Barnes 40 S&W 155 gr. M/LE reloading

buckshotlee · #1 04-12-2009, 03:58 PM

I want to make up some nice reloads for my 40 S&W 155 gr. Barnes M/LE bullets. Does anyone have some experience with them? I currently have "Unique", "V-N350", and "Win 296" powders. Also, include the your case overall length(COAL).

Onlinedad · #2 04-16-2009, 08:21 AM

I like the .45.... too bad you cant get your hands on the ammo...

Ironhorse · #3 04-16-2009, 10:32 AM

Another for the .45 here. Do they make handguns in other calibers?

As an aside, I think the .357 mag deserves a spot up there, unless the poll is limited to semi-auto's.

eth77 · #4 04-16-2009, 12:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by buckshotlee

I want to make up some nice reloads for my 40 S&W 155 gr. Barnes M/LE bullets. Does anyone have some experience with them? I currently have "Unique", "V-N350", and "Win 296" powders. Also, include the your case overall length(COAL).

What is your barrel length?

For a 5.5" barrel there is a load of 6.6 gr N350 and a 155 gr bullet (Hornady). With the Barnes you should get about 1152 fps. This would be a starting load at 456 ft-lbs.

The max load would be 7.5 gr with an OAL of 1.128". No CUPS measure was given for the max load. Velocity was given as 1245 fps & 533 ft-lbs.

Start with the 6.6 and work up slowly.

Austin · #5 04-18-2009, 03:34 AM

45 for home protection/war.

40 for CCL.

buckshotlee · #6 04-19-2009, 07:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eth77

What is your barrel length?

For a 5.5" barrel there is a load of 6.6 gr N350 and a 155 gr bullet (Hornady). With the Barnes you should get about 1152 fps. This would be a starting load at 456 ft-lbs.

The max load would be 7.5 gr with an OAL of 1.128". No CUPS measure was given for the max load. Velocity was given as 1245 fps & 533 ft-lbs.

Start with the 6.6 and work up slowly.

I did set up some loads for the Barnes bullets and 6.6 works well but I could only getup to 7.2 gr into the case because I can't compress the powder anymore then 1.138 OAL, which is 0.003 more then the recommended max OAL. So I couldn't have loaded them to 7.5 gr. even if I wanted to!

Thanks for the help and I hope this thread is helpful to others!

albritton77 · #7 04-20-2009, 02:01 PM

Even if we WERE sticking to semi-autos, I believe .357 Sig is an extremely good ammo, although it is very loud and not quite as popular as the others mentioned.

pianomistro · #8 04-21-2009, 10:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by albritton77

Even if we WERE sticking to semi-autos, I believe .357 Sig is an extremely good ammo, although it is very loud and not quite as popular as the others mentioned.

I agree. .357 Sig is almost the same power and performance as the .357 magnum, which is said to be one of the best man-stoppers of all time. Even more so than the .45, says a comprehensive database I've found in a magazine. But I would still carry the .45 instead, due to the .357's over-penetration power, similar to the 10mm.

ricardo900 · #9 04-28-2009, 08:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pianomistro

I agree. .357 Sig is almost the same power and performance as the .357 magnum, which is said to be one of the best man-stoppers of all time. Even more so than the .45, says a comprehensive database I've found in a magazine. But I would still carry the .45 instead, due to the .357's over-penetration power, similar to the 10mm.

I own a Glock 31 and after numerous research the .357Sig is a very HOT round. I use hollows/JHP to solve the "over-penetration" issue.

utimmer43 · #10 05-01-2009, 05:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ricardo900

I own a Glock 31 and after numerous research the .357Sig is a very HOT round. I use hollows/JHP to solve the "over-penetration" issue.

+1

G33 with Gold Dots. As for ammo availability, I just hit the gunshow that rolls around every couple months. Gold Dots: $.40/ round. Federal FMJ $.29/ round.