Reloading 45 colt

Herco is a great powder for 45 Colt, similar to Unique, but slightly slower (right around 10% slower in 45 Colt loads). I've had very good accuracy with cast, coated and jacketed bullets in three different revolvers. It is also a little less expensive than Unique, and much easier to find as well.
 
Originally posted by JeepHammer:

Finally! Someone that didnt write ".45 LONG Colt".
(Tip of the hat!)
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oh....but the OP did.

Originally posted by Wendyj:

I've been reloading 357 and 9 mm in handgun and several in rifle. Shot husbands 45 long colt today
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We still knew what the OP was talkin' about, regardless.

Originally posted by Wendyj:

I think win 231 and hp38 are the same but not willing to risk my life on it.
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....you can risk your life on it. Hodgdon tells us they are the same.

Spend the little bit extra and get the RCBS dies.

Nosler claims W231 gives the best accuracy of the powders tested. They also give a different recipe for HP 38. They show the max load of W231 gave the best accuracy, while with HP 38, their best accuracy came at min. A 20% difference in powder charge. Things that make you go Hmmmm. I would give Unique a try first.
 
Sometimes you have to work with the powders you've got, if at all practical. The two powders Wendyj mentioned, are both excellent for mild loads in the 45 Colt. That being said, there are some powders that every 45 Colt reloader ought to have. I put Unique at or near the top of that list. Another powder I think every 45 Colt shooter ought to try is the powder it started with, real fffg Black Powder. It will launch 255 grain cast bullets right near 1,000 fps if you do it right. It's the original magnum revolver cartridge.
 
real fffg Black Powder. It will launch 255 grain cast bullets right near 1,000 fps if you do it right. It's the original magnum revolver cartridge.
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You can't get the original 40 gr charge of black powder in modern solid head cases. There just isn't room, and you wind up a couple grains short, at least. There are balloon head cases being made again, for the cowboy shooting crowd, and with them, you can duplicate the original load/

Just be VERY sure to keep balloon head brass separate from solid head brass in your loadings, or you could have some problems, including serious ones, if you accidently put a heavy smokeless powder load in a balloon head case.
 
Well, 44AMP, who is making the new balloon-head cases? I sent my last ones off to another member to experiment with 4 years ago. I could use some more.
 
Sorry Pathfinder, I don't know. I do remember seeing some advertised within the last few years, but cannot now remember where, or when exactly as balloon head cases are not in my main area of interest.

Perhaps a check with some of the people involved with CASS would turn up more information.

If I run across info on them in the future, I'll try and get you the details.
 
Maplewood uses LBT soft blue which is a great lube, but stickier than what today's commercial bullet buyers are used to. I invariably end up getting lube on the cases. I simply throw the loaded rounds in the tumbler for 4-6 hours which not only cleans the cases but the bullet noses too, turning them dark gray and making the loaded rounds clean to handle. Here's the Lee 452-255-RF I mentioned over 8.5 grains of Universal for 910 fps from my 4 5/8 Vaquero.

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I made it to Cabellas yesterday and there were no Rcbs dies but they had the Lee 4 die set. Picked the dies, some Starline brass and a box of Hornady 250 grain xtp. I chose a load of 6.1 grains of Titegroup according to Hornady 6.3 was max. Ruger is 5.5 inch barrel and although not at the firing range I got to shoot up a few cylinders at 10-15 yards at some water filled bottles. Accuracy was good and recoil mild enough to shoot one handed. Looked for the 2400 powder but none in site. All in all I think I'm going to be happy with this configuration. Won't know for sure until I can group some paper at different ranges but that's another day.
 
Congratulations! You're off to a good start. I wouldn't be happy with Lee dies, but that's just me, I don't like their ..esthetics..;)

Be advised that 2400 powder is just beginning to shine when you reach top end loads for your NEW Vaquero. And even then, its going to be noisy, dirty, and have a nice flash.

AVOID H110 /Win 296, these powders are erratic under certain levels and those levels are a bit higher than SAAMI .45 Colt loads. Even finding data for them (other than "Ruger Only" heavy loads, which are not suitable for the New Vaquero) is difficult.

Personally, I have found jacketed bullets to be a waste of money in anything less than the magnum level "Ruger Only" loads, and not a really needed thing, even then. .45 caliber slugs don't NEED to expand to do a great job, unlike smaller calibers, where expansion can be the difference between being ok, and being really good.

