Looking for a 45 colt or 45 acp load for rabbit

[paracordkydexcummins]

Does anybody load 45 colt or 45 acp for rabbit looking for something different most guys out here just blast them with 12 or 20 gauges.

[mozeppa]

either one will kill, gut, clean, and fry a rabbit.

[bedbugbilly]

mozeppa - you pretty much said what I was going to! LOL

Can't help with the loads - suppose if it was all "head shots" you'd be safe. Otherwise - those slugs are going to literally destroy a rabbit. I used to hunt years ago with my '51 Navy (.36 C & B) and head shots did the job - anywhere else though, it wasn't worth cleaning 'em - too much damage.

Now maybe if you loaded up some 45 Colt shot loads? I haven't hunted cottontails in years but we used to be able to walk up on 'em and get close enough that a shot shell like that would take 'em out.

As a kid back in the early 60s, we had 12, 16 and 20 gauge shotguns in the gun rack but I usually ended up using a .410 on the bunnies. We didn't have a dog to run 'em so you pretty much had to walk up on 'em and kick 'em out. Hunting with a good tracking snow was a lot of fun.

[Outpost75]

Elmer Keith said that .45 ACP hardball was OK for rabbits if you shot them twice.

[paracordkydexcummins]

Elmer Keith said that .45 ACP hardball was OK for rabbits if you shot them twice.

Maybe I need a bigger gun for self defense.
If I use the colt I think I will use some cowboy load data.

[EDK]

I'd suggest a full wadcutter boolit mould and a low end load of TITEGROUP or HP38/231. 45 ACP brass would probably have better performance because of less case capacity. This is a future project for my S&W 625.

[paracordkydexcummins]

So I'm not the only one that want to hunt little stuff with a 45

[Nobade]

Perhaps a .457" round ball sized appropriately and rolled in tumble lube, loaded over a small charge of fast burning flake powder to whatever speed it takes to shoot to the sights?

-Nobade

[L Ross]

Well I have actually shot a couple of rabbits with a 45 in a Blackhawk convertible with the acp cylinder in it. I see them from time to time near my shooting range in the back yard. They get used to me and to the shooting and don't realize that snow and cold temps make them fair game. The regular Lyman rn hard ball duplicate with any normal hard ball powder charge just punches through the ribs with hardly any damage, but knocks them right over. Rabbits are so fragile they offer no resistance to the bullet.

[rexherring]

Big round nose bullet slow will just poke a hole through them without to much damage. I've shot them and also flickertail gophers with a 340 gr Lyman and about 6 grains of Unique. They just fell down.

[seaboltm]

I say 405 grain 45-70 loaded to 1800 fps should be perfect bunny medicine.

[Rodfac]

Either will do without a lot of meat damage oddly enough, if you stick to the old .45 Colt small flat tip round nose or the copy of the military hard ball. It's an in one side and out the other with either...skunks here, as well as opossums, squirrels and a coon or two have been my take with them. Only the squirrels were shot up too much to make table fare...and the skunks goes without sayin'. A .45 acp taget TWC from my then new Ruger SR1911 killed a raccoon for me at a paced off 38 yards one time...and not too much damage even tho I'd smashed both shoulders. HTH's Rod

[paracordkydexcummins]

Thanks for the ideas guys

[dougader]

A 230 grain rn with 5.2 grains of WW231 is a soft shooting round that slips right through without too much damage.

[Reverend Al]

If you can get close enough to them the .45 ACP shotshell loads are pretty effective. I am blessed to have an actual set of the rare and elusive RCBS .45 ACP Shotshell reloading dies that I bought Donkey's years ago at a gun show. They came complete with a photocopy of the magazine article by the guy that designed the dies originally and I use his recommended load data to make shotshells that feed and cycle perfectly in my old Series 70 Government model. They are an absolute HOOT to shoot at Station 8 on the Skeet field and they smash targets to dust when loaded full of #9 shot.
(On that note we were out "playing" on the Skeet field one day doing exactly that when a couple of the club's "old tymer's" wandered over to the field with their Skeet guns in hand and stood and watched me smash about six High 8 targets in a row. One of them walked up to me, looked at the .45 Colt in my hand, and then said with a really astonished look on his face: "How many rounds of practice did it take you to learn to do THAT?" He thought I was shooting hardball at them of course. I almost hated to tell him that they were actually shotshells ... and then I let him try a few for himself.)

[3leggedturtle]

I use a 200gr RFN in my 45C going 1050-1100fps or so with 3 different powders. Quiet, low noise and accurate for anything up to 100 yards. Laser-cast boolits are the ones I use. Got them cheap a few years back.

[Wolfer]

I've took quite a bit of small game with a 45 colt. Mostly grouse but some rabbits. My favorite boolit is the lee 452-255RF. I run it about 970 and it shoots exactly to the sights. Pretty much just cuts a 45 cal hole thru meat. Head shots are best of course but I only take them if I'm certain I can make it or that's all they offer.

The 200 gr version would work just as good as would considerably lower velocity. My gun has fixed sights and since a small game gun has to be accurate above all else I just use what the gun likes best.

I mistakenly shot a grouse with the 452-424 HP once. I can assure you this is not a small (edible) game boolit.

[docmagnum357]

Speaking from some experience, it really doesn't matter if you get them thought the chest. Once you get over 1000 fps or so an swc will begin to make a mess. Never tried hollow points. Headshots are the way to go.

[Larry Gibson]

Killed a bazillion cotton tails and jacks with a 190 - 205 cast SWC over 5 gr Bullseye and 7.5 gr Unique in the 45 ACP. I use a Lee 205 RNFP over 7.3 gr Bullseye in the 45 Colt. The 190 - 205 SWC can also be used in the 45 Colt over the same charge of Bullseye.

Larry Gibson

[Seeker]

I want to hunt everything with my .45 Colt.