This will be my first batch of reloads. I will be starting with 4.9 gn of VV N-320 and CCI LPP. I bought some Nosler sporting pistol bullets 230 gn fmj part# 44964. I ordered online and thought they were round nose, but turns out they are flat nose. The bullet length is .625 in. My Lee manual states min. COL for 230 gn fmj as 1.26. What COL should I use for these flat nose bullets. Thanks for any help. Don't want to blow my face off on my first set of loads, or at any time for that matter.
Newbie question about COL for 45 acp
- Thread starter Gadawg88
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LiveLife
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Check out this thread - http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=506678
rcmodel
Member in memoriam
Well theres your problem!
You need a real reloading manual that tells & shows you what bullet shape they are talking about.
The Lee collection of old copied data doesn't.
That doesn't matter.
What matters is how much full dia bullet sticks out of the case when it is loaded.
Seat deep enough the full dia bullet doesn't jam into the rifling when it is chambered and you should be about right for OAL.
Whatever that turns out to be.
But it for sure won't be what the Lee manual said it was with an unknown bullet used by an unknown powder manufacture when they copied the data years ago.
When right, you should be able to drop a round in your pistols chamber and it should "plunk" in.
Then fall back out of it own weight when turned chamber down.
Seat no shorter then that.
rc
Jim Watson
Member
Not even the Nosler manual gives OALs for their own bullets.
You will have to go to basic principles instead of a Recipe Hunt.
The loaded round must chamber freely, it must fit the magazine (all the way down, not just in the lips), and it must feed from magazine to chamber.
You can make up a dummy round and fiddle with it until it fits the gun, then load some (not a lot) of ammo to that OAL and see if it functions.
You will have to go to basic principles instead of a Recipe Hunt.
The loaded round must chamber freely, it must fit the magazine (all the way down, not just in the lips), and it must feed from magazine to chamber.
You can make up a dummy round and fiddle with it until it fits the gun, then load some (not a lot) of ammo to that OAL and see if it functions.
James2
Member
I am going to suggest 1.230 COL for that bullet. (From the Hornady manual with a similarly shaped bullet.)
The OAL is not set in stone for any bullet. We can play around with it a bit to
achieve the results we need. Yes, the deeper we push the bullet into the casing,
the higher the pressure will be. Not to worry if we start low and work up as
always recommended.
As noted before, It must fit the magazine. It must feed from magazine to chamber. It must pass the plunk test.
Tennessee Jed
Member
I had the same issue, but am handloading for a Ruger Blackhawk 45 Colt/45 acp convertible revolver. I did as James2 suggested, and started out on the minimum side with powder. So far so good. No signs of over pressure yet.
Generally, flat nose bullets, such as truncated cones, frequently need a shorter COL in auto pistols as compared to the same weight round nose.
The cartridges need to fit the magazine, feed into the chamber and fit the chamber. In the absence of information, work with some dummy rounds (rounds less primer and powder) seating the bullets deeper until they fit the magazine. Then see if they will chamber when cycling by hand.
Once you find the magic length, load a few rounds and take to the range to try them out. If they don't work, you can shoot them single shot or disassemble the rounds before trying again. That is why you do not want to load to many test rounds.
1.230" as James2 suggested might work. 1.260" may not fit the magazine. But it is difficult to guess without seeing or knowing which bullet you are talking about.
I load my 230 RN 45 ACP to 1.250".
The cartridges need to fit the magazine, feed into the chamber and fit the chamber. In the absence of information, work with some dummy rounds (rounds less primer and powder) seating the bullets deeper until they fit the magazine. Then see if they will chamber when cycling by hand.
Once you find the magic length, load a few rounds and take to the range to try them out. If they don't work, you can shoot them single shot or disassemble the rounds before trying again. That is why you do not want to load to many test rounds.
1.230" as James2 suggested might work. 1.260" may not fit the magazine. But it is difficult to guess without seeing or knowing which bullet you are talking about.
I load my 230 RN 45 ACP to 1.250".
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