However, until it detracts significantly from penetration, expansion doesn't hurt anything, and if the cost is worth it to you, its fine with me.

For your gun, I would stick with medium burning rate pistol powders, and again, I recommend Unique if you can get it.

Pay close attention to your powder charging technique. The .45 Colt is a big case, and a powder that only takes 6-8gr for a full charge doesn't fill it up very much, and a double charge will wreck even a Ruger, and serious injury to the shooter is possible if that happens.

Putting all the charged cases in a loading block and looking at them in a GOOD LIGHT to see if powder levels in the cases are all approximately the same is the usual method. I do that, then set the bullet on the case, upside down.

Alternate is to weigh the charge, charge the case and then seat the bullet one round at a time. What ever method you use, as long as you can be sure to avoid a double charge, its all good.

If you are using a progressive press, I would recommend having things set up so you can easily SEE the powder level before seating the bullet. Even the best machines can screw up a bit, and a visual confirmation that things look "normal" is never a bad idea.

Enjoy shootin'! and ask any questions you want, odds are good someone here has an answer, and, it might even be right!:D;)
 
Unique is probably the powder most recommended for the .45 Colt, I've found that Win 231 or HP38 does just as well (they're the same powder with a different label according to my chronograph results).

I use Unique or the Win 231/HP38 twins for loads that clock 850 fps from my NV with its 4-5/8" bbl. Good to great accuracy too, with good bullets of the Flat Point Round Nose 255 gr. variety. I cast them from Lyman's excellent 4545190 mold, size them 0.453" and lube with a 50-50 offering from White Label.

Just happened to think: Herco does equally well, tho it takes up to a grain more than Unique for equal velocity. Too, Herco has been seen recently on our LGS shelves.

HTH's Rod
 
I was just wondering if the link above had been posted.

That will come in handy in a week or so when your care package arrives...;)

They will be ready to load and if you find some Unique to go with them you won't have a hard time finding an accurate load. Just remember to bell the case mouth a bit before seating them and all will be well.
 
Instead of 2400.....

If you are looking for the performance of 2400 powder, AA-9 is just about identical in the 45 Colt for loading data, even though it is a ball-type propellant. I have both, and I much prefer AA-9 in a revolver because it has much less muzzle flash than 2400. These two powders are a little bit too slow burning to be optimal for standard pressure 45 Colt ammo. But they are good enough to be usable if you load them near your maximum allowable pressure with bullets of at least 240 grains, and preferably heavier cast bullets. But in your New Vaquero, you will probably get more consistent results with HS-6 or AA-7 if you want something Slower burning, and thus higher velocity than Unique can give you. But Unique will take you right near 1,000 fps with excellent accuracy. It just depends on how much power you really want and what you and your gun can handle.
 
Pistol powders and some rifle are getting scarce here. Along with primers also. Fortunately I had a good supply of all but the large pistol primers. This is first time I've needed them and only bought a 100 Winchester because that's all they had. I found some meister cast swc I liked online for a real decent price. Hope to order some of the 250 grain to load up after range trial. Looks like same bullet I found in husbands box of cowboy loads. Think my Hornady shows the 250 xtp under my load of Titegroup around 750-800 fps. My new Henry 357 should be here this week so I'm going to take chronograph to the range and see real speed out of both. I had some issues with the Hornady lead round nose loading for my vaquero in 357 following oal suggested by Hornady. Had to seat a few thousands longer in order to crimp correct or you could take the bullet and push it in with your fingers after seating. No cannilure but the Meister bullets have a good crimping groove according to picture so I'll try them just to see how they do. I watched about an hour of lead casting videos this weekend and it was interesting and something I may be interested in investing in. need to read a lot more on it. Guy was melting zinc and lead together for harder bullet as he stated. May be cheaper for me to buy lead bullets than the investment in equipment. I don't want anymore Hornady lead though. I've got 200 left I don't even care to load.
 
Wendy if you're talking about the Hornady swaged bullets, I just crimp the case right into the side of the bullet*. Unless your expander plug is oversize, you should have enough neck tension to keep you from pushing a bullet down with your fingers. If that problem is specific to one brand of casings, that's another matter.

