If I'm only going to have 1 mold for 9mm to plink with is there a better option?

[Stopsign32v]

I'm preparing for the foreseeable future to not involve ammo off the shelves so I'm trying to be self sufficient. With that said I want a 9mm mold for all my semi auto pistols and something that I can plink with without soaking up a lot of lead and powder per round. I will be powder coating it and sizing it to .357

The mold I am looking at is the MP 125gr no lube groove since I won't need one. Do you guys think there is a better option for me? I wish this was offered in 115gr.

https://www.mp-molds.com/product/357-359-125-flat-round-nose-flat-base-8-cavity-aluminum-no-lube-groove-mold/

[Helka]

I'm preparing for the foreseeable future to not involve ammo off the shelves so I'm trying to be self sufficient. With that said I want a 9mm mold for all my semi auto pistols and something that I can plink with without soaking up a lot of lead and powder per round. I will be powder coating it and sizing it to .357

The mold I am looking at is the MP 125gr no lube groove since I won't need one. Do you guys think there is a better option for me? I wish this was offered in 115gr.

https://www.mp-molds.com/product/357-359-125-flat-round-nose-flat-base-8-cavity-aluminum-no-lube-groove-mold/

I have the 359-125 HP MP mold and I love it. I’m getting 4” groups at 25 yards with the regular HP pins. I haven’t shot using flat point yet. The penta’s give me about a 6” group

Also using COWW and SOWW with 2% tin my boolits are dropping at 137gn and 140ish flat point

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[DAFzipper]

I have that mould. Casts 135 grains with my alloy. If you are only going to have one mould you might want to consider one of his HP moulds. They have pins to cast solids too. But you loose productivity at only 4 cavities vs 8.

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[RydForLyf]

I'm preparing for the foreseeable future to not involve ammo off the shelves so I'm trying to be self sufficient. With that said I want a 9mm mold for all my semi auto pistols and something that I can plink with without soaking up a lot of lead and powder per round. I will be powder coating it and sizing it to .357

The mold I am looking at is the MP 125gr no lube groove since I won't need one. Do you guys think there is a better option for me? I wish this was offered in 115gr.

https://www.mp-molds.com/product/357-359-125-flat-round-nose-flat-base-8-cavity-aluminum-no-lube-groove-mold/

I have that very same mold in .357. Here are two pictures of groups with that bullet and the Lee 356-125-2R mold I had been using up to that point. It’s a great mold. The only difference is that I’m using HiTek and not PC.

https://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?430688-The-Mold-Matters

[Stopsign32v]

I have that mould. Casts 135 grains with my alloy. If you are only going to have one mould you might want to consider one of his HP moulds. They have pins to cast solids too. But you loose productivity at only 4 cavities vs 8.

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Right now I'm looking for NOTHING but something to throw lead through paper or hit steel. HP mold for this would just slow me down and cost more money. (plus heavier)

[358429]

I have the mp359 125 hp lube groove mold. It is excellent. I only powdercoat. I wish it was no lube grooves. It weighs 123-124 grains from my mystery monkey metal.

I was shooting this bullet in my 9x19 cz pistol with the starting charge power pistol and hitting a steel plate repeatedly at 100+ yards. I am also experimenting with 38 special and 357 mag from revolvers and a box magazine fed bolt action rifle.

What types of 35 cal guns can you feed with this bullet?

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[Stopsign32v]

Would you guys go for .358 size and size down to .357 or just go with a .357 sized mold?

[Old Caster]

The mold I am looking at is the MP 125gr no lube groove since I won't need one. Do you guys think there is a better option for me? I wish this was offered in 115gr.

https://www.mp-molds.com/product/357-359-125-flat-round-nose-flat-base-8-cavity-aluminum-no-lube-groove-mold/
You could get a 105 Lee 38 and size it down to save lead but it does have a lube groove

[ryanmattes]

Would you guys go for .358 size and size down to .357 or just go with a .357 sized mold?I would go .358 or .359 and size down, but that's just my opinion. I'm going to run them through the sizer after coating anyway, better to make sure they're all consistently concentric and smooth on the driving bands. And you never know when you'll pick up something new that likes a wider bullet. Or you might want to try them in .38 spc or something. Maximum compatibility is my motto.

Also, if all you're doing is throwing lead at paper, there are less expensive options that are just as effective. I got a Lee 356-120-TC for around $45 that drops about .3575-.3580 right at 125+/-0.25 gr with my alloy, sized to .357, HiTek coated.

They run great in everything I've put them through, the 6-cav mold lets me produce much faster, and it's a much lighter mold, so it doesn't wear out my hands as fast.

I get slightly better groups with Unique, but I like to load them with 3.5gr of Titegroup, because I can get 2k rounds out of a pound of powder. That's a penny-and-a-half per round for powder, and the lead costs about 2 cents. Add a primer and you're still around 7 cents a round. Perfectly serviceable out to 25 yards, if you aren't looking for knock-down power. And even if you need to adjust the charge up a bit, it doesn't change the cost in a noticeable way.

