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Thread: Help me load for a 1911

  1. #1
    Boolit Master Mauser48's Avatar
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    Help me load for a 1911

    Hey guys, just picked up my first 1911, a Springfield trp. I haven't picked the gun up yet so I cant get any bore measurements or anything like that quite yet. What I have to work with is a lyman 452374 mold, 700x, and I just picked up some 231. I mainly want to use the 700x because I have a lot of it and I've heard it's pretty good in 45, but I also picked up the 231 as a backup so if I didn't get what I wanted with the 700x I knew a lot of people have used 231 with good results. Also it's just nice to use something that meters good every once in awhile. Here are my questions, should I get a 451 or 452 lubersizer die? I know this is mostly gun specific but I'd like to hear what the majority says. What about oal? I know not all .45 round nose bullets are alike so I'd like to see what's working for most of you. Beyond that, any pet loads with this bullet and these powders? This is my first time loading .45. Did I pick a good bullet for this cartridge. I didn't hear great things about Lee's 230 grain round nose bullet but I remember hearing about the lyman mold being very close to a gi ball bullet. My use for this load is just weekend plinking. Please let me know what works good for you guys!

  2. #2
    Boolit Master

    LUCKYDAWG13's Avatar
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    I use a Lyman 230gr mold don't remember the number with 4.8 gr of 231.
    kids that hunt and fish dont mug old ladies

  3. #3
    Boolit Buddy

    NC_JEFF's Avatar
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    Mauser get yourself a factory round, run the seating and crimp die down against it and you have yourself a starting point as far as the amount of crimp and COAL. You'll enjoy the 45ACP for many years.

  4. #4
    Boolit Master BNE's Avatar
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    4.0 grains of Hogdon Clays is my go to load.

    45 is my favorite, but it can be picky to get set up on. That being said, once you figure out how much to Bell the cases, and how much to crimp, it works fine. Starting with a factory round as suggested above is a good idea.
    I'm a Happy Clinger.

  5. #5
    Boolit Buddy
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    I use a MP HP mould that drops at 213gn. PC’d and sized to 452 with 5grn of 231 shoots like butter out of my SA Professional

  6. #6
    Boolit Grand Master Tatume's Avatar
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    You could start with overall length of 1.275", load one, and drop it into your barrel. If it "plunks" it will probably run. Adjust your taper crimp die to give you a case mouth of 0.469 - 0.471". I use 0.452" diameter in all of my 45 ACP guns.

  7. #7
    Boolit Master bosterr's Avatar
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    Both barrels in my 2 Kimbers slugged at .451 so I size to .452. I use range pick-up brass of so many different brands that I plunked until I found a happy medium of taper crimp. I couldn't tell you what size it turned out to be. Many recommend a OAL of 1.250, but my Kimbers both have extended ejectors and 1.250 was too long and prevented me from ejecting live rounds. The only way to clear them was to shake the gun to get the round to fall out. I ended up with a OAL of 1.235 using Accurate Molds version of the H & G 68. I had been using 700X just to get rid of it, but had to weigh every charge because it just wouldn't measure constistantly. My favorite powder for the .45 is 231.

  8. #8
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    If your Springfield TRP has rifling running right down to the chamber mouth, you will have to fight it to get an OAL that will work, the sensible thing to do to set up a 1911 for cast boolits, is to have the barrel throated to add freebore in front of the chamber so you can seat out ever how long you want to. As shipped, it may not even allow you to chamber rounds that are seated to the proper COA listed in load data for that boolit style and you have to compromise not only the COA but the powder charge as well.
    Got a .22 .30 .32 .357 .38 .40 .41 .44 .45 .480 or .500 S&W cylinder that needs throats honed? 9mm, 10mm/40S&W, 45 ACP pistol barrel that won't "plunk" your handloads? 480 Ruger or 475 Linebaugh cylinder that needs the "step" reamed to 6° 30min chamfer? Click here to send me a PM You can also find me on Facebook Click Here.

  9. #9
    Boolit Buddy
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    I would go with what booster said. Lyman manual gives a recommended length of 1.272" for the #452374 bullet, and a recommended length of 1.235" for the #452630(their version of the H&G 68).

  10. #10
    Boolit Grand Master tazman's Avatar
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    I run that boolit at 1.260 in my unaltered Springfield Mil Spec barrel and 3 other 1911 pistols with great accuracy and zero feeding issues. I size at .452.
    I don't currently use either of the powders you mention, but I load midrange loads from the manuals.