I've an old set of Hornady 45ACP/LC/WinMag dies my wife got me for Father's Day over 20 years ago. Seems like I may have chucked that set's expander in a drill press and worked it down 0.003" with 400 and progressively finer silicon carbide paper. I use a mulligan stew of 45 Colt brass and I have plenty neck tension with all of them.

*Long Loads for the Taurus Public Defender

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Sarge. Thanks for reply. Yes I can load them longer oal. That's the only way I could keep them in the case was to seat and real easy light crimp on the side of the bullet. I would load some more but they were inaccurate as all get out. Also wouldn't feed in my Rossi rifle. I still have 10 or 15 rounds loaded. They might feed in the Henry I've ordered. My Rossi gave me a lot of feeding problems. It chambered 38 all day long but had to hold down at angle and lift lever real easy 5-6 times to get any 357 bullet in it.
 
Rossi 92's are like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates. I've had a great 45 Colt and a sorry 357. Based on those two I have a strong preference for the older ones and a determination to get something else next time, in a revolver-caliber lever action.

Keep us posted on your Henry.
 
Congrats on getting setup to reload the old 45 Colt, this round is what got me into reloading. I love the round but could not afford to feed it so reloading was my only option. I'm a RCBS guy but I'm sure the Lee dies work just fine. I also suggest getting a jug of Unique if you can find some, it is my go to powder for this round and works great. Be sure to let us know how that new setup works for you once you get a chance to test it on paper. I got a new Blackhawk Hunter in 45C that I cant wait to go shoot, will bring some unique reloads right about 8.5 - 9 grains to test it out. Good luck with your new Henry, they sure are smooth actions.
 
If the last fifteen years have taught me anything about reloading, at the top of that list would be making do with other powders when you can't obtain your favorites. I have a few favorites for 45 Colt and Unique always gets high praise. Try to never be without it. I shoot a lot of it, but I use plenty of others too. So, within the realm of powders that I have used in this caliber, from fastest, to slowest burning, here's some observations: Titegroup; I love it, am currently using it for mild target loads. Red Dot;I'm out of it and not looking for any more of it because I have Titegroup; but it's just as good and fills the same niche. W-231/HP-38; yep, they're the same even if they don't look the same. excellent powder for accurate mild loads. Like Red Dot, I would be very happy if it was in my Christmas stocking. However, I'm out of it and have been for years now, and it falls between Titegroup and Unique, both of which I have plenty of. And then, I was given the remains of a big canister of Hercules Green Dot. I still have well over a pound of it, probably wouldn't be looking for more of it, but it sure works well and I'm happy to have it as my 45 likes it. SR-4756; shot pretty well, but with noticeable unburned powder. Next up is Unique. Can't say anything but good, good, good, about it. I would be looking to buy more of it if I weren't so well stocked with it already. It's the standard to judge other pistol powders by. OK, so I've burned up a pound of AA-5 and it's alright, maybe even a little better than just alright. But I can take or leave it, don't really feel I need it. Next up, Blue Dot; it's the first powder that I really did not like, with lots of remaining unburned powder, perhaps the dirtiest powder in my experiments; I think it needed more pressure to do its job. And then there was Hodgdon's HS-7. Why, oh, why, did they stop making this excellent powder? Some say that it's the same powder as W-571. Having obtained both, my experiments indicate that that is probably true. I would buy more of it if I could. And then there is 2400, a good magnum-pistol powder despite the notable muzzle flash; some shooters like to have a fire breathing dragon in their hands. Which is why I prefer AA-9 that otherwise does the same job with less flash. Next up is W-296/H-110; these twins I can totally live without. They belong in a 44 magnum and work well in really hot 45 Colt +p loadings that would soon wreck a New Vaquero and perhaps instantly destroy any lesser strength guns. Don't forget these two; rather, avoid them. Lastly, a powder that is slightly slower burning, yet is for more versatile and forgiving with, a wider range of acceptable loads; IMR-4227 is one worth having around. Especially if you also have a carbine or rifle to go with it. In the New Vaquero, it will be at it's best with loads approaching maximum pressure for a good burn. The same load from a revolver to a rifle can easily gain 300 fps with powders this slow. I've run some other powders, but these are the ones that I've used enough to feel that I have valid comments to share about. Now that I think of all the pounds I've burn't, I think I must be close to 20,000 rounds through my Vaquero. Which means I'm way behind some of the other fellows here. Happy Powder Shopping.
 
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