bigcountry

Glock makes a huge deal about warning you not to shoot reloaded or remanufactured ammo in thier gun. All manufacturer or most won't warranty a problem if you let them know that reloaded ammo was used, but Glock is the only one that makes a huge stink about it. Anyone wonder why? I know thier rifling is rather funky and don't handle cast loads at all. I thought that may be the reason.

I buy most pistols second hand, and never really worry about the warranty. So I continue to reload for them.

Danny45

I think they are more worried (or at least were when they first came out) about someone using "hot" reloads and having the frame break and getting that slide in the face. Since they have only a small amount of steel re-enforcement in that area, you have to wonder if that was a problem they noticed in the R&D phases of it's developement.

And you are right, I shot some soft lead bullets in a model 23 one time. Took me forever to get that barrel clean. I wound up forcing a 12 gauge brush through it (.40 caliber) and that finally did the trick.

Ruger-Redhawk

I also think it has to do with the resizing of the cases.Unless the case is sized to original specs it won't function properly in a Glock.Seems to me I read that somewhere.??????
Ruger Redhawk

cwhitenton

Wow, never heard anything about the reload issue and I've been shooting hot loads through my Glock 29 for a while now. I get them from http://www.texas-ammo.com/ Nosler 135 Grain JHP loaded to 1450 fps for 630 ft. lbs of energy at the muzzle; a 165 Grain JHP loaded to 1350 fps for 668 ft. lbs of energy at the muzzle; and the Hornady 200 Grain FMJ-FP loaded to 1250 fps for 694 ft. lbs of energy at the muzzle.

YEE-HAW!

driftrider

I read about this before I started handloading for my Glock 21. The concern is due to the steeply sloped feed ramp and the unsupported area this creates at the base of the case just in front of the webbing when chambered. On new cases the case is strong enough to withstand the pressures and remain intact despite the unsupported area. With hot loaded factory ammo, people have noted a bulge in tha cases (something I've never witnessed in my Glock with standard velocity loads. I've never shot +P loads so I can't talk about those) So when the cases are resized and reloaded, the now work hardened case (if a bulge existed) is weakened and could rupture, with obvious consequences. This also only seems to be a problem with .40cal and up Glocks. The 9mm versions have sufficient support that this problem is exceptionally rare.

I personally think that this was only a problem with guys who'd reload very hot ammo. I've been handloading my Glock for several months and have had absolutely no problems with bulging brass and have seen no sign of brass fatigue on impending rupture. I am using Winchester brass and Hornady 230gr encapsulated FMJ bullets with 5.5gr of Universal Clays (0.5gr under max @ 750fps, for a margin of safety and because these are plinking rounds). The brass has been reloaded 4 times and not a single case has been bulged at the web. This load had also functioned flawlessly in my gun (100% reliability in 400 rounds fired), despite the fact that the slide velocity is obviously lower than factory ammo. I can tell both by how the gun feels during recoil and by the reduced authority with which the brass is ejected.

So from my experience, as long as loads are kept safely below max, there is no problem. If I wanted to load them screaming hot I would invest in an aftermarket barrel.

The caution about shooting lead bullets in a polygonally rifled bore should, IMO, absolutely be heeded. Polygonal rifling works by squeezing the snot out of the bullet, basically swaging it into the hexagon or octagon shaped bore. There is a tremendous amount of force involved, which is not a problem with jacketed bullets. But with lead bullets instead of just swaging the bullet the throat will actually shave off a little bit of lead with every shot, causeing extreme leading in the bore and the very real possibility of a partial bore obstruction. Now I know that somebody will pipe in saying that they've been shooting cast lead bullets out of their Glock since Christ's time without a problem, but there are many documented cases of Glocks blowing up because of this to ignore this very real danger. So just don't do it, please. If you wish to load cast lead bullets, I'd strongly advise that you invest in a conventionally rifled barrel before you do.

And as always, my results may not be indicative of ever gun and ever situation. If you handload for your Glock you do so at your own risk. (That outta make the bloodsucking, ambulance chasers happy).

Mike

Colt1911

I’ve been shooting and reloading for my Glock 27 for about five years. I’ve never had a problems with reloads. I do not load “hot“, but do try to get as close to my carry loads as possible. I have never had a problem with bulging or burst cases.
Case resizing should be no concern as long as they are sized to spec. Standard Glock chambers are very generous in their proportions to aid in reliability.
As for cast bullets, I also headed the warning and have never used them. Driftrider is right on the money as to the reasons not to use them and what the result may be.

bigcountry

Colt1911, I don't think anybody besides cast shooters has any problems. Just bothersome that glock makes such a huge deal about it.

Drift, thanks for the info. Your probably right on target about it. Cwhitenton, its all over the tupperware box and manuals with glocks.

Briman

For some Glocks over 9mm, I understand that there is a serious lack of casehead support, you shoot and the brass stretches in areas around the casehead- sort of like a rifle with excesive headspace, but in a different direction.
When you resize the brass, you iron the part of the brass back to its original dimension, but hte brass will be thinner and weaker. If you reload to well below maximum pressures and opnly reload the brass a few times, you might be ok, but if you are going for maximum velocities, you are going to eventually rupture a case.

You can't/shouldn't shoot cast lead in a Glock.


If you want to save money on ammo by reloading, I don't see the point with a Glock, I would rather spend a few hundred more for a better pistol and shoot cast lead at much cheaper cost with a much better chance of the dang thing blowing up on you.