deer hunting with a 45 colt

[jhammer]

Let me start off by saying that I have never hunted deer with a revolver before, and I have no idea what I might need to make a clean kill as far as velocity. That being said I purchased a Ruger Blackhawk with a 4 5/8" barrel about six month ago, and have fired 100 rounds from it every week since it came home. Three bullet molds and several powders later I now have a load that is scary accurate. It consists of a rcbs 45-255-swc (266 grains from my alloy) loaded over 6 grains of green dot. I know that groups shrink on the internet, but I put three of these through the same hole at 25 yards, right before I got excited and turned it into 4" group with the next three. This load consistently shoots very small groups right to point of aim.

Needless to say the accuracy that I am getting is very confidence inspiring, and I would like to use this for my hunting load. My concern is that this load is not exactly in the high velocity range, I am without a chronograph so do not know the velocity that I am actually getting. My question is, is this load enough for deer, or should I try to put together something with a little more velocity? All shots taken would be within 50 yards. Thanks
Jake

[starmac]

I'm curious to se the answers you will get. I load the 300 grain lee with 8 grains of unique for a rifle, but never considered it a hunting load, it is way fun to play with though.

[DougGuy]

What velocity does your load data list for that boolit and that powder charge? What pressure does it list?

In it's most anemic loading the .45 Colt will take deer easily, they are thin skinned and easy to kill. The better hunting loads for this caliber are not hard as a rock but somewhat soft, 50/50 ww to pure lead, with 2% tin added. Tin helps the pour fill out in the mold but it also helps the boolit to be tough and stay together when it hits bone. If you can scratch it with a thumbnail and it shoots accurately, it's already a good hunting boolit.

In a Blackhawk you could load it all the way to .44 Magnum levels and slightly beyond but this really isn't necessary. 1,000 fps will take deer but I prefer 1150 to 1180 or so at the muzzle, I like the boolit to be just above supersonic so the boolit hits before the sound does, so I go for a minimum of 1120fps at the target.

With the rifling twist in your Ruger, 50/50+2% alloy, 1150ish fps would make a great combo. Should be accurate and no leading (with soft lube).

I personally prefer the RF style boolit with a large meplat and smooth sides with long bearing surfaces, and my guns shoot the 300gr boolits very good so I stick with it. No need for a hollowpoint, no need for hardcast alloy, you would want penetration first and foremost, expansion is secondary but not needed. Time you two hole one with a wide flat nosed slug, they won't go far.

These are my favorite deer and bear loads for .45 Colt, Lee C452-300-RF boolit (320gr checked and lubed) over 20.5gr LilGun or 17.0gr H2400. These are 50/50+2% that is bhn 10-12, can scratch them with a thumbnail but not dig the thumbnail in. They run out of a short barreled Vaquero right at 1100f/s. I use the same boolit for hog only in a harder alloy Lyman #2 over 22.5gr H110.

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/DougGuy/Reloading/0d3c189d-b085-4d95-a658-1f0f88b78255_zps3f37d14d.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/DougGuy/media/Reloading/0d3c189d-b085-4d95-a658-1f0f88b78255_zps3f37d14d.jpg.html)

This 255gr RF boolit is from the Lee C452-255-RF mold, another favorite on this forum with many shooters:

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/DougGuy/Reloading/Lee255RF_zps2aec6991.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/DougGuy/media/Reloading/Lee255RF_zps2aec6991.jpg.html)

That said, the boolit you have cast will work fine, however Green Dot has too fast a burn rate for heavy boolits, and is not suitable for getting into the "magnum" loads with this caliber. You would be much better off with a slower burning powder that will push your boolits into the 1000+ fps range. Data I have seen for 6gr Green Dot behind your boolit are in the 775 - 800 fps range, which is quite low for a hunting load in this caliber.

What other powders do you have? Also, have you checked your cylinder throats and tried to push one of your boolits into the front of the cylinder?

[M-Tecs]

You would be much better off with a slower burning powder that will push your boolits into the 1000+ fps range. Data I have seen for 6gr Green Dot behind your boolit are in the 775 - 800 fps range, which is quite low for a hunting load in this caliber.