    For plinking, I would recommend a 200 grain boolit. Either the H&G 68 clones or the Lyman 452460. Both feed well and shoot accurately.
    That Springfield TRP is a great pistol.

  11. #11
    Boolit Master Thumbcocker's Avatar
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    231 is my go to powder in .45 acp
    Paper targets aren't your friends. They won't lie for you and they don't care if your feelings get hurt.

  12. #12
    Boolit Master scattershot's Avatar
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    I’d use the 231, since 700X meters like cornflakes. .452 for the sizing die.
    "Experience is a series of non-fatal mistakes"


    Disarming is a mistake free people only get to make once...

  13. #13
    Boolit Master Groo's Avatar
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    Groo here
    I guess I am different !!!
    I loaded Unique foe many years but recently went to Bullseye.
    5GR of Bullseye and a RD jacket/plated/coated/or cast boolet .is all I use now.
    A 230 gr boolet will make a goverment load[WW2] a 200gr will make a J M Browning load and a 185 gr will make a target load.
    Seat the boolet to fit in the mag--- Pull barrel and reseat as required to fit the chamber.
    Load a box , lube the gun and go to the range.
    Only had problems with "strange" or "oddball" boolets .
    Those take a little "fine tooning"

  14. #14
    Boolit Master



    Dieselhorses's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Thumbcocker View Post
    231 is my go to powder in .45 acp
    As with "HP38", 5 grs does the trick. watch the clearance in mag when with 1.275 COL as this is a lil tight sometimes. I run 5.2 grs under 185 JHP and 5 for 230 FMJ
    The unexamined life is not worth living....Socrates
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    Fast is fine, but accuracy is FINAL!....Wyatt Earp

  15. #15
    Boolit Master Mauser48's Avatar
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    Thanks for the suggestions, I now have a solid starting point. I need to cast up some bullets this week to see what the mold is dropping at.

  16. #16
    Boolit Master Dan Cash's Avatar
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    Only advice I will offer is watch your pressure with 700X. It has a very thin line between just right and too hot.
    To paraphrase Ronald Reagan, the trouble with many shooting experts is not that they're ignorant; its just that they know so much that isn't so.

  17. #17
    Boolit Master

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    For the 45 acp I have mostly used bullseye or tightgroup the discontuned WSL also works well !
    I have 170, two-200,215 & 230 gr bullet moulds all bullets were sized @0.452 have been shot from over 15 45 acp pistols with factory & aftermarket gunsmith fit match barrels.
    I have 231 but never used it in the 45acp even though it seems to work well from books that I have read! for the 230 gr cast bullet ,practice load 4.9 231
    FME the 45 acp is the simplest semiauto round to load for, to get good accuracy & usually a good load in one gun will shoot well in most other 45acp pistols.
    Last edited by bobthenailer; 09-17-2018 at 02:57 PM.

  18. #18
    Boolit Buddy
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mauser48 View Post
    (1) should I get a 451 or 452 lubersizer die?
    (2) I remember hearing about the lyman mold being very close to a gi ball bullet.
    (3 )My use for this load is just weekend plinking. Please let me know what works good
    (1) I don't know what the proper diameter sizing die is. I do know that for reasons I now don't recall, I bought a .451 sizing die during the Nixon administration, and while my satisfaction may be a reflection on my mediocre marksmanship, I have since used it to size two different bullet styles which I use successfully in both .45 ACP pistols and revolvers.

    (2) Yes. While the weight may vary a tiny bit based on casting material, insofar as feeding, the bullet shape is for all practical purposes identical

    (3) There are more good load combinations for this cartridge than you probably have time or money to try. For weekend plinking I imagine many if not all of the previously recommended loads will suit your purpose. Once you have some experience shooting a particular load in your weapon, you will be better qualified to shop around--if so inclined.

  19. #19
    Boolit Master Mauser48's Avatar
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    Got around to casting some bullets out of the lyman mold and to my surprise they drop around .454! Looks like I wont have to worry about having a small bullet. Between that and the white label bac I shouldn't have a problem with leading. Once the dies come in I'll get to play with coal. I was tossing around the idea of buying an arsenal h&g 68 clone mold just because I would like to have more than a 2 cavity mold. A 5 cavity is tempting but we will see how the lyman works for me.

  20. #20
    Boolit Master Mauser48's Avatar
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    I believe I'm ready for success! The bullets shaved a little when seating and crimping ar the same time which I've heard is very common, so I opted to save myself the frustration and break seating and crimping into its own step. The rounds passed the plunk test when doing this. I settled on 5.0 grains of w231 and a coal of 1.265. Hopefully everything runs smoothly.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check