stumbled upon ultra-accurate load

[superior]

Talk about beginner's luck! My very first loading for my 45Colt Blackhawk resulted in uncanny accuracy! Does it get any better? I'm afraid to change anything after seeing what it did! First, I shot at a nickel sized spot on the front of a junker car we inherited on our ranch, and at 20 yards, went right through it! I was using a weaver stance. Next i repeated that shot at a paper target at 20 yards..right through the very center of the bullseye! Needless to say, I was grinning from ear to ear! The wife and I then took a tractor ride. She sat beside me while I drove. and I had the Blackhawk in my lap. At about the same distance as the previous shots, I spotted a smallish fox that was looking at us from over a berm. As soon as I could stop the tractor, I raised the gun with both hands and blew a half-dollar sized hole through it! Both the wife and I were both amazed at the ease in which I could hit it. I swore I would never alter that load. And the load is:
Magtech cases
cci large pistol primers
Lee 452-300-rf w/ Hornady gas checks
Hodgdon HS-6 12.6 grains
Lube lithium axel grease/parrafin @ 50/50

recoil was very pleasant, but seemed to have awesome power for much larger beasts.
my boolits drop at .454 and I used a push-through Lee sizer (.454) to seat the checks. I've heard alot about having the gun accurized, but I can't imagine it being much more accurate than it is now. I suppose at longer distances, additional tweaking would improve upon what I have now. This may not seem like such a big deal to most but, I just HAD TO TELL SOMEBODY !

[plainsman456]

Sounds like you have a winner there.
I wouldn't change a thing.

[Trey45]

If it ain't broke don't fix it.

[Longwood]

Talk about beginner's luck! My very first loading for my 45Colt Blackhawk resulted in uncanny accuracy! Does it get any better? I'm afraid to change anything after seeing what it did! First, I shot at a nickel sized spot on the front of a junker car we inherited on our ranch, and at 20 yards, went right through it! I was using a weaver stance. !

I have personally seen two friends get hit from shooting at old cars.
Like many other things, they can shoot bullets and fragments back at you.
So will a salt lick, a piece of channel or railroad iron and a plastic Carboy if you shoot one with shot from a shotgun.

[stubshaft]

It's great when you "luck" into a fantastic load that easily. Now, don't screw it up by changing ANYTHING!

[Doc Highwall]

What was your alloy and did you anneal your gas checks? You have to write that down too along with lot numbers and any thing else for the future or you will forget.

[superior]

I haven't yet learned about annealing the checks. They came straight out of the package. I suppose I should record lot numbers though. I've reloaded for over 20 years, but have only been casting for 3. My rifle boolits in 7.62x39, 45-70,303brit are all very very accurate. I cast for 40sw. 9mmluger, and now for 45Colt since I got the Ruger for my birthday. My alloy was straight air-cooled w/w. The powder is at least 5 years old. At family target matches, my cast boolits far outperform my relatives' factory stuff. As their jaws drop, they make remarks such as, "this aint fair" "Where'd ya get that ammo? I love telling them "I made it". They say that wild hogs are becoming a problem in my area even though we're in the middle of a drought.
The tanks are dry on my ranch, but when the rains return, I have a feeling that the Ruger will be makin some bacon! It'll make a perfect companion to the 1895g.

[9.3X62AL]

Sounds as if your revolver got accurized by use of those loads. It's not complete luck of the draw, though--you used compatible components for the performance envelope you targeted, and boolits that fit the revolver. Take at least SOME of the credit for selecting and assembling a well-matched "concert".

[Doc Highwall]

I forgot to mention measuring the cylinder throats and recording that along with hardness of the lead.
Anything that made up the combination that you have including both gun and ammo spec are important not just for now but later on.
I have trained people to shoot and I have them keep a diary as to all their settings of rifle sling, sling stop, butt plate etc. as something may happen in their lives that they are forced to take a break from shooting and the diary will be worth it's weight in gold when they start again.
It is no different with our load development and we should write it down as if we have passed on and our son or daughter is reading it and needs to understand what we did.

[35remington]

Would it completely put you off to suggest that actually shooting a number of groups to verify whether it is luck or in fact a super accurate load is a very good idea?

I've had a fair amount of luck in the field hitting things with loads that later turned out to be ho hum in terms of real accuracy.

[CWME]

If it were me I would play with variables to see what it liked and didn't like. That is the fun of shooting for me anyway=)

[subsonic]

Would it completely put you off to suggest that actually shooting a number of groups to verify whether it is luck or in fact a super accurate load is a very good idea?

I've had a fair amount of luck in the field hitting things with loads that later turned out to be ho hum in terms of real accuracy.

+1

DON'T BE DISCOURAGED BY THESE COMMENTS! It's just easy to have a few good shots, no matter what the load. Roll the dice enough and sometimes you will win. I can't count the number of groups I've fired from both handguns and rifles with a load where the group puts 2 or 3 shots right on top of one another, only to throw a couple more out of the group by a fair bit. Then never put 3 shots touching again!

[Artful]

I got that mold a while back and have yet to try it - thanks for the info I'll start there I think.

[Snyd]

Excellent! Gotta love the ol' 45 Colt. If it works don't fix it! Burn some powder, sling some lead, have some fun!

[bigboredad]

hs-6 has been a wonderful powder for most in the .45 colt so good choice on powders. All my.45 colts love the heavier longer bullets as well. A really fun bullet is the Lee 45-70 340grain bullet that is easily sized to .454 in your push thru and the best part no need to touch your powder setting

[crash87]

You Know, you really didn't stumble on to anything, you do know that, don't you?? HS-6 is a wonderful powder for, not only the 45 Colt, but others as well. I also use it, quite successfully in my 475. No you didn't stumble on to this load, you just nailed it, 1st time out, have fun with it, and, cograts on the fox, looks like you also stumbled upon the perfect? varmint revolver also. crash87

[superior]

Thanks for the encouragement, all! Bigboredad, thanks for the 340gr 45-70 idea! That would make a heck of a thumper load and gas checks won't be necessary. So far, no jacketed loads have been fired through the gun, and to tell the truth, the bore hasn't been cleaned yet, other than a patch of ATF after shooting. I'm hoping that I don't have to really scrub the bore, as long as I continue to shoot lead only; kind of like a good old .22. My lube seems to be satisfactory, leaving the bore looking very clean with no traces of leading. i just don't want to monkey with anything lol!

[Frank]

Don't forget good ole H110. Bigboredad can also use 21-21.5 grns with that 340 grn boolit. Your 300RF works best with 21.5-22 grns.

[bigboredad]

well I am pretty lazy and I didn't clean my barrel for over a year and no scrubbing was needed. But I soon regretted it my groups went poop but came after a about 50 rounds and so from now I wont be cleaning it unless there is a severe case of leading which I don't know why that would happen. If you do choose to try h110 21 gr totally sucked but 21.5gr. the first 3 went on top of each other. but to be honest with that bullet just about any powder groups great from mild plinkers to freight train stoppers

[Frank]

Bigboredad:

If you do choose to try h110 21 gr totally sucked but 21.5gr. the first 3 went on top of each other.

Right. I used a 340 grn boolit and it did best with 21.5. But my new powder lot shoots a ragged hole at 50 yds with the 21.5 grns and the 300, 22 opens it up. So if I were to go with a 340, that powder lot would require 21 grains probably.