My Critter-Gitter .45acp Load

My .45acp Critter-Gitter load, 51 rounds:







... and cleaned the 1911 yesterday, detail strip.

The load is a nominal 5.2 grains of W231 under a my soft-cast (almost pure lead, with just enough tin to let it flow but not frost at high heat) flat nose, truncated cone 230 grain nominal, 235 to 240 grain actual (due to the alloy used).

Be aware that this MAX according to the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook but pressure is listed as about 3kpsi under standard .45acp. Start low at about 4.2 grains and work up to 5.2 MAX.

This load is the longest I could take it with this bullet and still have it function in the magazines. This usually means 1.275COL for round nose but, in this case using truncated cone, it maxed out at an even 1.25COL.

Lube was homemade. Don't remember the particular blend I had on these boolits. Something like beeswax, LLA, lanolin and Militec-1. May have some paraffin in there. Something fancy that I'll not be doing again. Next will be beeswax/Crisco/lanolin or something simple like that!

Josh

Bula, it's the Lee, the regular not tumble-lube.

I find these feed best with the old taper-lip (GI) magazine design and Wilson #47 bodies with Tripp followers.

Almost as good is the MetalForm 8 round "Tactial Elite". MetalForm is just an excellent magazine company, anyway.

When you start getting into the CMC and Kimber mags feeding starts getting decidedly choppy. It works and doesn't choke, but not nearly as smoothly as those above.

Triple K and such just aren't worth it, as I'm sure you've discovered.

Josh

rcmodel said:

Who cares about the magazine.

I'd be surprised if that bullet design isn't jambing into the rifling leade at that length!!

Did you take the barrel out of the gun and do a "Plunk Test" in the chamber??

Any load must be able to drop in the chamber all the way with a "plunk", headspace to the back of the barrel hood, and then fall out of it's own weight when you turn the barrel chamber down.

If it won't, you are seating too long, and into the rifling leade.
And that can lead to a Series Of Unfortunate Events sooner or later.

rc

Click to expand...

Prepare to be surprised, RC! I was.

I used to load it shorter for the same reason you're concerned, and then got to playing with COL and feeding. This just provides the best feeding and doesn't headspace on the bullet. I have made loads that do, and you know how, if you push on the back of the case, they're mushy, right? As you push the lead into the rifling? I have hard case contact. It's headspacing on the case mouth:







I just explain it to myself as the lead version of the Hornady TAP:


Courtesy Cheaper Than Dirt

The TAP stuff feeds very nicely in my pistol, and so I figured I'd try to work this cast truncated cone out to the same approximate length at the shoulder. It seems to have worked. All rounds pass the drop test.

Regards,

Josh

Yup.