The NLG mold will make the bullets heavier/slower, so I use the one with the lube groove even though I don't need it. If I were going to get that mold in HP, I would get the NLG to make up for the lost weight of the HP, to keep it at 125. As solids, I'd go ahead and get the lube groove, just because there is a ton of varied load data at 125, so I can try all kinds of alternate powders safely, not so much at 137 or whatever.

Still working my way through this bucket-o-gold. I think I have 1200-1400 left.

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[dbosman]

Lyman 356402 is the original "classic" 9mm mold.
My personal preference, because I don't do much with 9mm, is the Lee 359125RF. Simply because I can use it in 9mm and .38. If I did enough 9mm shooting to matter, I'd go with a clone of one of the group buy models - because those were crafted with a lot of input.

[tazman]

Either the Lyman 356402 or the Lee 356-120-tc will do what you want quite well.
I use both interchangeably.
My favorite boolit is the NOE 358-135-FP. It makes a great all around boolit. I think it has a different designation now.

[Stopsign32v]

I would go .358 or .359 and size down, but that's just my opinion. I'm going to run them through the sizer after coating anyway, better to make sure they're all consistently concentric and smooth on the driving bands. And you never know when you'll pick up something new that likes a wider bullet. Or you might want to try them in .38 spc or something. Maximum compatibility is my motto.

Also, if all you're doing is throwing lead at paper, there are less expensive options that are just as effective. I got a Lee 356-120-TC for around $45 that drops about .3575-.3580 right at 125+/-0.25 gr with my alloy, sized to .357, HiTek coated.

They run great in everything I've put them through, the 6-cav mold lets me produce much faster, and it's a much lighter mold, so it doesn't wear out my hands as fast.

I get slightly better groups with Unique, but I like to load them with 3.5gr of Titegroup, because I can get 2k rounds out of a pound of powder. That's a penny-and-a-half per round for powder, and the lead costs about 2 cents. Add a primer and you're still around 7 cents a round. Perfectly serviceable out to 25 yards, if you aren't looking for knock-down power. And even if you need to adjust the charge up a bit, it doesn't change the cost in a noticeable way.

The NLG mold will make the bullets heavier/slower, so I use the one with the lube groove even though I don't need it. If I were going to get that mold in HP, I would get the NLG to make up for the lost weight of the HP, to keep it at 125. As solids, I'd go ahead and get the lube groove, just because there is a ton of varied load data at 125, so I can try all kinds of alternate powders safely, not so much at 137 or whatever.

Still working my way through this bucket-o-gold. I think I have 1200-1400 left.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210906/a7c13c343707beb671b8c18719929dde.jpg

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Do you have any pictures of them in a 9mm casing?

[ryanmattes]

Just loaded these a couple days ago.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210906/007faf6576eb645ffa056f489c2d4ef4.jpg

For 9mm I highly recommend getting a M-die to expand the case mouth. In larger, straight-walled calibers it's not as important, but to seat lead in 9mm it makes a huge difference. Without it, I went from scraping off lead during seating, to splitting case mouths from over expansion. The M-die mostly fixed that. You're still stretching the case mouth quite a bit, so you'll still get occasional split mouths, but it's one out of every 100-200 cases. That's the risk with trying to seat non-jacketed ammo in a tapered case.

[Huskerguy]

I agree with those who say get a bullet that drops a bit larger. I use a NOE 358-124 that drops at .0395. I size it down .0385 for 38 and .0357 for 9mm. You can decide what profile you want and if you want HP or no lube grooves.

[GregLaROCHE]

If you’re trying to save money, try to get a mold that drops the size boolit you need, so you don’t have to invest in sizing tools.

[Bigslug]

Lots of good options on this page of the Accurate Molds catalog: http://accuratemolds.com/catalog.php?page=6#catalog-anchor

I'd be leaning toward heavier with a wider meplat myself - like the 35-135D with the lube grooves omitted - for better ability to move bowling pins, make steel plates fall, or just penetrate a lot of meat if I needed it to, but different strokes and all that. Tom can tweak an existing blueprint to better suit your needs, so if you want grooves removed or diameter adjusted for your metal or powder coating, he can do it.

You're adding some diameter with your powder coat, so maybe request .3575" or .358 out of the mold?

[sukivel]

Lee 358-125-RF works great and is/was an inexpensive mold. The 6 cavity is easy to use and drops alot of bullets. I size to .357.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210906/7c5e3c44abc0765c5face4cd388b4cd9.jpg


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[Cosmic_Charlie]

With powder coating you can size you boolit close to groove diameter which solves a lot of headaches loading 9mm. Also use your barrel to set the crimp die. Crimp just enough for reliable chambering. I use a Lee Classic Turret with an Auto Disk Pro powder measure and it goes fast when I feed it sized and primed cases. Their powder through expander works just fine for 9mm. I use a 2/2/96 alloy for a bhn of about 11 but many guys use straight wheel weights and some tin. Start out by sizing a magazine worth to .357 and see how they do.

