Is 45 Colt a good place to start?

[Thomas Creek]

The info below covers the 45 colt well. I would prefer a .38 as a starting plinker but the 45 will do the job.

[Spawndn72]

Thanks for all the info.
I picked up the gun today and put 5 rounds of factory 250 gr round nose through it. Love the gun.
I measured the cylinder throats and they were all between 0.451 and 0.4515

[DougGuy]

Thanks for all the info.
I picked up the gun today and put 5 rounds of factory 250 gr round nose through it. Love the gun.
I measured the cylinder throats and they were all between 0.451 and 0.4515

That will let you size to .451" and have a little wiggle room. If you will shoot a softer alloy, soft lube, you would get enough obturation to made a good seal in the bore. Most prefer to size to .452" which I would suggest honing the throats to .4525" so the throats don't downsize when boolits are fired.

[hc18flyer]

NOE has a short sale on .45 Cal molds. I really like their 260ish grain rnfp plain base mold. 4 cavity mold 'rains' bullets, once you get rolling. Nothing wrong with the Lee 255 rnfp 2 cavity mold either!
hc18flyer

[lar45]

The 45Colt is one of my favorite rounds. I have loaded from 185-405s, but only shoot the heavier loads in my Rugers. I like Win or Starline brass, they last a long time.

[Larry Gibson]

Quite frankly, while I really shoot a lot of 45 Colt, the 38/357 or 44 SPL would indeed,as previously mentioned, be easier to load for for a beginner. Reason being is they are true straight walled cases and size better in carbide dies for use in the 550 Dillon. The 45 Colt is actually a tapered case and while carbide dies are often used they do not provide the best fit in the tapered chambers of revolvers, especially with the low end loads used in SAA revolvers.

[LenH]

I cut my teeth on .45 Colt when I was 15 years old. I went with a friend and his dad to a local sand pit and his dad handed me a box of his handloads and
a Ruger Blackhawk with the orders, 'Boy don't loose my brass. I shot all 50 rounds and have been hooked ever since. That was 48 years ago. Three years
after that (when an 18 year old could buy a revolver) I bought my own and my friends dad had been giving me reloading lessons and casting instruction, all
hands on experience. I still have that Blackhawk and several more but it was the first caliber I ever shot and have been hooked ever since.

[DougGuy]

Reason being is they are true straight walled cases and size better in carbide dies for use in the 550 Dillon. The 45 Colt is actually a tapered case and while carbide dies are often used they do not provide the best fit in the tapered chambers of revolvers, especially with the low end loads used in SAA revolvers.

45 Colt is straight walled just like 38/357, 44Spl/44Mag, 45 Schofield/45 Colt it is the chambers that are tapered for ease in extraction.

Note that SAAMI spec describes the case as .480" Cylindrical and the chamber is described as .4862" at the case web to .4806" at the shoulder below the crimp.



Also note SAAMI spec calls for .4520+.0075" cylinder throats meaning revolver cylinders made with smaller than .452" throats, are not to spec.

[Larry Gibson]

That's the point I made Doug.....the straight case, new or after sizing in a carbide die, does not fit well in the tapered chambers. Thus after firing the cases are tapered. The cases are then also over sized, especially in the web area, after re-sizing in a carbide sizer (excluding the Redding sizer). Many low end loads do not obturate the case sealing the chamber. With such loads in Winchester lever guns gas blow back into your face is common. That's why I size my 45 Colt cases in a steel RCBS on a single stage press first as it keeps the taper and then finish loading on my Dillon SDB. Such sized cases do not allow gas blow back and have proven more accurate in my revolvers also.

I've not encountered such with 38/357 or 44 SPL chambered revolvers or rifles with their cases sized in carbide dies.

I would also note the chamber of my Contender barrel is straight and cases sized with the RCBS steel sizer will not chamber. Such may be the case with other revolvers such as Rugers or Freedom Arms but I do not know. However, the OP os getting an Uberti made SAA which, in 45 Colt, will have the tapered chambers.

[DougGuy]

Larry Gibson, exactly. 7.0gr Unique will get you nothing but sooty cases in most revolvers.

I think the steel dies are tapered for the same reason the chamber is, so you can get sized brass out of the die without a lot of headache. This would produce a tapered cartridge, and like you said, a better fit in the chambers. A lot of folks only size the top half of the case so it doesn't overwork the brass.

As far as being more accurate, I would attribute fitment for one, as a plus, but also consistent case volume would be another. Any time you remove a variable in the chain of fire, you improve consistency and that alone is what makes groups tight or makes them resemble a load of buckshot out of a smoothbore 12ga landed on the target. There is no need to go to the extremes a benchrest shooter goes to for a revolver, but the improvements are there none the less to take advantage of.

I have for years said the most important part of the cylinder, is how even the throats are in size. Secondary is their actual diameter. You can always size to fit the throats, it's near impossible to size to uneven throats. Any time throats are more than half thou different in the same cylinder, they will shoot to their own point of impact because differences in pressure causes differences in recoil impulse which cause the gun to recoil differently in the shooter's hands from shot to shot, so the muzzle is not in the same position as the boolit leaves the barrel on it's intended trajectory.

Anything that varies the resistance the boolit runs into, anything that vents pressure down the side of the case, will do the same thing as uneven throats, uneven chambers, uneven neck tension, uneven crimp, uneven pressure from variations in powder charges, etc...

[jimb16]

Another word of caution: If you decide to get a rifle in .45 colt, make sure you know the acceptable OAL for the cartridge for that particular rifle. Some of them will not accept OALs that are fine for others and can jam the rifle.

[pmer]

For a first handgun to cast for I'd say 1911 in 45 ACP. Only one throat to be harassed by. Just learn how much to taper crimp and make sure cartridges plunk good. It would be a great way to learn the ins and outs of casting.

I started out with 45 Colt and couldn't tell if the alloy was too hard / soft or the load too hot, small throated 4 5/8'' Ruger SBH plow handle kicked like a mule (with hi velocity powders) and could never get past 8 grains Unique (galena mine)

[Cherokee]

45 Colt is a good starter. Easy to load in my experience and accurate when the throats and sizes match correctly. Not fussy about bullets and powder.

[DDJ]

The 45 Colt is where I started and never looked back.

[Walks]

All My BlackHawks and Super BlackHawks are fitted with the SBH Dragoon Grip Frame. My Vaqueros, either old style or new still keep the STEEL grip frames they were issued with.

I use Unique for most loads and Clays for My Cowboy loads, 5.0grs of Clays under a 225gr-230gr TC. Switched to using Clays for 12ga Trap/Skeet loads, almost immediately switched to it for My Only Dedicated Cowboy Load.

I load the Lyman #454190 with 9.0grs for Plinking, keep a few in my belt When Cowboy Shooting, just in case of a knockdown Pistol or Rifle Target. But those seem to be few and far between these days.

I like the Lyman #452423 (N.O.E. offers this as the 453-247-SWC PB) with 8.0grs of Unique for Paper Punching. I have a Old Model Vaquero with a 7 1/2" bbl that will group 6 shots of this load under 2" at 25yds.

I load to only std velocity/pressure.

If you want Hotter Loads, Buy a .44 MAGNUM.