at 50 yards out of a ransom rest ....5.2 grains Win Autocomp and Zero 115 #135. After the barrel was replaced.


Tom

 

[missiondude]

Well with a bunch of effort, I found a load that replicates the accuracy of 147 gr Federal HST rounds. The bad news is, in shooting all these different loads from sandbags I noticed a pattern if you will in how the rounds were grouping. The accuracy of the HST's is nothing to get excited about (2-1/2" at 20 yards) but it was way better than most of the hand loads I was trying. I noticed that my groups have a distinct diamond shape with a 6 and 12 o'clock spread of about 2" and a 3 and 9 o'clock spread of 2-1/2". The other 4 rounds are close together in the center of the diamond. I finally noticed this while comparing various loadings on one large target. I think my cylinder holes are not concentric with the bore. I plan to number my cylinder holes this weekend and see if the same hole always gives the same relative shot location.

S&W CS to their credit already sent a shipping label. I suppose I am not the only one with accuracy problems. Bummer that I did an action job that will most likely be lost when they repair the gun.

The gun seems to like 158 gr plated .357 bullets going 825 FPS...