Question about racking same round

[Muzzle210]

I have my Full size Beretta Px4 Storm allways at the ready for home defense. Well, when I decide to go to the range I take the defensive round out of the chamber and the rest out of the magazine. After I am done at the range and cleaned my pistol. I am back to at the ready home defense. Now, my question is,....How many times can I rack the same round into the chamber before damaging the integrity of the round? Is there as general amount of times or is a don't do that sort of thing.

The barrel on my Px4 does not tilt...it rotates when round is entering the barrel(design of the pistol). I was thinking that mabe this stresses the round in some way and that mabe I should not be racking the same round. The rounds are Gold Dot HP.

Thanks in advance

 

[Younggun]

I've done this many times on my PX4 .40 with no visible damage to the rounds and later fired with no negative effects. Also had the same experience with another pistol taht didn't like PDX, the would nose down and hit the feed ramp, even after this happening multiple times it still measured the same as the others rounds on a caliper.

 

[majormadmax]

You should always shoot a couple of your HD/SD rounds through a pistol on occasion to ensure they'll feed/extract properly. If you're worried about it, shoot off the round that you have chambered after loading a magazine with your range rounds in it. That will dissolve any fears you have of the round being "damaged" by multiple loadings (although I doubt there is any issue with it) as well as knowing your Storm can cycle the hollow points.

Cheers! M2

 

[hkusp1]

I've chambered the same .40 Winchester ranger in my p226 over 50 times and all it caused was light scratches on the casing.

 

[Ghostie]

I found out recently about the phenomenon known as Bullet Setback, which can occur from racking the same round repeatedly,

 

[Roscoe]

I've heard of the setback issue. Here stateside, I usually make a point of switching chambered rounds after loading it a few times. Recently
spent two years in Iraq, carried a glock 19. It wasn't unusual to unload the weapon numerous times daily - entering MIL offices, the px
and dining halls. Once a week or so I take the rechambered round out of the gun a hold it for the range. When I'd get a dozen or so rounds
I'd check them with caliper; they always measured the same as a new hydra-shok load. I'd shoot all those rounds at the range - never
had a problem. Perhaps with some gun/ammo combinations there are problems. At least with the 19/hydra shok combo there doesn't seem
to be an issue.

 

[shortround]

It is best to shoot what you have in the magazine when you go to the range. Shoot whatever other load you wish thereafter. Reload with fresh SD rounds.

The repeated chambering of the same rounds is a sure way to alter the original geometry of your rounds.

 

[Deavis]

Setback can be a real issue in a caliber like 357Sig where the bearing surface of the neck is much smaller than the 9mm or 40S&W has. I've done the same test most people here have with a very real concern in the results and found a neglible setback (<0.005") for rounds properly crimped after 20 slide stop chamberings for every straightwall auto cartridge. Sig on the other hand is not so easy going, some loadings, where there is not powder compression, will force the bullet into the case a significant amount (>0 .150") after 5-8 chamberings and some would even result in complete tension loss after 15 chamberings. Personally, I am with majormadmax, you should practice with what you carry. Once a month, I empty a my carry magazine at the range and refill it. Since I'm carrying +P+ 9mm in my Kahr, I sure as heck better practice because it is much harder to control with that loading than my regular practice ammunition. Two birds, one stone.

 

[stalker19]

Bullet setback is one issue, as is primer damage.

On several occasions overseas I've seen guys have a failure to fire due to repeated loading of the same round. Once I have chambered a cartridge more than two or three times, it gets removed from service and tossed into the range ammo pile.

Here is a great article that discusses this issue further: Officer Safety: Ammunition cycling and failure to fire « The Bolo Report

 

[TexasRedneck]

Actually, there's another interesting issue that's been noted....breakdown of the primer charge itself. This is a *real* issue, as an officer recently discovered when SHTF and he had to manually cycle the round out of the chamber to get a cartridge that'd Go Bang. His department shipped the rounds back to the factory, who found that the two rounds that failed to discharge had had the primer charge "shatter" and powder out, and essentially "leak out" of the primer cup. Now, heaven only knows how many times he'd cycled those rounds, but it IS something to think about....

 

[Mikewood]

Try this. Take 20 self defence rounds to the range. Measure each one with a dial caliper. Load and fire your first round. Load and then extract your second round and measure it for setback. Then load and fire and look for pressure signs. Load the third round extract it, measure then load extract and measure. Then load and fire. Check the primer for pressure signs. Before you shoot 20 you should get a very good idea about setback and exactly how many times you can load a cartridge in your gun. Once you see pressure signs or get failures to feed stop and then repeat this cycles with several rounds to confirm.

All I will cost is a box of premium ammo.

 

[SIG_Fiend]

I've found noticeable bullet setback with different brands and calibers of ammo as soon as just a couple times of chambering. Some calibers are more prone to it than others (like .45acp and in 1911's in particular). This is a difficult one, and probably impossible to put a number on. The easiest way to put it is: Properly manage your defensive ammo. Pay constant attention to rounds that are chambered, check them against new rounds for obvious signs of setback, dump any bad ones, rotate your defensive ammo ever so often.

 

[Muzzle210]

Thanks everyone for all the replys. A lot of good input. Never heard of bullet set back. Now I have Gives me direction for research. Stalker19 thank for the link.

I have fired about 60 rounds of Gold Dot ammo thru my pistol. My pistol, so far, loves this ammo. It allways leaves me with a smile on my face after firing the rounds. They definatly have more snap to them than the Winchester white box ammo I use for range shooting.

 

[TexasRedneck]

Did some diggin', found the link again...

BOLO Report – Ammunition Cycling and Failure to Fire « Soldier Systems

 

[stalker19]

Did some diggin', found the link again...

BOLO Report – Ammunition Cycling and Failure to Fire « Soldier Systems

I had it posted above

Here is some more reading, this case is exactly what I've witnessed and is possibly even more likely due to the floating firing pin of the AR:
Scroll down to around 2/3 of the first post: "A large SWAT team in this area...."

http://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=19881

 

[Muzzle210]

Man, punching in the correct words for the google search sure does help "Bullet setback" brings up a lot on the google search. I have read some intreasting outlooks.

Thanks everyone for you help and links.

 

[kyletxria1911a1]

Yep i just have to rotate mine out on a regular i get set back
After about 10-12 cycles. When you put the round
Back in do you strip it off the mag or put it
Back on the chamber by hand?

 

[SIG_Fiend]

Yep i just have to rotate mine out on a regular i get set back
After about 10-12 cycles. When you put the round
Back in do you strip it off the mag or put it
Back on the chamber by hand?

You NEVER want to put the round in the chamber by hand. Always chamber from the mag. On an external extractor gun like a Glock, maybe not as big of a deal, though still not a good idea. On an internal extractor gun like most 1911's, this is extremely bad for the extractor, will ruin extractor tension and in some cases can break or weaken the extractor.

 

[Muzzle210]

Yep i just have to rotate mine out on a regular i get set back
After about 10-12 cycles. When you put the round
Back in do you strip it off the mag or put it
Back on the chamber by hand?

I put the round back into the mag to chamber the round.

 

[Muzzle210]

After all that I have read....After chambering the same round 3 times it will go to the shooting range with me.