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Do you trust other peoples reloads?

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  • kingofwylietx

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    Feb 29, 2008
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    DFW area.....Wylie.
    I don't have much experience with reloads, but none of it has been positive.

    First, a buddy shot some reloads in his Kahr PM40, which promptly led to some major damage to the gun. Fortunately, he wasn't hurt.

    Second, I went to a shooting range in Louisiana on Thursday. I called ahead to see if they had any ammo, they said they had some reloads for their range customers. I bought 100 rounds & went to plinking. I had 2 .45ACP's with me, neither has ever jammed....and both have had MANY thousands of rounds through them. Well, the first one jammed on the 4th shot. I tried to clear it, but the slide was stuck pretty good. I set it down and went to shoot the other.......it jammed (exacly like the first) on the very first shot. They were both jammed hard, almost back to battery. The bullets were not jacketed, just cast lead. They were obviously not done right. They both had an indention on the bullet where it had stuck while being fed into the chamber. Also, when I went to clean the pistol that had 4 of those rounds through it, I pulled out a nice string of lead from the barrel (the gun was clean when I took it to the range).

    So, do you trust other peoples reloads? I think these 2 incidents (out of 2 tries that I have been associated with) are enough to keep me from ever using reloads. Do you that reload have these problems? Is this common?
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    cuate

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    Jan 27, 2009
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    Comanche Co., Texas
    Trust reloads ?

    Mine & my nearest neighbors only. A nutcase's south of here, no way. He is the nut that put a black powder charge down the john to unstop it., you can guess the rest of the story. I have heard rumors of his hot loads, don't even think about it
     

    MadMo44Mag

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    Jan 23, 2009
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    Being a re-loader that's pretty much all I shoot.
    But when shooting reloaded ammo done for resale often component choice is made on profit margin.
    Sounds to be the only thing wrong with the ammo you got was either very soft lead bullets are the OAL was a little short.
    Now not seeing the jam myself I can't say for sure, but that what it sounds like.
    Anyway, any time is purchase someone else reloads and the ammo is intended for an auto pistol I will not buy it unless I can load a mag and dry cycle it through.
    If there is an issue it will normally show up this way.
    Nothing wrong with some else reloads as long as they did it right and didn't cut corners on components.
     

    kingofwylietx

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    I thought it would be decent stuff since it was being sold through a store for use on their range.

    I do think the lead was very soft, too soft. Upon really looking at it, some of the bullets had cavities in the lead. He must have cast them himself, it didn't look very good.
     

    MadMo44Mag

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    I thought it would be decent stuff since it was being sold through a store for use on their range.

    I do think the lead was very soft, too soft. Upon really looking at it, some of the bullets had cavities in the lead. He must have cast them himself, it didn't look very good.

    Yeah, 1st thing I do is drag my fingernail across the bullet. If it leaves a deep scratch or I actually get lead under my nail I am done. Not shooting that stuff.

    If it passes that, I'll load the mag and dry cycle. If they will not allow that I asked to compare to another brand so I can get an idea of the OAL. Factory ammo OAL should feed an all most any gun, so if the reloads are close or the same, I'll buy them

    When I go to Tennessee to visit my oldest daughter who is a LEO, we go to the range for a little shoot off.

    There is a company called Tennessee Cartridge Co. that makes a lot of range ammo for the ranges in that state.
    They have some top notch reloads.

    I wish I could get their ammo down here in Texas.

    They sell reloaded 9mm for 10.00 a 50 and it's better stuff than the white box stuff from Wally World
    Even their 44mag is good. Most reload 44mag is very light loads but theirs is low - high range. Very accurate and only 19.50 for 50.
     

    oldguy

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    Mar 6, 2008
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    I have used my reloads for nearly 40 years I actually have more faith in mine then commerical,having said that I've seen some bad reloading, their are good commerical reloads and I purchased some at various times mostly for brass, but caution is required I wont buy from ranges or gun shows.
     

    old_folks

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    May 19, 2009
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    I have shot nothing but reloads for almost 60 years. However, they are my own reloads and I have never had a feeding problem in rifle or pistol ammo. I am still old fashioned and do not take short cuts and load with a single stage press. That said, my response to the question is:

    In MHO, its not the reloads, its the person who did the reloading. Most of those commercial reloads are done on progressive presses with no visual attention. Its like Forest Gumps said about a box of chocolate candie .."you never know what you get". I have also known individuals who's reloads i wouldn't even allow in my shop, much less my weapon.

