45 Colt?

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gspn

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I have an opportunity to buy a bunch of guns way below current market values. A friend of a friend passed away and he had a huge collection. There are a bunch of S&W revolvers in this collection and many of them are chambered in 45 Colt.

I don't know a thing about 45 Colt.

I'm getting as many of the .357 and .44 S&W double action pieces as I can. I've not really considered the 45 Colts but the time is getting close where I have to make a decision...is there a compelling reason to have a 45 Colt? Is it just a cowboy action type cartridge? From the data I've checked it looks to be slightly less powerful than the 45 ACP and I've already got that base covered.

I dunno...I guess I'm just looking for some opinions on this. He's got several S&W 625's, Ruger single actions, and some model 25's. There is also a Colt New Frontier that looks cool.

Any thoughts are welcomed and appreciated.
 
Everyone needs at least o0ne 45Colt. You can shoot any load from wimpy powder puff (cowboy action) all the way up to OMG hand numbing loads.:evil: Ruger is a (tank) 45Colt as far as durability.
 
Yes sir, you NEED a .45 Colt! You won't regret it. Buy all of them you can from the seller. Good guns for good prices shouldn't be passed up if at all possible. JMHO.
 
Slightly less powerful than the .45 ACP?
Only in the cowboy competition loads.
A properly loaded .45 Colt can bring down a horse.
I carried one as a cop years ago & did so right up till the last shift I worked before the "Bring that .45 to work tomorrow instead of the new Glock you were issued and you're fired" deadline.

I still have it, along with several other revolvers in .45 Colt.
But- if YOU can't think of a reason to want one, then you shouldn't bother.
Denis
 
Standard .45 Colt loads are slightly MORE powerful than .45 ACP. Cowboy loads are reduced recoil for competition. Fully loaded in a gun that can handle it and it rubs elbows with .44 Magnum.
 
Not that a Cowboy load won't do a hell of a lot of damage on it's own either.

Cowboy soft lead 250 grains kick more than my 225 Winchester Silvertips, but most normal rounds are rather pleasurable to shoot in a heavy metal revolver.

I wouldn't sit there trying to work up the most punishing loads you could in your S&W's, , but for hunting or defense a good .45 colt can keep up with a .44 mag, just not as much metal in the cylinder to hold it together against envelope pushers. .

I shoot a LOT of it, and I'd be in the poorhouse without reloading... Off the shelf .45 colt can run 70 cents to a buck a round.

Join us... then you can go join the .41 mag club afterward. :D
 
gspn

If it were me I would buy as many of those .45 revolvers as I could afford. The Colt New Frontier and the S&W Model 25 would be at the top of my list.
 
You gotta get a 45. If if you don't know what it's good for, or how powerful it is or can be, you need it just for fun.

The first time you load it, those big cartridges look like artillery shells next to 9mm's or even 38's. They drop in with a satisfying "THUNK." When you eject the empties, they look like trash cans.

In between there is a BOOM, a muzzle rise (How much depends on the load) and a kick that isn't hard, but will let you know you shot something. Heads turn along the line. This doesn't sound like your average pistol.

I can't explain it, I know it's not bigger than a Model 28, but it looks bigger. It reminds me of Hellboy's pistol. I keep thinking "Now, THIS is a gun."

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I'm a traditionalist. I like mine in single action. You said he had some Rugers, here's a pair.


The 7.5" one has never fired a factory round, except the one that came in the box with it. I've loaded everything from really light cowboy loads to "Ruger Only" wristbreakers, and they're all a blast to shoot. It really goes from one extreme to the other in power. I'm wanting to kill a deer with this one this year. The 5.5" is my dads. He got hooked on mine and had to have one.

The Smiths are great. No better actions period. If you want to load some scary powerful loads though, get one of the Rugers.

Dadsnewgun026.jpg
 
.45LC is the original bad ass round.

Own a Uberti Bisley, New Model Blackhawk, and a Smith & Wesson model 25 all in .45. Great round
 
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Like everyone else said: you need a .45 Colt.
The cartridges do dwarf nearly anything else it's compared to (I realize this doesn't equate to power, but there is still something satisfying about it.)
My "nightstand" gun is a S&W 6" Model 25.
It will do the job.

Edit: It's also an easy cartridge to learn to reload. They're big enough that they don't slip through your fingers as easily as some of the smaller stuff.
 
In a S&W model 25/625, the factory-loaded .45 Colt will work just fine. However, if you intend to juice it up to near-.44 magnum velocities and pressure, you'll need a Ruger Blackhawk, Ruger Redhawk (.454 Casull), or S&W .460 for them. The N frame just won't handle the hotter loads over time.

But even the factory-loaded .45 Colt can be a handful, depending on the stocks, and your tolerance to recoil.
 
I've been a fan of the .45 colt for nearly 20 years, and while I've been involved with SASS for the last 5 years, I carried a model 25 as a Police Officer, starting in 1990. It's a definite multi tasker caliber from the subsonic cowboy loads, to the medium level SWC's, all the way up to the +P loads moving at around 1500 fps. For self defense a 250 grain JHP at about 950 fps is the perfect load. My advice, BUY THEM ALL!;)

LD
 
Stay away from 45 Colt, this Buck hates them.................... :)

6-Ruger.jpg

I think I'm up to 4-5 wheelguns in this caliber, it is just fun to shoot!
 
To mirror what LawDawg said above, there's lots of versatility in this "old" caliber. I found a S&W 25-7 (five-inch barrel, unfluted cylinder) and have been working through almost a dozen factory loads to see what is more accurate for plinking, self defense (two-legged), and animal defense (for hiking out West; saw lots and lots of grizzly sign in the Tetons this past summer and Glacier the summer before).

When stationed on the Left Coast year's ago, the smaller LE departments would often authorize any non-magnum load and '25-2s/5s and '24s were much in demand. The 225gr Silvertip seemed to be on everyone's short list as a duty/carry load.
 
I have a Rossi 92 carbine in 45 colt that I love. I wanted a revolver to go with it, and though I initially would have preferred a double action, I ended up with a Blackhawk in 45 colt/45 acp as well.

Although it is expensive to feed, I truly enjoy that old blackhawk. My teenage nephew, brother-in-law, and I took a bunch of firearms to the range, and at the end of the day my nephew and I agreed that, despite all the nifty modern guns we had shot, shooting 225 grain Hornandy Lever-lutions was probably our favorite.

In the lighter loads, 45 colt is not as loud or violent upon the shooter as, say, 357 mag. I have taken game with it, though, and it is as effective at stopping animals as any other handgun caliber I have seen.
 
It was and remains unbeaten to this day as the most powerful handgun used by US military. The gun was Colt 1909.
 
My wife is gonna hate you guys. The bidding isn't complete yet but barring any significant changes it looks like I'll be getting five of the 45 Colts next week. All of them double action revolvers from S&W.

There are some Ruger single actions and a Colt New Fronteir available but I had to draw the line somewhere. ( I currently own a .41 mag Ruger Blackhawk so I've kind of got that base covered).

I've also got a bunch of .44's in the mix, some .38 and .357, then a couple of .380's. Looks like I'll be bringing home a bunch of guns shortly.

I'll post pics after it's all done.

Thanks for the input!
 
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