Shot my first handloads today!

[GoBoilers!]

What a feeling! I finally gathered all the equipment and components together, reloaded my first box of 9mm rounds, and made a trip to Roush Lake this afternoon to try them out. And I'm happy to report that all my fingers are intact and no malfunctions were experienced.

I put together a batch of 115 grain Rainier 9mm loads using Unique (4.5 gr. and 5.0) and Universal (4.0 and 4.5) According to the Rainier site, their bullets should be loaded same at lead, so that is where I started. I wanted a soft load just for plinking / punching paper and something that would still cycle my pistols. Both my XD and my Sig P6 ran fine, and I even shot some small groups - at least for me. I am stoked! Now i can't wait to try working up some .38 loads for my next trip.

One thing I did learn this week: I need a powder dispenser. Working with the dippers is fine for small batches, but much too slow for me once I settle on a load and want to crank out a bunch. So... I'll be adding a bit more equipment now too.
---
GB!

 

[U.S. Patriot]

Congrats!

 

[sloughfoot]

it is a good feeling, isn't it?

Congrats on the veil opening a little bit.

 

[blamecharles]

Congrats I have my first batch mocking me on the counter, I will be shooting them this weekend hopefully.

 

[tatic05]

I am going to load up my first box of 9 tomorrow night. I plan on taking them out with me for a shoot on Sat. Hopefully when I get back I can still type.....

 

[jblomenberg16]

Great work! It is very gratifying shooting your own reloads!

 

[J_Wales]

Did you not know that shooting hand loads can make you go blind?

Congrats.

 

[Broom_jm]

Welcome to the world of reloading! It's very empowering and addicting. You'll be shooting better because you can do it more often and all those empty cases give you the perfect excuse to load 'em back up!

 

[Caleb]

Congrats! Not sure about you, but when I fired my batch of reloads, I was take aback how more stouts they were.

 

[goinggreyfast]

Oh sheesh! When I hit "New Posts" and started scrolling through I first read, "Shot my first LANDLORDS today!"

I didn't know there was a season on landlords... If so, what's the limit? Should 88GT consider hunkering down for a month or so?

 

[GoBoilers!]

Ha ha! Yeah, I can think of a few landlords that I might consider....

Anyway, thanks for all the support for INGO. I am sure that I will be posting more questions on this forum as I run across issues with my reloading adventures. I am really glad I got started in this new pastime too. It just seems like a logical extension to my shooting hobby, and I'm glad to be a member of this club.
---
GB!

 

[CowboyGreg]

Welcome tot he next leg of the hobby, reloading.
It becomes like an addiction, shoot more, load more, shoot more, load more, keep repeating.
Wait till the bullet casting bug gets you. (evil laugh)

 

[NullSyndrome]

I put together a batch of 115 grain Rainier 9mm loads using Unique (4.5 gr. and 5.0) and Universal (4.0 and 4.5) According to the Rainier site, their bullets should be loaded same at lead, so that is where I started. I wanted a soft load just for plinking / punching paper and something that would still cycle my pistols. Both my XD and my Sig P6 ran fine, and I even shot some small groups - at least for me. I am stoked! Now i can't wait to try working up some .38 loads for my next trip.

One thing I did learn this week: I need a powder dispenser. Working with the dippers is fine for small batches, but much too slow for me once I settle on a load and want to crank out a bunch. So... I'll be adding a bit more equipment now too.
---
GB!

Awesome! I load 9mm using Berry's plated bullets. Accurate has some good load data specifically for plated bullets (including the Rainier), you can find it here:

Load Data « Accurate Powders

It is only for Accurate powders, though.

What kind of press are you using?

 

[GoBoilers!]

I am using mostly Lee equipment - single stage press and dies. But since I have been picking up stuff here and there for a while, I have RCBS too - .38 dies and scales are RCBS.

I do have a question for you veterans. How many rounds to you load up when you are trying out new bullets or powders combos? 10 or 20 at different loads? 50? Do you work up a range of powder levels to try - for example: 4.2 grains = 10 cases. 4.4 grains = 10 cases. Or do you jump up .5 at a time and load more to test it out? Just curious how folks go about testing out new bullet/powder combos.

 

[Dr.Midnight]

I am using mostly Lee equipment - single stage press and dies. But since I have been picking up stuff here and there for a while, I have RCBS too - .38 dies and scales are RCBS.

I do have a question for you veterans. How many rounds to you load up when you are trying out new bullets or powders combos? 10 or 20 at different loads? 50? Do you work up a range of powder levels to try - for example: 4.2 grains = 10 cases. 4.4 grains = 10 cases. Or do you jump up .5 at a time and load more to test it out? Just curious how folks go about testing out new bullet/powder combos.

First, congrats on your reloading success. To answer your question, I usually load up 50 test rounds at a time. It usually takes me 10-15 shots to get dialed in, and then I want a few more rounds to experiment with. I haven't took the plunge on a chronograph yet, so this number could very well change one day.

 

[Caleb]

I usually only run 10 rounds, one at a time....I first and foremost do not want a bullet stuck in the barrel