.45 Win Mag

[alamogunr]

Due to a combination of circumstances, I have ended up with an extra .45ACP cylinder for my Freedom Arms. Don't ask how this happened, it's embarrassing. Anyhow, in talking with FA about what to do with the extra cylinder, the gentleman suggested that I consider rechambering it to .45 Win Mag. Apparently they get a lot of requests for that cartridge despite discontinuing its offering some time ago.

Since I know very little about the cartridge other than it seems to be a lengthened ACP, I'm looking for info as to its' utility and desirability as an addition to those cartridges I cast and load for.

The first thing that brought me up short was the cost of dies. RCBS classifies it as "special order" and CH notes that it might take some time to get a set. I suppose I could post a WTB in the S&S section but might not get any response.

Again, any and all info would be appreciated.

[cainttype]

You can usually get away with using carbide 45 ACP dies. The carbide rings are normally short, so as long as there's room the casing will be fine. Back the expander and seater dies out (or use a spacer, similar to using 38 Sp to load 357 Mag) to proper lengths. The 45 ACP and 45 WM both have slight tapers, so if your ACP carbide ring sizes correctly you will have a little more clearance toward the WM's mouth...not a bad thing (and you'll never notice it).
Consider the WM as similar in potential to the 44 Mag, depending on how and what it's chambered in.

I'd look into rechambering to 45 Colt instead, if I were you... And that's from a guy that loves and shoots the 45 MG regularly.

[Ballistics in Scotland]

That all sounds good, but for the last, the .45LC, I would first check the groove and cylinder throat diameters. They may be fine, as many manufacturers have narrowed or eliminated the gap between the .45ACP and .45LC diameters. But you would want to be sure.

[Tackleberry41]

You may find it way easier to go with 45 super. Thats what I run in my Blackhawk conversion cyl. All I had to buy was some brass. Its not quite 45 win mag, but close enough for my uses.

But a quick look at Midway and they did not show Lee dies in 45 win mag as special order. And the Hornady set is listed as 45ACP/45Autorim/45 win mag. And Midway has 45 win mag brass in stock for same price as 45 super or ACP.

I would consider reaming my 45 cyl to 45 win mag, but at 40k psi is bit higher than the black hawk is normally rated to.

[alamogunr]

That all sounds good, but for the last, the .45LC, I would first check the groove and cylinder throat diameters. They may be fine, as many manufacturers have narrowed or eliminated the gap between the .45ACP and .45LC diameters. But you would want to be sure.

The gun was originally set up, by Freedom Arms, with the .45 Colt and .45 ACP in addition to the .454 Casull. I may be taking too much for granted in assuming that they matched the barrel with the cylinders but since I'm only considering it because FA said they still get a lot of requests for .45 Win Mag. May make the gun more desirable if I(or my heirs) decide to sell it.

I don't particularly like Lee dies although I have a few sets. The Hornady looks attractive. Until I looked at it a little closer, I had forgotten that carbide dies do all the sizing with the carbide ring at the mouth of the die. Overall brass length doesn't matter. I suppose that if the tolerances are as close on the Win Mag cylinder as on Freedom Arms cylinders a "neck" size would be feasible.

[dubber123]

Sounds like a good idea to me. I load my 45 Win Mag with Hornady dies labeled auto/rim/mag, with no issues at all. Not being able to roll crimp may limit how hot you can load it before boolits start pulling.

[alamogunr]

Sounds like a good idea to me. I load my 45 Win Mag with Hornady dies labeled auto/rim/mag, with no issues at all. Not being able to roll crimp may limit how hot you can load it before boolits start pulling.

Not an issue. As I told Jack Huntington when I talked to him about rechambering, at 73, hot loads are a thing of the past for me, at least more than a few at one outing.

