Stoking The 45 Colt

Hey fellas - hope you had good luck on the hunting draws!

Question for the Mighty Boolit Masters: I have that new Ruger Redhawk that does 45 Colt/45ACP and it's just a hoot. With the 4.2" barrel it's a nice "little big" gun! The crappy factory trigger is actually helping me shoot my tuned guns better!:guntootsmiley:

Generally all I shoot is paper with all my pistols so I just run pattycake target loads for the vast majority of my shooting but I would like to STOKE some fire breathing barn burners just for the halibut! I might put 20~50 aside for posterity or for a rainy day.

If I understand the facts right, the Redhawk will handle magnum loads with aplomb... it's the brass that limits the 45 Colt and that is why you can't handload it into a 44 magnum. (I will be using jacketed 250 gr. for these loads). What should I consider my upper velocity to be at? Can I safely exceed the book in your opinion? For now I am staying within the manual guidelines... I am just curious if any of you have any experience hot rodding the 45 and what came of it.

Also: I am fascinated with the hard cast 300 gr. boolits that some guys are loading. Does this weight of projectile have a place in the Colt 45 for casual target work? Or is it limited to self defense and social work?

As always - your two bits are sincerely appreciated.

Cheers!

https://www.johnlinebaughcustomsixguns.com/writings
Here is an article hat you might find interesting.

Many of the reloading manuals have a section for "Ruger Only" loads for .45 Colt. These generally top out at around 30k psi. The Redhawk is certainly capable of digesting these loads with no problems. With the shorter barrel and 250 gr bullets, you will lose about 75 fps over the published 7¼" loads, but should still be able to get 1300+ fps with a number of powders. 300 grain and heavier bullets are mostly for hunting, but heavy recoiling loads float some peoples' boats, so go ahead and give 'em a try!

There isn't any reason .45 Colt can't be loaded to .44 Mag levels, using modern brass and fired in your Redhawk.(or my large frame Blackhawk) Find a copy of the Handloader article about the 3- tier loads for the RCBS 45-270 SAA bullet. I choose to stop at the Tier 2 loads for my Blackhawk. hc18flyer

You may find that the Lee C452-300-RF (which is probably THE most favored 300gr flat nose among many) will give up it's best performance when cast in 50/50+2% and lubed with soft lube. This particular alloy takes to Ruger rifling like a duck to water, and it's gas checked so the soft alloy works great with the check. Most Ruger Only loadings quit about 30,000psi which is just under the 44 magnum pressure ceiling but with heavier boolits will outdo the 44 in kinetic energy. I would agree with the 30,000psi ceiling for 45 Colt loads, they are more than enough for any game in North America and if you need more than this, I would suggest the 480 Ruger for starters, and if you want to stay with 45 caliber there is the Casull and also the 460S&W.

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Originally Posted by Wheelguns 1961

https://www.johnlinebaughcustomsixguns.com/writings
Here is an article hat you might find interesting.

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Excellent article thanks for sharing.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

https://www.garrettcartridges.com/45rho+ptech.html
It is slightly strong.

Guy La Pourge
The myth about the 45 Colt case being weak, is just that, a myth. This has been proven over the past decades. Where the problem originally came about, was the chambering of the original saa revolvers. The chambers were machined so much oversize, that the cartridge case was stretched beyond its limits and would split. So, with tighter tolerances in the chambers of the more modern 45 Colt firearms, there is no worries. But, the 45 Colt cases may start to split as any case will, due to over use, i.e. belling and crimping. I do have a case (pardon the punn) of oversize chambering in my Winchester AE 45 Colt Trapper. Upon retrieving the fired case, I find that it will not chamber in my Uberti saa revolver. From what I've read, this is a common occurence with these carbines.
Welcome to the CastBoolits sir.

The old Balloon Head cases were weak, but any of the modern manufactured 45 colt cases will withstand any pressure your Redhawk can handle. The Redhawk is a very stout revolver that can handle beyond +p pressures for the 45 Colt.
The Ruger only loads can be a handful, and might be a good place to stop. Watch your loaded length when looking at load data. If your bullets are seated deaper that the book says, it will generate more pressure. Nice choice of caliber, the 45 Colt is one of my favorites.
If you are looking for max velocities, I'd look at H110/Win296 for a powder. Don't load it lighter than about 95% fill capacity, and use magnum primers.

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Originally Posted by Wheelguns 1961

https://www.johnlinebaughcustomsixguns.com/writings
Here is an article hat you might find interesting.

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That was interesting! Thanks for the link

A favored load of mine for the Ruger Hawks, be they Black or Red, while not in the elephant slayer level, is a 250-260 grain boolit over 17.5 grains of 2400. This gave me just over 1,000 FPS from my 6 1/2 Blackhawk, and was plenty for my purposes.

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Originally Posted by rintinglen

A favored load of mine for the Ruger Hawks, be they Black or Red, while not in the elephant slayer level, is a 250-260 grain boolit over 17.5 grains of 2400. This gave me just over 1,000 FPS from my 6 1/2 Blackhawk, and was plenty for my purposes.

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Ditto, my hunting load in my 7 1/2" Blackhawk. hc18flyer

Found same here Little Jack, Win 94 chamber is oversized near the base, fired cases shows a clear bulge, loading at the upper end of the tables, not so much at the lower end.

But to counter, could have sworn I saw an article making a "good case" that 45C brass is not to be loaded up to 44M levels. Not sure where.

I have one of those .45 Colt/ACP Redhawks, and I occasionally load it with the sort of loads discussed in the above links. I use Starline brass and it works fine.

With the Lee 255 RNFP, I found that either of the 4227’s gave better accuracy than H110 for upper end loads. Both powder and bullets out of wheel weights perform well on hogs and deer. A waxed cardboard wad under the bullet cuts the group size noticeably. Unique is always a go-to powder but I’ve never had good luck using it at the upper pressures, but at low to moderate pressures it’s hard to beat. There’s a reason it’s been around for as long as it has. Right now I’m playing with RCBS’s 270 grainer and 2400. So far results are just ok, but not as accurate as the Lee 255 RNFP and 4227. Good luck absorbing all of the opinions presented and figuring out what works for you

Having worked up to max in 45 colt starline brass and with several reccomended powders, I ended up loading AA#9 more than any other powder. Accuracy is supurb using the rcbs 270 mold cast with #2 lyman at 1000 fps and being quite a powerful load but easily handled in my BH 51/2 inch Bisley. Can't imagine needing more power and bullet than this.