Has anyone else heard that you are not supposed to shoot cast or swaged lead bullets in Glock barrels with the polygonal rifling. Supposedly they can build lead up at the leade and cause the gun to fire out of battery, which will result in a destroyed gun and possible injury to the shooter?
cast bullets in Glocks
- Thread starter gunney 67
- Start date
There's been a ton of discussion on this and there are some differences of opinion.
What I know for sure:
One thing you should be sure to avoid in any gun is firing jacketed bullets through a bore that has been used with unjacketed projectiles until it is verified that there is no leading buildup or until any leading buildup has been completely removed.
What I know for sure:
- If you contact Glock and ask them they will tell you not to shoot unjacketed bullets in their firearms. I've contacted Glock for various reasons on numerous occasions and always make it a point to ask this question--the answer is always the same.
- If you take the Glock Armorers course it is explicitly stated, in writing (a briefing slide bullet) that Glocks should not be used with lead ammunition. That prohibition is stated independently of the recommendation against reloads.
- At least one expert, Gale McMillan, stated that polygonal rifling and unjacketed bullets were a bad match due to the potential for rapid lead fouling.
One thing you should be sure to avoid in any gun is firing jacketed bullets through a bore that has been used with unjacketed projectiles until it is verified that there is no leading buildup or until any leading buildup has been completely removed.
christcorp
New member
Considering there have been polygonal barrels since the mid 1800's; and they've been shooting lead bullets at least that long; I would say that glock or anyone else who recommends against shooting lead in a polygonal barrel, is saying so 100% to cover their butt against the idiot moron who never cleans the gun out and the leading my increase. And that would take a WHOLE HELL OF A LOT OF LEAD. Any other reasoning is purely out of ignorance and wrong. The majority of people who shoot today, clean their guns more than just about anyone did 100 years ago. And the powder is also so much cleaner today.
H&K, Karh, and some others have no such direction that lead can't be shot out of their polygonal barrels. The point is; clean your gun when you're done shooting it. If you clean out the barrel and bullet seating/chambering areas; you can shoot all the lead you want.
H&K, Karh, and some others have no such direction that lead can't be shot out of their polygonal barrels. The point is; clean your gun when you're done shooting it. If you clean out the barrel and bullet seating/chambering areas; you can shoot all the lead you want.
If you rarely clean your barrel, then shooting lead in a Glock may not be a good idea.
I am one of those "lucky" ones who has shot thousands of rounds of lead bullets through a
.40S&W (G22 and G23s). After a session of shooting a couple of hundred lead bullets in a Glock barrel, and then a couple of hundred factory FMJ through a Lone Wolf barrel, I can see little difference in the barrels when I am cleaning them.
I suspect my luck has more to do with the fact I actually clean my Glock after each shooting session, just like I do my 1911, FEG 9HP, Makarov and S&W K-frame.
If it suits you, then get an aftermarket barrel like Bar-Sto, Lone Wolf, Storm Lake, or EGK (?). Otherwise, if you shoot 100 rounds or less per session, and clean your barrels after shooting, then I can't see how shooting lead bullets would cause a problem for you.
I am one of those "lucky" ones who has shot thousands of rounds of lead bullets through a
.40S&W (G22 and G23s). After a session of shooting a couple of hundred lead bullets in a Glock barrel, and then a couple of hundred factory FMJ through a Lone Wolf barrel, I can see little difference in the barrels when I am cleaning them.I suspect my luck has more to do with the fact I actually clean my Glock after each shooting session, just like I do my 1911, FEG 9HP, Makarov and S&W K-frame.
If it suits you, then get an aftermarket barrel like Bar-Sto, Lone Wolf, Storm Lake, or EGK (?). Otherwise, if you shoot 100 rounds or less per session, and clean your barrels after shooting, then I can't see how shooting lead bullets would cause a problem for you.
