Reloading for glock

[sirmissalot]

I've been kicking around the idea of picking up a glock 10mm, probably a 29. The other day a buddy and I were BSing a local firearms dealer guy and he showed me a case failure that happened to be fired from a glock, and told me about the dangers of reloading for a glock. If I can't reload for a glock, that would be enough for me to not want to buy one. How many of you reload for glocks and did you swap out barrels or do anything special? I did some reading online and sounds like some are believers and some are not... so I'm unsure on what to do?

[DoubleJ]

I've shot about 5 different peoples reloads out of my glock and I've never had any of them worth a crap.  Stove pipes, FTF, etc.  Seems to only like factory ammo.  And that's 3 different glocks.

[Fl0und3rz]

I've reloaded for all my Glocks, and the only malfunction I have had was when I put too heavy of a recoil spring in my Glock 20 for my relatively underpowered 10mm load during load development. 

If you are going to go hot with Glocks, it is wise to use new cases for near max loads.  Otherwise, the general consensus that I have seen is that an aftermarket barrel with better case support and tighter than stock chamber (and possibly a heavier recoil spring) is the way to go for near max reloads in a Glock.

Head on over to Glock talk, and you will likely find all you would ever want to know about 10 mm Glock reloading and more. 

http://glocktalk.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=67

Otherwise, shooting reloads in your Glock is said to void the warranty.

[yorketransport]

The only problem I had with reloads in a Glock was the stress put on the brass. With a factory barrel I never used cases for more than 2 full power loads. If you put an aftermarket barrel in there I don't think you'll really have any trouble.

Andrew

[300rum]

The story is phony.  Thousands of people use Glocks in competition and shoot 10's of thousands out of OEM Glocks every year with no issues.  I have loaded thousands of rounds for various Glocks myself with zero issues.   

[sirmissalot]

That's what I keep getting, conflicting opinions. Two shots out of brass doesn't impress me, but I don't mind getting a new barrel that would extend the life of brass.

[Fisherdave10]

I don't own a Glock, but I am a reloader and I've read quite a bit about the issue. 

What you're referring to is a bulge in the brass.  This occurs because a portion of the case (near the head) is unsupported by the Glock chamber.  To supposedly increase feeding reliability, Glock (especially) has or once had a long throat leading to the barrel's chamber.  The long throat means a tiny bit of the case head area would be less supported than other handgun barrels.  When something pressurized to 35,000+++ PSI is unsupported, it's going to bulge or blow out.   This is known as a Glock kB.  Google images here -> https://www.google.com/search?q=Glock+kB&hl=en&tbo=u&tbm=isch&source=univ&sa=X&ei=I2QQUd_DN8_QigKp0oCgCw&ved=0CDgQsAQ&biw=1366&bih=664

2nd generation .40 caliber Glocks are especially known to have this issue.  In later generations, Glock has been a little better about chamber support with their barrels, however 100% case head support in a semi-auto pistol is rare, so it's not just a 'Glock issue' (outside of 2nd gen).  Glocks just have a higher occurrence of kBs.

Replacing the factory barrel with an aftermarket one would likely prevent or decrease bulging of the case, but at the possible expense of complete reliability because the throat geometry would be slightly changed (I really doubt it would make a difference) and the chamber might be a little tighter. 

Because I reload, and I would want to carry full power loads for self defense or in the field, I would switch to an aftermarket barrel.  Better case head support is also going to be easier on expensive 10mm brass.

[sirmissalot]

I don't own a Glock, but I am a reloader and I've read quite a bit about the issue. 

What you're referring to is a bulge in the brass.  This occurs because a portion of the case (near the head) is unsupported by the Glock chamber.  To supposedly increase feeding reliability, Glock (especially) has or once had a long throat leading to the barrel's chamber.  The long throat means a tiny bit of the case head area would be less supported than other handgun barrels.  When something pressurized to 35,000+++ PSI is unsupported, it's going to bulge or blow out.   This is known as a Glock kB.  Google images here -> https://www.google.com/search?q=Glock+kB&hl=en&tbo=u&tbm=isch&source=univ&sa=X&ei=I2QQUd_DN8_QigKp0oCgCw&ved=0CDgQsAQ&biw=1366&bih=664

2nd generation .40 caliber Glocks are especially known to have this issue.  In later generations, Glock has been a little better about chamber support with their barrels, however 100% case head support in a semi-auto pistol is rare, so it's not just a 'Glock issue' (outside of 2nd gen).  Glocks just have a higher occurrence of kBs.

