first reloading experience

[gruesomenewsom]

I loaded up my first batch of bullets yesterday: 100 rounds of 45acp. Took the recipe straight out of the lyman manual for 185gn SWC. Loaded real light with 3.5gn Bullseye. I don't think my Gold Cup has been any happier! Its really wierd at first shooting a .45 with so little recoil. Works great! Just thought I'd share!

 

[lead-inspector]

Welcome

Welcome to Reloading.

Steve

 

[ambidextrous1]

Wow, that's really a light load! Of course, it would make no sense to shoot +P+ loads in a Gold Cup.

The .45 ACP is a good caliber to start reloading on; it's hard to get in trouble as long as you watch out for double charges.

Bullseye is the favorite of the "old pros"; I've experimented with other powders, but have always returned to Bullseye.

 

[gruesomenewsom]

Wow, that's really a light load!

that was the recommended starting load from the manual. The batch I loaded this morning is in the 3.6-3.7 vicinity. I don't think I'll be going much higher than that. The whole reason i got into reloading was because i couldnt find ammo for my gold cup. And after yesterday's outing I realized the ammo I had shot out of it was heavy on the powder charges, so I'm glad I only had a few hundred rounds through the gun before I started loading my own.

 

[rfwobbly]

G Man -
Welcome to reloading!

Glad you enjoyed yourself. It only gets better from here. Try simply loading five at 3.6, five at 3.7, five at 3.8, etc. Then, with your hand on a sand bag, see if the groups get any tighter at (say) 20 yds. Stop when they stop getting tighter.

I agree, you can beat a nice gun to pieces with factory loads, and a Gold Cup is too nice for that.

 

[gruesomenewsom]

Glad you enjoyed yourself. It only gets better from here. Try simply loading five at 3.6, five at 3.7, five at 3.8, etc. Then, with your hand on a sand bag, see if the groups get any tighter at (say) 20 yds. Stop when they stop getting tighter.

I have to learn to shoot a little better first. Half the reason I've been shooting so much is to get better, because I'm not a great shot. Then I got into reloading because ammo is expensive (and scarce). Basically I'm just working my way up from the bottom of the totem pole so-to-speak. Thanks for all the advice!

 

[The Bushmaster]

And the reason the "Old Timer's" use Bullseye is because, like the "Old Timer's", it has been around sense black powder. Not saying it's a bad powder, but there are better ones out there that are more modern and you reload to experiment for the fun of it and the enjoyment of shooting. Try a few others designed for the .45 ACP. You will be pleasently suprised. I use three different powders for my .45 ACPs. W-231 (versitile), AA #7 for my Colt 1911 and WSF for my short barreled Kimber.