As a follow up, I've been reloading for quite some time now and the double charge I got last month was the first I've had. The equipment I use is pretty reliable and when something goes wrong in the process, it's pretty apparent. Still, I've added a station to the turret to check the powder level in each cartridge from here on out.
Looking at my shelf, I have some 500 rounds of .40 S&W sitting there and of course I have to wonder if there are any more surprises lurking in the boxes. The obvious solution is to weigh each cartridge which I started to do:
Sorry if my bench is a bit messy, but you can see the distribution of weights of a selection of loaded bullets. They range from 15.2 to 15.9 grams. The problem is that I only use 4 grains of powder per bullet which comes to .26 grams. The bullets are pretty consistent in weight (10.69 gram) with less than .1 gram between them and it's probably safe to say that the powder would normally be just as consistent. Over on the right is a small selection of primed cases which range from 4.5 grams to 4.9 grams, a variation about equal to 2 loads of powder. The sample size for the cases is too small to show the whole variation, but you can see the problem. I pulled one of the 15.9 rounds apart and discovered exactly 4 grains of powder, a consistent bullet, and a 5 gram case. Pulled a 15.2 gram cartridge and found 3.8 grains of powder, 10.6 grains of bullet, and 4.3 grains of brass. Obviously weighing the finished bullets is a waste of time as the brass varies over 2-1/2 shots of powder.
I suppose I could specialize in the PCC class at the matches for a while as the Hi Point is famously indestructible.
2 comments:
Any idea on what you are going to do with the pistol?
The gun is easily repairable. It should be back in action by the end of this week.
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