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How do you separate the 380 from the 9mm brass

10K views 105 replies 57 participants last post by  Henny 
#1 ·
so does anyone have a secret method to separate separate the .380 from the 9mm in your range pickup brass.

I have the three slotted trays that catch the .45 in the top one .40 in the second one and the 223 9mm and .380 all end up in the third one.

It’s easy to grab the 223 but I struggle the 9mm/.380 problem. Don’t want that darn .380 in the Dillon when I am cranking out my 9mm.

Right now I use a carpenters square and line up the brass along the edge square and it is easy to pick up those short .380’s. This is very manual and I am looking for an easier way?
 
#34 ·
so does anyone have a secret method to separate separate the .380 from the 9mm in your range pickup brass.

I have the three slotted trays that catch the .45 in the top one .40 in the second one and the 223 9mm and .380 all end up in the third one.

It’s easy to grab the 223 but I struggle the 9mm/.380 problem. Don’t want that darn .380 in the Dillon when I am cranking out my 9mm.

Right now I use a carpenters square and line up the brass along the edge square and it is easy to pick up those short .380’s. This is very manual and I am looking for an easier way?
At my age I have had an occasion where I ended up shooting the wrong size ammo resulting from mixing 9mm and .380 at the range where the shooting station was under “low light”. Rather than risk that embarrassment again and potential damage to the gun.... I no longer shoot them both on the SAME trip. I go weekly and as a member I can shoot an unlimited time so I get plenty of practice with both...just not on the same day. (When I say “unlimited time” I am not inferring I have “unlimited funds for ammo” so it’s not like I’m there more than 90 minutes.)
While on the subject... I have friends who reload .45 and .38 but their opinion is the 9mm isn’t worth the time...or difference in expense. Would be interested in opinions of those of you who do reload.
 
#35 ·
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[QUOTE="While on the subject... I have friends who reload .45 and .38 but their opinion is the 9mm isn’t worth the time...or difference in expense. Would be interested in opinions of those of you who do reload.[/QUOTE]

I reload a lot of 9mm and using coated bullets I think my cost per round is at or below .14 cents. I use a dillon 550 and once it is set up I can make 250-300 rounds an hour at a fairly leisurely pace.

So the cost question is kind of relative as price at the store varies with current national gun control climate. I have not purchased any ammo from a store in well over two years so I have no idea what cost per round is for 9mm. As to time I can easily load 300 rounds Sunday morning before the wife gets out of bed and still have plenty of time to get ready for church.

Ammunition Bullet Gun accessory Metal
 
#38 ·
At my age I have had an occasion where I ended up shooting the wrong size ammo resulting from mixing 9mm and .380 at the range where the shooting station was under “low light”. Rather than risk that embarrassment again and potential damage to the gun.... I no longer shoot them both on the SAME trip. I go weekly and as a member I can shoot an unlimited time so I get plenty of practice with both...just not on the same day. (When I say “unlimited time” I am not inferring I have “unlimited funds for ammo” so it’s not like I’m there more than 90 minutes.)
While on the subject... I have friends who reload .45 and .38 but their opinion is the 9mm isn’t worth the time...or difference in expense. Would be interested in opinions of those of you who do reload.
For me, it really isn't worth it time wise to load 9mm versus buying the cheap bulk pack blasting fodder. Unfortunately, every time I take that advice I am so disappointed in the consistency and quality of the product, I am back to reloading my 9mm ammo. That lasts about a year or so, rinse and repeat. The cycles are getting longer time wise as bulk 9mm ammo just keeps getting poorer and poorer quality wise.

So, in the end, I like the small savings but love the consistent quality of my reloads. Plus I get ammo that matches closely what I carry.
 
#39 ·
so does anyone have a secret method to separate separate the .380 from the 9mm in your range pickup brass.

I have the three slotted trays that catch the .45 in the top one .40 in the second one and the 223 9mm and .380 all end up in the third one.

