.40 berrys 155gr no good

[albyihat]

bought 1000 berrys .40 155 gr. fp plated and the best i can figure out is unless i buy a undersized die they are worthless. i cannot get reliable reloads after loading 200+, trying 5 brands of brass, and a lee fcd i still get easy setback in at least 10 percent of rounds UNACCEPTABLE! OK let me start at the begining while loading my first batch using hornady dies and a 1.125 col i stoped at around 50 or so to check col,powder weight ect. and noticed that one bullet was seated very deep into case. i was able to push bullet all the way in with just my finger and light pressure i checked a few more and found many others with same signs. at first i thought not enough crimp but that was not it. so i borrowed lee factory crimp from friend he swore it would fix problem nope no good. so i tried different types of brass 5 i total ( federal, winchester, speer, starline, cci). i tried adjusting the col but no luck. so i broke down and bought rainier bullets which is what i have always used in the past. the rainier are .401 in diamater the berrys .400 i went back to my normal reloading methods (light crimp) with the rainiers and i cannot get more then .002 of setback even when pushing down on table hard enough to hurt and leave a dent in table. who would have thought .001 can make so much difference. so the question now is if i should get undersized dies just for 750 or so rounds. i know many of you use berrys and im not saying they are bad just that i have a had a bad experience with them so pls watch out as any setback in a .40 can be dangerous.

[IndyGunFreak]

Well.. I'm not exactly sure what your problem is, but standard diameter for the 40, is .400, so its not the .001. If you look at most FMJ bullets that are sold, you'll find they are .400.

IGF

[Boxerglocker]

bought 1000 berrys .40 155 gr. fp plated and the best i can figure out is unless i buy a undersized die they are worthless. i cannot get reliable reloads after loading 200+, trying 5 brands of brass, and a lee fcd i still get easy setback in at least 10 percent of rounds UNACCEPTABLE! OK let me start at the begining while loading my first batch using hornady dies and a 1.125 col i stoped at around 50 or so to check col,powder weight ect. and noticed that one bullet was seated very deep into case. i was able to push bullet all the way in with just my finger and light pressure i checked a few more and found many others with same signs. at first i thought not enough crimp but that was not it. so i borrowed lee factory crimp from friend he swore it would fix problem nope no good. so i tried different types of brass 5 i total ( federal, winchester, speer, starline, cci). i tried adjusting the col but no luck. so i broke down and bought rainier bullets which is what i have always used in the past. the rainier are .401 in diamater the berrys .400 i went back to my normal reloading methods (light crimp) with the rainiers and i cannot get more then .002 of setback even when pushing down on table hard enough to hurt and leave a dent in table. who would have thought .001 can make so much difference. so the question now is if i should get undersized dies just for 750 or so rounds. i know many of you use berrys and im not saying they are bad just that i have a had a bad experience with them so pls watch out as any setback in a .40 can be dangerous.

I have had excellent results with Berrys 155g in .40
I'll confess by the writing of you post, I can't understand exactly what your problem is. Other than you just brain farting....
I would start from the beginning if I was you. Reset your dies, make sure you have the correct seating stem for you profile bullet. Double check your flaring/expanding die. Adjust your seating OAL, then crimp and verify crimp using a measurement at the cases mouth. I set crimp to .419-.422 inch .421 being the target. Your push on the table testing method seem rather unreliable as you cannot repeat the exact force exerted each and every time.

[fudd]

Check your expander/belling die, it may be opening the case mouth too much.

[TonyT]

I have used both Berry's , Rainier and jacketed bullets without any probems using my Dillon 550 with the Dillon expander and a Lee die set. I would suggest that the problem may be with your case expansion step - check the diameter of your expander and the amount of case belling.

[vtducrider]

I have used Berry's 155gr 40cal plated bullets. No problem at all on my Dillon 550B. According to their website, their plated 40's are in fact 0.401" in diameter (as all lead bullets in this caliber are I believe). I have had similar experience with the bullets seated way to far down, but only when I was setting up the die. And the problem was the belling setting on of the powder die, which opened the casing too wide. Once corrected, there was no problem with high volume runs.