I fully concur with DougGuy. I have taken a couple of whitetails with 8 grains of Unique with a 250 bullet. Velocity was around 800 fps. It worked but performance was marginal. Took a couple more with a velocity of about 1,200 and performance was outstanding.

Dougs post is excellent advice.

[Huntsman]

First off, good pick with the 45 Colt ctg., one of my faves ;)
My load for rifle (Win 94 Legacy) is 24 grs H110 pushing a gas checked Lee 300gr boolit. This load kicks! Even from a carbine/rifle.
This load can easily be and is safe to shoot from a Ruger frame Blackhawk. I have'nt chrongraphed this load yet but the shove on the shoulder tells me it'll drop what its aimed at.
I also have the Lee 255gr mould but have not played enuf with it yet with Green Dot & Longshot powders on hand. H110 is more suited to heavier boolits.
I wish like hell we could hunt with handguns in Canada. Good luck with your load building.

[geargnasher]

I fully concur with DougGuy, he knows what's up.

At 850-1K fps, the .45 Colt is a sure killer out to 50 yards at least, probably more. The trick is use as soft an alloy as possible. Put it in the boiler room and you can expect quicker kills than with a .30-'06. I just wrote in another thread recently about the only real bang-flop I've had on a behind-the-shoulder shot being from a cap-and-ball .45 revolver and a pure lead ball. I really like slow, soft, 260-ish .45 slugs out of my NEF carbine and most recently out of a Taurus Thunderbolt for freezer-filling of soft-skinned game.

Gear

[DougGuy]

Just for reference, I found this from an older post, this is what can be done with magnum level loads in a Blackhawk. The H110 load data should NOT be downloaded, this powder likes a high % of case density for not only best performance, but safety as well.

If you want to download a heavy .45 Colt load, use LilGun or 2400 to achieve this, as either will put you into the 75% - 90% power band and do it safely.

Let me also point out that these loads are only safe in Blackhawk, Redhawk, Super Redhawk, Vaquero (to 2005), Super Blackhawk, but they are NOT SAFE IN ANY RUGER WITH A 3 DIGIT PREFIX IN THE SERIAL NUMBER! Also, NOT SAFE in any Colt, Colt clones, S&W.

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/DougGuy/Guns/Hogdon_RugerOnlyLoadData_H110_LilGun__zps5706025c. jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/DougGuy/media/Guns/Hogdon_RugerOnlyLoadData_H110_LilGun__zps5706025c. jpg.html)

[DougGuy]

My load for rifle (Win 94 Legacy) is 24 grs H110 pushing a gas checked Lee 300gr boolit.

This load is at it's absolute MAX, at a COA of 1.680" if you have it seated short in the upper crimp groove to get it to feed in a levergun, you may want to back off your charge a little bit. It's probably good in the rifle but (IF it is at 1.650") it may be too hot for a Ruger.

[TCLouis]

As a comparison 6.1 grains of Red Dot and the Lee 255 grain SWC chronographs at 780 with a 6" barrel.

They are out of a coworkers gun and he says they ar the most accurate loads he has ever shot out of a pistol.

He did shoot some at 100 yards and was shocked that he could hit a small gong type target at that range.

[jhammer]

I cast my bullets from coww and add 2% tin, and they can be scratched with a thumb nail. My cylinder throats are reamed to .4525 (measured with mic and small hole gauge after reaming) and my bullets measure .4524 after sizing. The lube I am currently using is bee's wax softened with Vaseline to a point stiffer than grease, but softer than a crayon.

I have the lee 255 rnfp mould but mine casts less than .4524 on one axis, and I end up with a bullet that is out of round. I shot that bullet extensively, but never got the accuracy results that I have from the rcbs swc.

I have, and have loaded aa5, trail boss, green dot, unique, and 800x. Each of these powders was loaded in .5 grain steps from minimum to maximum charge listed in the lyman cast bullet manual. I have just never gotten such consistent/accurate results as I have from the green dot load.

I do have some h110, but haven't tried it in the 45 colt yet.

