glock 22 40 cal. loading help

[duckndawg]

Howdy all I'm in need of your experience. I have about 15 years experience in reloading, shotshell, bottle neck rifle and revolver rounds. I have a cousin that wants to reload for a glock 22 in 40 cal. I told him I would help but he mentioned asking questions to others and they mentioned pass thru sizing of the brass.
Now I will admit im ignorant on this, I have heard of it but have not done it. Does one really need to do this? As of right now he will be useing the dreaded j-word bullets.
Thanks
Dawg

[mooman76]

I loaded for mine and didn't have problems at first but I also shot light to med loads. I'd say you don't have to do it every time but it's a good idea to do it occasionally and if you load for another type gun in 40 cal keep your brass seperated from the other. The newer Glocks are suppose to have more chamber support than the older ones.

[Walt]

I have an older M22, circa 1994, that lacks the chamber support of the newer Glock 40s. I have loaded lead for it since day one and have had no problems. Having said that, I have always loaded 175 SWCs with 3.5 Bullseye. It is a light load which may not operate all M22s. A reduced power recoil spring will fix that. I have always kept the brass used in that piece separate from the brass used in my later model 40S&W Glocks (M23 and M24). I also have a XD40 Tactical, and recently sold a HK USP40, both of which used dedicated brass also. All this dedicated brass stuff can be a pain sometimes but I have had no need for special dies and all loads have been safe in my guns. BTW all my Glocks (9, 40, 10, and 45) shoot selected lead bullet loads very well. Good luck!

[W.R.Buchanan]

Do a search on this subject on this website. It has been covered in depth several times.

There is alot to learn here. And I would gladly write another novel on the subject, but it's already been done.

There is one warning I will reitterate. DO NOT LOAD .40S&W cases Headstamped " FC " They are weak and will blow up, and are especially dangerous in 1st gen G22's.

Otherwise the round poses no real problems for the handloader.

Push thru sizing is accomplished by using a Lee Deluxe Factory Crimp die for .40 S&W, and they also make a Bulge Buster kit that uses this die. The case is pushed all the way thru the die restoring the case to .421-2 for the entire length.

The push thru sizing function removes any previous bulges in the cases from being shot in a loose chamber which is common to most pistols in this caliber, and NOT just Glocks!

Then you do the normal reloading cycle of Size/Deprime, Prime/Charge, Seat Bullet and Taper Crimp as a separate operation. Don't seat teh bullet and crimp in the same operation as you can't control the crimp diameter as closely.

The Taper Crimp should measure .418 at the case mouth for perfect function.

I use plated lead bullets as they run really well in my Dillon SDB's and cause no probelms with leading the barrel, however many cast boolits for this round and have no problems either.

The one last point I'd like to make, is there is no reason to HOT ROD this round. Pick a nice midrange load about 10-15% below max, and shoot it. As long as it cycles the gun it is fine. If you need hotrod stuff for some imagined reason buy Hornady Critical Defense ammo or some other factory brand.

Also for factory ammo, Walmart has Winchester .40S&W ammo in 100 round boxes and that brass is about the best to reload. It is also the cheapest Factory ammo available (from Walmart that is)

Randy

[garym1a2]

Not matter what you do it is a good ideal to 100 % check your rnds by dropping them in the barrelel. Many uspa matching i goto someone will have multiple ftf issues due tp fit. Since I use range pickup brass my 40 goes thru the Lee bulge buster. Of course remove barrel from gun first.

[flashhole]

I use the Lee Bulge Buster system. It works great and if you have a single stage press set up to run the case through the BB it doesn't add much time to the process. I don't use a progressive press but I do use the Lee Classic Turret. It requires I insert each piece of brass, no auto feed system so to me it's not a big deal to run through the BB. The BB makes very uniform brass but you still have to run it through the regular sizing die.

[scattershot]

never used the Bulge Buster, just careful to full length resize the case. The .40 is a pretty high pressure round, so as stated above, don't hotrod it. I use 4.0 Red Dot with a 170 grain bullet, for about 950 FPS. The pressure in a .40 spikes toward the top end, so you want to stay below that. How much does it take to punch a hole in a piece of paper, anyway?

[1in9twist]

Redding GRX die. In CARBIDE. Works great!

[HammerMTB]

All my .40 brass is range pickups. I have 5 gal buckets of it. Tho I am certain there must be some guns that bulge the brass, I have yet to come across much of the brass. I think that is downright surprising, seeing's so much is said and written about the "problem"
I have seen some bulged brass. It is easy to pick it out, no magnification required. The "guppy belly" is pretty easy to see.
If you only use brass from your own gun, and it doesn't bulge the brass to begin with, there's no reason to take the step. I have always intended to start a pile with bulged brass in it, and process it when there was enough to warrant setting up. Haven't gotten to that point yet, by a long shot.

BTW, my go-to load in .40S&W is 4.9 of 700X behind a 175 cast- I use both the Lee 175TC, and a NOE pointy boolit. It does ~970FPS, just right to make major in USPSA

[P.K.]

All my .40 brass is range pickups. I have 5 gal buckets of it. Tho I am certain there must be some guns that bulge the brass, I have yet to come across much of the brass. I think that is downright surprising, seeing's so much is said and written about the "problem"
I have seen some bulged brass. It is easy to pick it out, no magnification required. The "guppy belly" is pretty easy to see.
If you only use brass from your own gun, and it doesn't bulge the brass to begin with, there's no reason to take the step. I have always intended to start a pile with bulged brass in it, and process it when there was enough to warrant setting up. Haven't gotten to that point yet, by a long shot.

BTW, my go-to load in .40S&W is 4.9 of 700X behind a 175 cast- I use both the Lee 175TC, and a NOE pointy boolit. It does ~970FPS, just right to make major in USPSA

I was crunching the #'s last night and came up with that load, 10% warmer at an even 5.0.

[P.K.]

All my .40 brass is range pickups. I have 5 gal buckets of it. Tho I am certain there must be some guns that bulge the brass, I have yet to come across much of the brass. I think that is downright surprising, seeing's so much is said and written about the "problem"
I have seen some bulged brass. It is easy to pick it out, no magnification required. The "guppy belly" is pretty easy to see.
If you only use brass from your own gun, and it doesn't bulge the brass to begin with, there's no reason to take the step. I have always intended to start a pile with bulged brass in it, and process it when there was enough to warrant setting up. Haven't gotten to that point yet, by a long shot.

BTW, my go-to load in .40S&W is 4.9 of 700X behind a 175 cast- I use both the Lee 175TC, and a NOE pointy boolit. It does ~970FPS, just right to make major in USPSA

What is your OAL with the 175TC? I'm thinking 1.115? 231 is close in burn rate 700X being slower by a smidge, so diff. in OAL should be minimal.

[flashhole]

I have to seat the 175TC bullet such that the front-most part of the bullet that is the full .401 diameter is flush to the lip of the case. If it sticks up above the case it makes my gun jam. I suspect it creates a false shoulder that catches when the blowback cycles the action. When it is seated to the lip I don't have this problem.