[kcbrown]

It sounds like your sizing die is marginal.

Size a case and measure the inside diameter of the case at the mouth.

After sizing with my Lee sizing die, the inside diameter of a typical brass casing measures about .393in. That's more than enough to keep the bullet from setting back into the case.

If your inside diameter is very nearly .400in, then your sizing die needs to be replaced.

The reason I say to examine your sizing die is that it's the sizing step which reduces the diameter of the case enough to prevent bullet setback. Neither the crimping nor the flaring steps should have any effect on this unless you are seating the bullet extremely shallow, something that the .40S&W round typically doesn't lend itself well to.

[Bob2223]

Well.. I'm not exactly sure what your problem is, but standard diameter for the 40, is .400, so its not the .001. If you look at most FMJ bullets that are sold, you'll find they are .400.

IGF

I agree,,
I've used thousands of Berry's 155 gn 40 without problems.
Being .400 ain't the problem.

Bob

[mteagle1]

I would contact Berry as the web site specs 40/10mm as a .401 bullet. The only Berry bullets I have used are 45 cal double struck and they are not the quality of Rainier. I also use the push the cartridge into the table method of setting the crimp. Too light and you may not get good powder burn, too heavy with a plated bullet can cut through the plating causing accuracy problems. Easiest way to solve the problem is Montana Gold, true they are a little expensive but damn they are good and it is a made in Montana product.

[ron59]

Easiest way to solve the problem is Montana Gold, true they are a little expensive but damn they are good and it is a made in Montana product.

Yeah, baby. MG all the way.

[IndyGunFreak]

Check your expander/belling die, it may be opening the case mouth too much.

That's something I would check... If you didn't reset your dies when you switched from the Rainiers(401) to the Berrys(400) that may very well be your problem.

IGF

[fredj338]

Check your expander/belling die, it may be opening the case mouth too much.
This is a good place to start. Whos dies? Lee has been know to turn out oversized dies before. Yes, a bullet 0.001" larger will help, but so will a die that sizes the case down 0.001" smaller or an expander that is a max of 0.398".

[IndyGunFreak]

I would contact Berry as the web site specs 40/10mm as a .401 bullet. The only Berry bullets I have used are 45 cal double struck and they are not the quality of Rainier. I also use the push the cartridge into the table method of setting the crimp. Too light and you may not get good powder burn, too heavy with a plated bullet can cut through the plating causing accuracy problems. Easiest way to solve the problem is Montana Gold, true they are a little expensive but damn they are good and it is a made in Montana product.

If the problem were the bullet, I would agree... the problem is something in his setup however, so switching bullets only sidesteps the problem, rather than corrects it.

IGF

[ustate]

Like others have said I use Berrys 155 quite a bit and have never had a problem. As others have pointed out check your dies and readjust where needed.

[Snapper2]

I've used the berry 155gr Hollow base round nose. They have a some what beveled base. No flaring was required when I loaded them. Try loading one without expanding the brass first.

[WiskyT]

While my first guess would be to check the dies and set-up, I wouldn't be so quick to rule out the bullets. Plated bullets start out small and they get bigger through the plating process. It wouldn;t be hard for them to not plate a particular batch enough. I wouldn't get too focused on the fact that he mic'd them at 0.400" and that should be okay. Unless your an expirienced machinist, mic'ing things is tricky. I'm not machinist and I can mic the same thing three times and get two different values. His 0.401 bullets might be 0.400 and his 0.400 bullets might be 0.399 based on how tight or loose he mics them and the calibration of his mic.

I would check out my own equipment first, and then contact Ranier and see what they have to say.

[Colorado4Wheel]

Like has been said, It's not the bullets. So don't blame them.

[Snapper2]

Like has been said, It's not the bullets. So don't blame them.

