Luger load in Mak casing?

[christ0pher]

Hi all..This is my first post here, have been lurking for a few months.

Last week at Tulsa gun show I bought some 9x19 reloaded rounds...This morning I was loading some into mags and out of pure chance looked at a few of the headstamps..WIN 9mm Luger, etc..Then one caught my eye that says (I think) GFS 9 MAKAROV.... So obviously this casing fell into the wrong pile..

My real curiousity is..is this a HUGE deal? (obviously I'm not just going to shoot it, but hell, I almost did and would have later today if I hadn't noticed).

I know there is a small difference in the length/taper of the case....
Can anyone tell me if this is something I should contact manufacturer about, will they care, etc?

Cheers
Chris

Edit: from what i can tell, the bullet is the same. Most likely same load/bullet just wrong casing I think..

 

[ASP785]

From Wikipedia:

"The 9×18mm Makarov is ballistically inferior to the 9×19mm Parabellum cartridge. While there are no official SAAMI pressure specs for the 9×18mm Makarov cartridge, tests indicate that surplus ammunition develop pressures in the mid 20,000 psi, significantly less than the 35,000 psi or more generated by 9mm Parabellum loads.[4] As such it is designed to be used in low powered blowback semiautomatics, much like the .380 ACP cartridge, rather than locked breech designs encountered, but not always required, for higher pressure cartridges like the 9×19mm Parabellum."

I can tell you that I have fired a 380 case in my 9mm chambered gun before. The case got mixed up in my 9mm Luger brass. It cycled and shot fine. I didn't know it until I found it laying on my tarp with the rest of the casings. It happens.

 

[uncle money bags]

Both the 9mm para and 9x18 head space on the case mouth.

I borrowed this from another forum.

When the cartridge is fired, before the bullet starts to move (remember the law of inertia - whatever is at rest tends to stay at rest, and the more mass it has, the harder it is to put into motion) the lighter brass case first expands out until it hits the chamber wall, and then it is slammed backwards until it hits the bolt (or, in the case of a revolver, the recoil shield). Once it has done that, the case can't move anymore, and the only thing that can move is the bullet, so it, finally, starts to move forward. If the distance between the head and the boltface (or recoil shield) is too great (this is referred to as excessive headspace) the case has farther to go before it stops, which allows it to build up more speed and more pressure before it hits, which can cause damage to the gun. Also, if the headspace is excessive, the firing pin may not be long enough to pop the primer, and you have misfires.

In short, its not a good idea. Will it damage your gun or hurt you? That is somewhere between possible and probable, ymmv.

 

[aeropb]

I wouldn't shoot it