.45 Colt loads with authority. Hopefully not overpressure.

I went against the grain with some of my reloads and started closer to the top of the load instead of working my way up. Yes, I understand this isn't smart, yes I know reloading is not a activity where you should experiment on the fringe of things. I know. No one got hurt, me and my gun are fine. Everything is ok. I realize things could have ended badly, and I learned from my mistake and am moving on.

Here is my load. I am using starline brass, SNS casting 250 Gr LRNFP with a single lube groove and cannelure. 8.0 grains of unique, and Winchester large pistol primers. I am shooting a Ruger New Vaquero, SS, with a 5.5" barrel.

I measured every single powder charge twice, and was very very particular about my COL.

Max load was 8.1 grains unique, so I was slightly under.

These load are stout. They kick. I am used to my cowboy loads from HSM and Trail boss reloads which are pretty wimpy I hear, but are easy on the hands for a day at the range. The closest thing I can compare my reloads to is my friends .357, but they are a little less than that as far as recoil goes

I didn't have a chronograph, but I was shooting to be in the 850 range.

My Lyman manual has a 250 grain with double lube grooves that has a max load of 9.5 grains. I can't see how with the same 250 weight one bullet is safe at 9.5 and the other is 8.1. I am assuming the lube groove makes a difference?

My biggest concern is the recoil. I have only ever shot cowboy loads so I was caught off guard with these hotter loads. Should I be concerned about over pressure? My cases are all ok, and I didn't see any signs of overpressure.

I am going to load down. I guess I wanted to hear opinions from more experienced shooters and reloaders than me. Did the 45 have some recoil in the glory days? Or am I shooting dangerous loads?

mrawesome22-250 said:

Alliant site shows 9.5gr Unique max with a 250gr bullet. You are well below max.

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I believe you but here is an exerpt from my manual. I use a single lube groove bullet, and the double lube groove has a 9.5 grain max. So would this data be less about the pressure and more about the effectiveness of the amount of lube?

mrawesome22-250 said:

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Wow. Thank you for posting that.

I apologize for all the stupid questions but I have only been at this about a year and a half and have not had such a drastic change before in the amount of recoil from my factory loads and cowboy pressure reloads.

I feel more comfortable now, and my load was very accurate actually, so I will add it to the journal as a good load.

Thanks for your help!

Jim Watson said:

You can see that Lyman data for Unique is not pressure tested. I don't know what criteria they used that gave them such a wide spread of loads for different design bullets of similar weight but you are not pushing your luck at 8.1 grains with any 250-260 gr bullet. Factory equivalent, full power, not Tenderfoot, is taken to be 8.0-8.5 grains of Unique and a 250.
Real .45 Colt, 36 grains of FFFg black in modern drawn brass cases will get you well over 900 fps.

The old edition (1967 I think) going up to 10 grains is very stout. It wouldn't faze your Ruger but I would not shoot many if any in a Colt or copy.

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I would like to try original black powder loads but finding fffg black powder is tough in my area.

And loading and cleaning up after black powder requires different supplies than I have so I have been hesitant to do it.

BullRunBear said:

The 8 grain load of Unique with that weight bullet is generally considered a working load, not extreme. I shoot it often in my new model Vaquero with no problem and comfortable recoil. (I know recoil is subjective.) It is also my most accurate load in the Vaquero and an old Blackhawk. It might feel stout after CAS light rounds.

Don't give up on the idea of black powder loads at some point. I use the same brass, bullet, and primer with BP with the Vaquero. The one difference is I use a lubed felt wad between the powder and bullet, like I do with cap and ball revolvers. Recoil is a little more than the Unique formula but not much and they are quite accurate. I clean both gun and spent brass with warm water, dry thoroughly, then oil the gun as usual. It's a little extra trouble and can't be put off for long after a session. But BP cartridges are fun to shoot and the smoke and aroma of black powder will get some attention. Not to hijack your thread but there's a ton of information here and on the web with details if you get interested.

Jeff

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I wouldn't say the recoil was terrible but it was definitely a step up from the cowboy loads I was used to. I have never shot a normal pressure load so I didn't know what to expect. I should have ordered a box of buffalo bore standard pressure max loads so I would have somewhat known what to expect.

I am not going to give up on black powder, but I need to do more research before I try it.

Thank you everyone for the replies! I am going to keep the 8 grains and a 250 as a standard load. It was very accurate from my gun, and as long as it is safe I don't see a need to go higher or lower.

It was actually more fun shooting these than the cowboy loads, as you start to see the real power the round is capable of. I was only worried about the very noticeable increase in recoil as I thought it was due to overpressure. I went from a gnat fart load to taco bell burrito fart I guess.