25acp Loads

[Old Grumpy]

After my father-in-law passed away my wife became the owner of a nice Astra .25acp. The F-I-L brought the pistol home with him from Germany in the very early 1950s. I am going to have it checked out by my pistol smith before I fire anything through it but the bore is bright and shiny.

I load .380acp, 9mm, and .45acp so except for the size I'm comfortable with loading for an auto-loader. However since this will be new ground I want to ask those who may have gone over it before.

Are there any "tricks" to loading the .25acp?
Does anyone offer cast bullets for this caliber?
I have W231, Unique, and Titegroup for powder choices (no Bullseye or AA #2).
At the moment I have some Remington 50gr FMJ but I'd really like to find some cast bullets.
What little load information I have come across only shows data for 35gr GDHP and 50gr SIE FMJ. Are there any other bullet weights available?

I may have picked a round that has few choices as far as components go so any help, recommendations, or suggestions are welcome. :coffeecom

Grumpy

[smkummer]

Lyman has discontinued its 51 grain round nose bullet for this caliber (252435). They sometimes show up on ebay and I feel lucky to own one. No tricks to loading but handling the little cases takes some skill and I made a powder scoop from a 22 short case. Your best bet for bullets will probably be factory jacketed if you cant find the mold. Astra made the gun for Colt also and it stated it was made in Spain.

[Old Grumpy]

Lyman has discontinued its 51 grain round nose bullet for this caliber (252435). They sometimes show up on ebay and I feel lucky to own one. No tricks to loading but handling the little cases takes some skill and I made a powder scoop from a 22 short case. Your best bet for bullets will probably be factory jacketed if you cant find the mold. Astra made the gun for Colt also and it stated it was made in Spain.

Thanks smkummer. back in the "day" I have quite a few friends who made various powder scoops out of .22 cases, they worked great for plinking and target loads. From what I've been able to find on the net this pistol was made in Spain so that falls right in line with your information. I'll have to keep an eye on Ebay. I just hope I can come across a bullet caster that specializes in "odd ball bullets". :)

[Centaur 1]

Here's an idea, Ranch Dog did a group buy for the .25acp that hasn't been cut yet. I just checked the sign up thread, he had to order 25 molds to get on the schedule and he only has 16 people who ordered molds. I'd send him an e-mail and see if he's going to have an extra.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?198256-Ranch-Dog-TL255-50-RF-for-25-ACP-Group-Buy

[texassako]

Which Astra, the Cub(Colt Junior) or the little Firecat? I have a Llama that is very similar to the Cub and it will not chamber Ranchdog's old style design without sizing off the lube grooves. I am waiting patiently for the new mold. It is an accurate cartridge in a good gun. I only have Unique out of the powders you list. I don't think you can get enough Unique in the case to cause trouble unless you really compress it. The 35gr Hornady shot better than the 50 gr FMJs for me, and a 31gr LBT air rifle mold I have shot better than the 50gr Ranchdog. The little 31gr boolit over Clays is my accuracy load. If you can't get the new Ranchdog mold, there is an open GB for a Mihec mold: http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?192567-MiHec-25-ACP-Three-Cavity-HP-or-Four-Cavity-Solid-mold .

[Old Grumpy]

Which Astra, the Cub(Colt Junior) or the little Firecat? I have a Llama that is very similar to the Cub and it will not chamber Ranchdog's old style design without sizing off the lube grooves. I am waiting patiently for the new mold. It is an accurate cartridge in a good gun. I only have Unique out of the powders you list. I don't think you can get enough Unique in the case to cause trouble unless you really compress it. The 35gr Hornady shot better than the 50 gr FMJs for me, and a 31gr LBT air rifle mold I have shot better than the 50gr Ranchdog. The little 31gr boolit over Clays is my accuracy load. If you can't get the new Ranchdog mold, there is an open GB for a Mihec mold: http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?192567-MiHec-25-ACP-Three-Cavity-HP-or-Four-Cavity-Solid-mold .

If I had to pick one or the other I'd say closer to the Firecat. I'm not sure when Astra started calling/selling the .25 under the name/model Firecat. Have you had any issues with either of the two jacketed bullets chambering?

[texassako]

If I had to pick one or the other I'd say closer to the Firecat. I'm not sure when Astra started calling/selling the .25 under the name/model Firecat. Have you had any issues with either of the two jacketed bullets chambering?

No problem with any jacketed, it just has a tight chamber that needs a true .251" bullet. All the jacketed are that size, and the Ranchdog design was made to fill up a too large .256" chamber.