[DougGuy]

Everything you listed off there is great! You have a really good start on this with the throats already done and a good alloy working for you. Only thing I am not seeing yet is some slower burning powder. Everything listed there is kinda quick.

Some people beagle a mold to get it to drop larger, some make a lapping boolit and use it to make the mold larger, some Lee molds drop larger and some don't. Lee may even exchange it for you if you describe what it's doing. I hear they are pretty good about it.

There is also a NOE mold of this same 255gr RF boolit, improved with a single larger lube groove and a better crimp groove and they drop .454"

I'd try to find some AA#9, 2400, LilGun, something to get in the 1150f/s range and see how well I could get it to shoot. Other than that, you are pretty much there.

I know there have been lots of deer taken with less power in this same caliber, but the best performance in flesh from a revolver will be had with the heavier boolits in the 1150 - 1200f/s range.

If I had to hunt next week with what you have there, and just minimal time to build a load and sight it in, I think I would load some at 9.5gr Unique and see how they do. This will get you over 1000f/s and still be manageable and safe in your Blackhawk. 10.0gr of Unique in this caliber is right on the edge of scary because it can be spiky and unpredictable. I would NOT recommend going higher than 9.5gr with your 268gr boolit.

[5.7 MAN]

I am using the RCBS 255KT bullet this year, mine are dropping closer to 270 Grains. Powder is 13.3 grains HS6 in a Ruger 4 5/8 Flattop. Love that Gun! I have not chronographed this load but 12.5 Grains of HS6 was just north of 1050FPS.

[micky_blue]

Does PA have a minimum barrel length law? We do in Ohio is why I ask. Your pistol wouldn't be legal here if memory serves. Ohio requires a 5 or 5.5 inch barrel minimum, but I am going off memory here.

[GoodOlBoy]

Yep, as has been said, you shouldn't have an issue whatsoever. I shot a nice little buck a few years back with a 5.5" Barrel Blackhawk using a 250gr RNFP lasercast (which honestly is WAY too hard for moderate loads) using 8 grains of Unique and it was a through and through shot that dropped the little bugger like a rock. I mean if you think about it you are talking about what essentially people call "cowboy loads" which are meant to replicate what a black powder 45 colt load did back in the day. That load killed plenty of critters of both the two and four legged variety.

GoodOlBoy

[5.7 MAN]

Modern day "cowboy" loads are pretty light, some barely crack 700 fps. They are meant for fast clearing of very close range steel targets.
A 250 RNFP w/35-40 grns of 3ff is truley a powerful load!

[jhammer]

PA has no minimum barrel length, they just require that handguns and rifles be "manually operated." No semi autos are allowed.

I would like to do more load development with unique. I love it in 38 special, but I only have a little left, and I have been looking for it for quite some time.

The only trouble I am having with any of these load is a build up of lead in the forcing cone. It stops less than an 1/8 of an inch into the rifling, and does not seem to effect accuracy, and a couple of passes with a brass brush removes it quickly.

800x left some carbon deposits in the chamber that were very difficult to remove. AA5 always left my cases black.

I have been avoiding trying to turn this gun into a magnum, but as deer season gets closer I am really starting to think about being able to cleanly kill a deer.

[DougGuy]

You can rent the forcing cone cutter from 4D tools http://www.4-dproducts.com/displayitem.php?rowid=75&tname=tool $30 + $80 deposit + shipping. There is a youtube video of how to use the tool and recut your forcing cone. I do not recommend using the brass lap that comes in the kit for lapping, but I DO use it to back up a piece of very fine scotchbrite that does an excellent job of polishing the new forcing cone!

If you have good eyes and decent basic skills with precision tools, you can do this!

I also take in pistols for forcing cone work but they have to go through my FFL for this and they charge a small fee.

Usually an 11° forcing cone cures a Ruger for shooting cast in a wonderful way. It did my SBH for sure!

