LEAST accurate loads you've ever made for a 1911 5" 45ACP

[guy_with_boolits]

just what the title says

looking for things that worked terribly, out of curiousity

maybe there arent any bad loads who knows

[nueces5]

RCBS 225 grains, RN PC
6,6 Power pistol, hot load, but very accurate

[guy_with_boolits]

RCBS 225 grains, RN PC
6,6 Power pistol, hot load, but very accurate

looking for least accurate

[GhostHawk]

Sorry don't have any. But if you really want not accurate under size your bullets 2-3 thousandths.

[gpidaho]

Lyman Foster slugs won't hit the barn if you're standing inside! Gp

[cowboy4evr]

I tried the LEE 225 gr TC design in my Sig 1911 . I had bought the 6 cav mold . Several were quite a bit undersize . I tried to powder coat to make up for the difference . The accuracy was horrible . But , before I wrote off the bullet I tried my usual 230 gr round nose ball loads . The accuracy came right back as all rounds was in the 9 and 10 ring @ 18 yards . Both rounds were loaded with WST . Just my experience , Regards Paul

[megasupermagnum]

A 230 gr FMJ with power pistol. Maybe 8" at 25 yards. It was so bad, I looked for keyholing bullets.

[guy_with_boolits]

A 230 gr FMJ with power pistol. Maybe 8" at 25 yards. It was so bad, I looked for keyholing bullets.

what explains this?

[megasupermagnum]

Power pistol most likely. It shoots horrible in every handgun I own.

[Win94ae]

Power pistol most likely. It shoots horrible in every handgun I own.

Power Pistol is the best pistol powder I've found; precise, fast, with lower pressures than the others I've used.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7a1BR0eYS0

Any powder can give you bad groups, if I would have used the powder charge in one of the hits at the exterior of the ladder group, I'd get an 8 inch group too.

[fredj338]

Maybe we need a definition of least accurate. I dont think I have ever had a terrible load in my 1911s. Some better than others but nothing like 8" @ 25y. Most anything I can cobble together; lead, jacketed, plated or coated will shoot into 2" or so out to 25y.

[fredj338]

Power pistol most likely. It shoots horrible in every handgun I own.
I would suspect you load density? PP is not a target load powder. When you get well above midrange, pretty accurate in anything I tried.

[fredj338]

I tried the LEE 225 gr TC design in my Sig 1911 . I had bought the 6 cav mold . Several were quite a bit undersize . I tried to powder coat to make up for the difference . The accuracy was horrible . But , before I wrote off the bullet I tried my usual 230 gr round nose ball loads . The accuracy came right back as all rounds was in the 9 and 10 ring @ 18 yards . Both rounds were loaded with WST . Just my experience , Regards Paul
You ID the issue, bullets too small. I have a bunch of 45s, all will shoot 0.452" bullets better than I can hold.

[gwpercle]

Old single cavity (remember those) Lee mould , 230 grain, 1-R round nose , something about that boolit wasn't right ... from day one it never wanted to group properly , the load of 5.2 grains of Unique was taken from the RCBS Cast Bullet Manual #1 .
The Manual had RCBS # 45-230-RN , Unique powder (which I had )
start load - 5.0 grs. @ 724 fps / Max. load - 5.7 grs. @ 815 fps ... 5.0 grs. didn't give 100% functioning of my 1911 so upped charge to 5.2 grains and got 100% reliable ...But ...
No two holes touched ... at 50 feet !!! and I was a good shot back then !!!
I tried other charges but it never grouped ... I suspect the boolit design was wonky .

Lyman # 452460 over that same charge of 5.2 grs. Unique won me a First Place Trophy in a 1911 Match !

[nueces5]

I am from Argentina, I did the tests with my own boolits with a PC layer. Size 452. The max OAL I was able to load into the mag. And the best load was with Power pistol. I started with 7.4, but it felt very powerful, so I lowered it to 6.6 with the same result. You can see my photos here.

https://elforodeltirador.com/forum/index.php?topic=53133.msg572387#msg572387

[megasupermagnum]

I would suspect you load density? PP is not a target load powder. When you get well above midrange, pretty accurate in anything I tried.

I don't have my notes in front of me, but it was data straight from Alliant. A quick search shows a likely max of 8.1gr. I probably started around 6.5 grains. Like I said, worst powder I ever used. I've tried it in 327 federal, 357 magnum 41 magnum, 44 magnum, 9mm luger, 45 acp, and likely more. I burned 3/4 of a pound of it, and never got even so-so accuracy. I don't intend on ever using it again. It was the worst I ever tried in 45 acp.

[megasupermagnum]

I am from Argentina, I did the tests with my own boolits with a PC layer. Size 452. The max OAL I was able to load into the mag. And the best load was with Power pistol. I started with 7.4, but it felt very powerful, so I lowered it to 6.6 with the same result. You can see my photos here.

https://elforodeltirador.com/forum/index.php?topic=53133.msg572387#msg572387

I don't mean this as any insult or put down at all, but that is 8-10 meters. I have good loads with better powder that does that at 25 yards or more. Try American Select powder if you can get it.

