[Popa75]

I just started reloading this weekend and I am very confused mostly by OAL. I have read a ton of posts on reloading and I am wondering this,
9mm Raineer 115gr plated rn
mixed brass with cci primers
6.6 gr. of accurate #7
the Lee book says min 1.10, all of my factory loads work in all my guns and the OAL is from 1.115 to 1.168
WHERE do I start and is that a huge differance?
Sorry if this is a redundant question but I really want to get some ammo made but need more education.
Thanks
Brian

 

[jtprevatte]

I just started reloading this weekend and I am very confused mostly by OAL. I have read a ton of posts on reloading and I am wondering this,
9mm Raineer 115gr plated rn
mixed brass with cci primers
6.6 gr. of accurate #7
the Lee book says min 1.10, all of my factory loads work in all my guns and the OAL is from 1.115 to 1.168
WHERE do I start and is that a huge differance?
Sorry if this is a redundant question but I really want to get some ammo made but need more education.
Thanks
Brian

If I understand your question right.....

You are asking what the length should be of a finished round.

The Lee manual will give you a diagram of a round and tell you the minimum and max lengths. I also have some factory rounds that I check against. I reload 9mm.....my rounds are 1.15 every time which is the same as WWB. I have never had an issue with a round chambering.

 

[scooterj]

Lee says minimum OAL should be 1.10" If your mags will feed them at 1.12" to 1.125", that's where I'd start.

the Lee book says min 1.10, all of my factory loads work in all my guns and the OAL is from 1.115 to 1.168

 

[Popa75]

Thanks for the quick reply, yes I was talking about the complete round. I saw the diagram then when I started measuring the different factory stuff I was confused as to why it was such a variation. That will be a good starting point I just figured I would ask just to be safe.
Thank you

 

[dyferant]

ya this is not a big deal. I would check first what the oal of my mag is then how long can my chamber take. Then back it off .010 from the rifling of the barrel.

 

[highscore]

OAL (Over All Length). The completed round has to fit and funtion in the mag and has to fit in the barrels chamber. In a semiauto weapon, a round that is so long that the bolt will not fully close is a dangerous situation.

Try this as an experiment. Take an empty case and with the barrel out of your pistol, insert it into the barrel and see how much the case drops under the back of the end of it. Next, seat a bullet very long (just into the case) and insert it into the barrel again, seeing how much the case protrudes out of the back end of it. Then, keep seating the bullet in deeper and rechecking until the case is even with the end of the barrel. Now you have to decide what your comfort/safety zone is and seat it deeper to that spec. Again, a semiauto needs clearance to ensure safety. IF you are unsure of any of this, please do not try it. IF you have published data for a particular bullet, you can see just how much extra room they are allowing for.

 

[fredj338]

THere is such a variation of OAL because there are so many diff. manuf./styles of bullets. A 115grFMJ from REm. is slightly diff. than WW or Ranier, or Speer JHP, etc. So there is a range of OAL. When working w/o clear data, load as long as the magazine & chamber allows & still giving a good deal of bearing area inside the case. As long as the round feeds/functions, there is little harm in loading long.

 

[Edubya]

The brass has to hold the bullet until the powder is ignited. A 147 gr. bullet is longer than a 115 gr. bullet. A 147 gr. bullet can be seated considerably longer. This may be why some of your factory ammo is longer.

You're best to go by your manual and not depend on any measurements of COL or powder wts. that you get from forums. They may be given with best of intentions and may conform to the books, "may" is like "might". We all like to consider ourself as knowledgeable, but look at the number of spelling errors that we make- even with a spellcheck available. Your books are going with the SAAMI specs and tests done by the powder or bullet company. They want you to buy more of their product, plus they don't want to be sued!

 

[AZXD]

I'll only add one thing ... Remember that when you shorten OAL you in effect change the internal pressure for a given charge ... Thus the recommendation that you start at the low end and work up a charge to the powder level that works best.

In general, small cases (volume) are less forgiving.
Especially when using fast powders!!!

 

[Popa75]

Thanks for all the help guys, I will post my results after I get to the range.

 

[panther308]

Be careful seating your 9mm round to far out or to far in 9mm are very querky when it comes to pressure IMHO and this is what I do for my reloads is consult a couple of different manuals and look at the min and max charges and go 10% under max or to min but never under min as far as OAL I usually go for the middle of the range, pistol rounds in semi-auto are headspaced off the rim so you should be careful seating your bullet to far out on the lands, yes the closer you get the better accuracy you can achive but in 9mm you also run into pressure problems this goes the same for seating to far in
If you are just starting out get a case gage and check or you can use your barrel, just drop the round in your barrel and it should freely fall in and drop out

 

[fredj338]

Be careful seating your 9mm round to far out or to far in 9mm are very querky when it comes to pressure IMHO and this is what I do for my reloads is consult a couple of different manuals and look at the min and max charges and go 10% under max or to min but never under min as far as OAL I usually go for the middle of the range, pistol rounds in semi-auto are headspaced off the rim so you should be careful seating your bullet to far out on the lands, yes the closer you get the better accuracy you can achive but in 9mm you also run into pressure problems this goes the same for seating to far in
If you are just starting out get a case gage and check or you can use your barrel, just drop the round in your barrel and it should freely fall in and drop out

Not really panther. Pistol rounds headspace off the case mouth, they are rimless afterall. Loading into the lands does not really offer any accuracy advantage in pistol rounds & can raise pressures if wedged into the lands but not nearly as quickly as deep seating. You will never get into trouble loading long, just make sure they fit the mag & do not seat deeply into the lands.

