re: Question for Bapple about reloading:

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What are your thoughts on using rifle primers for the 9mm or pistol primers for the 223. Are they interchangeable?

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I have run small rifle primers in pistol calibers when I've had a surplus, but for the most part I keep them where they need to be and I don't suggest you do it.

I would NOT run small pistol primers in rifle cases though. The pressures are much higher so the thickness of rifle primers is greater. And as the new guy said the other day, pistol primers are purposely thinner than they used to be due to the advent of striker-fired pistols.

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What about using one powder for both cartridges?

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As previously stated, the burn rates are MUCH different.

My advice is to find a favorite powder for each respective cartridge and buy it in bulk. My favorites are:

.223/5.56: Hogdgon CFE223
9mm: Alliant Power Pistol
40 S&W: Winchester Super Target (WST)
45 ACP: Winchester Super Target (WST)
30-06: Hogdgon Superformance

Once you find something that works and doesn't have violent recoil, stick with it. Then figure out where the breaking point is in terms of pistol function if you really want to load for economy.

So for example, I worked up a load in 9mm from the very bottom, making 5 rounds per charge. I wanted to have enough powder to work the action and eject the cases reliably. Once I found the "breaking point" I tried it in all of my 9mms. I had to work up the round just a bit more to get it to work in my smaller guns (like my Kahr CM9). Once I was getting reliable ejection and feeding, I found the load I wanted and have been loading it the same ever since. The only thing that has changed has been availability of powder. If I have to load something else I will.

For rifles I usually load each round to a respective velocity, also depending on the weight of the round. I load 55gr rounds in 223 to about 3000fps (according to the data in the Hornady loading manual). For my 30-06, I load some 165gr rounds to about 2700fps. For rifles, powder charge is much more important in determining accuracy. If you don't care as much about accuracy and just want to plink in bulk, make sure the rounds function in your rifle (aka feeding and ejection) and you're good to go.

Hope this was helpful.