[cainttype]

My understanding is that FA line-bored all of their FA83 cylinders. All 3 of your cylinders would have been matched and fitted with the frame at the factory if the combination was original. In the past, guns were required to be shipped to the factory for any extra cylinders a guy wanted chambered.
If you have the 45 Colt already, why change anything?
The ACP cylinder would certainly make for mild loads, and components are plentiful. It would be perfect for training/practice with a newcomer.
The Colt will afford from mild to heavy, again with plentiful components.
The Casull can be reserved for even heavier, if needed.
Sounds like you have all the bases covered.

I have several revolvers that can use ACP. An old Uberty shoots ACP almost exclusively, and is seriously accurate.
That ACP cylinder may be more useful than you imagine...I'd keep it.

[alamogunr]

I guess I could leave all this alone but several of you would be under the impression that I'm not taking all possibilities into consideration.

All this started when, after a full afternoon of load testing .45ACP and .45 Colt loads in the FA, I got home and the next day went to the shop to clean the gun and the ACP & Colt cylinders. The Colt cylinder was still in the gun but I couldn't find the ACP and Casull cylinders. I looked high & low for about a month and finally contacted Freedom Arms about replacement cylinders. Long story short, I sent my gun w/remaining cylinder to them to make new cylinders and time all 3 the same. Fast forward about a month or so. I found the lost cylinders. I won't say where and confirm that I'm losing it. Suffice to say I have been in contact with FA about how to handle this situation. They had already machined new cylinders and matched them to the gun. They also are the ones that recommended the .45 Win Mag. That is why I am sending the "old" cylinders to them to have them timed to the gun also. I guess they felt sorry for me because they offered to do this as part of the original job, in other words for free. When all is said and done, I will have a Freedom Arms handgun w/5 cylinders, one of which may be rechambered to .45 Win Mag. I'm in talks to have the ACP cylinder reamed to the subject cartridge and maybe sell the extra .454 cylinder. If I do this I will have cylinders as follows: .454 Casull, .45 Colt, .45 ACP and .45 Win Mag. The 2nd .454 cylinder will go down the road, hopefully.

Have I convinced all that I am apparently in my dotage?

[cainttype]

That clears up A LOT of things... You obviously "need" a 45 WM, and a Grizzly auto as a companion...It is close to Christmas, after all. :)

[onehousecat]

When I got my AMT in 45 WM, my first thought was to buy new (RCBS) dies. When I found out the price, used dies became a priority. It didn't take long for a carbide set to turn up on eBay at an extremely attractive price, <$50.00. The first roundsI fired were some factory Winchester 265 gr. HPs. The ones recovered from a dirt bank expanded beautifully, and retained a high percentage of their weight. If you go through with the conversion, I think you will be pleased.

[leadman]

I have loaded 45 WM with the Lee 45 ACP dies with no issues. I had a Contender carbine barrel in 45 acp that I was going to have rechambered to 45 WM but sold it. The nice thing about the Contender and similar single shot guns is you can still fire 45 acp in a 45WM chamber. The extractor holds it tight enough to allow this. The guy at T/C, named French told me about this. I did cut a 45acp case off short, primed it and put in my barrel and it fired just fine.

[alamogunr]

I just went to the shop and looked at my Hornady .45ACP dies. I never paid much attention before but the label on the box says .45ACP/.45AR/.45WIN. I looked up the set in a Hornady catalog and although the part# for the die set is slightly different(I emailed Hornady about this), the same part# is listed for .45ACP/.45AR/.45WIN MAG. It would seem that my die set would work for .45 Win Mag & was intended to work just as "leadman" described above.

Helps with the decision if I don't have to invest in dies.

[Plastikosmd]

I have a FA 83 setup for 45lc/45acp/45 win mag/454

Love it in all its forms. I load using acp setup. Win mag brass is really thin. I have creased a few on the edges but otherwise no issues. I say go for it, u don't need 2 acp cylinders.

[Valley-Shooter]

I have a Contender barrel for 45 Win Mag and I've always used my Hornady 45 acp dies to load it. Never even thought buying special dies for it. You can make a 230 g. Round nose go real fast with it!