Also, and we can discuss boolit design here because it goes right along with the forcing cone. The pics I showed earlier are of two boolit designs that have wide meplat, but a smooth ojive that transitions into a long bearing surface on the sides of the booilt. This design works really well with an 11° cone because the angles are more of a match for each other. In using a Keith type boolit, the sharp shoulder or driving band has to negotiate the forcing cone which causes the cylinder to be rotated until the best alignment is reached with the barrel, and it uses the forces applied against the boolit to do this. Unfortunately when this Keith boolit hits the rather sharp and many times rough factory forcing cone, unless you have near perfect cylinder-to-bore alignment, about 40% of one side of this driving band is going to be wiped off by the forcing cone as the boolit hits it. THIS, is likely why you are leading in the forcing cone. And also why many of your other loads don't group well because the boolit is damaged by the time it gets into the rifling. The smooth sided RF boolits don't suffer as badly as a Keith does. This is why I got away from the Keith type boolits in my own guns and the change was a good one.

If a big bore Ruger doesn't have any detectable thread choke, it isn't hard at all to bring it around to shooting cast boolits really good. It needs 4 things to shoot well. 1. Cylinder throats must be larger than boolit diameter. 2. It needs an 11° forcing cone that is smooth 3. It needs less trigger return pressure (can take one leg of the trigger return spring loose and let it hang or swap in a Wolff 30oz. spring). 4. It needs the right loads developed for it.

Doing these 3 things to the pistol itself is what I call the "fast and easy way" to accurize one. Just simple basic steps that every revolver should have really. You get the most bang for the buck from doing these, doing more like an action job or trigger job is more or less unneccesary as they won't make it shoot any more accurately, just easier and smoother.

SBH after recutting forcing cone to 11° and before polishing:

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/DougGuy/44%20Magnum/DSC01739_zps53352b7c.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/DougGuy/media/44%20Magnum/DSC01739_zps53352b7c.jpg.html)

[jhammer]

DougGuy,
Thank you for the info. I have been considering recutting the forcing cone, it is good to know that that will help. I reamed the cylinder throat myself with the reamer from brownells, and replaced the trigger return spring with the lighter wolf version. There was a little creep in the trigger that became more noticeable with the light spring, so I disassembled the gun and very carefully polished the engaging face of the trigger with a black Arkansas stone. I was very careful to maintain a flat surface and just create a mirror like polish. The trigger is very light, and crisp now. It only took a few passes on the stone.

I really liked the lee 452-255-rf, and may need to lap it out or purchase the NOE single lube groove version. The shoulder on the swc design has always made wonder how it can actually work, but this rcbs 45-255-swc has proven to be an amazingly consistent shooter, and has given me better accuracy they I have ever seen from a revolver.

I am blessed with a reasonable amount of mechanical skill, and enjoy learning and experimenting (within reason). This blackhawk has really taken me on a journey, and is shaping up to be an excellent firearm.

[9.3X62AL]

A 250 RNFP w/35-40 grns of 3ff is truley a powerful load!

Indeed it is. The blackpowder 45 Colt was the Magnum of its day, and in 7.5" barrels easily attained 1000 FPS. I use 10.0 grains of Alliant Herco powder to get 1000 FPS from my Bisley Blackhawk 7.5" barrel. Both Lyman #454424 (Keith SWC) and #454190 (traditional conical flatpoint) work for this application. The Green Dot load you specify may only be yielding 750-775 FPS from your 4-5/8" barrel, but there is an old saying in hunting circles.......velocity is fine, but accuracy is final. If you can place rounds with those 45 caliber 5/8 oz slugs when and where you want, they will make venison for you. The big meplat on that RCBS bullet lets in a lot of air. Archery hunters aren't using a lot of "power" when they stick a deer--place a bullet or an arrow where it belongs, and you will have meat. The most-blooded rifle in my safe is an 1873 Winchester 44-40 carbine, whose 200 grain bullets barely get to 1100 FPS. It served for many years on my great-grandfather's and grandfather's ranches as deer/bear/bad guy disincentivizer, and accounted for at least two black bears and dozens of muleys.

[jhammer]

9.3X62AL,
That is what I was thinking. This load may not be the fastest thing around, but it makes one big hole at 25 yard dead center, and breaks soda cans at 50 yards at will. None of the other loads I have tried have so consistently hit exactly where I want them to. I am confident that I can put this bullet exactly where it needs to be, I just wanted to be sure it can do the job when it gets there. Thank you

[DanWalker]

Your load is fine. Go kill some deer with it. My opinion, backed by my own experience, is that the VAST majority of people shooting critters with handguns would be better served by reducing their loads, and striving for accuracy instead of wrist wrenching power. Your bullet will zip right through any whitetail that makes the mistake of offering you a shot inside of 100 yards.

