Green Dot testing for 40SW and 9mm--FYI

Armory » Reloading

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Green Dot testing for 40SW and 9mm--FYI

Posted: 4/30/2015 8:51:07 AM EDT

I'll
update this as I move along, but wanted to throw this post up here for people
who may be considering Green Dot for pistol loads.

Why
consider Green Dot? Well if you are like me and at the darn mercy of what you
can find, if this is one of your choices, you might consider it!!!!

Long
story short, I couldn't find much bulk powder to buy. I only had American
select locally available, and while I DO LIKE American select, I'm frugal in
the sense of knowing what I feel is a fair price to pay for a product. Paying
@$24-25/lb for American select stuck in my craw. Plus I wanted 8lb jugs of
powder so I wouldn't have to worry about lot variance for production runs.
Finally, a friend and I were planning on putting in a larger order Online once
we could source agreeable powders. The stars finally aligned a few weeks ago
and at Powder Valley we scored various powders including Green Dot, Power
Pistol, BE-86, and 2400(for his 357mag). Yes it appears we are alliant whores,
but I didn't really care about brand so much as that was what was in stock and
would work for what we wanted. The biggest question obviously was if Green Dot
was a good choice for our plinking 9mm and 40SW. So far, initial impressions
are good. It seems to shoot well. I haven't read a ton of threads on this
powder. They are out there, don't get me wrong, but with my specific
applications, there were not many that came up on search and information was conflicting
at times. Some claimed poor accuracy? Maybe I'm still too new, but given the
burn rate it should be a decent powder, and provided the reloader does their
job I'm not super certain how a powder can effect accuracy all that much as
long as the other components are good. Compared to American select, it seems
slightly louder, slight more snap(in 40SW). I'm the weakest link in accuracy,
so maybe once I get better I'll find it to be a weak link, but I doubt it.
Seems to burn clean, no unburnt flakes or excess grime noted after testing. We
live on 5 acres and recently I put up a dirt hill to shoot test loads into. So
I've been able to work up 50 shells give or take a night, experimenting with
crimps, COL etc... and this has really really helped out. Can't wait until my
chrono comes so I can give more data.

Initial testing with 40SW

I
don't have my chrono yet; so this is all off the cuff, seat of the pants
information.

4.7gr
GD (Green Dot)with following bullets:

165gr
Xtreme plated at 1.125 COL: shot best with super light crimp(go figure lol).
Seems snappy but still easy follow up. Guessing mid 900's to low 1000's FPS:
will verify once Chrono hits here. Not super high load, but for target, plenty
of pep, good practice and not a waste of supplies. Good accuracy at least in
initial testing.

180gr
BBI(Black bullets international) coated bullets. These are the first coated bullets I've used. Initial
impressions were ok. Some coating scuffed off, showing some traces of lead.
This was more towards the nose, so I wasn't super duper worried, but at the
same time, I was concerned that abrasions to the bullet in other areas could
expose me to leading. That said, I saw no lead exposed at the area of the
bullet the shell would contact. Same powder load at 4.7 gr and 1.135 COL This
load produces better accuracy. Less snap, but more PUSH from the recoil, but
overall slightly more pleasant to shoot vs the 165 gr xtreme. If I had either
on hand I wouldn't sweat it, but when ordering again, I'll go the 180's. I'm
waiting on some 180 Xtreme's to show up for testing, so I'll be able to compare
to these. I have no affiliation with either company, so for me it's about what
performs. Prices to me are similar enough to be a wash.

So
far, I'm not sure if my Xtreme 165's might need a bit more powder to push them
a bit faster to give better accuracy. I'll admit though, my crimp has been a
work in progress and my later shells really worked that down to the least
amount needed, which did show good improvement in accuracy. So I think I'll
work more on the 165's at the same powder charge and the lesser crimp to see if
I can get away with the 4.7gr charge and be as accurate as the 180 gr BBI at
4.7gr. Logic would tell me 4.8-4.9gr would be needed to give me the fps push to
get me near the 180 performance. Maybe more, but you see where I'm headed.
Anyway, just a note for the journal here

Testing
of the 9mm to start soon. I have 124gr Xtreme RN, 147gr Xtreme, 147gr BBI, and
some samples of Xtreme bullets lead, and plated 147 RNFP or some other shape to
try.

Posted: 4/30/2015 2:26:11 PM EDT

[#1]

I think I have some green dot 9mm loads that I have ran in the past. I'll have to take a look in my notes. I know I have .45 green dot loads worked up

Posted: 4/30/2015 6:17:03 PM EDT

[#2]

I use Green Dot in a wide variety of calibers: 9mm, .45 ACP, .45 Colt, .38 Spcl, and .357 Magnum. It's pretty good.

For the auto-loaders the loads I have worked up are close to recommended max. For the revolvers it varies depending on what I want to do.

The only caliber I stopped trying to use it in was .380 ACP because it doesn't meter real well. I use Accurate #5 for that.

I find it a tad sooty, but not ridiculously so.

I got into it because that was all that was available at the local shop the day after Newtown. I'm just finishing up the last of the five pounds I bought that day. I picked up another four pounds last month so I'm set for awhile.

Posted: 5/4/2015 10:27:03 PM EDT

[#3]

Ok finally remembered to look at my notes.

I show for 9mm:

Rainier 115 gr plated round nose
4.3 grains of Green Dot
CCI # 500 primer
Mixed brass
C.O.L of 1.12"
Chrono Average of 1127 fps

I show for .45acp

Rainier 230 gr. plated round nose
5.3 grains of Green Dot
Winchester WLP primer
Mixed brass
C.O.L. of 1.275"
Chrono average of 835 fps

Posted: 5/5/2015 2:36:17 AM EDT

[#4]

4.4 grains of Greed dot and a 200 grain SWC is my go-to target load for the .45 acp.

Haven't seen any Green Dot for sale in 6 years. Fortunately I still have a few cans left (some of them read Hercules)

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Green Dot testing for 40SW and 9mm--FYI

Armory » Reloading

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