[Stopsign32v]

Lee 358-125-RF works great and is/was an inexpensive mold. The 6 cavity is easy to use and drops alot of bullets. I size to .357.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210906/7c5e3c44abc0765c5face4cd388b4cd9.jpg


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I was looking at this mold but for the life of me cannot find one in 6 cavity. :(

[AndyC]

The mold I am looking at is the MP 125gr no lube groove since I won't need one. Do you guys think there is a better option for me? I wish this was offered in 115gr.

I have this 115gr RN mold from MP: https://www.mp-molds.com/product/356-115-bevel-base-8-cavity-aluminum-mold/

The presence of the lube-groove in that mold doesn't make a bit of difference to me.

Edit: Here's a 115-grainer with no lube-groove: https://www.mp-molds.com/product/356-115-flat-base-8-cavity-aluminum-mold-no-lube-groove/

[gwpercle]

A little advice .
Get a mould that has a lube groove . You never know what going to happen ... be flexible , if a boolit has a lube groove you can :
1.) Powder Coat
2.) Conventional lube / size
3.) Tumble lube
4.) Pan lube

If you only going to have one 9mm ... leave all the lube options on the table ... one day maybe you can't powder coat ...then what ... your screwed , blued and tattooed .

You pays your money and takes you pick ... think about the options .
One day you just might wish you had listened to those who said ...lube groove can be your friend .
Gary

[mdi]

I have some 9mm NLG coated bullets, but I purchased those. I like to be able to use some molds/bullets for more than one caliber so I got the Lee 125 RF. I use it in my 9mms, 38 Specials and 357 Magnum. I also use this bullet PCed and the lube groove doesn't seem to make any difference and if I want to shoot nekkid lead, I'll just add some Caranuba Red to the grooves. I've only got 13 molds and with my alloy, my methods very few cast to the diameter of the mold "design". I've come close a few times,but most of the time the bullets drop .001"-.003" different than their designation so I size all my cast boolits...

I've never thought of using smaller bullets to save lead so, (and you math fellers can corrct my figgers, please) to save one pound of lead you would have to cast 700 115 gr bullets instead of 125 gr. bullets...

[derek45]

I have this one, and like it a lot.

lighter bullets use more powder, and I've found 124-147 shoot more accurately for me than 115gr


https://noebulletmolds.com/site/shop/355-9mm/htc356-135-rf-ah2/htc356-135-rf-ah2-5-cavity-pb/

https://noebulletmolds.com/site/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/HTC356-135-RF_PB_AH2_Sketch.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/XqdW4ut.jpg
.
.
.
yes, the 9mm can shoot.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S31aVTPzR_0

[Stopsign32v]

A little advice .
Get a mould that has a lube groove . You never know what going to happen ... be flexible , if a boolit has a lube groove you can :
1.) Powder Coat
2.) Conventional lube / size
3.) Tumble lube
4.) Pan lube


Gary

Yep, I was also thinking this!

[Stopsign32v]

I've never thought of using smaller bullets to save lead so, (and you math fellers can corrct my figgers, please) to save one pound of lead you would have to cast 700 115 gr bullets instead of 125 gr. bullets...

You also have to factor in more powder. So in theory a 100gr boolit over a 125gr boolit, you will get 1 free boolit per 4 casts. That adds up...

[Walks]

As much as I Love the Lyman #356402, these days I use the Lee # 356-125-2R. The 6cav puts out a lotta bullets in a hurry. At half the price of an MP mold. Of course it's nowhere near the quality of an MP, N.O.E. or Accurate mold.

[Burnt Fingers]

I have that MP mold. I cast thousands of them. I shoot thousands of them. For me, it's been a VERY accurate boolit.

I use Hi-Tek to coat them. My mold is the .359 and I size to .357.

IMO it's the best possible 9mm mold.

[Blkpwdrbuff]

I use the Lee 356-120TC in my 9mm, .38 Super and 9X23.
It does everything I need.
Blkpwdrbuff

[dverna]

A little advice .
Get a mould that has a lube groove . You never know what going to happen ... be flexible , if a boolit has a lube groove you can :
1.) Powder Coat
2.) Conventional lube / size
3.) Tumble lube
4.) Pan lube

If you only going to have one 9mm ... leave all the lube options on the table ... one day maybe you can't powder coat ...then what ... your screwed , blued and tattooed .

You pays your money and takes you pick ... think about the options .
One day you just might wish you had listened to those who said ...lube groove can be your friend .
Gary

You are absolutely correct.