[lbaize3]

I have had excellent luck with 7.5 grains of Universal Clays pushing a 250 or 255 grain boolit. Clean burning and accurate. Runs close to 1000fps. Easy on the gun, you and the deer meat.

[FlatTop45LC]

I shot a couple last year with a 255 Keith over 9 grains of Unique and these 120 pound deer in south Alabama just don't stand a chance.

Shot through and through both of them. Broke both shoulders on one.

[Doughty]

jhammer,
Several years ago I acquired a Ruger single action in .45 Colt with the short 3 3/4" barrel. Some call it a Sheriff's" model. I got this revolver just a couple of days before leaving on a hunting trip. I threw together a load with some 300 grain bullets and an unremembered amount of Unique. I was able to test fire it for point of impact with the fixed sights. I was unable to chronograph the loads however.

A few days later I had the opportunity to shoot a mulie doe at about 50 yards, broadside. It ran a few yards and then fell over dead. I had hit it, centered behind the front legs. The bullet went clean through, leaving a hole I could easily stick my thumb into.

A week or so later I was able to chronograph the load, 730 fps.

I prefer a load with a 280 gr. or so bullet at closer to a 1000 fps. But if you can put your bullet where you want it, it will do the job. You mentioned "getting excited" which caused your group to widen to 4 inches. I still get excited when I'm close to a deer. A 4" group will kill a deer. You just have to take that into consideration with all the other things when you are judging how close you have to be to be.

[FlatTop45LC]

jhammer,
Several years ago I acquired a Ruger single action in .45 Colt with the short 3 3/4" barrel. Some call it a Sheriff's" model. I got this revolver just a couple of days before leaving on a hunting trip. I threw together a load with some 300 grain bullets and an unremembered amount of Unique. I was able to test fire it for point of impact with the fixed sights. I was unable to chronograph the loads however.

A few days later I had the opportunity to shoot a mulie doe at about 50 yards, broadside. It ran a few yards and then fell over dead. I had hit it, centered behind the front legs. The bullet went clean through, leaving a hole I could easily stick my thumb into.

A week or so later I was able to chronograph the load, 730 fps.

I prefer a load with a 280 gr. or so bullet at closer to a 1000 fps. But if you can put your bullet where you want it, it will do the job. You mentioned "getting excited" which caused your group to widen to 4 inches. I still get excited when I'm close to a deer. A 4" group will kill a deer. You just have to take that into consideration with all the other things when you are judging how close you have to be to be.
This mimics my experience with the old war horse. If it starts at .45" it sure ain't going to come out less than that!

I would like to see a 280 WFN at around 950 fps in my stable at some point.

[Huntsman]

DougGuy,
I checked my data and it is in fact 23.0 grs of H110, I even pulled one to be sure. They still kick some good :D
I do use 454 Casull brass trimmed down and sm rifle primer.
I only use these loads in my Win 94 lever action.

[runfiverun]

I wouldn't sweat the velocity too much.
in fact going too fast is often times detrimental.
750-900 and a 250 or whatever gr boolit will kill pretty dang quickly.
airc the original 250gr 45 colt loads were picked because they would penetrate deeply enough take down an enemy's horse and they only run slightly hotter than a 45 acp.

[jhammer]

Thanks everyone, now I feel like I can carry this gun and load into the woods with confidence. I will be sure to post a picture if I succeed. Our season opens the Monday after Thanksgiving.

[reloader28]

255gr RF NOE with 6.8gr Green Dot runs 767fps in my 5 1/4" Bisely.
Went clear thru 6 milk at 8 yards. 7 might have caught it as it was stuck in the stump behind, but thats enough penetration anyways.

I was going to use this for hunting this year, but am going with the big Lee boolit and 16gr 2400 at 1000fps.
Way overkill, but it shoots excellent.