The berry bullets I'm using are the 155gr HBRN double strike . I'm loading them in the short neck 400 cor bon where neck tension is very critical. I found flaring the neck to be a waste of time because you can almost install them sideways(tilted) and they'll seat smooth as butter. My measurements are .400 at base then .399 at 1/8" up from base to crimp area. A good taper crimp might hold then in the 40 sw or maybe not, but if he is using the 40 lee factory crimp they might be loosening back up.:whistling: My lee bottleneck crimp die holds them tight even with a light crimp but its a different design.

[dudel]

Quick and easy test.

Resize (no flare) one piece of brass. Try to push a projectile into it by hand.

If you can, then recheck (in order):
1) the adjustment of your sizing die.
2) the dimensions of the sizing die (too loose).
3) the dimensions of the projectile (too small)

If you can't push the projectile in by hand, then:
1) your flaring/expanding die could off (too much flare)
2) you are over crimping (and distorting the case which can leave the projectile loose).

I've loaded thousands of Berry's, and they've all been great. Most accurate projectile for my Glocks. While I'm not discounting a problem in the projectiles (see #3 above); at this point, I'm more likely to question the setup.

Why did you buy 1000 bullets without even knowing how they would work in your gun? Until you have your load set, there's not much advantage in buying big lots of projectiles and powder. Each gun shoots differently.

Don

[Bob2223]

Maybe them their berrys were picked before they were ripe ?



:supergrin:

Bob

[buckshotshorty]

I recently came across the same problem when loading some 45s with plated bullets. I bought some once fired brass that was cleaned, resized and deprimed. I didn't check the sizing. When I started to load, I immediately realized that the bullets were sliding into the case. I removed the depriming pin from my sizing die, resized all 1000 cases and then tried loading the bullets, and sure enough tight fit with no setback.

My recommendation: check your sizing die; don't count on the Lee factory crimp die to Full Length Re-size your cases.
Check your mouth belling. Bell just enough to get the bullet started.

[buckshotshorty]

Maybe them their berrys were picked before they were ripe ?



:supergrin:

Bob

:rofl:

[GioaJack]

Maybe them their berrys were picked before they were ripe ?



:supergrin:

Bob


MY GOD... I use to put people like this in jail and now my life is reduced to the point where this stuff almost makes sense.

How could life have sunk to this level.? :dunno:

Jack

[Snapper2]

Maybe them their berrys were picked before they were ripe ?



:supergrin:

Bob

:rofl: If n we cant shootem we'll make cobbler.

[Bob2223]

:rofl: If n we cant shootem we'll make cobbler.

Or you could get a jam from em :whistling:

Bob

[Bob2223]

MY GOD... I use to put people like this in jail and now my life is reduced to the point where this stuff almost makes sense.

How could life have sunk to this level.? :dunno:

Jack

Lead

Lack of oxygen (from high elevation)

Wheel weight smoke

Hangin out here

? :whistling:

Bob

[Colorado4Wheel]

LOL. Good stuff.

[dudel]

Or you could get a jam from em :whistling:

Bob

Sticky bullets prevent setback!

Don

[ron59]

Or you could get a jam from em :whistling:


I like jam.

[Snapper2]

Sticky bullets prevent setback!

Don

slippery bullets promote dirty underwear:embarassed:

[Bret]

I use Hornady dies for most of my reloading. I sort all of my cases by brand and lot. With the 40S&W I found that with the right combination of cases (thinner ones) and bullets (0.400" diameter), I would also get setback when I did the press on the table test. I ended up buying a Redding sizing die. It sizes the cases down about 0.002" more. Problem solved. I now use the Redding sizing die for most all of my 40S&W resizing. The only time I use the Hornady die is when a particular case/bullet combination gives an obvious coke bottle type look.

Also, the OP is wise to address this lack of case/bullet tension problem and not simply try to solve it by crimping. If I've said it once, I've said it 1,000 times. You should have enough case/bullet tension to prevent setback before the crimping operation. If you don't, figure out what the problem is.