.45acp shooters

[mr_blove]

Do you shoot 185gr or 230gr and why, the question is both for plinking and personal defense.

[Jim Watson]

Uh, how about neither?

I prefer the 200 grain bullets, just like Mr Browning and Colt started out with in 1905.

[KyJim]

I generally use 230 grain for both defense and plinking. I do have a Springer that is particularly accurate with 200 grain Hydra Shoks.

[Black Majik]

Well, 185 gr. .45 ACP doesn't come in WWB value packs...;)

[Josh Aston]

185gr Silvertips. Why? Because that was the only brand of hollowpoints I could find in the area of my last duty station.

[kamagong]

230 gr. Why? I don't know. I don't reload, and when I bought my first box of ammo it was 230 gr. FMJ. I've stuck with it ever since. "If it ain't broke..."

[TAB]

I have a a few 1911... one likes 200 grainers, the rest like 230.

[OFT]

230 grain hollow point and ball.

[camslam]

230 Grain all the way. I have full metal jacket for plinking and practice and then loaded in Jacketed Hollow Points for self defense. Why?

-Practice what you are going to shoot with.

-Why shoot a 185 grain bullet when you get the full potential the .45 ACP has to offer in the 230 grain.

-I know many will start with the velocity argument with the lighter bullet, but remember that momentum is what is key and a heavier bullet doesn't go as fast, but it doesn't slow down as fast either.

-Lastly if I am going to be punching holes in a threat, I want to do it with the biggest, heaviest bullet that is practical. That is the 230 grain for me.

Whatever you decide to do, load your self defense with the same grain as your practice so that you are well conditioned to what you are actually going to shoot.

[rcmodel]

Most 1911's with fixed sights are sighted in for 230 grain ball.

They often don't shoot where they look with lighter weight bullets.

If you have adjustable sights, no problem.
If you don't, the 230 might be the best load to use.

I also highly respect the heavy slow bullet.
It's worked well as a proven man-stopper for over 150 years in the .45 Colt, .45 ACP, .455 Webley, and others.

rcmodel

[DevilDog0402]

230 all the way

[MICHAEL T]

I carry 185 DPX I plink with cheap 230. At SD range both close enough to point o aim.

[Vern Humphrey]

Two hundred and thirty all the way. That's what the gun was designed to shoot, and modern defense loads in 230 grain feed flawlessly and are highly effective.

I have a Lee 6-cavity gang mould in 230 grain tumble lube, and pester my local tire dealer to death for wheel weights.

[Mad Magyar]

I prefer the 200 grain bullets
Are these handloads? If not, what brand? Never seem to see any.....

Thanks D-Man....

[mavracer]

230s for all but the AMT backup it gets 185 DPXs in the form of taurus hex ammo.

[D-Man]

Mad Magyar - Hornady makes their .45 TAP bullets in 200 grain (+P). They work very well in my 1911/M&P.

[chbrow10]

I reload, and I shoot 185 grain round nose bullets in competition. I shoot this bullet in competition because the light recoil allows for a fast follow up shot.

I use 230 grain factory round nose cartridges for defense.

[magnumman44]

I plink with 230 fmj, but carry 200 gr +P hornady for self defense simply because that's what my Dad used in the gun.

[JoeSlomo]

230's....

They work. If it ain't broke...

[Hoppy590]

230 FMJ round ball for plinking. i now carry both 230 FMJ and 230 JHP. gunna try some lead rounds for blinking as well

[Grizfire]

230 for me

[RonE]

The pistol (1911) was designed to shoot 230 grain Ball ammunition and that is what I shoot for everything. The round is pretty universal and available almost everywhere in the world.

[wvshootist]

200 grain swc for me. I use them for practice and also as my carry loads.
BTW the brand bullet I load is Laser Cast.

[parisite]

200gr cast lead semi wadcutters............none more accurate.

[poet]

200 gr. semi-wad and 230 gr FMJ. I'm recoil sensitive :D

[Quiet]

230gr FMJ and JHP.

[loop]

I use only 230 but for reasons not usually mentioned.

Heavier bullets have more surface contact with the rifling. It reduces stripping of lead into the rifling (leading) and imparts spin to the bullet with more certainty.

Further, heavier bullets are less likely to be deflected and more likely to penetrate along the line of fire.

[dwave]

200 gr. SWC reloaded by me. Brand is Lasercast. Why? Because they are more accurate in my gun than a 230 gr. FMJ.