THEZACHARIAS
New member
Im with the previous posters in that it is technically possible to shoot lead out of a glock (its not like the gun knows any better; its not going to eject he round of its own accord every time it tastes lead), but im also a firm believer in not doing things the manufacturer says not to do. Id rather pay a couple extra bucks for an aftermarket barrel than be left SOL when something legitimately failed and the manufacturer refused to do anything because I had shot lead rounds through the stock rifling.
1911_Hardball
New member
Storm Lake Has drop in barrels that are quite reasonable. The savings of shooting cast v. jacketed will eventually pay for it. As others have said, it may be fine to shoot lead in a glock (brand) barrel, but if you are concerned about it, this is pretty cheap "peace of mind".
I've shot some unjacketed bullets in my Glock 17. I don't do it often, and when I do, it's only like one or two magazines - just to burn off some reloads I got from wherever. One or two magazines of lead won't hurt anything. Just clean the barrel real well after doing this.
Like someone said, if it was mandatory that you read and follow all of the stupid warnings on firearms, there wouldn't be an industry that caters to reloading. Have you ever read a firearms manuel that said: "this gun works just as well with reloads as it does with factory made ammunition"?
Just look at your barrel to make sure you are not getting any lead buildup. Most lead bullets are coated anyway. Be smart. Shoot at your own risk.
Like someone said, if it was mandatory that you read and follow all of the stupid warnings on firearms, there wouldn't be an industry that caters to reloading. Have you ever read a firearms manuel that said: "this gun works just as well with reloads as it does with factory made ammunition"?
Just look at your barrel to make sure you are not getting any lead buildup. Most lead bullets are coated anyway. Be smart. Shoot at your own risk.
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Kahr doesn't state that you can't shoot lead from their firearms but they DO caution that: " Lead (unjacketed) bullets can cause excessive fouling and extra attention to cleaning the bore is recommended after firing lead bullets. "
H&K doesn't have a prohibition against shooting unjacketed bullets in their handguns but there have been some incidents that suggest it might be a good idea to avoid it anyway. Here is one. At the very least one should be very sure to clean the bore thoroughly to remove ALL lead fouling buildup before shooting jacketed rounds through it.
12GaugeLosAngeles
Moderator
should you pour diesel in your car? some vehicles take it some don't, Glock's can shoot any piece of cheese bullet, the problem becomes the wear and tear...
It's not just a matter of the barrel. As others have stated the number of owners who do not keep the barrels clean and free of lead buildup combined with certain calibers that tend to run at high pressures combined with Glock's idea of leaving a little more of the case unsupported over the feed ramp to enhance feeding characteristics all add up to a higher probability of a dangerous situation compared to a lot of other designs. I have never really understood their reason for using polygonal rifling unless it some how lowers their manufacturing costs. Cut land and groove rifling has served for many years and would seem to work just fine for accuracy with lead and jacketed bullets. Anyway, if you want to shoot a Glock be very careful to inspect the bore and make sure you get all of the fouling out. If that is too much trouble then consider some other type of gun.
Steviewonder1
New member
Cast Bullets in Glocks
In my G21, I have shot in excess of 15,000 lead reloaded 200Gr SWC bullets at 190 PF in IPSC competetion from the early to late 1990's as this gun was one of the first 700 sold in the US. In the 2000's I have also shot another 5-7 K lead round thru it, some of which were copper plated Ranier bullets. The only issue I had with the gun was extractors that chipped and broke. That has also been fixed. I have a new G35 from 2008 that now has 2500 lead reloads thru it and it does have an aftermarket fully supported chamber barrel in it. I have been reloading since 1972 and have never had a kboom. I have had some FTF with reloads in early 1993 with the G21. Problem was hard primers from CCI and Winchester. I now only use Federal Primers for Large and Small Pistol. Yes, some guns can have problems, if you recognize what those are and take action, they will go away.
