I just shot the best 9mm group of my life

[NuJudge]

Beretta 92SF, Lee 358-125-RF and NRA formula lubricant, Winchester small pistol primer, Winchester twice-fired all same lot brass and 3.7 to 4.0gr WW231. Cartridge OAL was 1.110. Distance was 45 feet, and I was resting my shoulder and arm against the wall of the range. Group size was 1" horizontal, 3/8" vertical.

The bullet is the new version of the Lee .38 125gr Cowboy bullet, with a flat base and longer nose, cast from scrap wheelweights and a few percent Tin. I just bought the mold and the picture on the box looks nothing like the bullet the mold casts. I ran the bullets through a Star sizer using a die marked "358", and they came out .359". Because I thought they might be too large to chamber, I also ran some of these lubed & sized bullets through a Lee .357" size die and they came out .357".

The pistol barrel is about .357".

I worked up powder charges with both sizes of bullet from 3.7gr to 4.3gr of 231. The .359" bullets had no difficulty chambering. The .357" bullets shot well, but nowhere near as well as the .359" bullets, and group sizes for both diameters increased above 4.0gr 231.

[257 Shooter]

Nice results when it all comes together!

[Edubya]

Good reporting,,, but you have been around long enuff to know... WE WANT PICTURES!:)
EW

[crabo]

I had some good groups using 231 and the Lee in my 38 Super. I think it was around 5 grains, but I would have to look it up. That boolit has enough meplat to make a good small game hunter.

I also sized mine to 359 in my Super.

[Bandit46]

Great groups! I have 2 loads for my Sigma that shoot that well too. A Lyman 356402 TC bullet, sized to .358, Federal cases/win. primers, 3.8 of 231. 1 1/2 "
@ 25 yrds. off the bench. Second load: a Modified Lee, 6 cavity 120 gr. TC bullet.
I milled the bevel base off the mold and it casts out at 115 grns. I used Win. cases
and primers, sized the bullet to .3575 and a 3.5 grn. charge of 231. 1 5/8" @ 25 yards off the bench. I use BAC red lube and the bullets are 6# lino to 4# scrap lead. Makes a 15 on the Lee Hardness scale. Very little to 0 leading with the Lee bullet and 0 leading with the Lyman bullet. The Lyman has a deeper lube groove.
I may order a special mould from Lee, in the 115 grn weight with a deeper or lightly wider and deeper lube groove. The 9 mm can be accurate. Cases should be measured and put up in lots, together. A case length of .745-.750 is good, with .750 being the best for accuracy. I also use 2 different size "M" expander plugs for the bullets to prevent shaving. Win Brass is thicker on the case walls than R-P or Federal. The .3575 bullet works better in Win Brass. I also use the Lee Factory crimp die, and just take off the flare of the case, maybe an 1/8 of a turn after touching the case.

[9.3X62AL]

I would be VERY happy to get that kind of result from any 9mm load at 15 yards. GOOD WORK!

I have used 3.5-4.0 grain of WW-231 with 120-125 grain castings for a long time. FWIW, I loaded a duplicator of W-W's 9mm sub-sonic 147 grain load with bulk W-W 147 JHPs atop 4.1 grains of WW-231, and they were VERY close to factory velocities in both pistols and sub-guns.

[DanWalker]

GREAT shooting.
As a lover of all things 45 caliber it pains me to admit what a wonderfully accurate cartridge the 9mm can be.
One of the tightest groups I ever shot in my life with a handgun, was with a 9mm GLOCK.
I was demonstrating how to shoot a handgun to some British friends, at an indoor range in Houston Texas. I was using a rented glock and house ammo.
I ran a man sized silhouette target downrange, while explaining the fundamentals of marksmanship, and simultaneously loading a mag with 5 rounds.
I stopped the target around 15-20 yards out, and proceeded to nonchalantly put 5 rounds offhand into a group slightly larger than my thumbnail. No one there was as stunned as I was when we retreived the target. I just handed them the gun, and smiled. I didn't shoot anymore handguns that day. I would've hated to interject some reality into the miracle that had just occurred.
The best part was the stunned looks I got from all those Texas boys at the range when they saw my target.
Anyhow, enough of my B.S.
GREAT JOB, and keep that lead flying downrange!

[9.3X62AL]

Dan, the only "failure" I note in your text is the failure to get on an airplane and fly to Las Vegas with some folding money. Immediately. With that sort of luck, you could likely fly home in your own jet.

[Dale53]

DanWalker;
Your story perfectly illustrates an old adage of mine, "It's VERY important to know when to quit"!

It is obvious that you subscribe to the theory:drinks::drinks:

Dale53

[44man]

The problem with the nine are the guns made for it. None are made for accuracy so it can get very hard.
A friend brought over an old WW II pistol, I even forgot what it was, but the old thing shot better then all the new ones I ever shot.

[9.3X62AL]

Very true, 44 Man. I would add that not only the pistols, but also the ammo components can have some wide dimensional tolerances as well. Just isolating and then minimizing those variables can REALLY make the shooting improve.

Two 9mm pistols belonging to friends come to mind in this context. One was a Beretta 92 with target tightening and refinements added, to include a Bar-Sto barrel. The other was a box-stock Springfield Armory 1911A1. Both were utter tackdrivers with cast boolits and j-words, due in large part to minimum tolerances and to 1-16" twist barrels of .355" diameter. Very fine machines, indeed.

[Jack Stanley]

The one Beretta ninety-two that I had a chance to load for uses a .359" diameter bullet too . From what I'm reading that is a normal thing for Beretta pistols ??

Great shooting your Honor !!! :mrgreen:

Jack

[ciPeterF]

Here's some groups I shot with a Lyman 356402 mold.. sized at .356. Would like to size them at .357 to see the difference but the mold's a little on the small side (had to beagle it to get .356).. 30yds, from Ransom rest...