[Jason_G]

I'll use either one. I don't think it matters a whole lot as long as both rounds are quality JHP's. Here's why:

Some people think that the higher energy values you can get with the lighter loads is meaningful in some way. It's really not. Those energy figures are useful only for gaging different rounds within a caliber, and with bullets of the same mass. The energy figures are not relevant to wounding capacity.

Also, in terms of penetration, if they are quality hollow points, the 185's and 230's are going to have pretty similar penetration. The 230's might penetrate a little more, but the opening up of the bullet seems to stop penetration fairly consistently across the gamut of loads.

To me both rounds feel about the same in terms of recoil, and both make the same size hole. The 185 might have a little less recoil, but not significantly so.

So all in all, I'd just as soon buy the one that costs me the least at the counter if it's range ammo. If it's SD ammo, I just buy whichever brand/load I see that is suitable. 185 vs. 230? Not a real big difference when you get down to it. Not that I've seen anyway.

Now, ball ammo is a different story. 230 all the way.

Jason

[rdoggsilva]

230gr FMJ and JHP

[SemperFi76]

Whats better .45 1911 or a modern version

[evan price]

230 grain bullets for me. I load my practice ammo with lead slugs so velocity is capped at what lead will take without leading the barrel. THe 185's can only be pushed so fast without leading. Given the velocity is the same for 230 and 185 (due to the leading speed limit) I might as well shoot the 230-gr.

Plus it is what all 45's were designed for originally and it always works.

[The Bushmaster]

185 grain plated HP Rainier for the range and 185 grain Hornady XTP for defence...My Colt 1911 has Novack fixed sights and shoots to point of aim at 25 yards using 185 grainers...

[Deanimator]

Uh, how about neither?

I prefer the 200 grain bullets, just like Mr Browning and Colt started out with in 1905.
+1.

I load nothing but 200gr. LSWCs over 3.8-4.0gr. of Bullseye. This works great in both my M1911s and my S&W 25-2.

[M47 Dragon]

For HD, I keep 230 HPs on hand.

For normal monthly competition, I shoot cheap 230.
I would use WWB 185 all the time if I could find it locally.

For major competitions (regional, state), I will order WWB 185 to use. I like it better because of the lower recoil, faster follow-up shots.

[Hostile Amish]

I use 185/200gr. 45 ACP rounds, but I prefer the 185-grain.

[Deer Hunter]

Shorter barrels have better results with lighter bullets. Vise-versa for longer barrels.

Or so the interweb has told me.

[ojibweindian]

I shoot 200 grain LSWC under 7.0 grains of Unique, and 230 grain LRN under 5.3 grains of Unique. My carry load is Winchester White Box 230 grain JHP.

[Pat-inCO]

I shoot both but only because the 230s are what you get in Remington Green box. All of my reloads are 185Gr Nosler HPs.

The Noslers chronie at 960fps from the 5" barrel, are quite accurate, and are the least expensive .45s I can find (short of cast - which I don't like).

It's a personal thing where you pay your money and make your choice.

99.9% of the time it will not make any difference. :D

[Jim Watson]

I shoot 200 grain LSWC under 7.0 grains of Unique,

Mine shoot better when I put the bullets on top of the powder.

Sorry, but its more fun catching stuff like that than whining about clip vs magazine.

[Water-Man]

230 gr. for target and self defense.

[MCgunner]

None of the above. I shoot a Lee tumble lube 200 grain SWC because it's cheap and accurate. I handload 200 grain Speer bullets because I feel they're fast enough to insure expansion while giving a little more bullet than a 185 for penetration. .45ACP don't have a bunch of sectional density as it is and the 185 is really short. Also, in the 1911s I worked up my 200 SWC in, they were rather OAL sensitive, wouldn't feed a shortish load. The 200 SWC was just long enough and a little more accurate than the 230 RN mold I have. I don't own a 1911 anymore and my P90 feeds anything, so that's no longer a consideration.

[Vern Humphrey]

Reminds me of a muzzle loading shoot I competed in. I saw another competitor who had failed to put in powder before putting the ball down. He was trickling powder through the touch hole, trying to get in enough to shoot the ball out.

He said, "Now I know why they call them muzzle loaders -- it's the devil trying to load them from the breech."

[MCgunner]

Well, Vern, I know it ain't Kosher, but a few grains of bullseye would probably have gotten that ball out. :D

[ds/ks]

230gr. tumble lubed round nose out of Lee molds for fun. 230gr. Gold Dots or Golden Sabres for defense.