In my G21, I have shot in excess of 15,000 lead reloaded 200Gr SWC bullets at 190 PF in IPSC competetion from the early to late 1990's as this gun was one of the first 700 sold in the US. In the 2000's I have also shot another 5-7 K lead round thru it, some of which were copper plated Ranier bullets. The only issue I had with the gun was extractors that chipped and broke. That has also been fixed. I have a new G35 from 2008 that now has 2500 lead reloads thru it and it does have an aftermarket fully supported chamber barrel in it. I have been reloading since 1972 and have never had a kboom. I have had some FTF with reloads in early 1993 with the G21. Problem was hard primers from CCI and Winchester. I now only use Federal Primers for Large and Small Pistol. Yes, some guns can have problems, if you recognize what those are and take action, they will go away.
For those who would like to learn about why lead and polygonal rifling are a bad combination, Chapter 1.4 of The Glock in Competition by Robin Taylor, Bobby Carver and Mark Passamaneck is very illuminating.
Mr. Passamaneck is a forensics engineer who does failure analysis. He became interested in the Glock barrel/lead topic after having a Glock 23 come apart on him while he was using lead reloads. There is a lot of good information in that chapter including actual pressure readings done with Glock factory barrels that were being shot with lead.
He reloads for Glocks and offers practical advice on reloading for Glocks and even presents some tips for how a person might be able to avoid problems even while using lead bullets but he doesn't recommend the use of lead bullets. More to the point he explains why he doesn't and provides pressure measurements and technical analysis to support his recommendations.
Mr. Passamaneck is a forensics engineer who does failure analysis. He became interested in the Glock barrel/lead topic after having a Glock 23 come apart on him while he was using lead reloads. There is a lot of good information in that chapter including actual pressure readings done with Glock factory barrels that were being shot with lead.
He reloads for Glocks and offers practical advice on reloading for Glocks and even presents some tips for how a person might be able to avoid problems even while using lead bullets but he doesn't recommend the use of lead bullets. More to the point he explains why he doesn't and provides pressure measurements and technical analysis to support his recommendations.
lead
Interesting that some barrels will lead up, and others won't. I've seen it in other guns including glocks but I've never had it happen in my current lineup of glocks and hks. It must be the composition of the bullet and the lube that creates the problem...hardness, etc. Powder? I use green dot, a slow burn in 9, 40 and 45. I'm fortunate enough to have a cheap supply of handmade bullets from a fellow shooter (don't ask me why he enjoys making 10s of thousands of bullets...)
Don't want to mislead anyone but I clean the barrel only when I do a total strip (all of the parts) of the gun, usually after a couple thousand rounds, when its getting really gunky from the fouling....at this time the barrel doesn't really need cleaning, its a mirror finish, aside from the rest of the mess inside the slide and receiver, the chamber would be the dirtiest part of the barrel.
On the other end, I've seen barrels with quite a bit of buildup after 10 rounds, making me hesitate to shoot them any further.
I guess just know the risks and pay attention to what's happening in your gun.
Interesting that some barrels will lead up, and others won't. I've seen it in other guns including glocks but I've never had it happen in my current lineup of glocks and hks. It must be the composition of the bullet and the lube that creates the problem...hardness, etc. Powder? I use green dot, a slow burn in 9, 40 and 45. I'm fortunate enough to have a cheap supply of handmade bullets from a fellow shooter (don't ask me why he enjoys making 10s of thousands of bullets...)
Don't want to mislead anyone but I clean the barrel only when I do a total strip (all of the parts) of the gun, usually after a couple thousand rounds, when its getting really gunky from the fouling....at this time the barrel doesn't really need cleaning, its a mirror finish, aside from the rest of the mess inside the slide and receiver, the chamber would be the dirtiest part of the barrel.
On the other end, I've seen barrels with quite a bit of buildup after 10 rounds, making me hesitate to shoot them any further.
I guess just know the risks and pay attention to what's happening in your gun.