Which powder for 45 Colt?

[okietwolf]

I personally use HP-38 and trip fg

[saturn]

800x works OK in heavy 45 colt loads.still not the best.Where I've found the best use for 800x is in the 40S&W with 180gr. cast bullets.

[milltownhunter]

red dot blue dot in std loads with cast load colt +p blue dot hs7

[ikarus1]

I've started using IMR Target for 45 Colt loads. 5.x grains with a cast 254gr Keith style SWC sized at .452 gives great accuracy at 25yds with my Stainless Lipsey's Ruger BH Flattop

IMR Target is a volumetric twin of Bullseye, but it's cheaper and cleaner with more data available on Hodgdon's website. Honestly I could use it for everything non-magnum out of a handgun.

[jimb16]

I've been using Unique. But I just picked up 6 pounds of PB for $20 so I'll be trying that as soon as I get a bunch of empties. I've also got plenty of Promo and Red Dot to try. While I'm not that happy with Unique, it did drop a nice young buck in his tracks last season at 40 yards.

[Outpost75]

I understand that many people like Unique, but I've always had trouble with its large particle and not being able to uniformly measure charges assembled on a Star or Dillon machine. So Bullseye is my preferred powder for standard-pressure loads in the .32 ACP, .32 S&W Long, .380 ACP, .38 S&W, .38 Special, .44 Special, .44-40, .45 ACP and .45 Colt.
Larry has pressure-tested standard and Ruger .45 Colt loads for me and Bullseye does all that I require. I use it for "medium" velocity (< or = to 1000 fps) loads in the .44 Magnum as well.

The idea of getting 1000 rounds from a pound of powder has a rather nice ring to it. Using 7 grains of Bullseye makes a nice small game and gallery load with plainbased cast bullets of similar weight to the service bullet in most military rifle cartridges .30-40, .303, 7.62x54R, .30-'06 etc.

[FLINTNFIRE]

I have used unique , am currently using promo

[ddixie884]

Some of the listed powders are discontinued and I have never loaded any of them. If you search older data I am sure you can find loads for all the listed powders and I'm sure you will have a lot of fun shooting them up. If I had a good bit of this powder, I would definitely use it up..........

[jrayborn]

There are many better powders than what are listed. Of the one's listed I suppose I would choose 800x

[bigted]

Been awhile for posters so Ill jump in.

I have been a Unique fan for lotza years. But recently wanted to try others and maybe get cleaner burn and less smoke.

Any data with tightgroup? From 180 to 260 grain boolits.

[Eddie Southgate]

Can't help as I have never used any of those powders listed .

[Crow_Eater]

Can't help as I have never used any of those powders listed .

I have actually used all the powders listed for .45 Colt. By far the one I used most was PB. The first reason was, in the then-current Sierra Handbook, PB was used to push the Sierra 185gr JHP at 1200 FPS (this was NOT a Ruger load), which seemed like a good idea at the time for my S&W M-25.5. Second, I really liked its clean burning and pleasant shooting loads, at 7.0 or 7.5gr under a 250 or 255gr bullet, out of the Lyman handbooks.
SR-7625 gives performance very close to Unique, at similar charge weights, and burns a whole lot cleaner, IME. Plus this powder has many applications in other non-magnum handgun calibers. After PB I can recommend it, FWIW.
I haven't used much of SR-4756 or 800X. As I recall, SR-4756 was not particularly impressive.
When I started loading for .45 Colt, in the mid-80s, CAS was still years in the future, and no one was much interested in the caliber. The guys in the gun shops thought I was crazy when I asked about it ("45 Colt???"). About all the load data you could find was for Bullseye or Unique, typically 6.0 and 8.0 grains, respectively. Bo-ring. I just had to see what else was out there.
Other than the IMR powders you list, IMO, for fast powders, Red Dot is the best. For heavy loads, I liked H-4227 (with magnum primers), which I guess is now the same as IMR-4227 (at the time they were different). H-4227 seemed to be more docile than 2400, although it's hard to go wrong with 2400 in just about any caliber. Middling loads I liked HS-6 or AA-5. For reduced loads I liked 700X, AA-2 Imp, HP-38 or Trap 100 (which has been out of production years, you can't even find data for it anymore).
I've used these powders for 185, 200, 225, and 240gr JHPs and 200, 225, 230, 240, 250 and 255gr cast lead projectiles (plus a few of the swaged variety). I have a Blackhawk and a Virginian Dragoon, but never loaded specifically for them, staying with standard (more or less) loads. When I shot CAS I used factory equivalent 250 or 255gr loads, no softball.

[LAH]

Welcome to the board Crow Eater.

[kenton]

I know this is a old thread but Hodgdon lists load data for all the listed powders on their website.

http://www.hodgdonreloading.com/data/pistol

[Michael J. Spangler]

I have actually used all the powders listed for .45 Colt. By far the one I used most was PB. The first reason was, in the then-current Sierra Handbook, PB was used to push the Sierra 185gr JHP at 1200 FPS (this was NOT a Ruger load), which seemed like a good idea at the time for my S&W M-25.5. Second, I really liked its clean burning and pleasant shooting loads, at 7.0 or 7.5gr under a 250 or 255gr bullet, out of the Lyman handbooks.
SR-7625 gives performance very close to Unique, at similar charge weights, and burns a whole lot cleaner, IME. Plus this powder has many applications in other non-magnum handgun calibers. After PB I can recommend it, FWIW.
I haven't used much of SR-4756 or 800X. As I recall, SR-4756 was not particularly impressive.
When I started loading for .45 Colt, in the mid-80s, CAS was still years in the future, and no one was much interested in the caliber. The guys in the gun shops thought I was crazy when I asked about it ("45 Colt???"). About all the load data you could find was for Bullseye or Unique, typically 6.0 and 8.0 grains, respectively. Bo-ring. I just had to see what else was out there.
Other than the IMR powders you list, IMO, for fast powders, Red Dot is the best. For heavy loads, I liked H-4227 (with magnum primers), which I guess is now the same as IMR-4227 (at the time they were different). H-4227 seemed to be more docile than 2400, although it's hard to go wrong with 2400 in just about any caliber. Middling loads I liked HS-6 or AA-5. For reduced loads I liked 700X, AA-2 Imp, HP-38 or Trap 100 (which has been out of production years, you can't even find data for it anymore).
I've used these powders for 185, 200, 225, and 240gr JHPs and 200, 225, 230, 240, 250 and 255gr cast lead projectiles (plus a few of the swaged variety). I have a Blackhawk and a Virginian Dragoon, but never loaded specifically for them, staying with standard (more or less) loads. When I shot CAS I used factory equivalent 250 or 255gr loads, no softball.

Thanks! Just the answer I was looking for. I’ll work with the PB next to see how I like it.

[jaguarxk120]

If you get a copy of John Taffin's "Book of the 45 Caliber"
You will find the go to powder for the 45 Colt is Unique.

[LAH]

If you get a copy of John Taffin's "Book of the 45 Caliber"
You will find the go to powder for the 45 Colt is Unique.

That's it. I used Unique for a while & Skeeter Shelton wrote of loading the 45 Colt with all Winchester components consisting of the Winchester swagged 250 grain FP & 7.1 grains of Winchester 231. I tried that load with a 260 Keith & was well pleased.

[Kevin Rohrer]

None of those. I use Unique for most all my handgun calibers.

[ncmn]

I use unique myself and find no reason to change at this point in my life, that is as long as I can find it!

[Jeff Michel]

Zombie thread. Since none of the powders are being manufactured any longer, perhaps someone could point out the relevance for me.