Replacing the factory barrel with an aftermarket one would likely prevent or decrease bulging of the case, but at the possible expense of complete reliability because the throat geometry would be slightly changed (I really doubt it would make a difference) and the chamber might be a little tighter. 

Because I reload, and I would want to carry full power loads for self defense or in the field, I would switch to an aftermarket barrel.  Better case head support is also going to be easier on expensive 10mm brass.

Great, thank you for that. I think that's just what I needed

[300rum]

You can get many, many more than 2 reloads out of brass shot out of a Glock.  If someone is saying that, they don't know what they are talking about.  Yes, you can get a bulge out of glocked brass mainly .40, not 9/.45, don't know so much about 10mm though.  For .40 I use an EGW U die that resizes lower than the typical RCBS Carbide die, for comparison.  I would call EGW, Evolution Gun Works and ask them if the .40 die can be used for 10mm (I wouldn't know why not).

KB's happen way, way more often from squibs/undercharges and double charges, not because of Glocked brass or OEM barrels and reloads.  Yes, you can by an after market Wolf or KKM barrel but that won'necessarilyiy lessen the changes of KB.       

[NW-GSP]

I have put over 500 reloads through my glock with no issues

[300rum]

You will also hear that you shouldn't shoot lead through a Glock barrel.  Again, I have shot thousands and thousands of lead bullets out of a Glock barrel.  I think that the biggest problem could come if you shoot lead, build lead up in the barrel and then shoot a jacket bullet. 

Back when the Glocks where still fairly new, a guy told me to shoot lead and then when I was done, shoot some jacket bullets to clean out the barrel.  That's what I did, over and over again with a G22 and OEM barrel.  Never had a problem.  However I don't do it now. 

I shoot thousands and thousands of moly coated lead bullets through a Glock 34 with an OEM barrel, no problem.  Competitions shooters shoot ridiculously high volumes out of Glocks and OEM barrels with no issues.

Like I said squibs (followed by another round) and double charges cause most of the problems.  I think most people would rather blame the gun and not themselves (who made a mistake reloading). 

[sirmissalot]

Yeah that's another thing I read is not to shoot lead bullets. Very useful information 300, thank you

[yorketransport]

You can get many, many more than 2 reloads out of brass shot out of a Glock.  If someone is saying that, they don't know what they are talking about.  Yes, you can get a bulge out of glocked brass mainly .40, not 9/.45, don't know so much about 10mm though.  For .40 I use an EGW U die that resizes lower than the typical RCBS Carbide die, for comparison.  I would call EGW, Evolution Gun Works and ask them if the .40 die can be used for 10mm (I wouldn't know why not).

KB's happen way, way more often from squibs/undercharges and double charges, not because of Glocked brass or OEM barrels and reloads.  Yes, you can by an after market Wolf or KKM barrel but that won'necessarilyiy lessen the changes of KB.       

You certainly can get more than 2 loads out of brass in a Glock 10mm, but I don't know that it would be very smart to run full power loads on 4x fired cases. I retire all of my handgun brass to more mild loads after 2 full power firings. This includes everything from 10mm to 454. I worry much more about auto loaders than revolvers though. I've had factory ammo blow out at the case head in a Glock 10mm and it's not fun. You have a lot more protection in a revolver.

Andrew

[jaymark6655]

What I am hearing is, if you want to run a full power round, only reload it once or twice.  If your firing reduced loads, you can reload cases more than that.  Did the guy you talked to say anything about how many times that case had been reloaded and to what pressures, that affects case life more  than what handgun its fired out of.

For self defense, I use new brass resized once and loaded.  Reusing brass over and over and then loading it up for self defense just seems like a bad idea.

[high country]

Speed costs money. If you get greedy with velocity......you will have to buy the parts to support your habit.....or wish you did. If you keep to some sane speeds, you can reload quite a few times....just take the time to inspect your brass.