Is it a bear to reload the .45?

"...The aluminum cases are not intended to be reloaded..." Not reloadable at all. No good as drawer pulls either. However, there isn't a cartridge that easier to reload than the ACP.
"...Don't "crimp" just use a taper crimp die..." A taper crimp is a crimp. Just isn't a roll crimp. No roll crimping cases that headspace on the case mouth.
 
I didn't read every response above but didn't notice any mention of this: 45 Auto brass is manufactured for both large pistol primers and small pistol primers. No big deal, you just need to keep the brass separated and use one or the other for a given loading session. I think you'll find LPP to be the most prevalent, but the SPP cases will get in the mix if you recover range brass.

It's already been said that it's an easy cartridge to load successfully and 'forgiving'. That's in part because it's a short fat case and if you're paying attention and using a little LED light on your bench, it's easy to see the charge in the case thereby helping that much more to avoid squibs or double charges.

It's also a cartridge that can be loaded with an enormous variety of powders--a big positive for these times when powders come and go off the shelves at a moments notice.

I've done excellent, useful loads using

Nitro 100
Solo 1000
Clays
Universal
4756
HP-38
HS-6

Loads that I found excellent for IDPA local matches included those first 3 powders listed, and in charges in the 3-4 gr range for just pure gut-bustin' fun. After about 30-40,000 loads I still have yet to open the jug of Bullseye or do any loads with Unique...it's like a whole world of loading still awaits.
 
If you decide to cast, I wanna say that these 200 gr RNFP Lee bullets have been something of a wonder for me, in just about every load I've thrown at them. Now, these would be mostly coming out of an M&P 45c compact, but they did very well from a P220 full size as well. I can hardly make 'em fast enough...they're fairly economical at 208 gr in wheel weight lead, have fed very well for me, and they punch paper like wadcutters.



Bless you for inspiring me to reconfigure the press and get to pounding these out in mass quantities. I've been loading them in 45 Win Mag and pushing them to what has to be ungodly velocities, and they do just as well there, too.



Yet ONE MORE thing about loading 45 Auto...because even heavy loads are still reasonable for the case, if you load moderate loads you can expect your brass to live pretty much forever. Definitely long enough that for any cost-calculations you can totally ignore it--it simply doesn't factor in to per-round costs. It starts out low or zero, and goes down from there. :)

One thing not told to most beginners is don't crimp and seat in one step. Seat the bullet and then crimp...
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I've done it both ways because of the dies I happened to have. But, I have to agree with Tony on this simply because it's simple--you decouple the operations and it's a no brainer to do 1) bullet seat depth, got it, then 2) take the mouth bell out...got it.

As has been stated so many times--you gotta expand the mouth of the case so that when you place a bullet, it 'sticks'. On a progressive this is especially important since the cartridge 'assembly' gets a lot of jerking around, at least on a Hornady press. You put in just enough 'bell' to seldom if ever see a bullet get cocked by shellplate rotation (press cycling), and to never see a cast bullet get 'shaved'.

Then you adjust that crimper, IMO, so they look like the cases in my photos above--this is MY OPINION--you see no inward crimp at all, you see a straight wall case with no bell and no space between the mouth and the bullet itself. But no inward crimp whatsoever. Completely uneeded for a big fat case loaded with 4 gr of propellant, and the last thing you want is for the case to not stop cold on the end of the chamber shoulder.

Have fun! I have to think one of the 3 or 4 greatest auto pistol cartridges ever designed, maybe in the top 2. :D
 
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My favorite powders for .45 acp are Power Pistol (#1 by a lot), CFE Pistol, BE-86, HP-38 and Titegroup. Easy to reload for and rewarding in my opinion.
 
"...Don't "crimp" just use a taper crimp die..." A taper crimp is a crimp. Just isn't a roll crimp. No roll crimping cases that headspace on the case mouth
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In my mind (and prolly every reloader I know) "crimping" is forming the case mouth around the bullet (roll, taper, stake), normally tightly, for a few reasons (bullet movement, consistent pressure, good ignition, etc.) but different than using a crimp die as a "deflaring tool". No pressure from folding the case mouth around a bullet is necessary for a 45 ACP. But a straight (not flared) case mouth is needed for good feeding/chambering... :rolleyes:
 
Is it a bear to reload the .45?

I just finished shooting my Blazer ammo in the Ruger P90 , and was thinking as I have cases and bullets might want to try some, also the dies too.
So any problems to look for?
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Unless into disassembling your gun each time to use the barrel as a gauge, get a Max Cartrdige Gauge. After resizing a case, it should drop freely into the gauge, otherwise you need a Bulge Buster (or Redding G-Rx for 40 S&W/10mm only) to run all your brass. That gauge will also catch any brass with an oversize head. Blazer can be a problem, at least in some calibers.

If you use lead bullets, you may have to be equipped to resize any you buy. If they are oversize, your crimp will make an impression in the bullet and mushroom the lead at the case mouth, interfering with headspacing and rounds going fully into battery. I just did this setup yesterday and pulled bullets from empty sample cases to find the taper crimp that didn't make an impression in the lead bullet (resized Lazercast SWC). Simply going for .472 OD at the crimp was not good enough. COL ended at 1.240-1.243. Now they drop freely and completely into the Max Cartridge Gauge.

Loading jacketed bullets is pretty straightforward. However, lead bullets resulted in a very different set of dies for me, especially the Lyman M-die expander and then compressing my die set down to seat and crimp in the same station. That is on a 4-hole turret. A progressive with at least 5 stations would not present that crowding and would allow a separate crimp die and station.
 
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If you can pick up 700X, a shotgun powder easily, then 5.2 behind a 200g lead bullet, works a treat.

Those round nosed, almost, with the flat nose, look great.

A friend of mine, back in Canada, had his .45ACP 1911, accuraciesd by Al Dynon? Not sure of the spelling of his name.

Had it stolen by a couple of teen, who were caught by the Police, the Pistol was recovered, buried in the garden, in a sock!

When it was returned to him, there was rust on the slide, and one tiny rust spot in the end of the barrel.

He offered it to me, for $60.00, done. Took to bits, cleaned it.

I took it down my Gun Club, indoor, 20yd range. The trigger was incredible!

My reloads, 5.2 of 700X 200g Semi Wad. It had target sights fitted. I put 10 rounds in one ragged hole! Those were the days when I could do that kind of thing, in my 40s.

In reading this good post! I found out .45ACP has new loaded factory ammunition, with small pistol primers! I did not know that.

Just goes to show, we just keep going the way we have always done, then because you are not in the pick up your brass group. You would not know of the small pistol primer bit, till you read it.
 
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You would not know of the small pistol primer bit, till you read it.
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...or until your right arm hits the very unexpected brick wall of trying to push that press lever forward to seat a LPP in a SPP hole. At the time I didn't know they existed.
 
45 APC is not difficult to re-load, but be aware that it is easier to make an error and overlook it compared to many other cartridges. Due to the case capacity, it is possible to put a double powder charge in the case and then fully seat a bullet over it.

I'm sure you'll be fine, just be aware that this error can be made and make the proper checks. I personally know someone who blew up a 45 auto pistol due to this, fortunately all he lost was a pistol, he got to keep all of his digits and eyesight.
 
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