When I screw up I go big.

[Nevada Ed]

Before you pull all those loads.............

You might measure the last few loads and find out what they weighed.....................

If the amount of powder is still a standard loading or at maximum a NATO loading, I see no problem........
if your weapon is in good condition.

However , if the amount of powder is near a +P loading, for safety reasons, breaking them down is the best option.

 

[linde]

inertia vs collet puller

For pulling round-nose bullets like the 9mm (either lead or jacketed) I've found it best to use a combination of both types of pullers . . . minimizes damage to bullets and makes for a much cleaner process.

Use the inertia puller to get the bullet started past the taper crimp and far enough out of the case to allow the collet to grab hold of the bullet at its full diameter. Then use the collet puller set up in single stage press to pull the bullet the rest of the way out.

My experience using the inertia puller alone . . . especially with lubed lead bullets . . . is I ended up with a powder encrusted bullet that is a mess to clean before reusing the bullet.

I agree with others who recommend pulling them all . . . consider it a learning experience you won't soon forget.

Russ

 

[dave1918a2]

I think I would stash the ammo, go find a Ruger Blackhawk .357 with a 9MM cylinder, then shoot it all up. Depends of course on how much of an overload You're talking about. Another reason to drink blue.

 

[tlawler]

At least it’s 9mm. For the time and aggravation involved in trying to recycle components, I think I’d just toss them. Not like it’s 1K of .41 mag.

 

[ken158]

Other then weighing all cases... you could “bite the bullet” and trash the whole lot... AND then buy a powder measure. Feeling the pain now will reduce future mistakes.

 

[PapaWheelie]

Regardless of the brand, or type, of scale you use, you may want to consider a couple calibration weights in 1 and 5 grams. They are a quick and foolproof way to check your scales accuracy. They aren't expensive and if you try to avoid touching them, never go out of calibration. 5 grams is the biggest I can go on my 100 grain scale.
And my Lee scale is suprisingly accurate. I mean dead nuts accurate.

Sorry about you having to pull all of those but at least you found out now instead of the hard way.

 

[ancient-one]

Reloading pistol ammo I weighed every 10th charge. Rifle, every one.

 

[nicky4968]

Are you being violent in the way you operate your measure? I've used the Lee balance beam scale for many decades. I've never encountered this problem.
More than the scale, you have to get a more stable platform to operate on.
I've pulled thousands, myself, but for other reasons (I realized that one of the cases was empty and I pulled all of them to make sure I didn't miss another.)
Also, don't listen to the radio or such while reloading. This is a hobby that requires your absolute attention at all times.

 

[S&WIowegan]

Handloading ammunition is a continuous learning process that doesn't end until you stop handloading. Seriously....everything that has happened to you I've done over the last 30 years.

I tend to load in large batches with a Dillon 650(at least a 1000 rounds) so major mistakes are nasty. I use 2 scales when check weighing; one digital and other balance beam. I recalibrate before starting a run or the next day. I weigh charges on each scale at least every 100 rounds. I refill my powder measure every 100 rounds. I check bullet weight regularly. I sort range brass by headstamp for each batch(9mm brass is extremely variable). Make all these simple thing standard routine and you'll be fine...don't get down on yourself.

I once made 500 45 ACP handloads that were at least 30% bad. I put them aside and pounded them all out one winter.

 

[mikld]

Just a couple thoughts; first I have been using Lee Safety Scales since the early '70 (along with 3 others) and have never had one "lose zero". If the OP means the sliding poise has moved, the poise is equipped with a lock and it's just a push of a small button and the setting won't move. Just checked mine the brass adjusting nut is hidden between the beams and can't easily be bumped and normal use of the scale won't move the nut. Perhaps handling the beam when setting up a finger can get down far enough to move the screw?

I was told a very long time ago "the only way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time". So when faced with a huge problem//task, I break it down into easy to handle steps. If I needed to pull 1,000 rounds I would only pull as many as I felt comfortable doing at one setting, whether it be 100 or 10. And before you know it you will have pulled 1,000 rounds, no sweat...

 

[glenwolde]

This seems like a perfect excuse to buy the ultimate 9mm bullet puller...a Ruger Blackhawk convertible.

On a more serious note, this is why I like fixed-cavity powder measures.

