Favorite 45ACP load

[Forrest r]

As you can see almost any fast-burning powder and a +/- 200gr bullet will work in the 45acp.

Reddot is ok for blamo ammo/range fodder. but I never could get it to keep up with aa452, wst or bullseye.

Used to shoot nra bullseye (50ft) so that's what distance I'd test at. Always used a H&G 68 or 69 clone and would do ladder tests with bullseye. Back in 2011 I sold all my 1911's, s&w 41's & several other target pistols. Thinned the herd so to speak. Bought a nib springfield range officer and a marvel 22lr conversion kit for it.

Showed this target before, nothing more than the test target used that day testing loads for a nib springfield range officer. Tested 3.6gr, 3.8gr & 4.0gr of bullseye, ended up with this 10-shot group @ 50ft.
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Soft shooting for 1 handed nra bullseye using a Mihec h&g 69 clone (200gr swc) with the standard .468" crimp/ 1.250" oal doing +/- 775fps.


Back in 2014 I ran across a pretty good deal on powders so I bought a couple 8# jugs.
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As already stated a 45acp will run on pretty much anything. With 16# of clays laying around I figured it would make a good blamo ammo powder for the 1911/45acp. So I used all of the +/- 200gr 45cal bullets that I cast (sold most of my molds and down to 3 +/- 200gr 45cal molds) and did 2 test loads 4.0gr and 4.3gr of clays and the 3 bullets I cast.
[IMG][/IMG]
Left is a cramer 5f 200gr swc that's actually a hollow based version (175gr)
center is the H&G 69 mihec clone
right is the mihec 200gr fn hp

Anyway 5-shot groups @ 50ft testing clays and 3 different bullets.
[IMG][/IMG]

The 4.3gr load and any of the 3 bullets I cast turned out to be pretty decent blamo ammo/range fodder plinking ammo. The loads are doing +/- 850fps. A little snappy for 1 handed shooting, as you can see I struggled to keep all shots touching @50ft 5 shots in 30 seconds.
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It's actually pretty hard not to find good loads for the 45acp.

[gwpercle]

I Got Too Many !
I've had a long love affair with the 45 acp and Bullseye Target shooting .
Here are my loads , I started reloading with Unique but soon branched out , powder shortages now dictate what you load with .

45 ACP - 200 gr. cast lead SWC - Lyman #452460

4.0 grs 700X @ 824 fps
4.0 grs TiteGroup @ 860 fps
4.5 grs Bullseye @ 830 fps
4.2 grs Red Dot @ 794 fps
4.7 grs AA#2 @ 832 fps
4.5 grs W231 / HP-38 @ 808 fps
5.0 grs Unique @ 726 fps
5.3 grs Unique @ 766 fps ... Good all-purpose mid-range load

That's all I have on the 45 acp ... My AMT Hardballer is sitting next to me ...
We need to go CHOOT 'EM !

Gary

[ranchman]

I shoot the RCBS 230cm (it's a round nose flat point) over 6.4gr Unique with winchester large pistol primers. All using revolvers, it chronograph's 980fps through a 5.5" Colt single action. Runs a little over 1000fps through 7.5" guns.

Very accurate, consistent load. I use it for pasture ammo around the cows as good all-purpose power... it's about the best an ACP case can do handloaded, staying standard pressure.

[35 Rem]

I shoot the RCBS 230cm (it's a round nose flat point) over 6.4gr Unique with winchester large pistol primers. All using revolvers, it chronograph's 980fps through a 5.5" Colt single action. Runs a little over 1000fps through 7.5" guns.

Very accurate, consistent load. I use it for pasture ammo around the cows as good all-purpose power... it's about the best an ACP case can do handloaded, staying standard pressure.

I intend to get that mold eventually based on all the positive reports on how well it works in 1911's in spite of being intended for 45 Colt revolvers. Once you get it to feed reliably, you lose nothing compared to a 230 grain RN and as a bonus that wide flat nose is going to make it more effective.

[Harter66]

S&W
1917 3.5"&5.5"
Colts
1917 5.5"
High Point 16" carbine
Moulds
452-255@260gr
454424 NOE version @250 gr
454424 HP Lyman round groove
#130 H&G @196 gr
453-230 SWC NEI
Mostly Win brass ACP
RP Auto Rim
CCI LPP
Unique 5.5 gr for all of the above .