[Wolfer]

I've killed several deer and two coyotes with the 45 colt in a new vaquero. Starting out I wanted to closely duplicate the original 1873 load. 40 gr of black and a 250/255 gr round nosed bullet. These ran near 1000 fps. The army thought these were too much and cut the loads back to about 850 fps.
Once I had the thread restriction lapped out of my barrel it took 8.8 gr of unique to push the lee 452-255 RF to 970 fps. This is very accurate in my gun and I shot a few deer with it. It pretty much just cut a 45 cal hole straight thru. Blood trails were scimpy but were never very long. Usually less than 50 yards.

I wanted a little more so I went with the Lyman 452-424 and had Eric put me a cup HP in one cavity. Since this boolit sets farther out of the case than the lee it takes 9.3 grs unique to push the solid to around 1000 fps and the same POA. It takes 10 grs to get the HP to shoot to the sights. It's running about 1070 fps.
This blows a bigger hole in the exit side and I get a little better blood trail but the end result as to distance traveled after the shot is about the same.

Ive shot two deer with my 58 Rem and the lee 452-200 RF at around 700 fps. The end result mirrored the heavier 45 colt loading.

Ive came to the conclusion that if you put a 45 cal hole thru BOTH lungs it doesn't really matter how fast it's going.

Side note: it's really difficult to recover these boolits in solid form from MO. Whitetails. I have several recovered boolits but most were dug out of the ground behind the deer.
Woody

[crowbarforge]

I have a Ruger Blackhawk 5.5" bbl with both .45 LC and .45 ACP cylinders. I need to get in touch with Doug Guy and see about the reaming process to improve accuracy. I want to take this one deer hunting. Where I hunt here in Georgia, I have a real hot spot in a travel lane, but ranges are like 20-25 yards tops. Close quarters for a rifle, even a carbine, but this little Ruger will work just right.

[rexherring]

I've harvested three big mule deer with my old 70's Blackhawk. An RCBS 255 SWC drops at about 265 with WW pushed with 18.5 grains of AA#9 comes out at 1000fps. None of the deer went more than a few steps. Shot placement is still the most important thing so just get used to the gun and good luck.

[TMenezes]

Indeed it is. The blackpowder 45 Colt was the Magnum of its day, and in 7.5" barrels easily attained 1000 FPS. I use 10.0 grains of Alliant Herco powder to get 1000 FPS from my Bisley Blackhawk 7.5" barrel. Both Lyman #454424 (Keith SWC) and #454190 (traditional conical flatpoint) work for this application. The Green Dot load you specify may only be yielding 750-775 FPS from your 4-5/8" barrel, but there is an old saying in hunting circles.......velocity is fine, but accuracy is final. If you can place rounds with those 45 caliber 5/8 oz slugs when and where you want, they will make venison for you. The big meplat on that RCBS bullet lets in a lot of air. Archery hunters aren't using a lot of "power" when they stick a deer--place a bullet or an arrow where it belongs, and you will have meat. The most-blooded rifle in my safe is an 1873 Winchester 44-40 carbine, whose 200 grain bullets barely get to 1100 FPS. It served for many years on my great-grandfather's and grandfather's ranches as deer/bear/bad guy disincentivizer, and accounted for at least two black bears and dozens of muleys.

I completely agree, especially at the ranges he is talking about. I went magnum on my Ruger 45LC for awhile but now am back to loading at standard pressure or just slightly +P. I read John Linebaughs favorite caliber is the 45 Colt, and his most used loads are 8gr of HP38/Win231 for about 850fps and 13gr HS6 for about 950fps in the short 4in S&W Model 25. In my 5.5 Ruger that should be 900fps and 1000+ for the HS6. I loaded up some HS6 loads but my local range is closed for the moment so haven't tried them yet but really looking forward to it.

Doug I really need to mail you my guns for the cylinder boring and forcing cone cutting. Both my .44 and .45 Ruger's have a thread constriction at the beginning of the barrel though. I've looked at Taylor throating and the method with soft lead bullets rolled in an abrasive but have my reservations about both. Seems like it would be better to reinstall the barrel to the correct torque but I don't know how hard that would be to get that torque set correctly and have the sights perfectly straight up.

