Practice loads for my .40S&W Shield

[Blanco]

I recently got my Shield and decided to increase the power with the .40 version. This will be my dedicated carry gun. I have an upcoming ccw class at the end of October. Not surprisingly the little Shield is a pretty wild ride so to speak.
Understand from the beginning I am not a newcomer to pistol shooting. I send several thousand rounds downrange every year. I reload almost all of that several thousand.
The Shield while controllable, is not meant to be shot 100 times in a practice session. It is meant to save you bacon when the dookie hits the fan. It was scaled back by design to make it very concealable. it is small and thin. Since my first session with it at the range I have determined that some better traction is going to be key for control. I got one of the Hogue Handall slip on grips. Vast improvement!
I also added the Pierce grips to the magazine. This gives my Pinky a place to rest.

SO here is the meat to the taters
I need a good practice round that will not punish me. Lower recoil with good accuracy.
Not just a Bunny fart load but one that performs also.
So I have taken it upon my own to do a bit of a ladder test. Possibly not the most scientific methodology. But I think in the end it will be suited to me.
At present I only have 2 .40 molds, the Lee 175 TC in a 6 banger and an MP brass 4 cav with multi pins also in the 165 to 175 Gr range depending on which pins are used. I am currently hunting a 140 Gr mold without grooves I can PC, and the same configuration in a 180 Gr. For now I will stick with the 175 Lee. It has worked nicely in all my other .40s
It is by the way a Powder Coated round.

My plan is to start by looking at book loads and make a number of rounds with each powder I have. Starting just below minimum and working up to just less that maximum.
I have the Alliant book and the latest Lymans to reference.
At present I have
Unique
Bullseye
Power Pistol
Tite Group
CFE Pistol
Red dot
Green Dot

I plan on at least 3 loadings of 10 rounds with each powder and possibly more depending on the powders range.
Again keep in mind I am not attempting to break any record here. Just find a nice easy shooting PRACTICE load that is also reasonably accurate at 5 and 7 Yards.
At this point I have 100 rounds made up and will most likely make up another 200 when I get all the powders included.
The biggest variable in the equation is ME. I plan to take notes as I shoot and eliminate the loads that, for what ever reason just don't cut it. Then I will go back and evaluate the ones that are left and possibly try a variation. Like different Boolit? Slight variation in powder charge, and continue eliminating until I have 2 or 3 left
I would take any comments, Ideas, criticisms or ?
This undertaking is as much to share my information and also learn from your experience.
I will add pictures and notes as I progress.

Blanco

[fredj338]

The spring on the shield is pretty stout. I would try 3.8-4gr of RD under a 175-180gr cast.

[Blanco]

Just a guess, but I would say the spring on my Shield is between 4~5 lb.. not terrible.
I think I remember reading that some areas were getting heavy springs (Lawyer Proof)

[Shiloh]

Are there lighter springs available?? With a 1911, there are springs available down to the single digits. That way you could shoot lighter loads.
for practice. Don't forget to switch back. Don't forget to practice with full power loads either.

Shiloh

[Ed_Shot]

Although I shoot a G22 I agree with fredj338 on 3.8 - 4.0 gr Red Dot / Promo under a 175 gr boolit.

[garym1a2]

My USPSA Minor load is a light charge of Bullesye under the Lee 175 TC bullet. since you want an easy load start at 3.5 gr and work up.

WST is even better for Minor 40 loads if you can find it.

[petroid]

I load the 175TC cast from 50/50 Pure/COWW. Drops at 182gr. PC with HF Red and loaded over 4.8gr WST. Gives me 975fps from 3" XD. Not a light load but drop to 4.0-4.3gr is much more controllable.

[Love Life]

The steps of the scientific method are to:


Ask a Question.
Do Background Research.
Construct a Hypothesis.
Test Your Hypothesis by Doing an Experiment.
Analyze Your Data and Draw a Conclusion.
Communicate Your Results.



Personally, I would load full snort and practice with those.

[RED333]

The steps of the scientific method are to:


Ask a Question.
Do Background Research.
Construct a Hypothesis.
Test Your Hypothesis by Doing an Experiment.
Analyze Your Data and Draw a Conclusion.
Communicate Your Results.



Personally, I would load full snort and practice with those.

Yep, get used to full load, then go lite to play.

[Blanco]

Yep, get used to full load, then go lite to play.

I can tell you haven't shot a Shield.

