schatzperson
Member
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2009
- Messages
- 4
Hello everyone,
I do not doubt one bit that a .223 rifle has far more efficiency potential as a man stopper than a .45 ACP handgun, but recently I have come to re-consider the question of high performance 45 loads in carbine stlye guns.
A while ago while developing loads for my Thompson smg's, I found that using 200 grain semi wad cutter, hard cast bullets I could not get a 1928 A1 to cycle properly; The load that worked very well in a 1911 pistol was not strong enough to work the bolt far enough for the sear to engage in the TSMG.
While working up the load, I found that the 1928A1 can handle the 200 grain SWC bullet @ 1275 fps with no problem at all; The gun functioned flawlessly and I could barely observe a very very tiny bulge on the case.
Well, 200gr at 1275 fps (722 ft #) is well into 45 Super territory !!!
(A 230 grain load might even better this in 45 Super brass)
So my question is this:
Given the same carbine barrel length of say, 10.5 inches is there a significant shift of effectivenness between .45 Super and 223 ball ?
Disregarding weapon weight factors, will a 45 Super at these levels offer competitive stopping power to a 223 in 10 inch carbines ?
Very likely flight ballistics will favour the 223, but inside 75 yards or so, we might be looking at a differnt story.
I am in no way implying that my heavy Thompson is a better battle gun than a 223 carbine, or that it is just as accurate and handy to use. My question is purely about the terminal ballistic performance on human targets at these ranges.
I do not doubt one bit that a .223 rifle has far more efficiency potential as a man stopper than a .45 ACP handgun, but recently I have come to re-consider the question of high performance 45 loads in carbine stlye guns.
A while ago while developing loads for my Thompson smg's, I found that using 200 grain semi wad cutter, hard cast bullets I could not get a 1928 A1 to cycle properly; The load that worked very well in a 1911 pistol was not strong enough to work the bolt far enough for the sear to engage in the TSMG.
While working up the load, I found that the 1928A1 can handle the 200 grain SWC bullet @ 1275 fps with no problem at all; The gun functioned flawlessly and I could barely observe a very very tiny bulge on the case.
Well, 200gr at 1275 fps (722 ft #) is well into 45 Super territory !!!
(A 230 grain load might even better this in 45 Super brass)
So my question is this:
Given the same carbine barrel length of say, 10.5 inches is there a significant shift of effectivenness between .45 Super and 223 ball ?
Disregarding weapon weight factors, will a 45 Super at these levels offer competitive stopping power to a 223 in 10 inch carbines ?
Very likely flight ballistics will favour the 223, but inside 75 yards or so, we might be looking at a differnt story.
I am in no way implying that my heavy Thompson is a better battle gun than a 223 carbine, or that it is just as accurate and handy to use. My question is purely about the terminal ballistic performance on human targets at these ranges.