decideing on a mold for a new 45 ACP is tough

[big jerr]

read till my eyes are bleeding on the question of the century being the "what's the best " , that said I have a 45 springfield mil spec on order ,know little except what ive read on these "new" fancy guns , I'm a sass shooter and want to try the wild bunch thing and the only shure thing I know is a # 68 swc 200 gr seams a favorite BUT I'm a lee man meaning I'm quite satisfied with all my LEE reloading equip. and molds considering the cost and what I get for my $ .
So talk is the LEE # 68 swc 200 gr. clone is not a true copy , some say it don't feed in some guns .my problem is I only want to BUY one bullet mold for this caliber and this gun ,must be a 6 banger , would prefer 200 gr just to conserve my California lead supply, but if only buying problems I would consider a 225-230 gr ball type mold ..
That said can any say the LEE 452-200-swc 90310(6 banger) works good in there Springfield 45 acp and is worth a try ???

I do realize the gun well need to be broke -in , ramp ,ejecter ,and such polished before attempting to try any reloads !

PS looking in the LEE cat. I notice another 200 gr. swc called a TL452-200-swc 90379 , have not read much on this one ,could it be a better choice I wonder ,it has more of a ball head on it ? Jerr

[joesig]

I don't own a Springfield but I do use the TL452-200-SWC. Even bumping a large HP in it, it still fed fine. I like the ease of the tumble lube too.

[saphelps]

Check with Mi-Hec. I was looking for same and I sent him a PM. Happened to have 6-cav aluminum available (Bevel Base and Flat Base) and a brass 4-cav mold (FB). I've two of his other molds and they're very high quality. Mold is H&G #68 45 ACP LSWC.

[Bigslug]

I've done the homework for you. You want this one: http://castboolits.gunloads.com/show...25#post2951425

Hits like a bus when run at hardball speeds and will feed in your Springfield (or your stock WWII gun) JUUUUST FINE without messing with anything. Pricier than a Lee and you get four holes, but drops so smooth you aren't wasting time on stuck slugs.

As to lead conservation: It's a .45! Buy a .32 if you're feeling metal-miserly.

[Lonegun1894]

I used to have the Lee 200gr SWC and used it in every .45 ACP I have had. Great bullet, but I have gone to the Mihec HP from a recent group buy. For what it's worth regarding the Lee not feeding in some guns, I had one it wouldn't feed well in, but if I seated the bullet a few thousandths of an inch deeper, it fed just fine, and the accuracy was still just as good in all the others, so I standardized on that load. So if it doesn't feed well in yours, try playing with OAL a bit and see if you can't get it to work.

[daengmei]

My 1911 Springfield doesn't miss a lick using the clone #68. Not sure who's mold these came from, I bought several hundred from this forum a couple years ago. I say clone because it doesn't completely match a #68's profile. No polishing needed for mine.

[country gent]

One thing to consider doing before buying your mould is test some diffrent cast bullets in your gun to see what feeds functions and what it likes accurcy wise and what you like. Buy a few in several diffrent wieght ranges and styles. 185, 200, 230 grn semi wadcutter, truncuated cone round nosed. Test these and get an idea whats working then look for that style mould or have a mould made.

[btroj]

Never had any feed issues in my Colt. Shot lots of the Lee 200 swc with no problems.

[montana_charlie]

One thing to consider doing before buying your mould is test some diffrent cast bullets in your gun to see what feeds functions and what it likes accurcy wise and what you like. Buy a few in several diffrent wieght ranges and styles. 185, 200, 230 grn semi wadcutter, truncuated cone round nosed. Test these and get an idea whats working then look for that style mould or have a mould made.

Isn't there a bullet exchange somewhere on this site where a person has the chance to try some designs before buying a mould?

I think I heard about the creation of such a section, but there are so many (now) that it's too time-consuming to keep track of all of them.