It’s easy to grab the 223 but I struggle the 9mm/.380 problem. Don’t want that darn .380 in the Dillon when I am cranking out my 9mm.

Right now I use a carpenters square and line up the brass along the edge square and it is easy to pick up those short .380’s. This is very manual and I am looking for an easier way?

Black sharpie ... mark the 380 across the primer before you shoot it.
 
#41 ·
Bingo! This was our late range officer's trick. We all put a stripe across the base of our .380 reloads, and sort them out as we police our brass. The stripe comes off in the tumbler.
That said, in the dark of night, .380s and 9s somehow crawl out of their respective tubs. Fortunately, in the 550, 9s won't fit in the .380 shellplate, and .380s size too easily in the 9mm die, so they generally get caught.
SmPstl .45s get the toss (^$#@%$%^^%#$%^%^%#^$^#!!!!!!!!!). And I once found a 7.65 in some .380 brass; somebody had reloaded it as a .380, and fired it....looked like a little trumpet.
Moon
 
#40 ·
I'm odd I guess because I separate by head stamp,when I frist started loading 9mm I started doing that so its not a big deal for me. When I go to the range I usally shoot a couple hundred rounds of the same head stamp brass and when I get home I clean and separate using cool whip bowls so it only takes four or five minutes to go thur them.
 
#51 ·
I'm odd I guess because I separate by head stamp,when I frist started loading 9mm I started doing that so its not a big deal for me. When I go to the range I usally shoot a couple hundred rounds of the same head stamp brass and when I get home I clean and separate using cool whip bowls so it only takes four or five minutes to go thur them.
I'm with you. That's when I usually catch the .380 brass. I started separating by headstamp when I learned about the "stepped" brass like LMT and Ammoland. I was loading 165gr 9mm and didn't want to wedge the base of the bullet on the "step" and give it an unwanted pressure boost or run the risk of a case separation.
 
#43 ·
We have successfully fired .380s in a variety of pistols, including an H&K squeeze cocker. Doesn't mean it is a good idea, but it can be made to work.
As regards sorting by headstamp, that went away for me when I moved from .38 revolvers to autopistols. For really fine bullseye shooting, okay, but for mere mortals, it doesn't matter.
Moon
 
#46 ·
We have successfully fired .380s in a variety of pistols
I have seen evidence left behind where people have successfully fired 9mm rounds from .40’s, have seen a guy shooting 256 win mag from a 300 Weatherby (that was an odd looking hunk of brass afterwards. Also photos areound of people that fired 300 blk from .223 uppers. The firings were successful, results from them vary.
 
#53 ·
Half moon... There are some brass cases that have a step on the inside. If you look into the case it is a very clear ring or shoulder around the inside. There is a guy on this forum named Fred and he had some great close up pictures.

If you come across these it is strongly suggested that you do not reload them. Just throw them out. They have been known to fail right at that internal shoulder and leave a piece of brass in your chamber that requires tools, time, and a series of carefully timed profane words to remove.

These stepped cases were some what common at my indoor range for a while. Used to see 8-10 in every hundred rounds. Either I am culling better or there are less of these evil little bastards being used.
 
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#55 ·
Thnx, guys. I will tell you in total honesty that I've never seen such, tho' I will keep a closer eye open for such things in the future. I've seen what appeared to be steel or aluminum cased ammo made that way.
What was the notion? Chambers with not enough support ?
Best,
Moon
 
#58 ·
If you have the powder check die in your 650 you can set your measure to throw in a 9mm case and a 380 will be a squib and caught at #3, no matter what or you can load them out and they will fall into the case gauge after you load them.

I prefer to get rid of them before loading.
 
#62 ·
I sort when decapping cases before wet tumbling. The 380's get separated when they don't fit correctly in the 9mm shell holder. I went to sorting before tumbling many years ago because of cases of different calibers would nest and get stuck together with a dry media tumbler.

Ammoload, FM and Maxxtech are some stepped case producers.
 
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