[300blk]

Having loaded .40 and much more its bigger brother 10mm with lotsa cast of that design(175 lee tc) skip titegroup, I love it in 9mm especially with plated bullets for high volume practice. However it's just a mess, filthy, hot burning, and with little margin of error in the 40 with cast in my experience.
Power pistol is great in 9,40,10mm and does great full power.
I am eager to see your results with CFE pistol and cast.

I have to second Love Life's recommendation. Full power costs next to nothing in comparison to "practice" or "play" loads. If you are serious about using that pistol for defense, I strongly recommend building an accurate load that has as much orMORE recoil than your selected defense load.
It costs next to nothing more, and is added value for a training regimen.

I use blue dot fairly frequently in the 10mm and 9mm and have had moderate success in the 40 with it. It'll probably be flashy in the short barrel of the sheild. But it seems to be easier to get than many pistol powders these days if you run into any.

EDIT: I missed that you were powder coating. The smoke and mess may be considerably reduced in the .40 with titegroup, I stand by the small margin of error though.

[Blanco]

I would agree that full power loads are the only true way to practice for concealed carry. The Shield in .40 is not just a gun you pick up and start shooting. Some may be able to do it, but it is not just a point and click operation. There is a definite technique involved in keeping this little powerhouse under control. I think once the technique is mastered with a practice round that works well, then progressing to the full house loads will give better results.

[Love Life]

I have shot a shield. 40 S&W sucks in all handguns.

[300blk]

My opinion reflects this^
I just went to the ten. I reload 40 for buddies.

[snapshot]

If its your carry gun the best load to practice with is what your going to use in it for self defense period

[Blanco]

There is a reason you see so many Shields for sale or trade.
Durring the panic S&W couldn't make them fast enough and people bought just because there was a panic, kinda like a stampede.
Now that the stampede is over and they take their Shield out and shoot it a bit they realize they don't like it, because they have a hard time shooting accurately and the muzzle blast is a bit overwhelming... AND thats just on the 9mm.

The .40 is that X3. Our Texas hunting forum has a classifieds and last week i saw no less than 4 Shields for sale.

[igolfat8]

I shoot a Lee 145, 4.1 grains of TiteGroup, 1.090" OAL or a Lee 175 with 4.4 grains of TG at 1.135". I favor the 145 load as it recoils less and is much more accurate. We are trying to put together a group buy for a 6 cavity Lee 145 mold if you or anyone else is interested? Here - http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?246674-Any-interest-in-40-S-amp-W-6-cavity-Lee-145-grain-SWC-mold

[rsrocket1]

My go-to load for 40 S&W (a full size M&P 40 and a Sig SP2022) was the Lee 401-175-TC powder coated with 5.0g Unique with the bullet seated to where the edge of the cone sits right on the case mouth. This gave me an average MV of 1025 fps measured 10' from the gun. I have since backed off on the seating die to seat the bullet at the spec'ed 1.135" COL (0.208" seat depth) and those rounds average 925 fps. Good recoil, but not too bad.

For "9mm like" recoil, my favorite load is 3.0g Red Dot, Clays or Titewad with the same bullet. It gets me 770 fps which feels almost exactly like the Lee 356-120-TC with 4.2g Unique @1100 fps through the same M&P 40 with the 9mm barrel. I would recommend that load for target shooting so long as the Shield cycles properly with that load. It should, but wear a hat and eye protection because the cases may not fly over your shoulders but instead land on your head.

You could change the springs for the ligher load, but I would not recommend it in the event you forget to change springs and start battering your gun. The 9mm Shield spring is the same fit, just lighter. The original FS guns used the same spring for 9/40/357, they have since changed to different 9 and 40 springs.

[RED333]

I can tell you haven't shot a Shield.
Nope, no need to unless someone has one they want me to shoot, there is a reason I have Glocks.

[fredj338]

Just a guess, but I would say the spring on my Shield is between 4~5 lb.. not terrible.
I think I remember reading that some areas were getting heavy springs (Lawyer Proof)

A really bad guess, No one puts 5# springs in anything but a 22lr.
The Shield is quite a bit smaller than the XDs45. I got to shoot one last month, a beast in 40 with full power ammo. If I bought a Shield, it would likely be in 9mm for that reason. Same thing for the G26 vs G27, the 9mm is just a lot easier to shoot well in a small/light gun.

