S/42 Load Hornady 124 gr XTP with VV340

[Sieger]

Originally Posted by rhuff

I think that if your chamber/leade, and mags will tolerate 1.060-1.075 OAL, then you should be in the zone. I am sure that you know that Lugers do not like real soft loads, so if you are going to start with the starting load from Lymans, I would only load 10 or so rounds, so you don't have a bunch to disassemble for the components. Most of my Lugers want the loads to be near the upper end for reliable functioning. Of course, that depends on what springs are in you guns. Good luck, and keep us informed.

Hi:

To find the correct OAL for that particular bullet, search my name and find the thread on finding correct OAL for a new bullet type. This will eliminate your guess work on proper OAL, which is a major cause of Luger malfunctions.

The original WWI 9mm Luger load was a 123 gr. truncated cone bullet traveling at 1,076 fps from a 4 inch barreled pistol. With modern, medium slow powders like SR 4756 or Power Pistol, you will find very accurate and reliable loads in this exact same range. Search my name for several really excellent loads for the 4 inch Lugers using 124 gr. bullets and the aforementioned powders.

By the way, the original 9mm truncated cone load's OAL was at 29 mm (approximately 1.14 inches), round nose bullets were loaded to 29.8 mm (approximately 1.173 inches) so don't feel strange when loading "long" bullets in your Luger. Again, correct and precise OAL is necessary for proper Luger function.

The rule that will get you a functional and accurate load is to start slow and work up. Without this process, again, you will simply be guessing, and will probably become quite frustrated.

Of major importantance is the condtion of the recoil spring in your particular Luger. Again, when the springs are out of spec, don't expect a Luger to function properly.

I hope this was helpful.

Sieger