[DougGuy]

Anybody up for cylinder throating/forcing cone work can send a PM and it will get the ball rolling. Still less than a week lead time.

Wolfer you are right on the tier 2 edge with 9.3gr Unique, but 10.0gr is most certainly beyond 23,000psi. Also, Unique at 10.0gr can be very spiky and unpredictable, I won't even go there with a full sized BH or Vaquero, let alone a medium sized one like the NV and the new flattop BH.

reloader28 I used 2400 in a short barreled Vaquero to "bring the boolit to the sights" (Lee C452-300-RF) starting with 19.0gr which shot 4" low at 20yds, 18.0gr shot 2" low, 17.0gr was 1" low, and at 16.0gr groups opened up to near 6" because with 1:16 rifling, you need to shoot that boolit hard enough to spin it up and 16.0gr fell short of it being enough to stabilize. No way was it doing 1,000fps. I doubt it was doing 800. I took one of the 17.0gr loads and climbed into a tree stand and fired it almost straight down on a target, and that made it shoot dead on the sights so this is the load I will take up the tree stand with me.

[Washington1331]

Maybe I'm just traditional, but load it like Sam Colt intended. I've had excellent luck with 38 grains (weight) of 3F black powder and a 255 grain pure lead boolit lubed with emmerts lube. More than enough powder to get the job done, good accuracy and it won't break your wrist or wear your gun excessively.

I've clocked it at close to 900 FPS out of my similar blackhawk revolver. More than enough to get the job done, and it cleans up with a nice helping of soapy water.

[reloader28]

Huh, I guess my chrono has been wrong all this time.
I guess with 10gr Unique being such a bad load, it shouldnt shoot so good out of all our 45 colts at 1000fps either. But maybe my chrono is wrong on that one too.

As soon as the wind quits I will try these again. If I'm wrong, I'll apologize and keep my mouth shut from now on, but I think I know my equipment.

[FlatTop45LC]

Huh, I guess my chrono has been wrong all this time.
I guess with 10gr Unique being such a bad load, it shouldnt shoot so good out of all our 45 colts at 1000fps either. But maybe my chrono is wrong on that one too.

As soon as the wind quits I will try these again. If I'm wrong, I'll apologize and keep my mouth shut from now on, but I think I know my equipment.
10 grains of Umique shot well in mine too but started to show flattened primers on about 1/3 of the shots. That is thr only reason I dropped back to 9 grains. Now the cases fall free without the ejector stroke.

[DougGuy]

I was going to use this for hunting this year, but am going with the big Lee boolit and 16gr 2400 at 1000fps.
Way overkill, but it shoots excellent.

What is your COA on this load? The ones I tested were all seated long in the bottom crimp groove. Seated short in the upper crimp groove would make all the difference in the world. I didn't mean to say this was a bad load or that your equipment was reading wrong, just 16.0gr 2400 in my short barreleld Vaquero this boolit began shooting all over the target, and it couldn't possibly be traveling at 1,000fps, in my situation on this day, it would surprise me if it was making 800fps.

[Wolfer]

I started with the lee 452-255RF and 8 gr of unique. A standard 45 colt load since 1898. This got me around 950 fps or above. When I hand lapped my barrel it took 8.8 gr to get me to the same velocity.
Since pressure equals velocity when all things are equal I believe my slick barrel takes more powder to build the same pressure as before.
When I used the 452-424 it took 9.3 to get to the same velocity due to setting farther out of the case.
My HP 452-424 only weighs 245 gr. My 10 gr load would only be 9.2 before I slicked up my barrel.
I get no flattened primers, no sticky cases and I can shoot this load without ear plugs.
I don't feel like I'm in the danger zone. Perhaps I'm wrong, I often am.

[FlatTop45LC]

You probably aren't Wolfer.

Every gun is different.

One reason I have pressure spikes is my chamber throats are too tight.

DougGuy is going to take care of that soon though.

