Cast bullets and .45 Win Mag?

[trbon8r]

I just purchased an LAR Grizzly .45 Win Mag pistol. I need to work up a load for the pistol. With the cost of factory JHP bullets in the 260 gr. range being around 30 bucks for 50, that isn't going to happen. I need a cheaper alternative than JHP bullets.

I know the .44 Magnum guys shoot cast bullets and manage to avoid or at least minimize leading. With the .45 Win Mag being the ballistic equivalent of a .44 Mag, I'm hoping someone can direct me to a source for some cast lead bullets in the 260 gr. range that can still be driven at a reasonably fast velocity and won't lead the barrel up?

 

[tlen]

About the only thing you can do is buy some hard cast .45 ACP bullets and give them a try knowing that velocity and bore roughness affect leading. Generally those that shoot high velocity lead bullets in .44 mag use gas checks. That said, I've shot low end straight lead [no GC] .44 mag loads in the 1100-1200 FPS range that don't seem to lead up. You thus might be able to get away with low end loads then gradually increase velocity.
Generally .45 ACP type bullets are limited to 230 gr and those heavier are for .45 Colt. I'm curious if you can find some 260 gr bullets; I haven't seen any.

 

[rcmodel]

If they will feed in your gun:

http://www.castperformance.com/Detail.bok?no=18

But, you are only going to get 1,200 - 1,300 FPS or so out of a 265, and you don't need a gas-check bullet at that velocity level.
Any .45 Colt bullet sized .452 should work just fine.

rcmodel

 

[sargenv]

You may also want to look into Precision or Bear Creek Moly coated lead bullets. You can push them pretty quick with the slower powders and you get a lot less smoke and no leading (if you load them right) than regular hard cast bullets. I've pushed my 140 gr RN - 40 cal bullets out of my 610 to 1350 fps. Snappy but no leading.

 

[grendelbane]

Back in the day, when I first bought my Grizzly, I had to have an expanding, hollow point bullet that weighed 230 grains or more. It also had to have a suitable profile for automatic pistol feeding.

I ended up using the Lee hollow point .45, and I didn't get my 230 grain weight. Still, it fed well, expanded well, held together and penetrated well. (in .45 Winmag, in .45 ACP, it acted just like ball).

Even today, there are not a lot of good choices for a heavy weight hollow point bullet in this caliber.

 

[454PB]

Is the Grizzly gas operated? I have a Desert Eagle, but can't use my cast bullets due to the lube plugging the gas system.

 

[highlander 5]

Grizzly pistols are recoil operated like a 1911. I've seen one in my neck of the woods 44mag to be exact. Actually Grizzly's are a 1911 on steroids.

 

[trbon8r]

Thanks for the info. I couldn't find any cast bullets I felt like trying so I broke down and bought 300 of the Hornady XTP .452 diameter 250 grain bullets. https://www.hornady.com/shop/?ps_se...&category_id=c824f8a3cf4470d4fa95f4c7b72957e0

I believe these bullets are intended for the .45 LC pistol, but I hope will work equally well in the Grizzly if the bullets are up to being launched at .45 Win Mag velocities. Likewise, I hope the bullet profile will feed well in the Grizzly. The price wasn't bad by today's standards either at 19 cents a projectile.

 

[usmcpmi]

My LAR likes the 300 gr HP bullets. They feed fine. I mostly shoot the 230 gr round nose for "regular" shooting... I love shooting it at the indoor range. Everyone stops and stares....MG