[nueces5]

I understand the point
I am not the best shooter, nor do I have the best pistol, it is a 1952 service pistol
When I tested those charges, I was amazed at how much better power pistol was, keeping all the other components.
And I don't think I can get american select, but if it shows up, I'm sure I'll put the glove on it
regards

[John Boy]

Ever try a group with just a primer?

[45DUDE]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^now that is funny[smilie=s:Actually I have a few times. They were all in the same hole.<the barrel>

[Kraschenbirn]

Never tried them in my Series 70 Gold Cup, but the worst I ever shot in either my "tuned up" G.I. 1911 or my LW Commander were some mid-60s 'WCC' milsurp that I came into by way of a retired NG armorer. The 1911 would print 3" groups at 25 yds with H&G 68s and 6.0 gr. Unique; shooting the milsurp, however, it was tough to keep 7 shots on an 8" paper plate. Oddly, though, they shot fairly well in my S&W 1955 but not as well as the Remington 185 gr. jacketed WCs I used for pin shoots in those days.

Bill

[Texas by God]

The Lee .450 conical cap & ball bullet cast of pure lead, LLA lubed over compressed 3F blackpowder.
I was bored one day, and paid for it by scrubbing my old Ballester. 45 auto afterwards. They shot horribly and didn't function.....

Sent from my SM-A716U using Tapatalk

[Harter66]

Recently I shot a 280??? sized .270 in a 6.5 Japanese . Sized .270 because that was a suitable sizer on hand over the .268 groove , the free chambering unsized bullet shot a little better with less jump . The sized bullet shot a 3 shot group at just a touch over 42 inches at 50 yd no fouling . The sized bullet pulled it down to 18" .
For whatever it's worth the naked , checked , greased NOE 270-140 as cast at .272 shot a single 5 shot group at 4" and the king of the day was a .265 sized 266469 paper patched to .272 at 3" over 8.0 Unique . All at 50 yd .

I don't have a real base line for the 1927 made rifle but a 3" paper patched group sounds promising next to a 3.5 foot group .

[Jniedbalski]

The Lee .450 conical cap & ball bullet cast of pure lead, LLA lubed over compressed 3F blackpowder.
I was bored one day, and paid for it by scrubbing my old Ballester. 45 auto afterwards. They shot horribly and didn't function.....

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One of the best bullet in my Springfield 1911 was the lee singly cavity mold for the bp revolver. I didint use pure lead but half wheel Weights and pure. I also used lee alox or white label 45/45/10 with a light charge of bullseye. Around 3.4 to 4.0 gr.

[Jniedbalski]

The worst grouping load was a 5.0 or max load of bullseye with any lead bullet. It wasn’t bad but not as good as the lower charge.

[jim147]

Don't remember the load but it was a max of longshot. It just didn't work out so well.

[bobthenailer]

For the 45 acp it just about shoots every proper bullet or powder decent of the 6 cast bullets i make and over 12 pistols ive owned !

[KVO]

The NOE copy of the H&G #130 puked in both of my pistols with my otherwise generic .45acp starting point of 5.0gr Bullseye. The first time was a double take kind of moment, as in quadruple+ typical group sizes. For whatever reason that bullet (at least in my guns) doesn't like anything over 3.8gr of Bullseye.
282247
282248

Also the Mihec 452-200HP (200gr RNFP profile) was terrible with 7.0gr of CFE Pistol. The same powder charge with the Mihec 453-490HP (215gr SWC) shoots great.
282212
282213

[bruce381]

Sorry don't have any. But if you really want not accurate under size your bullets 2-3 thousandths.


Thats about the only way they are all accurate

[rbuck351]

My old Ballister Molina shoot about anything you can chamber fairly well using .452 boolits. I even tried a 200gr swc loaded backwards and it shot very well.
When I first got it, it wouldn't shoot anything very well. A pop can at twenty feet was fairly safe. A few years and thousands of rounds later and it shot a whole lot better. The pop can at 25yds end ways is probably done for.

[Super Sneaky Steve]

My worst grouping came from pushing swaged .224 JHPs out too fast and having the jackets spin off. Shotgun pattern.

In a handgun I had very poor luck with Lee tumble lube bullets in .45. Gave me the worst leading too. Switched back to a traditional grease grove and some soft home made lube and all was well.

[rintinglen]

In my Kimber, I managed to make a 45 scattergun with HS-6 and some un-sized Lee 452-200TL boolits. Went from shooting 2-3" to 6"+. Back to H&G 68 and Bullseye.

[onelight]

In my Kimber, I managed to make a 45 scattergun with HS-6 and some un-sized Lee 452-200TL boolits. Went from shooting 2-3" to 6"+. Back to H&G 68 and Bullseye.

I had that same success with that same boolit in my Kimber :)
I have had reasonable accuracy with it in other 45s but my Kimber hated it.