[prs]

My Glock 23 functions with unfailing reliability with a charge of Trailboss just shy of compression. When the family shoots together, most of the clan prefer that pistol with that load. Have no idea how it chronys, but you could shoot it all day without stressing your wrist.

prs

[oldfart1956]

Blanco, I should think any of the powders you have listed will work in the Shield. Just start with the starting loads and see what cycles and maintains some degree of accuracy. I load some light loads for every gun I own from .38 special to 45/70....including my Shield in .40 S&W. I don't recall if I even shot any factory fodder thru it as of yet. I tried the Rainier plated rounds from Midway and am so happy with them I ain't even casting for .40 yet. At under 10 cents a bullet I can't see it happening any time soon. I used Winchester WST with 4.4 and 4.6 gr. loadings and I'm 1/2 way thru the 1000 rds. I loaded up. I actually enjoy shooting it and not getting beat up doing it. After the break in I'll load some full-house but always keep several hundred light loads for plinking. Yes, you can plink with a .40. I'm getting a lot of trigger time. practice on drawing and re-holstering and working off all the rough edges in the process. Go for it. Audie...the Oldfart..

[Blanco]

A really bad guess, No one puts 5# springs in anything but a 22lr.
The Shield is quite a bit smaller than the XDs45. I got to shoot one last month, a beast in 40 with full power ammo. If I bought a Shield, it would likely be in 9mm for that reason. Same thing for the G26 vs G27, the 9mm is just a lot easier to shoot well in a small/light gun.

Yea there were a bit of confusion on that, I was thinking trigger pull weight, for some reason my wires got a bit crossed.

The idea of using Trail Boss is unique. I had not given that one a thought but it is very interesting.

OLd Fart
Thanks for the encouragement.

I did find that Barnes has some copper solids for .40 in 125 Gr. I also picked up some Berrys 180 grain to test the heavy bullet light charge end of the spectrum.

[Blanco]

I got a bit of range time in finally.
I did not get to test all the powders, but I need to put down the info I do have before I lose it.
Just so we are on the same page what we are looking for a balance between recoil and accuracy... In my Shield.
In the first set I tested Unique and Bullseye with the 175 gr. Lee TC and CCI small magnum primer.I had 10 rounds of each loading and there were 5 different loadings of each powder. The loads that shot well for me with controllable recoil
Unique 5.2 Gr
Bullseye 5.2 Gr
I also tested 3 loadings of Power Pistol with the 180 Gr. Berrys TC
None of which were accurate, However, the lower loadings were very pleasant to shoot. As the powder charge moved up it became very flashy. The recoil went up also but it was a quick snap that was fairly easy to control and not unpleasant. Power Pistol shows promise and I will test it further with some lighter boolits.

[pjames32]

Blanco-I have an S&W compact .40 and my wife bought s .40 Shield. We have run a bunch of rounds thru them. Full power is not fun after 50 or so. I have a bunch of Blue dot so I started at the bottom load in the Hornady handbook, WSP primers and load 10 each, adding 0.1 gr each time until I found a round that would feed reliably. The Sheild took 0.2 more than my compact so I've settled on that load and we have fired 500 or so. The load is really a pussycat in both guns.
FWIW-I would suggest you take your CCW class with a .45 auto and a .45 revolver so you can carry up to .45 on your CCW. YMMV

[Doby45]

This is the same ole song and dance, using tools for tasks they were not intended to be used for. I had to explain this to my wife when she got here Kel-Tec 380 for dedicated concealed carry. She always wanted to take it to the range and shoot hundreds of rounds through it and she would make it through about 25-30 before she started to complain about how uncomfortable the little firecracker was to shoot.

Finally, I explained to her that should not be shooting that many rounds through a "get off me" gun. The intent of the weapon is to empty the magazine into a center mass target at about 3 yards max. It is not designed for dead-eye shooting at 20 yards and should not be used as such. Can you take it out while you are at the range and do some "trick" shots, sure. But, that is not what it is designed for.

Once she realized she could control a mag dump into a center mass target at 3-5 yards she was good to go and no further training is needed for the little guy.

If you want to use your tiny conceal carry weapon as a target weapon prepare to be punished. If you simply want to be proficient with your tiny conceal carry weapon, each time you go to the range make sure you can control it with a mag worth of ammo at 3-5 yards. Clean it, load it and put it back in your holster. YMMV


One other quick point to cement the thought process here. If you owned one of those crazy elephant guns would you take it to the range and put 200 rounds through it per visit? I think not. I would think that you would go and make sure it was sighted in at the range you would like to engage your target at and then you would clean it, and put it away until it was time to go hunting.