How many test rounds?

Cmax Arms

Cmax Arms

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I am new to reloading, found some Red Dot powder (actually 8 lbs for $105 out the door!). There is not any new reload data for it in pistol calibers, only in shot gun, I know it is an old powder (they changed it slightly about 15 years ago making it cleaner) that was used alot for pistol calibers.
Well I am ready to start loading powder. My question is how many rounds should I load for each powder quantity for evaluation? I do not have a chronograph, so I will have to test fire them.
If any one has experience with Red Dot and would like to share the load data, I would love to see it, I am starting off with 9mm, then 38 special, then maybe 357 mag (I know it is not great for magnums) and 45 acp.

Thanks Cmax:cool:
 
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I start at min and increment till I reach max. So if the load was a min of 4gr and a max of 5gr, I would do 5 at each increment of .1 gr and shoot those for function. Of those that functioned without issue and I liked how they felt, I load again for accuracy. There are probably better ways to do this and I am still new to reloading but that is what has been working for me for pistol load development. I would probably take another approach if using expensive projectiles.
 
I have several old reloading manuals- I don't mind checking them and letting you know what they say for Red Dot. However, I seriously would not stray from their recipes. And I have personally never used Red Dot, so I don't have any first hand experience.

You have quite a range of pressures in those calibers listed- .38 and .45ACP being on the low end and .357/9mm being on the pretty darn high end for pistol calibers. Not all powders are suitable for low and high pressure calibers. Universal and Bullseye do a pretty good job covering them, but I'm not sure about Red Dot.
 
http://www.hodgdon.com/burn-rate.html

Red dot is one of the powders with a very fast burn rate. The pro is it's very economical small charges yield lots of velocity. This comes at a cost; a rapid peak pressure spike that creates lots of pressure. Excessive? Well red dot is not a powder I'd use to attempt to hot load or even really use for maximum charges. Make an error and double charge a case, the most common mistake in grenading a gun, and red dot will be easy to miss as the powder volumes are much smaller. The velocity spread will be anticipated larger as small variations of charge weight will yield more FPS variations.

The fastest powder I have used is Accurate #2. I have obtained some really good groups with it in .45 ACP and 200 gn. SWC lead cast. Red dot should make a very economical powder for lower pressure rounds with the above risk mentioned.

Edit....

I looked at the .44 Magnum Red Dot loading and it was anemic. 44 Rem Magnum 240 gr cast LSWC Speer 1.605 7.5 CCI 300 Red Dot 6.5 grains @905 FPS. This is the recommended max loading! It's subsonic.....
 
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Ok- been doing some reading. Before I say anything about load data, I'll say you should do your own research before you decide what to load. You're putting an explosive metal cup behind a charge of gunpowder and the plan is to set it off in between your palms... Do it right. Most bullet and powder manufacturers publish their data on their websites and books.


First off 9mm: I'm seeing very few loads for Red Dot. Speer published data for a 125 grain lead round nose bullet- 3.3 to 3.6 grains with speeds from 888 to 1004 feet per second. Sierra published data for a 90 grain bullet- 3.8 to 4.9 grains with speeds between 1150 and 1250 feet per second. That's all I've got on 9mm. Blue Dot appears to be really common for 9mm in most all bullet weights. However Blue Dot is down at number 33 on the burn rate chart I have- Red Dot is number 4 (Number 1 is the hottest).

Second, .45ACP: Couple more recipes here, but still not a lot. Alliant published data showing maximum loads for different bullet weights. They show 5.0 grains for a 230 grain FMJ bullet with a velocity of 910 FPS (feet per second). They also show Red Dot at a max of 4.0 grains for a lead round nose (LRN) bullet at 810 FPS. And 4.5 grains for a 240 grain JHP (jacketed hollow point) at 770 FPS. Note all of those are maximum loads- don't ever start at a maximum load, work up to it and monitor your brass/gun for signs of over pressure. Speer published data for Red Dot between 4.1 and 4.5 grains for a 200 grain lead SWC bullet (semi wad cutter), 4.7 to 5.1 grains for a 230 grain LRN bullet, 4.5 to 4.9 grains for a 185 grain TMJ bullet, and 4.8 to 5.3 grains for a 230 grain TMJ bullet.


I'm looking for the .38 special book-
 
brian enos is your new best friend. tons of handgun gurus and info there. mostly solid data to compare as a reference. as mentioned start below and work up. also have to keep in mind your goal.

is it solely accuracy

soft shooting , rapid multi target?

do you have to make a powerfactor

reliability /defensive

its kinda like saying whats a good car
 
i shoot 5 shot groups at 25 laddering up as i go for load dev. i do this over a chrono so i get powerfactor data at the same time. and i use an oal recomended for the gun off enos from reputable members.
 
Thanks all, I am getting all of the info I can. I am not into hot loads. I have posted this question on several forums. I am compiling all of the information. Red Dot has been around for a long time. 1 problem I am having is, Alliant really is not releasing a lot of load data for it now for handguns (only shotguns), because they are promoting their other handgun powders.

thanks for all the responses....Cmax :cool:
 
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