9mm Score - well maybe, sorta

[hdwhit]

I recently bought a large quantity of pulled 9mm jacketed (not plated) bullets. It includes all sorts of weights and all sorts of configurations.

• A statistically valid sample was measured with a micrometer and found all sample units to be 0.3550 to 0.3552 in diameter. I plan on treating all the bullets as 0.355 rather than 0.356 in diameter.
  
• Weights run from 100 grain to 154 grain, but most are in the 113/115 or 145/147 grain class. I intend to treat the 113/115 class as 115 grain bullets and the 145/147 class as 147 grain bullets.

I have a very satisfactory recipe for 115 grain bullets and plan to just add the 113/115 class bullets to that reloading stream.

My question has to do with the 145/147 grain class. My prior experience with bullets of this weight was with HP-38 and Hi-Skor 800X; neither of which proved to be particularly satisfactory. What powder(s) do you recommend as suitable for 145/147 grain bullets? I will develop a load once I have chosen a more suitable powder so I don't need recipes, just suitable powders.

Also, please explain why you make your particular recommendation so that I can learn what factors you are weighting in your post.

Thanks.

 

[Hokie_PhD]

I haven't tried 147 grain but I went from Win231/HP38 to BE86 with 124 grain. I really like the powder better and plan on trying 147. You might want to pick up a pound and try it.

 

[Fine Figure of a Man]

Blue Dot great for heavy loads
AA#5 meters very well
Maxam CSB-1 My supplier has a bunch and it is cheap, it's somewhere between Green dot and Universal. Meters well, shoots well

 

[Dudedog]

I have had good results with WSF and CFE-P with 147s midrange to full power. BE86 also worked well.
I shoot a lot more 124s so I haven't tried a lot of powders with 147s.
USPSA polls show for minor PF lots of people like 147s with N320 or Titegroup but I haven't tried either of those combos.

 

[LiveLife]

9mm jacketed bullets ... 145/147 grain ... HP-38 and Hi-Skor 800X; neither of which proved to be particularly satisfactory.

What powder(s) do you recommend as suitable for 145/147 grain bullets?

147 gr and 3.5 gr of W231/HP-38 has been my reference load - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/9mm-147-gr-lead-bullet-powder-comparison.748940/

In my comparison thread, I used 3.5 gr W231/HP-38 as reference and compared different charges of Promo, Bullseye and Titegroup.

 

[Kaldor]

Heavy bullet = fast powder. The big thing this does is offers a light recoil impulse.

I run 147s with a pinch of TiteGroup, 3.2gr of TG, CCI primer, to be exact. Being that these are jacketed to might need to bump a couple tenths. Only real downside of TG is that its a little hot. Some people complain its a little dirty, but do they not clean their guns?

 

[hdwhit]

Fine Figure of a Man wrote:
Blue Dot great for heavy loads

I've had very good luck with Blue Dot in self-defense loads for 45 ACP. Didn't think about it for 9mm.

Thanks.

 

[hdwhit]

Hokie_PhD wrote:
I went from Win231/HP38 to BE86 with 124 grain.

and

Dudedog wrote:
BE86 also worked well.

Well, that's (more or less since Dudedog did mention other powders first) two votes for BE86.

 

[hdwhit]

bds wrote:
147 gr and 3.5 gr of W231/HP-38 has been my reference load

Okay. Maybe I was a little too hasty to dismiss HP-38 for the 147s.

 

[hdwhit]

Kaldor wrote:
The big thing this does is offers a light recoil impulse.

I'm looking forward to that.

For the most part, I load 115 grain bullets that approximate the performance of the old British and Commonwealth SAA Ball round. It is a little "snappy" for my Taurus pistol.

I'm guessing the SAA Ball is probably more intended to be a submachine-gun cartridge firing from a pure blowback action where the "snap" aids function and feeding.

With that many "snappy" rounds in my future, it may be time to go get a High Point.

Whatever, I'm stuck with it. I stumbled on two liquidation sales right after the election when people who didn't have a Plan B for a Trump victory were scrambling for cash. I scored a lot of 115 grain bullets (various configurations, but all 115 grain) so until I shoot those up it looks like I will be shooting 115 grain for a while - probably most of the rest of my life.

 

[Dudedog]

Well, that's (more or less since Dudedog did mention other powders first) two votes for BE86.

Some of my 9mms liked BE86, some didn't, that's why I made it #3.
It worked well in the ones that liked it.
While they don't all agree if I have a load that works really well in one it normally works pretty good in the others,
BE86 for me was a different story, the ones that liked it did, but the ones that didn't, did not care for it at all, sort of a love-hate thing.

 

[bullseye308]

I’ve got 6 9’s I load for and 5 of them love BE-86, the other I just haven’t tried it enough as I don’t shoot it much. Mainly I shoot cast and coated 124’s or Different 124’s from RMR. I’ve recently started on some RMR 147’s with BE-86 and have had good luck there too. I’m not changing from Bullseye for 38 & 357 though, I’ve still got 8# to get through.

 

[FROGO207]

Another vote for Blue Dot here for the 147 class bullets That has worked well for me in the past.

 

[mstreddy]

As bds, I load 147s with 3.5 gr of Win231. They run very well out of all of my 9MM pistols and carbines.
And in the suppressed mode, they are quite the fun load!