I stay mellow for the Colt built on a 1905 frame and the April and August 1918 Smiths which don't care for 454424s and 452-255s . The High Point doesn't care as long as it fit in the mag .

[sixshot]

Forrest r, you should be just getting into bullseye shooting, not getting out! That's a dandy group!!!

Dick

[Good Cheer]

Yall know the way .22RF target rifles are chambered to have the front band of the soft lead bullets seat into the rifling?
You can do the same thing with .45ACP and that was the beginnings of my favorite load.

[6thtexas]

Usually for a knocking around load I use 5.0 gr. of bullseye and a 230 452374 or NOE 230fn. I wound up with a pound of Titewad powder and discovered that 3.5 gr of it and the same bullets makes for a really nice light load in the Sig 220. I have an old Ideal 452460 mold around here and I ought to do some load development with it I guess.

In my Ruger BH I use a NOE 454424 clone and 6.0 gr. of Unique but the boxes are marked well so no one tries them in an auto.

[white eagle]

so far 8.0 gr HS-6

[Low Budget Shooter]

Accurate 45-185HB over 4.4 gr Red Dot, large primers, has shot great in everything for me.
I also like H&G68 clone from Accurate and NOE over 5.0 gr W231/HP38, large primers.
With small primers, I've had success with 6.0 gr BE-86.

[hermans]

I have several different 45 molds, but my two favorites are:
MP 200gr H&G 68 clone with CCI LP primers and 5.2gr MS200, which is the close to your Titegroup.
Accurate Molds 45-230B with CCI LP primers and 4.8gr MS200.
Both are soft shooting and super accurate out of my Colt MK VI Series 70 with Storm Lake bull barrel.

[kframeman]

I use 5.7 grs of HP-38 and a 185 gr. cast swc bullet in my Sig p-220 with great results, and 4.5 grs of Titegroup in my Ruger convertible acp cylinder with 230 cast RN, very accurate. AGJ

[schutzen-jager]

Yall know the way .22RF target rifles are chambered to have the front band of the soft lead bullets seat into the rifling?
You can do the same thing with .45ACP and that was the beginnings of my favorite load.

presents real problem if you engage rifling too much + you have to eject loaded round - can leave bullet in bore + loose spilleed powder in pistol - do not ask how i learned this -

[justindad]

I don’t shoot well enough to post targets, and I probably never will, so I like Longshot for the boom and Enforcer for the heavy recoil. Otherwise, True Blue performs well, burns clean, and meters like water.

[BD]

It's not hard to come up with a good .45acp load. But I'd have to say after 150,000 rounds or so down the pipe at this point, my "favorite" load was 4.8 grains of HPC-18 under a H&G #68 SWC. It was my "favorite" load because at $6.00/lb for the powder, lead wheel weights available for next to nothing, and the price of primers at the time, I could load a box of 50 for $1.50 . Sadly those days are gone

[Forrest r]

presents real problem if you engage rifling too much + you have to eject loaded round - can leave bullet in bore + loose spilleed powder in pistol - do not ask how i learned this -

Hopefully you learned things like what neck tension and taper crimps are.

If a bullet of a loaded round pulls that easy, you'll throw "accuracy" out the window.

[schutzen-jager]

jmho - does not have that much to do with crimp + tension if it is too far into bore + firmly held by the rifling -

[jonp]

200gr Lee with 4.2gr Promo.

[Luke-299]

Thanks for sharing this. I’m a fan of N310. Have you chronographed your pet load?

Sorry I missed your question
3,9gr N310, 200gr MP Molds HG68 NLG mold seated to the shoulder of the bullet protruding the case around 1mm (1/25th of an inch), Magtech Primer

The mean speed was 247m/s which equals 810 FPS.

With Fiocchi primers (the only one available) I get high spread at 3,7gr N310 and around 225m/s (740 fps)

3,9 is already a light target load. No need to go lower, especially with Fiocchi primers.

Accuracy was still perfect with 3,7 it just feels odd.

[Txcowboy52]

Powder coated 200gr SWC or 5grs. of Win. 231 or HP-38 is a good place to start .