Suggestions for .45ACP FP mould

[Chainsaw2]

I'm looking for something in a 200-230 gr. flat point, truncated cone, or SWC for use in a 1911. Any suggestions?

jim

[Dale53]

Chainsaw2;
I just recently got a Lee Six Cavity mould for their 230 gr TC with regular lube groove. This is not only one of the easiest moulds to cast from (they just fall out of the mould when opened), the bullets as cast, size easily to my preferred diameter of .452". The bullets vary a couple of thousandths in roundness and vary + or - one grain from cavity to cavity. They shoot, in my S&W 625's just slightly over 1" at 25 yards. I would expect them to shoot at least as well in my 1911 match guns. They should function as well as hard ball in any auto as well. Further, the terminal performance should be considerably better than military hard ball. They work perfectly with full moon clips in my 625's (they just "fall in" the cylilnders when executing a speed load).

In short, I have nothing but high praise for this bullet and mould combination for the .45 ACP.. When you couple the price from someone like F&M Reloading or Midway, for me it becomes a "Must Have".

Dale53

[btroj]

I too have the Lee 230 tc with regular lube groove. Like Dale53 said, it casts easily, and shoot well. With a 6 cave I can cast 1500 or so in about 2hours and that will last me a few months. They size easily in the Star.
At the price they get for the mold how can you go wrong?

Brad

[NickSS]

I have a lee six cavity mold in a 200 gr RF that I bought for SASS matches in my 45 Colt but recently I loaded some up on a whim in 45 acp and was surprised and how well it worked in my 1911 Kimber, Ruger P90 and Taurus PT145. No failures to feed, nice round holes in paper and a really nice flat point. I sized them .452"

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

I just got one of these:
http://www.mp-molds.com/shopping/pgm-more_information.php?id=4&=SID

MiHec's clone of the H&G#68 200gr swc, I've cast up a bunch, but have not sized/lubed, or loaded them yet . . . I hear good things from them! Six banger cast great!

[Edubya]

What'cha gonna use 'em fer? Are they to be for paper killing or pig shootin'? Makes a difference, ya know.

You don't need HP to kill a bunch of paper, you might enjoy making HP but it takes another couple of seconds for each cast. If you're just shooting paper, go for volume. Most any round nose will do. I don't recommend tumble lube type.

EW

[Dale53]

Chainsaw2;
Pardon me for not reading your first post correctly. I saw the "230 gr" and jumped on that wagon.

MiHec's #68 SWC is THE bullet if you want a 200 gr SWC. Semi wadcutters are subtle designs. The #68 is the "real deal". It was originally a design of the old H&G (Hensley & Gibbs) mould company. They designed the "nose strike" on the loading ramp of the 1911 to be the same with the 200 gr SWC as the original 230 gr hard ball load. In short, the #68 is THE 200 gr SWC bullet. MiHec moulds are among the best custom moulds that are available. I have several, so am speaking from experience. In fact, just this past week I cast 42 lbs of finished MiHec #68 bullets in his six cavity mould. You could not buy it from me for three times it's cost.

Dale53

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

I'm glad that Dale cleared that up! I was beginning to wonder if you were feeling OK Dale?

You will not be disappointed with the mold in my link above . . .

[Dale53]

You will not be disappointed with the mold in my link above . . .

Amen!!

Dale53

[Chainsaw2]

Thanks for the help gents! I should have mentioned that the loads will be use for practice, SD, and the occasional medium weight animal. It looks like the mentioned molds will work quite well for these purposes. I've seen those 200 gr. SWC but wasn't sure of their reliability in a 1911. Now I know different. Some shooting will done with a revolver too.

jim

[btroj]

I need to get one of those molds from Mihec. What kind of loads are you guys running them with for a 1911? I have been using 4.7 gr of hp38 with a hg 130 with good luck but need a six cavity mold of my own rather than depending on the FIL to cast for my handgun.

[Dale53]

I am running the MiHec #68 200 gr SWC with 4.0 grs of Bullseye (or 231, Dupont PB, or ...) to give similar velocities for target work. This bullet makes an excellent self defense load with 7.0 grs of Unique (use your Loading manual for exact load). The heavy Unique load will give you "about" 1000 fps. I have seen it's results in flesh - near ½" of cookie cutter right on through.

If you are looking for a premier self defense bullet (assuming you feel comfortable using your reloads for this purpose as I do) is MiHec's 200 gr .452 Hollow Point out of the two cavity Cramer Style mould. This is as good as it gets. Here are those bullets in Auto Rim cases:

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj80/Dale53/4DalesPistolsRevolversSelects-3332.jpg

Members of this forum have pictures of this bullet expanding to .80 caliber! Look at the "Group Buy Results" folder.

If I were going for a general purpose bullet (one bullet for all purposes) then without question it would be the MiHec H&G #68.

Dale53

[runfiverun]

i use a 225 rnfp designed for the 45 colt it feeds flawlessly and shoots accurately.
i don't even use my 230 rn mold anymore and sold my h&g copy.

[MGySgt]

RCBS 45-30 CM - 230+ with a big flatpoint. I know it was designed for the 45 Colt - but I shoot the heck out of it in 45 ACP - in a 625, 1911, S&W 4513, and 4516.

some have reported problem with the noswe actually working the slide lock, but I haven't had that issue.

[EMC45]

Lee 230TC. They run in everything I put them in, and they are quite accurate.

[smith52]

I have started using the Lee #452-200-RF, 200 gr RNFP. More accurate than the 230gr RN I cast and no feeding problems. The Lee #TL452-200-SWC, 200gr tumble lube SWC is the most accurate .452" boolit I cast.