 

[dmy]

There is no doubt in my mind that you should pull them. There was a time not long ago that I weighed each bullet and separated them by weight before reloading them. In the typical box of 500, most were within 2.0 grains of each other, however, there were always a handful with were 4 grains over or under the stated weight. These were .38 and .45, which were probably heavier than your 9mm, but you can see that plus or minus 4 grains is much more than your powder weight. As coincidence has it, I just pulled about half of a batch of 300 9mm which did not plunk. I'm sure that I have not pull that many in total for the entire 35 years that I had that kinetic bullet puller. Lesson learned.

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

Don't feel like the Lone Ranger.
Years ago I read one of Dean Grennell's columns where he said he set his charges by adjusting his powder measure so 10 charges equalled 10x the load wanted, he figured there would always be slight variations, not so great as to be significant.

 

[fredj338]

First, get rid of the poopy Lee scale. The most important piece of gear you have is the powder scale & measures. Set your scale on a shelf on your walll above the bench, never move it. This reduces a lot of vibrational issues.
2nd, forget trying to weigh loaded rds to find a charge variation. Even n 9mm, total loaded weight can be +/- 4-5gr. Cases vary, bullets vary, you end up with stacking tolerance issues. Just pay attention to your powder charging. Verify 3-4x then check again before throwing charges. Using a check wt will help you determine your scale is accurate. The check wt must be certified or something you verified on a scale verified accurate with certified check wts.

 

[crsides]

OP, the last thing you want to do is add insult to injury. DO NOT use the collet bullet puller to break apart your potential thousand round mistake.

The collet will, 99% of the time, damage your bullet. While it would be much faster, do you really want to toss up to a thousand bullets? Dedicate a day and pull those rounds apart using your kinetic bullet puller.

Take a couple aspirin first. And get out the ear muffs.

 

[crsides]

Give us your load data from the over loaded cartridges. Maybe within the capabilities of your gun, or someone's you know. Like the Ruger mentioned above.

 

[cmj8591]

What powder were you loading? What was the charge you ended up throwing? It might not be necessary to scrap everything.

 

[otisrush]

Pulling 1,000 rounds does not sound like fun. I agree with the others that there seems to be little other choice than to pull them.

From a glass-half-full perspective your processes worked! You caught the problem before it developed into a much worse scenario. If I'm reading the story correctly it seems *two* things had to go wrong for this to happen: The powder measure got messed up accidentally as did the scale.

The other thing this story shows is to not let the safety checks and processes we have encourage us to turn off our brains.

In the micro sense pulling 1,000 bullets is a bummer. But in the macro sense good on you that you'd set everything up to catch the mistake - and sharing it for others to learn from.

OR

 

[scooter123]

Do you have to break them down, or could you just weigh each of them, and compare their weight to the weight of a correctly loaded one?

I realize the weight and scale would have to be precise, but don't most of the scales, like the RCBS, weigh in tenths of a grain?

(sorry, but I'm clueless about reloading, at least at the scale of 1000 rounds at a time)

This is NOT a good idea because there is a lot of variation in case weights between brands and within cases with identical head stamps.

Good news is that having used the RCBS collet puller I can say it's a quick and easy process provided you are pulling jacketed bullets. If you are pulling lead bullets plan on throwing out the bullets because lead is much slippier than brass or copper so you'll have to really squeeze the bullets to get them to pull. You may even find that your only option is an inertial puller which is a HUGE PITA.

BTW, I learned a similar lesson using that exact same Lee "Safety" Scale. to put my opinion a bit gently it's a cheap piece of junk. I can also recommend avoiding the Lee "Perfect" powder measures because they are also cheap junk.

Suggestion One, get yourself an RCBS Competition Powder Measure and a Notebook. Because with that measure you can keep a record of the volume setting for each load recipe and use that setting for every time you load that particular combination. BTW, if you do this make sure to record the lot number for the powder and any time you change to a new lot of powder do a bit of weight checking and record the new value in your notebook.

Suggestion Two, get yourself an Ohaus scale. You will find RCBS and Lyman both sell scales made by Ohaus under their brand and they are very good beam scales.

Suggestion Three, DO NOT keep your scale(s) on the same bench as your reloading press. Scales are sensitive instruments and constant vibrations can knock even the best scales out of whack.

 

[Culina]

Once I zero balance my scale, I tape that little adjusting wheel to the bench to keep it from spinning.