Anyone reload .25 ACP?

[purd0027]

Does anyone load .25 ACP? I've got a 1914 Mauser Pocket Pistol that is consistently having failures to feed. I had initially tried replacing the recoil spring and had gotten a new aftermarket magazine, but still had the problem. Finally tried switching ammo up. Sellier and Belloit ammo is .9" OAL and Aguila is .8" OAL (max for the cartridge is .91"). I get half as many jams with the Aguila, so I'm wondering if the pistol just likes shorter ammo. Wondering if anyone has ventured into loading for this caliber, and if so, maybe I could borrow your dies (or use in situ) and buy some of your reloading components.

Thanks!

[BigDog58]

While I don't load the. 25 my past experience with FTF is usually caused by the magazine. If you were having the problem with reloads I would be thinking it could possibly be"light"loads not fully cycling the slide
Have you thoroughly cleaned and then lightly lubed the slide? Make sure the gun is clean and lubed,but be sure you aren't over lubing it. Be sure to use a light lubricant that won't retard the slide action.
Lastly, is it possible the slide spring is inadequate? Not giving enough forward force to strip the round from the magazine?

If the lubrication is proper I would put my attentions to the magazine and/or it's operation. Let us know what you discover.

Oh, if you are shooting any reloads, make sure the charge is set to the upper portion of the load data to make certain you are getting enough blowback energy to fully function the slide. I loaded a few 380's on the light side at a friends request and he immediately had ftf and fte (stove pipe) problems. His gun needed near max loads to operate it properly. If you are loading it, and need to try some different powders, give me a shout, I might have something that will work at a little higher pressure.

[20mm]

Have you tried Blazer, CCI or PMC? Also follow the advice given above.

http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/product/63217
http://www.ableammo.com/catalog/blazer- ... 74054.html
http://www.ammobank.com/cgi-bin/cshop/s ... ctx=PMC25A

[purd0027]

Thanks both of you. I unfortunately can't use the aluminum cased ammo at the indoor range where I shoot. I found some PMC locally at Frontiersman but I didn't pick up a box, as it seemed to be similar in length to the S&B ammo (plus it was a bit more expensive than Aguila). I did replace the recoil/slide spring and got an aftermarket magazine, and used Remoil for lube. I don't know a whole lot about these old guns (inherited from Great Grandfather), but so far the shorter ammo has been better. I will try to take a picture and will ask another question about the feed ramp.

[purd0027]

Here are some pictures I tried to take of the firearm. I'm not really familiar with blowback guns, so my terminology might be wrong: The barrel and the frame are joined to form the "feed ramp", whereas I'm familiar with a short recoil operated mechanism, where the feed ramp is part of the barrel. In a blowback design like the one pictured, is it common to have problem with the surfaces as they join together to form the "feed ramp"? Think this might be my problem? Thanks

[Seismic Sam]

The transition from frame to barrel does look pretty skanky, as well as the metal surfaces themselves, and could use some polishing. You will be limited as with the fixed barrel you can't get in there as well, but the cure I use is a Dremel with a FELT bullet with a lot of JB Bore paste rubbed into it. It's a very mild abrasive that's designed to clean out rifle barrels, so you can't screw things up with one false move like you can with a hard polishing stone. As a matter of fact, it can take you the better part of an hour to get it shiny like the top of my head.

[crbutler]

It may just be the picture, but since that is a pretty old gun, maybe you should have the chamber checked.

The old ammo was all corrosive, and the area around the chamber kind of looks like pitting.

I know (from a old colt .32) that blowback guns don't like pitted chambers. It isn't just failure to extract that you see, also some strange things with feeding because the recoil cycle gets messed up.

I would look at that before getting too worked up about different ammo- blowback is all based on recoil inertia, and no matter how you fry that fish, the .25 doesn't have much.

.25 pistol is one of the few calibers I don't mess with reloading- the .32's and .30's are small enough...