[Shooter6br]

i have used Lee 230g TL in my 45 ACP. i bought a MP .452 Hp. Cast nice 210 solids and nice 200g HP. Function great in both pistol and my Mech Tech carbine converstion. Using the MP molds is like driving a Caddy vs a Yugo. Both will get you there( Well maybe not the Yugo) but the Mp is a work of art.

[BD]

The pics show my three favorite .45 acp flat points. On the left is the group buy 215 grain SWC, in the middle is the group buy 230 grain BDacp Cowboy designed by AnthonyB, on the right is a 230 grain original BDacp.
BD

[HiVelocity]

Chainsaw-

Unless you just want to spend alot of money; this [Lee] bullet mold comes in 2 configurations 2-banger and 6-banger. The 6-banger retails for about $38.00.

This bullet will shoot in almost anything/everything (I've found anyway) in 45 ACP. Its reliable, its accurate, and for some reason, mine cast out at 240 grains (ACWW). I let them air cool and then lube them with Alox cut 50/50 with mineral spirits. Let dry overnight, then load them up. I also use a factory taper crimp.

These are "As Cast" bullets and mine drop at .452 on the money.

You can't go wrong with this bullet.

Just my $.02 worth.

HV in SC

[Calpoly93]

For you guys that cast the Lee TC, how do you lube it? Lubrisizer? or one of the various "liquid" lubes like Alox?

[Dale53]

I use the Lee .452 230 gr TC with the normal lube groove. It casts from a Lee six cavity mould EXTREMELY well. It is just big enough with WW's + 2% tin to size my "standard" size of .452". Using full loads (hard ball equivalent) it shoots just over 1 1/4" at 25 yards off a bench. It feeds through an auto as reliably as .45 Hardball. It will have much better terminal ballistics due to its flat point. It feeds into a revolver with full moon clips like a greased eel! They just FALL in.

Excellent bullet.

I lube mine with my Star lube/sizer without issue. It has a slight bevel base so you may get some extra, unwanted grease, on the base with a Lyman or RCBS sizer. It can be accommodated with a bit of effort as the bevel is slight.

Dale53

[MGySgt]

I have the 9mm, 40, and 45 - all are lubed on a RCBS LuberSizer II

[StrawHat]

I'm looking for something in a 200-230 gr. flat point, truncated cone, or SWC for use in a 1911. Any suggestions?

jim

The Lyman 454423, (235 grain Keith) or the group buy version is well thought of by many of us.

[EMC45]

I size mine on a Lyman 4500.

[Grapeshot]

Years ago in the mid 1980's I purchased a TC .45 230 grain double cavity mold from NEI that was supposed to be a copy of the Hornady TC FMJ.

I've used it in my Colt Series 70, S&W M1917, S&W 625 and a Springfield M1911A1 with great results. I've also used it in my .45 Scofield and .45 Colt Revolvers.

The Lee mold is a good bullet design and you shouldn't have any problems with it.

[Throwback]

A number of good answers here. My choice is the RCBS 45-230 CM, similar to BD's pics. It is a good one. I have had no issues with feeding in any of my .45's and it has a nice wide meplat. I haven't killed anything with it but it would be a good choice for hunting and it is accurate.

[David2011]

I've shot thousands of Saeco 200 Gr. SWCs through my 1911s. Never any failures I could blame on the boolit and very few failures period. Keep your OAL between 1.250 and 1.260 and you should be good.

David

[Chainsaw2]

This is a ton of good info! Thanks!

[sagacious]

The LEE 230TC really is a great bullet. Versatile and consistently accurate in all the 45's I've used it in. Hard to go too far wrong with that mold. Good luck.

[Murphy]

I also have the Lee 230TC, I'm very pleased at how well it casts.

I would like to get some OAL's from the rest of you who load this boolit. I currently seat it to an OAL length of 1.200 and it feeds fine.

So...what length's are some of you seating your Lee 230TC to?

Thanks,

Murphy

[Dale53]

If you have a 1911 platform, remover the barrel and seat the bullet until the base of the case is flush with the barrel hood. THAT is the proper overall length for THAT auto pistol.

Seating this way has several advantages. The round head spaces on the bullet insuring consistent ignition. It won't be TOO long (interfering with the slide closing). That is with cast bullets. If you have a jacketed bullet, you might want to allow just a few thousandths deeper seating to insure that the slide will close completely (jackets are a LOT harder than a cast bullet so need a bit more clearance).

Dale53

[Bula]

I've found that I get better feeding with the Lee 230 TC at 1.18 to 1.19.

[Dale53]

Bula;
There is NO prefect dimension for over all length. It is so "pistol dependent" that what works for one may not work for all.

I have three 1911 platforms. The two full size models were built from scratch and will feed ANYTHING (even empty cases). My latest 1911 platform is my Kimber CDP Ultra LL (3"). All three of those work well with seating the base of the case (of a loaded round) flush with the hood. Naturally, I haven't tried it in hundreds of pistols, but several different custom pistolsmiths that I have talked to personally, have also recommended that method. Further, my three pistols (the Kimber is "as issued") work perfectly with SWC's (my most used bullets are the MIHec H&G #68 flat base, but also work with an original H&G #130, and and a Saeco #68 BB). So, the Lee 230 TC (with regular lube groove) presents absolutely NO problem.

On the other hand, if you have a "persnickety" pistol and you have found a method that works, then more power to you. You'll get no argument from me. If it works, it works, it's that simple.

YMMV
Dale53

[Cherokee]

+1 for the Lee 230 TC conventional lube design for all my 45 ACP's. Mine are sized in either my Lyman 4500 or, usually, in my Star @ .452 with Carnauba Red lube. I also have the same NEI mould as Grapeshot, bought it 4 cavity back in the 80's too, works great, but I like the Lee even better. The RCBS 45-230CM bullet hits the slide stop on most of my 1911's so I only use it for 45 Colt.