CM

[Dale53]

My favorite .45 ACP projectile is a Mihec mold for an H&G #68 flatbase (actually a #69 but no one seems to know it by that name). However, I have a six cavity Lee mold for their 230 gr Truncated Cone. The mold is not nearly as nice as my Mihec and NOE molds. However, in all fairness, it is really good enough. I size the bullets at .452" and set them up for my 1911's and they work just fine in my 625's, also. They load extremely well when using full moon clips for the revolvers, too.

What's more important to the original poster, the Lee 230 gr TC (conventional lube groove) feeds well in several 1911's I have tried them in. They have a nice wide flat meplat that should greatly increase their terminal effect, also.

FWIW
Dale53

[big jerr]

thanks to all for input and direction , though still undecided as the NOE 5 slugger looks good in the #68 clone its out of stock , and the ni-hec mold I cant find ,is this a private party or a company ? any how I really like the exchange Idea and am contemplating buying some premade bullets in 250 quantities or even 100's and mess with different shapes though that still would no help on the issue of the LEE mold of the #68 clone since I don't think any of the premades are lee's ... any how a lot of food for thought ,thanks again Jerry

[RobS]

MiHec or MP molds

http://www.mp-molds.com/

[big jerr]

Thanks for the link but they appear to be out of stock also , looks like some patience on my part is in order .... Thanks again jerr

[Good Cheer]

big jerr,
Just my two cents.
I'm leery of vehicles without sticks and hand guns without cylinders. Reliability trumps.
So, for a 45ACP I went for a mold that just flat works. A round nose of standard ball weight and a big hollow point.
It always goes bang and mushrooms.
It's the old Lyman gas check design that I got for nothing in the early eighties (3 for $10) when they had a sale on out of tolerance blocks. The cherry barely went deeper than normal.
The hollow point makes it 225 grains. The weight makes it expand and penetrate. Having a few thousand of the original Ideal brass gas checks for the old mold helps too.

[JohnH]

My go to 45 boolit is the Lee 230-2R-TL. My RIA has not ever hiccupped on that boolit, regardless of boolit or slide velocity. I've run it as mild as 3.5 grains of Green Dot and full pressure Blue Dot loads. Thee boolit feeds wonderfully and shoots better than I can hold. IN SASS Wild Bunch where you are banging steel for points, a gun that runs is more important than saving a bit of lead. I've tried the Lee 200 SWC and also have the Lyman 452460. Neither fed 100% in my RIA with conventional lubes (wax or liquid alox) The 452460 was 100% when I experimented with powder coating, but I find 45-45-10 to deliver minimal fuss lubing. Shake, pour out, 5-6 hours later put 'em a container (I like old butter tubs) and they are ready to shoot.

[RobS]

Thanks for the link but they appear to be out of stock also , looks like some patience on my part is in order .... Thanks again jerr

Just email or PM MiHec to see what he has.
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/member.php?5623-MiHec

[Boogieman]

I just got a 2 cavity Leer. 200gr. H&G style mold. It was right on for dia.& less than .001"out of round. It was a replacement for one I bought used & wore out. It feeds 100% out of both of my Colts. Also tried the Lee 200gr. TL it would not feed. this boolit ,the RCBS 200gr.& Lyman's 452460 are shorter and can not be loaded long enough to feed well in 1911s. The H&G style was made to feed in them loaded to 1.240 - 1.255". I ordered the mold from Titan Reloading and had it in 3 days.

[Horace]

Right now I`ll go with NOE molds.

Horace

[big jerr]

robs & johnh , I well consider on both , drop a email in the morn & and leaning to the Idea of the 230 ball though not sure on the TL design prefer lube grooves BUT still use 45-45-10 or pan lube ... I don't want to deal with hick-ups period...thanks Guys, Jerry

[bobthenailer]

My Springfield 1911 loaded in 45 acp does not miss a beat using the Saeco #068 , there version of the famous HG 68 and neither did the maybe 8 other 1911 45 acp pistols i used it in as well as 3 other 45 acp auto's that were not on the 1911 platform.

I have several moulds for a 45 acp a Saeco 170gr swc , 200gr swc, 215gr fn swc , and a RCBS 230 gr rn