[Janitor]

In the 625 (ya didn't specify 1911. :) ), 200gr lswc exclusively. Nothing more accurate for me.

In the 1911 - 200gr lswc for plinking/target. For defense 230gr Gold Dot. I carry store bought, but have come up with a reasonable facsimile at the loading bench so I can afford to shoot enough defense loads for practice.

[jagter82]

I use 230g FMJ for plinking and also 185g JHP for self defense round and when I start reloading them I am going to make both for plinking.

[wnycollector]

for years I was in the 230gr crowd, but recently I picked up some doubletap 185gr gold dots. My SIG P220 loves um! My groups sizes dropped by 1/2!!!!! I guess this is my new carry load!

[Walkalong]

I shoot 185, 200, 225, & 230 Gr. bullets from mine. I guess that makes me either well rounded, or indecisive. :D

[MCgunner]

for years I was in the 230gr crowd, but recently I picked up some doubletap 185gr gold dots. My SIG P220 loves um! My groups sizes dropped by 1/2!!!!! I guess this is my new carry load!

IMHO, the most important factor in ammo choice for self defense. After all, you ain't gonna stop what you don't hit. :D

[NVMM]

H&G 68's and a light load of clays for the 1911's I Can't get enough of it!
H&G 155's for the 25-2 and a few flakes of clays.

[sammy]

I use a 200g LSWC over 5.1g of 231. The perfect practice, plink and action shooting round I have found to date. Since I cannot carry in the diverse state I live in, a 12 gauge shotty for the 2 legged critters that might find their sorry butts in my house uninvited.

[LongRider]

For carry Federal HST 230 grain because all of my research, reading, personal testing has shown it to be the most accurate, with the most consistent expansion and penetration of any round available. With Remmington Golden Sabers running a close second and Winchester Rangers running a poor third.

For practice Brazer Brass 230 grain because it is cheap. 230 grain is what I carry so that is what I practice with

http://lh5.ggpht.com/Sticks.df/SB7horiMnOI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/OkezgCRJdas/HST%20Top.jpg?imgmax=512
(right) Hydro shock (left) Federal HST

Photo courtesy of "Sticks" on the DC board

[tipoc]

It depends for me on the gun. Out of a short barreled gun I prefer the 185 gr. In a Commander or GM the 230. Though I'll stick 185 gr. in a GM if that's what I have on hand.

tipoc

[ojibweindian]

Mine shoot better when I put the bullets on top of the powder.

Sorry, but its more fun catching stuff like that than whining about clip vs magazine.


:D

[BlindJustice]

S&W 1911 5" Bbl. .45 ACP
S&W 625 5" Bbl. .45 ACP & .45 Auto Rim
1. 200 gr.
Hornady 200 gr. XTP +P 1,185 fps claimed
PRactice: 200 gr. SWC Leadhead it has
the H&G #68 profile @ 1,000 fps
2. 230 gr. - I live near Lewiston home of CCI/Speer
SPeer Gold Dot JHPs
Practice - Blazer alum or brass case FMJs
3. 186 gr. I pick up the occaisional Golden Saber, or
other stufff not found usually in thestores I frequent.
Example: Rem/UMC 185 gr. Flat Point fmj that I found
is rated at 1,085 fps

I've also got some heavier loads in Auto Rim, the big N-frame
with the full underlug is 45 oz. empty El Kah Bong.

I just found the Hornady +P 200 grainers very accurate in
the 1911 or the Revolver. I told the guy at the store to order
more I'd be good for a couple every month.

[putteral]

I carry 185 gr XTP'S over 6 grs of 231(HP38)in my 24/7 PRO

[LongRider]

Just did my own tests. Using my XD.45 compact (4 inch barrel) from 15 feet into three one gallon milk jugs. I had 15 jugs for five tests. Every one of the rounds looked identical to the other. After the test I shot up a box for practice. For a total of 588 HST rounds through my XD without a single failure of any kind. 62 rounds are now loaded into my XD mags and 1 box left. So it looks like time to buy more ammo, though Brazer Brass 230 grain shoots enough like the HST to be a excellent practice round.

http://www.bearvisions.com/4Guns/HST.jpg

[Phil DeGraves]

I doubt the bad guy is going to be able to tell the difference if you do your part...

[springmom]

Generally, 230 gr for both. I get better accuracy from it.

Springmom