need some advise reloading 9mm luger

velodog455~ · 08-16-2025, 09:35 AM

I reload 9mm for all my shooter-grade Lugers and many other old 9mm's. Winchester 231 is an excellent powder, and it is my first choice. However, I would like to know a bit more about why you want to use 130 grain lead bullets. A lot of 130 grain bullets are actually .357" (sometimes even .358"), but what you want is .355" bullets. I find that even .356" bullets sometimes cause thicker cases to bulge to the point that the reloaded cartridge will not fully enter the chamber. A cartridge gauge is a really good accessory. Another option is to remove the upper half of the pistol and see if your reloads drop freely in and out of your Luger barrel. Remove the firing pin before doing this though. Luger uppers can fire without being mounted on the frame.

Additionally, most cautious people that reload for Lugers (myself included) use reduced powder charges to put less stress on the pistol. If you use a 20% powder reduction you will find no serious accuracy issues and the point of impact will remain very close; it will just be easier on the gun. Parts do break on Lugers; that's a fact and using softer loads will lessen the chances of breakage. Paper targets and steel plates at 25 yards can not tell the difference with reduced loads.

Another piece of of information is that 115 grain bullets are the easiest on the frame and upper toggle area. They are often less expensive as well.

So... MY suggestion would be to use 4.0-4.3 grains of WW231 with a .355" diameter 115 lead or plated bullet (I like plated). It's your pistol though and you can do as you want with it. FWIW, I've been using this particular load for over 40 years now and it works well for me in many old 9mm pistols. As they say, Your Mileage May Vary.
-Bob

08-16-2025, 09:35 AM	#2
velodog455~ User Join Date: Aug 2023 Posts: 100 Thanks: 28 Thanked 89 Times in 52 Posts	I reload 9mm for all my shooter-grade Lugers and many other old 9mm's. Winchester 231 is an excellent powder, and it is my first choice. However, I would like to know a bit more about why you want to use 130 grain lead bullets. A lot of 130 grain bullets are actually .357" (sometimes even .358"), but what you want is .355" bullets. I find that even .356" bullets sometimes cause thicker cases to bulge to the point that the reloaded cartridge will not fully enter the chamber. A cartridge gauge is a really good accessory. Another option is to remove the upper half of the pistol and see if your reloads drop freely in and out of your Luger barrel. Remove the firing pin before doing this though. Luger uppers can fire without being mounted on the frame. Additionally, most cautious people that reload for Lugers (myself included) use reduced powder charges to put less stress on the pistol. If you use a 20% powder reduction you will find no serious accuracy issues and the point of impact will remain very close; it will just be easier on the gun. Parts do break on Lugers; that's a fact and using softer loads will lessen the chances of breakage. Paper targets and steel plates at 25 yards can not tell the difference with reduced loads. Another piece of of information is that 115 grain bullets are the easiest on the frame and upper toggle area. They are often less expensive as well. So... MY suggestion would be to use 4.0-4.3 grains of WW231 with a .355" diameter 115 lead or plated bullet (I like plated). It's your pistol though and you can do as you want with it. FWIW, I've been using this particular load for over 40 years now and it works well for me in many old 9mm pistols. As they say, Your Mileage May Vary. -Bob Last edited by velodog455~; 08-16-2025 at 05:08 PM.