    Don't get me wrong. Good reloads are good, and there is nothing wrong with them. Just know who reloaded them and their reputation.
     

    Charley

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    Aug 7, 2008
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    San Antonio
    I trust my own handloads. The "no lead bullet" comments are too funny! Over the years, I've cast and shot a few thousand pounds of my cast bullets as well. It's not the reloads, it's not the cast bullets, it's lack of knowledge and QC on the part of the reloader.


    BTW, a "reloader" is a handle pulling monkey who might or might not wear clothes and make messes in the house...a handloader tailors his loads to his guns.
     

    MadMo44Mag

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    BTW, a "reloader" is a handle pulling monkey who might or might not wear clothes and make messes in the house...a handloader tailors his loads to his guns.

    Very good analogy!!!

    Not all commercial reloader are bad but the ones that are give all of them a bad rep.
     

    jfrey

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    Apr 8, 2008
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    Coastal Texas
    I load my own so I don't have to shoot other peoples reloads. I know what goes into mine and how carefully they are loaded. If it isn't factory or my load, it doesn't go into my pistol.
     

    Pappy

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    Feb 29, 2008
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    What I shoot;

    1. My reloads only. Absolutely no one else's. and I mean nobody
    smiley-faces-28.gif


    2. Factory...

    3. End of story
     

    TexMex247

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    May 11, 2009
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    Reloaded bullets???

    Well KingofWylie, I have to agree with pappy and charley on this one. I also reload my own. Even with the utmost care and attention it is very easy for reloading to go wrong. The reloaders I do trust are companies like the Collins Cartridge company or BlackHills. With their stuff the quality control and consistency is there. My experience with "gun show" reloads has been bad. I once got some 185gr TMJ FP bullets for my 45acp. When shooting them, I had every other round fail to feed or eject properly. Later, after shooting just a handful, I decided to break down the rounds to check the powder charges and seating depth. I found that they were packed with over 12.5gr of powder! There was no load data I found anywhere that considered this a safe load, regardless of powder type. On the opposite spectrum, I was at the range once shooting my reloads when the guy beside was doing the same. After only 3 rounds or so this guy had a squib load(no/low powder) wedge one in his barrel. If he hadn't caught it, both of us could have been injured by the next round. Personally, I allow my closest friends to shoot my reloads only after I have tested them for performance. Anyways, even when taking your time it is possible to have a hiccup or two. My only mistakes to date, undercrimping some light loads(blew pressure back into my face!) and finding a piece of walnut media wedged into a flashhole of a primed piece if brass(before I loaded it of course). Even these things I consider live and learn mistakes. The main problem with reloads is that they should really be tailored to the gun you put them through. My 45LC lever gun feeds a little chunky with any bullets over 1.580" while my 45 acp prefers bullets on the high side of the Maximum Cartridge overall length. If done right reloads can exceed the performance of factory bullets, if done wrong, they can blow you and your gun up! If you're gonna' buy em' use a good modern gun and wear safety glasses until you know how they shoot.
     

    res1b3uq

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    Feb 14, 2009
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    I started out buying from Perfect Shot in Ft. Worth. I think he does a really good job. He closed his shop temporarily, so I got my own reloading equipment.
     

    Flight954

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    Apr 21, 2008
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    Cypress, TX
    I've shot thousands of reload rounds in all calibers (rifle and pistol) from Aaron at Collins Cartridge Co. and have had no problems and have saved tons of coin.
     

    Pappy

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    Feb 29, 2008
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    i bought 2 boxes of 38 from a dealer i wont shoot them tell i put them on a scale

    And what will the scale tell you???? All the same weight?? Maybe no powder or wrong kind or too much for all of them....

    For me, scary...:eek:
     

    rl69

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    Mar 9, 2009
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    brookeland tex
    the scale will show double charges, no powder.if it is to inconstant i wont trust them at all. but your right it wont tell what kind of powder the price was right.
    even if i have to dump the powder i still have 100 primers, brass, and led
     
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