Range results for NOE 358-135-fn in 9mm

[tazman]

I got to take my 9mm to the range yesterday with boolits from my new NOE 135 fn mold.
Accuracy was the best I have ever gotten with this pistol. I shot 3 different 10 shot groups under 1.5 inches at 10 and 15 yards.
Recoil was very mild. I didn't have access to a chrono so I cant list velocity figures.
I was running them at COAL of 1.105. I had a couple of failures to feed that indicated the load was a little too long. I will work with that a bit but the large majority chambered fine.
Cast from range scrap, water dropped.
Sized .357
lubed with 50-50 in a lyman lubrisizer
Waited a week for the boolits to harden.
Mixed brass
Winchester standard small pistol primer
I was working with a powder that is unlisted in any manual I can access.
Winchester super handicap. I have been having a great deal of success with this powder recently in 9mm and 38 special.
As usual, use this data at your own risk as I don't own pressure equipment.
Starting load was
4.0 grains accuracy good, function good
4.2 grains accuracy excellent function good
4.4 grains accuracy good, function good
4.5 grains accuracy good function good
No signs of over pressure with any load.
I settled on the 4.2 grain load. The accuracy was significantly better with this charge than the others.
I may need to change my lube a bit, but I fired 60 rounds through the pistol without cleaning and accuracy never dropped off. Just the lightest trace of leading in the barrel.
I think I just found my favorite load provided I get that feed hiccup figured out.
102140
102141
102142
102143
102144
102145
102146

[Blammer]

Oh yea!

[Low Budget Shooter]

The only bad thing about finding a perfect load is that then you don't have to do any more experimentation, which is half the fun! Congrats, Tazman. LBS

[LAH]

You did good.

[tazman]

I tried out another 135 grain boolit this afternoon. It was a Lyman 356634 130 grain tc boolit.
I used the same powder charge and loading technique with this boolit albeit a slightly different coal.
Accuracy was terrible. I am talking 6 in groups at 25 feet. Looked like a couple of buckshot loads.
I figured it must be me so I got out the same loads as last weeks good stuff. They shot the center out of the target.
I alternated the loads for the next 4 magazine fulls. No difference. The tc boolits stunk and the rf loads were beautiful.
Go figure.

[Thin Man]

I agree with your choice of boolit weight for the 9mm. Lately I have been (slowly) working to develop a loading for the Lyman 358480 boolit in 9mm. Lyman lists this pattern at 133 grains with #2 alloy, but my COWW's drop at 138 grains. So far I have loaded only HP38 but have other powders that offer potential and are waiting their turn on the line. Like another said earlier, load development is a ton of fun.

Thin Man