Vihtavuori powder & 30 Luger

GIFFROY · 12-14-2011, 03:39 AM

I have made some experiences with my Swiss Lüger 06/29 chambered in .30 Luger
I tried Vectan BA-9 (french powder) and Vihtavuori N-320 pushing H&N RN HS .311 86 grains bullets; primer : Winchester Small Pistol Standard; case : Starline trimmed to 21,5 mm (if necessary); cartridge overall lenght : 29,6 mm.
1. For the BA-9 :
5 cartridges loaded with 4,9 grains of BA-9 gave as Vo : 327, 335, 341, 347 and 326 m/s (mean = 335,3 m/s)
5 cartridges loaded with 5,0 grains of BA-9 gave as Vo : 356, 350, 334, 358 and 354 m/s (mean = 350,4 m/s)
Incomplete ejection of empty case for 2 cartridges of the first batch and for one of the second (underligned).
No sign of overpressure visible on the primers.
The minimum Vo necessary for the operation of the pistol with this bullet seems to be 335 m/s.
To have a 100 % functionning of the pistol it is necessary to increase the powder load (5,1 maybe 5,2 grains).
Do anyone think that the pressures will remain acceptable? On the web, some reloaders consider 4,9 grains as the maximum, others are going till 5,4 grains.
2. For the N-320 :
I tried 3,7; 3,8; 3,9; 4,0; 4,1; 4,3 and 4,3 grains with no sign of overpressure on the primers.
I measured the Vo of only one cartridge loaded with 4,0 grains of N-320 and obtained 357 m/s.
The german magazine VIZIER SPECIAL N° 48 marz 2008 on "Pistole 08" explains (page N° 81) that for the same bullet (H&N 86 gr), same speed (363 and 365 m/s) and same precision, the N-320 (4,0 gr) gives a much higher pressure than the N-340 (4,6 gr) : 1691 versus 1311 bar.
I do not have Vihtavuori N-340 and this powder is rather difficult to find in my country.
Is it nevertheless recommended to use 4,0 gr N-320?

rhuff · 12-14-2011, 06:20 PM

I sure do wish that I could help you out, but I have never used that bullet, or any of those powders. I have been using Alliant Red Dot, and Bullseye powders for my 30Luger reloads. I have to run them very near, or at the max loading to get 100% reliability of my 1920 DWM Luger.

I am trying a new bullet(to me). I got them from Western Bullet Company. They advertise it as a 30Luger bullet. It is out of Lyman mold #311227, and is sized to .309 in. It is a LRN, but does not have a cannalure/crimp groove for a roll crimp. I load it as long as I possibly can (1.150 +/- .005 in.). That is just barely above the last grease groove. Then by using a Lee FCD, which is a collet crimp die( bottle neck brass), it will produce a mild crimp into the superior part of the grease groove to help keep from getting bullet set-back when feeding up the feed ramp. I have only fired #25 of these, but the results were excellent in my gun. I ordered 1.5K more of them. I don't know if this info will help anyone, but there is so little info on reloading the 30Luger ammo, that I felt like it might help someone.

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12-14-2011, 03:39 AM	#1
GIFFROY User Join Date: Oct 2011 Posts: 19 Thanks: 11 Thanked 5 Times in 4 Posts	I have made some experiences with my Swiss Lüger 06/29 chambered in .30 Luger I tried Vectan BA-9 (french powder) and Vihtavuori N-320 pushing H&N RN HS .311 86 grains bullets; primer : Winchester Small Pistol Standard; case : Starline trimmed to 21,5 mm (if necessary); cartridge overall lenght : 29,6 mm. 1. For the BA-9 : 5 cartridges loaded with 4,9 grains of BA-9 gave as Vo : 327, 335, 341, 347 and 326 m/s (mean = 335,3 m/s) 5 cartridges loaded with 5,0 grains of BA-9 gave as Vo : 356, 350, 334, 358 and 354 m/s (mean = 350,4 m/s) Incomplete ejection of empty case for 2 cartridges of the first batch and for one of the second (underligned). No sign of overpressure visible on the primers. The minimum Vo necessary for the operation of the pistol with this bullet seems to be 335 m/s. To have a 100 % functionning of the pistol it is necessary to increase the powder load (5,1 maybe 5,2 grains). Do anyone think that the pressures will remain acceptable? On the web, some reloaders consider 4,9 grains as the maximum, others are going till 5,4 grains. 2. For the N-320 : I tried 3,7; 3,8; 3,9; 4,0; 4,1; 4,3 and 4,3 grains with no sign of overpressure on the primers. I measured the Vo of only one cartridge loaded with 4,0 grains of N-320 and obtained 357 m/s. The german magazine VIZIER SPECIAL N° 48 marz 2008 on "Pistole 08" explains (page N° 81) that for the same bullet (H&N 86 gr), same speed (363 and 365 m/s) and same precision, the N-320 (4,0 gr) gives a much higher pressure than the N-340 (4,6 gr) : 1691 versus 1311 bar. I do not have Vihtavuori N-340 and this powder is rather difficult to find in my country. Is it nevertheless recommended to use 4,0 gr N-320?

12-14-2011, 06:20 PM	#2
rhuff Patron LugerForum Patron Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Az. Posts: 2,315 Thanks: 2,750 Thanked 999 Times in 734 Posts	I sure do wish that I could help you out, but I have never used that bullet, or any of those powders. I have been using Alliant Red Dot, and Bullseye powders for my 30Luger reloads. I have to run them very near, or at the max loading to get 100% reliability of my 1920 DWM Luger. I am trying a new bullet(to me). I got them from Western Bullet Company. They advertise it as a 30Luger bullet. It is out of Lyman mold #311227, and is sized to .309 in. It is a LRN, but does not have a cannalure/crimp groove for a roll crimp. I load it as long as I possibly can (1.150 +/- .005 in.). That is just barely above the last grease groove. Then by using a Lee FCD, which is a collet crimp die( bottle neck brass), it will produce a mild crimp into the superior part of the grease groove to help keep from getting bullet set-back when feeding up the feed ramp. I have only fired #25 of these, but the results were excellent in my gun. I ordered 1.5K more of them. I don't know if this info will help anyone, but there is so little info on reloading the 30Luger ammo, that I felt like it might help someone.