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Posted: 9/14/2009 5:21:33 AM EDT
| I recently picked up a Walther P99 .40, I picked up some reloads from a local shop (I trust their reloads) but they are lead. Is it safe to shoot these through my Walther? I have done some reading about lead bullets and glocks, is there anything I need to watch out for? Any potential issues? |
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Quoted:
I recently picked up a Walther P99 .40, I picked up some reloads from a local shop (I trust their reloads) but they are lead. Is it safe to shoot these through my Walther? I have done some reading about lead bullets and glocks, is there anything I need to watch out for? Any potential issues? Does your pistol have polygonal rifling? If it does, you don't want to shoot lead in it. Polygonal rifling is easily identifiable because it's nearly invisible when you look down the barrel. Polygonal barrels look like smoothbores at first glance until you look closer. If it has clear grooves and lands then it's conventionally rifled and lead bullets are good to go. |
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There are several issues that deal with cast bullets in general and with your pistol in particular.
I believe that Mark wisely pointed out that a glance at the owners manual may reveal wether or not that reloads in general may be suitable for your pistol and/or may void your warranty if there should be a failure of some kind requiring factory service. I would refer you to the handgun forum in the banner above, and then go to the Walther section and you might find interesting info in the thread titled, "Comprehensive P99 FAQ". There is some especially good info in there relating to the different magazine followers used in different S&W and Walther magazines that are applicable to the .40 cal P99. The mags sold at CDNN as used .40 cal S&W mags are nice but all the ones I have gotten (I use them in my 9mm with a bit of tweaking) have the first generation orange follower that may cause premature slide stop engagement. I don't know but S&W may replace those followers and still make buying those mags worthwhile. I happily shoot cast reloads outdoors with my 9mm P99 but they are loads I have carefully worked up to feed and function safely in MY pistol. It may be a crap shoot wether or not those reloads will fit your chamber, will feed properly and are loaded within pressure limits that will properly and safely fuction in YOUR pistol. One thing to do would be to strip your pistol and to use the barrel as a headspace gauge to see if the reloads will easily chamber and that they headspace properly by checking their relationship to the barrel hood. If unsure about this process some here may do a better job explaing it than I or you could ask a knowledgable shooter you know to help you with this. I would post a pic of this but am really retarded when it comes to posting pics. Cast reloads can get your gun dirtier and can be a bit smokey to shoot and depending on the efficacy of the ventilation system where you shoot, you may not care for having black boogers for a day. Also cast bullets can leave a considerable amount of lead in the bore but it isn't a detriment to your barrel unless you leave the lead in there and allow it to build up over time constricting the bore. It's not impossible to get out, it's just a bit of work. ETA: Breaking in a new pistol with cast bullet reloads may not be advisable since you cannot know for sure if you do indeed have functioning problems related to the reloads or the pistol itself. Just a thought. Good Luck and have fun with that Walther. |
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I am wanting to reload lead bullets for my XD 45 and was curious how often cleaning the barrel is recommended?
Your XD45 is conventionally rifled so there is no problem there. It works best with RN profile lead bullets. 185-gr SWCs are notorious for not working in an XD45. As far as how often to clean the barrel - it really depends on a lot of factors when it comes to shooting lead bullets. Bore smoothness is a factor, as well as bullet diameter, hardness, and lube. You want your lead bullets oversize - like .452". You will need to brush the barrel more often than when using jacketed bullets though. You just have to inspect the barrel after shooting and see if you can see gray streaks of lead in the bore. They will be more pronounced toward the chamber end. If the gun starts to lose accuracy, then it probably has leaded up. |
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