Hunter Customs
New member
I've been doing a lot of load development for some handguns I have chambered for the 45 Colt cartridge, I've tried so many different loads I feel I could almost fill a book on the loads I've tried.
Before I continue on let me say I'm an experienced handloader, I handloaded my first cartridge in 1970, with my experience I felt safe in the changes I made to the following loads.
Do not construe the above statement to mean I feel I know it all as I'll be the first to admit I certainly do not.
I recently got into bullet casting (still a lot to learn on this subject) and wanted to cast some bullets heavier then the standard 255 gr SWC bullets.
I purchased two Lee molds that were designed to cast a 300gr gas check bullet.
I removed the sprue plates, set the molds up in my mill, milled off the tops of the molds thus cutting away the gas check portion of the molds.
On one mold I left a slight portion of the gas check shank giving me a heeled bullet that weighs 280 grs.
On the other mold I removed all the gas check portion of the mold giving me a full flat base bullet weighing 267 grs.
The beauty of these bullets is they have two crimp grooves that allow me to easily adjust my OAL of the loaded cartridges, (which is exactly what I did) plus they have a large meplat that I refer to as WFN bullets, the type of bullets I really like.
The 267gr full flat base WFN bullet is the bullet I've been using most and the loads I'm about to list is with that bullet and HS6 powder.
The two pistol I'm loading for with this bullet are the Cimarron/Uberti Colt Clone and a Ruger New Model Blackhawk.
I wanted one load I felt was safe to shoot from both guns, doing the normal (start low) work up of HS6 I settled on 12 grs of powder.
My first load was 12grs HS6, WLP primer, 267 gr WFN bullet, OAL of 1.640, heavy roll crimp in the lower crimp groove.
The load tested at a velocity of 903 fps, KO factor of 15.56 with good accuracy.
I was seeing burnt powder residue that looked like black pepper.
The testing took place using the Uberti Colt clone gun.
The second load was exactly as the first with exception of switching to a Remington 2-1/2 primer.
Most all the burnt powder residue was gone, the velocity increased to 952 fps with a KO factor of 16.42 along with this the accuracy was better.
The Uberti Colt Clone was also used for this load.
Load number three was the same as two except I changed the OAL to 1.560 with a heavy roll crimp in the upper crimp groove.
The reason I changed the OAL is because when I went to test the longer OAL loads in my Ruger the 1.640 OAL loads would not chamber without having to be tapped into the chambers of the Ruger cylinder, not what I want to have to do with a field/hunting load.
I also thought that more bullet pull may clean up the load, it did.
So with load number three burnt powder residue was gone I had a velocity increase to 1080 fps, KO factor of 18.61, accuracy was excellent.
I decided to test load number three in the Uberti Colt Clone and here's the results.
The load averaged 1011 fps, KO factor is 17.43, again the load cleaned up there's no burnt powder residue, the accuracy was excellent like with the Ruger.
I believe load number three will be an ideal field/hunting load.
My next load development will be trying different powder charge weights of IMR 4427 using the 280 gr bullet with an OAL of 1.560, these loads will be developed as Ruger only loads so they will not be used in the Uberti Colt clone gun.
Before I continue on let me say I'm an experienced handloader, I handloaded my first cartridge in 1970, with my experience I felt safe in the changes I made to the following loads.
Do not construe the above statement to mean I feel I know it all as I'll be the first to admit I certainly do not.
I recently got into bullet casting (still a lot to learn on this subject) and wanted to cast some bullets heavier then the standard 255 gr SWC bullets.
I purchased two Lee molds that were designed to cast a 300gr gas check bullet.
I removed the sprue plates, set the molds up in my mill, milled off the tops of the molds thus cutting away the gas check portion of the molds.
On one mold I left a slight portion of the gas check shank giving me a heeled bullet that weighs 280 grs.
On the other mold I removed all the gas check portion of the mold giving me a full flat base bullet weighing 267 grs.
The beauty of these bullets is they have two crimp grooves that allow me to easily adjust my OAL of the loaded cartridges, (which is exactly what I did) plus they have a large meplat that I refer to as WFN bullets, the type of bullets I really like.
The 267gr full flat base WFN bullet is the bullet I've been using most and the loads I'm about to list is with that bullet and HS6 powder.
The two pistol I'm loading for with this bullet are the Cimarron/Uberti Colt Clone and a Ruger New Model Blackhawk.
I wanted one load I felt was safe to shoot from both guns, doing the normal (start low) work up of HS6 I settled on 12 grs of powder.
My first load was 12grs HS6, WLP primer, 267 gr WFN bullet, OAL of 1.640, heavy roll crimp in the lower crimp groove.
The load tested at a velocity of 903 fps, KO factor of 15.56 with good accuracy.
I was seeing burnt powder residue that looked like black pepper.
The testing took place using the Uberti Colt clone gun.
The second load was exactly as the first with exception of switching to a Remington 2-1/2 primer.
Most all the burnt powder residue was gone, the velocity increased to 952 fps with a KO factor of 16.42 along with this the accuracy was better.
The Uberti Colt Clone was also used for this load.
Load number three was the same as two except I changed the OAL to 1.560 with a heavy roll crimp in the upper crimp groove.
The reason I changed the OAL is because when I went to test the longer OAL loads in my Ruger the 1.640 OAL loads would not chamber without having to be tapped into the chambers of the Ruger cylinder, not what I want to have to do with a field/hunting load.
I also thought that more bullet pull may clean up the load, it did.
So with load number three burnt powder residue was gone I had a velocity increase to 1080 fps, KO factor of 18.61, accuracy was excellent.
I decided to test load number three in the Uberti Colt Clone and here's the results.
The load averaged 1011 fps, KO factor is 17.43, again the load cleaned up there's no burnt powder residue, the accuracy was excellent like with the Ruger.
I believe load number three will be an ideal field/hunting load.
My next load development will be trying different powder charge weights of IMR 4427 using the 280 gr bullet with an OAL of 1.560, these loads will be developed as Ruger only loads so they will not be used in the Uberti Colt clone gun.