[DougGuy]

Tight cylinder throats can cause pressures to rise sharply, and if you shoot a relatively hard alloy like water dropped ww, pressure will go up even more the harder the alloy. It is totally within reason to see spikes of 5,000psi over what normal ignition for the load would be. If it is already near a max charge, this spike -could- become catastrophic. It happens. With Unique, at 10.0gr in the .45 Colt, it becomes very un-predictable so you may think you are close to a max load but not exceeding max, and out of nowhere you got one that is well over what you thought would be the max pressure.

In my own Vaquero, shooting some very hard 340gr SSK boolits over 22.0gr of W296, the point of impact dropped over 4" in 25yds after the cylinder throats were reamed to .4525" and a severe thread choke (.448") was reamed out with a Taylor throating reamer. I can only guess how much difference there was in pressures before and after. I'm glad it was 296 and not Unique.

Don't get me wrong, I am not bad mouthing Unique, just this particular powder can get really weird at max loads. I tend to use it for standard velocity and not even try to get into the Tier 2/23,000psi loads with it.

[pls1911]

I guess I need to look carefully at my SBH loads...
My favorite 250-260 grain bullets shoot fine at 9-10 grains of Unique with no primer or case extraction issue.
Go to hunting bullets are the RCBS SAA-270 SWC which cast heavier in my alloy, around 285 grains. They shoot fine and accurately at 9-9.5 Unique, and I've not chronographed these loads, though my guess would be about 900-950 fps.
After reading the comments regarding changes to POI with small load variations, maybe I need some target work too. I've always tossed a beverage can out maybe 20-25 yards pointed and hit fine. Bulls-eye? Certainly not, but my "beverage can bull" seems to kill what's on the receiving end.
The 300 grain gas checked Lee slugs I've cast should be fine too, but I believe unnecessary... even the 250 grain RN slugs at 900 fps will soundly pound a good sized hog.

[DougGuy]

When you get to loading the 300 grainers, it's time to look for some slower burning powders, W296/H110, 2400, LilGun, AA#9, V110 etc. 2400 and LilGun will give some great loads in the 75% ~ 90% power range for the Ruger Only loads for this caliber, 296/H110 are for top end loads only and do not download beyond 3%, might as well say do not download at all. Those slugs will need a decent velocity to spin them enough to stabilize, not a job for faster powders or for making a midrange load out of, they need flung pretty hard to shoot right.

[hog]

I have found that wfn hard cast bullets work better in the 45Colt than hp's do. You never know how the animal will be turned when you get a shot, wfngc bullets will penetrate completly through stem to stern at your veloicitys you have posted.

[dubber123]

I have found that wfn hard cast bullets work better in the 45Colt than hp's do. You never know how the animal will be turned when you get a shot, wfngc bullets will penetrate completly through stem to stern at your veloicitys you have posted.

Welcome to the forum! People with real game shooting experience are always welcome. I have only a few cast boolit animals to my credit, all with a wide flat nose, and they sure do work. I have noticed in my admittedly minimal experience that velocity does matter. Sure a 900 fps. boolit may have full penetration, but they sure do a lot more damage at 1,300.

[hog]

Thanks for the greeting. I load and shoot one load in a RBH in 45 Colt, a 335 grn.wfngc at 1200 fps. It has never failed to penetrate regardless of the shot angle, and the exit holes are orange sized on Bear,Boar and a decent sized buck.

[FlatTop45LC]

That load in the right alloy should penetrate most anything on earth!

[hog]

The biggest animal i have taken with this load is a Bull Moose of about 800 pounds, braking both shoulders at 60 paces, but it has taken all but Elephant in Africa. I like the load and know where it hits at ranges out to 80 yards, it beats changing loads and bullets when you hunt different game.

[FlatTop45LC]

Nice!

[huntincowboy]

The load I use for deer hunting is the HS6 (RUGER ONLY) charge recommended here (http://www.customsixguns.com/writings/dissolving_the_myth.htm) using wheel weight alloy in my Lee 250 RF mold and a 50/50 beeswax/vaseline lube. Lead expands nicely and leaves a clean hole that kills fast. Chronographed velocity out of my 7.5" Blackhawk is 1200 fps but truth be told even this is overkill. 850 fps with a 250 gr bullet will handle a whitetail nicely.