 

[panther308]

Be careful when working with 9mm they are goofy on pressure, semi-auto pistol's headspace off of the case mouth and if you seat to close to the lands you will create pressure problems this goes the same for seating to deep
Get a case gage to check your rounds or use your barrel if you use the barrel they should drop in and fall out with no resistance I seat my 9mm 124 FMJ RN round to 1.135" with a kiss crimp and have had no issues.
You need to compare load data from a couple of different manuals and don't follow online recipes as stated and workup your load for you rifle or handgun
I compare info from 3 manuals go 10% under max chg. and pick a OAL somewhere in the middle I then check for feed and function and look for pressure signs
Reloading comes with a certain amount of risk attached to it so you have to decide what risk you are willing to take.

 

[scooterj]

Just checked the OAL on my Ranier 115JHP load. It's 1.137" and that load is for my XD9Tac.

 

[fredj338]

Just checked the OAL on my Ranier 115JHP load. It's 1.137" and that load is for my XD9Tac.

That actually sounds quite long for a 115grHP, but if it is working for you, then it must be fine.

 

[highscore]

To expand on my other post, the OAL I ended with was 1.144 using Montana Gold 124 gr. FMJ bullets. I believe that it gave me .015 or .025 clearance before contacting the lands. I know it sounds a bit long but my reasoning for doing it in this case was that the bullets are more pointed, rather than round nose and I feel that the added length helps chambering. Right or wrong, we have shot 4000 of these in 3 different guns without any problems. Truthfully, I haven't seen any published data for using these bullets.

 

[fredj338]

To expand on my other post, the OAL I ended with was 1.144 using Montana Gold 124 gr. FMJ bullets. I believe that it gave me .015 or .025 clearance before contacting the lands. I know it sounds a bit long but my reasoning for doing it in this case was that the bullets are more pointed, rather than round nose and I feel that the added length helps chambering. Right or wrong, we have shot 4000 of these in 3 different guns without any problems. Truthfully, I haven't seen any published data for using these bullets.

There is no right or wrong, especially when using a bullet that there is no data for. If it works in your pistol, then it's good. Besides, reloading data is a guide, not a bible. Every rifle or handgun is diff. than what the data sources are using for a test platform.

 

[Doc 3773]

Using Delta 115gr fmj bullet with once fired mixed brass and 5.6 or 5.4gr of Power Pistol powder. The AOL is 1.137-1.144. I, haven't had any problems in my XD9 service. I, don't know why the differece in AOL. Just started using the 5.4gr powder rounds can'nt tell much difference.

 

[mongoose33]

Using Delta 115gr fmj bullet with once fired mixed brass and 5.6 or 5.4gr of Power Pistol powder. The AOL is 1.137-1.144. I, haven't had any problems in my XD9 service. I, don't know why the differece in AOL. Just started using the 5.4gr powder rounds can'nt tell much difference.

I just received a shipment of 2000 of these Delta 115 FMJ bullets. Any advice on using them? Any particular bullet you've found it to be similar to, that can be used for starting load data?

 

[Edubya]

I haven't used the Delta bullets, but they appear to be similar to the Montana Gold. My XD tactical and service model seems to like it hot. The tactical is set up for "match" (match grade barrel, 3.5 lb. trigger, Trigicon sights, heavy guide rod). Higher velocities seem to bring out the best results from my guns. It may be psychological, but whatever it is, I see increased scores on my max-load ammo.

I've experienced the varying COLs. Make sure that your resizer die is adjusted so that it does its job on the maximum length of the brass. Do not 'overcrimp', this can cause some variation (collapsing the brass slightly), different manufacturers have different thicknesses. I have started separating by case-head-stamp! As aggravating as it is, I will always do this for my competition ammo. Put enough crimp on it so that you can put the bullet against the loading table and press as hard as you can and it will not affect the COL. If you look at the SAAMI measurements, the diameter would measure 380" (at the mouth of the brass, after seating and crimping). Mine will measure .378-.380", depending on the brass. Test several of these completed bullets by dropping them into the chamber of your disassembled barrel. If you're not sure how a completed bullet should feel or look, upon dropping it into the chamber, try it with factory ammo they are required to use the specifications given by SAAMI.