A revolver question

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Sport45

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Since Dave brought up the lack of wheelgun questions I decided to throw one in. Is it safe (or even possible) to use .45acp in a 1909 US Army Double Action revolver chambered for .45 Colt? This handgun is fun to shoot, but boy is it expensive to buy the ammo.

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"An unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man."

Cesare Beccaria, the father of modern criminology
 
If a gun is chambered for .45 Colt it is not advisable or safe to try to shoot .45 ACP in it--they are totally different cartridges, the .45 Colt cartridge being longer, rimmed, and the bullets generally being from .001-.003" (or more) larger in diameter.

Please don't do this.

I regularly load for .45 Colt. It can be done, once you lay in a supply of brass, for about $5-7.00/box of fifty, depending on bullets used. Handloading is your answer.
 
yikes don't EVER try that. You may not blow up the gun but its NOT designed for those cartridges.

Try shooting U-Max "cowboy" boxed ammo... its a lot cheaper than most other brands and burns pretty clean and is loaded to lower pressures that will not harm your gun.

Would LOVE to see a pic of your 1909 colt. ;)

Dr.Rob

[This message has been edited by Dr.Rob (edited November 16, 1999).]
 
In a word,NOPE!There's no interchangability.

Like Rod said, reload for best/cheapest shooting.

BTW, friend has a 1909 in 45LC. One heck of a fun piece, and a good HD weapon also. I believe his has a 5" bbl.
 
If you aren't set up to reload then the prospect of doing so can be daunting. Scales, dippers, micrometers, dies, presses, bla bla bla. But, although it is slow, there is a cheaper way.
Lee Loader.
These things are caliber specific and cost under twenty bucks. They include everything you need to reload one caliber, except for the components (case, primer, powder, bullet).
Like I said, they are slow, but they make good ammo and if you decide that reloading is for you then you have the option of upgrading to better systems. I like the Lee Anniversary kit. Includes scale, press, dies for one caliber, a very good manual, and other stuff. All for under $100. http://www.leeprecision.com
Check it out! -Kframe
 
Actually I do reload for .45acp, 9mm, and some rifle calibers. The gun in question belongs to my brother-in-law. It has been handed down in his family since WWI. I'm only in his neck of the woods about once per year and it really isn't shot enough to merit buying the dies. I was just wondering if you could use full moon clips and target loads of ACP for plinking. I know the ACP is a somewhat higher pressure round than the original LC.

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"An unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man."

Cesare Beccaria, the father of modern criminology
 
The SAMMI Specs for pressures are actually equal for all practical purposes in standard pressure ACP rounds (not plus P) and .45 Colt ammo.

In order for the .45 ACP ammo to work in that gun, a new cylinder would have to be fitted. There isn't enough space between the cylinder face and the recoil shield for the clips and case heads to fit.

On top of that, on an older gun such as this, the barrel is probably somewhere between .452 and .455" (maybe larger) and the .45 ACP bullet is typically .451" for jacketed and .452" for lead.

It is possible to find "remanufactured" ammo for some calibers, but I'm not sure about .45 Colt. If you can locate some of that, it will be cheaper than the factory Big 3 stuff. Gun shows are the most likely bet for that.

Dies are not that much more expensive than a box of Win., Rem, or Fed. ammo. Add a shellholder, use the same powder as for .45 ACP (if applicable--Unique, 231, and HS-6 all give me good results in .45 Colt), buy some cheap lead bullets and you're in business, loading a year or two's supply in an hour or so. My .45 Colt brass has been through about 12 loadings and is still okay.

Hope this helps.

[This message has been edited by Rod WMG (edited November 16, 1999).]
 
I'll just try to srike a deal with him. Maybe if he buys the dies, I'll supply powder, primer, and bullets. This way we can easily double our shooting. Like I said, It's fun to shoot.
 
Hi, guys,

Pressure is not the problem. If memory serves, the .45 ACP will drop right through the cylinder on that gun as there are no shoulders in the chambers. As for using moon clips, you would have to either have a cylinder made or cut the back off the original, which would not help the collector value. An idea, but one that won't work for practical purposes.

Jim
 
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