I have never understood the NLG bullet as I see no advantages to it but only downsides. If the SHTF I can cast bullets over a wood fired stove if I had to, and lube them without needing power.

As to having one bullet for 9mm, I would listen to some of the fellows who have suggested a bullet that can be used effectively in both the 9mm and .38/.357. That seems more of a benefit than saving 10-25 gr of lead.

If lead costs are your main concern one of the 92 gr /380 bullets would be as light as you can go. There are loads in the Lyman handbook for them.

[Super Sneaky Steve]

I bought the MP 93gr HP also casts 95gr solids.

Great for .380 auto or 9x19.

If you are shooting a carbine you'll really get a lot of speed and power out of the lighter bullets.

With my Sub 2000 chambered in 9mm I was getting 1,694fps with a 90gr pill.

[gwpercle]

You are absolutely correct.

I have never understood the NLG bullet as I see no advantages to it but only downsides. If the SHTF I can cast bullets over a wood fired stove if I had to, and lube them without needing power.

As to having one bullet for 9mm, I would listen to some of the fellows who have suggested a bullet that can be used effectively in both the 9mm and .38/.357. That seems more of a benefit than saving 10-25 gr of lead.

If lead costs are your main concern one of the 92 gr /380 bullets would be as light as you can go. There are loads in the Lyman handbook for them.

I have found that the NOE 358-124-TC GC does a great job in ;
(sized .357") 9mm Luger - 9mm Super and 9mm Largo

(sized .358") 38 Special , 38 Special +P , 357 Magnum and 357 Herrett .

I had all 4 cavities cut for gas checks ... but I could have ordered it with 2 - PB & 2 - GC cavities .
I have many 38 special PB moulds so just went with gas checks on all . I use a soft BHN 8 alloy and the gas checks allow 1000 + fps . A very versatile boolit that can cover a lot of territory !
The Truncated Cone design feeds well in lever action rifles too .
Gary

[AndyC]

As much as I Love the Lyman #356402, these days I use the Lee # 356-125-2R.
What follows is not to knock your choice at all - just a small caveat that I discovered when I had that mold:

That bullet has a (relatively) long shank before the ogive starts - while in most pistols it should work fine, for those with a short leade in the chamber like CZ and others, it will require seating the bullet deeper in order to clear the throat. I sent my CZ barrel to DougGuy here on the forum and now it runs fine, but I have found that that bullet will not chamber (when seated to a normal OAL) in a number of friends' pistols when I tried to gift them some ammo (A Walther, 2 Shields and so on).

Rather annoying and made me look like an incompetent reloader (try to explain leade vs ogive to someone new to guns or who doesn't handload). I finally sold that mold and got an MP mold instead.

[gwpercle]

What follows is not to knock your choice at all - just a small caveat that I discovered when I had that mold:

That bullet has a (relatively) long shank before the ogive starts - while in most pistols it should work fine, for those with a short leade in the chamber like CZ and others, it will require seating the bullet deeper in order to clear the throat. I sent my CZ barrel to DougGuy here on the forum and now it runs fine, but I have found that that bullet will not chamber in a number of friends' pistols when I tried to gift them some ammo (A Walther, 2 Shields and so on).

Rather annoying and makes me look like an incompetent reloader (try to explain leade vs ogive to someone new to guns or who doesn't handload).

I have that mould (Lee 356-125-2R) and AndyC is right on . Very sensitive to throat or lack of throat ...some newer compact 9mm's have little or none and must be deep seated ... If you powder coat it , things just get worse , plan on getting your barrel throated ...
The Lee 356-120-TC is much easier to work with and my choice for a plain base 9mm boolit ,
I got it to work in 4 different pistols without getting any of them throated ...
The Lee 356-125-2R would only work in 2 full sized pistols a Walther P-38 and Barretta 92F and that was conventional lubricated ... not powder coated.
Gary

[Bigslug]

As to having one bullet for 9mm, I would listen to some of the fellows who have suggested a bullet that can be used effectively in both the 9mm and .38/.357. That seems more of a benefit than saving 10-25 gr of lead.



Hmmm. . .in the group buy that led to the creation of the NOE/Ranch Dog .45 ACP bullet, one of the players suggested turning the front tumble lube groove into a crimp groove. What we ended up with was this:

288340

You could just as easily request the same treatment from Accurate Molds for any of the 9mm pattern slugs. A 130-140 grain projectile would give you a medium-heavy 9mm and a light-medium .38/.357. A .3585"-.359" sized down with the option of heat-treating for hardness would be a pretty versatile thing.

Something in profile LIKE the 35-130A - maybe a touch heavier - with the nose similarly stepped down, but the front driving band tapered to take the crimp of a revolver's case. Some tweaking of nose diameter to clear a 9mm's throat and bore ride, and I think you've be golden.