Suggestions to Start Loading .45 ACP

[drband]

My goto .45acp powder is Red Dot.
4.6gr with a 200 gr MBC coated LSWC. Very pleasant to shoot in my DW 1911.
I have loaded RMR 230gr plated RN @5.0gr and lower depending on what I'm shooting. I actually have loaded the RMRs as low as 4.0gr with great results. Sooooo soft shooting and still very accurate in my 625JM.

You will really enjoy loading .45acp. As someone mentioned plain lead will be smoky because of the lube. I like coated the best.

 

[Blue68f100]

I mainly shoot the 185gr LSWC from MBC, powered by WST. Those of you that think a powder is burning clean should try WST. It's the cleanest powder I have ever found even at reduced loads (below min). I started on use the W231, which is a good powder and very versatile. If your using a dispenser it's best to use one that meter accurately, and both of these will do that being Ball Powders. I've shot a lot of the Berry's 230gr and 185gr RN too. My gun shoot's/feeds anything I've tried. But it's built for BE shooting so I mainly only shoot the SWC at BE target loads. You do what to use a 12 BHN bullet, since this round is a low pressure round. As with any lead bullet Size is King.

 

[Walkalong]

HP-38 is a good choice. I used to shoot 5.0 Grs for plating and 5.5 for full power practice loads. That is old data and the newer HP-38/W-231 data is often lighter. It is lightly colored and easy to see in the case. WST is a more modern choice and a very good one. Very bulky, lightly colored, meters well, accurate. Good stuff.

The Berrys 230 Gr RN shoots well, and 5.0 Grs of the HP-38 you have will shoot well for you.

Either WST or HP-38 will also work well with various 200 Gr SWCs. The Precision coated 200 Gr SWC is a good choice.

 

[Toprudder]

I've done a lot of testing with plated bullets and probably 30 different powders in 45. I also use mostly small primer brass as well. So, I will throw in my 2 cents worth.

45acp is a low pressure round, a lot lower than 9mm. The significance is that powders that burn relatively clean in 9mm may not burn well at all in 45acp. Most powders are not happy unless they reach a certain pressure. As such, powders that download well in 9mm may need to run close to max charges to burn well in 45acp. Power Pistol is one of those, in my experience. I believe HP38/W231 is as well, to a lesser extent. So, if you want to run full throttle loads, you have more choices in powders.

If you want to run less than max recoil, then the choice of powders narrows a bit. Use a powder from the faster end of the burn rate charts. I've pretty much settled on Clays for my reduced loads in 45. RedDot and AA#2 are a couple of others that come to mind.

Primers. I've done numerous comparisons between small and large primers in 45acp. I've never seen small primers give the same velocity as large primers. With most powders it amounts to about ~35 fps difference, which you may not even notice unless you chrono your loads. However, I have seen HUGE variations in velocity with some powders. PB and Trailboss in particular, with over 100fps difference. I have experimented with different brands of primers, and have started using small magnum primers (and sometimes small rifle primers, just because I have some) for my small primer brass. They will give closer to the same performance as the large primers, but still slightly slower. The cups may be slightly harder than regular primers, but I have not had ANY light strikes with any of my guns - yet. Of course, you can just bump the charge up ~ 0.1-0.2gn in most cases and still use regular small primers.

I see that you have already loaded 38spl. It has been an observation of mine that if a powder works well in 38spl, it will work well in 45acp. They run close to the same pressures.

 

[mdi]

Thanks for the suggestions! Looks like I'll start with the initial plan and go from there. I neglected to mention I'll be using Small Primer brass; I've been breaking my Colt in with CCI Blazer Brass and Federal Champion hardball ammo and the batches I've put my hands on have been in SP cases.

mdi,

I appreciate the concern, however I am not a new reloader, just new to .45 ACP. If I haven't loaded 20,000 rounds of 9mm Luger and .223 Rem (each), that number has to be over 25k of each by now. Plus .38 Special, .357 Magnum, .44 Special and Magnum, .30-30 Win, .45-70 Gov't, .30-06, .260 Rem, .38 Super and I'm sure others I've forgotten. I'll be sure to do the plunk test, as well as making dummies for checking for proper cycling.

My .38 Super (the pistol in my avatar) taught me the importance of the plunk test, as I was having severe issues with chambering when I started loading for it. In the end it turned out the brass I saved from the break-in ammo was inconsistent. A switch to brand new Starline cases had everything running like a sewing machine in no time.

I plan to leverage that experience and skip right to having reliable .45 reloads from the start.

Hmm. Surprised that an experienced loader would ask such a basic question. My apologies. My references to a "new to you" cartridge is pretty much the same for an experienced shooter; use a tried and true load until you get the "quirks" of a new cartridge worked out, won't take long. I do after 30+ years of reloading...

(FWIW; when I got my Garand I started with 150 gr FMJ bullets with IMR 4895 intill I felt confident with reloads in the Garand. Less than 100 rounds)

 

[hdwhit]

I have loaded 45ACP with both 185 grain Hornady XTP bullets and 200 grain LSWC.

For the LSWC loads, I have pretty much always used Bullseye, but that's largely a habit born of convention and availability, but it always worked well. For the XTP loads, I worked up a load and found a sweet spot with a near-maximum load of Blue Dot.

But in both cases, I consulted several reloading manuals to determine a "consensus" Starting Load and then began a ladder stepping up slowly from there.

 

[hdwhit]

Kevin Rohrer wrote:
My first rule of pistol reloading is to always use a bulky powder that almost fills the case, so I don't end-up w/ a double charge. HP38 is not a bulky powder.

Yep.

In 38 Special, it would be possible for me to triple-charge the case and not have it spill over the top. That prospect scares me enough that I have an added step in my reloading procedure checklist for a triple check on the charge of 38 Special.

 

[entropy]

5.0 Bullseye, 230 gr. LRN, plated, or FMJ. Approximates the ball round.

 

[docbrown]

My first rule of pistol reloading is to always use a bulky powder that almost fills the case, so I don't end-up w/ a double charge. HP38 is not a bulky powder.

I agree that a bulky powder is best, especially with a progressive or turret press. I do use less bulky powders in my single stage because I can visually check each case prior to seating the bullet. If I am using a progressive or turret, I use the bulkier powders to make sure that I do not double charge a case. I have a load for my 9mm that is 3.7 grains of Titegroup - I would hate to wind up with 7.4 grains of TG - that would be enough to ruin your whole day!

 

[wally]

My first rule of pistol reloading is to always use a bulky powder that almost fills the case, so I don't end-up w/ a double charge.

Why I really like Unique, good for all but full house loads in the Magnums and about impossible to double charge a case without overflowing it.

Having recently had to switch to AA #5 due to unavailability of Unique, it is not a bulky powder -- could easily double or triple charge it if you are careless and don't check the level before seating the bullet.

I agree that a bulky powder is best, especially with a progressive

Certainly not true with the Dillon 650 and its powder measure -- you can't activate the powder bar again until the shell plate has advanced. Its only this feature of my Dillon that made me feel really comfortable with a high density powder like AA #5. There is also an extra station for a powder level check die after the measure.

The problems with a high density powder have little to do with the press, although some can make it harder to see your mistake.

 

[Master Blaster]

For the 200 LSWC the OAL should be about 1.255 to 1.260, much longer than that and you will find it is too long for the 1911 magazine and could affect feed reliability. Also it is critical that about 1/16 to 1/32" of the shoulder of the SWC protrude over the edge of the case otherwise it will cause feeding problems if too much or too little of the shoulder sits above the case.

 

[wanderinwalker]

Hmm. Surprised that an experienced loader would ask such a basic question. My apologies. My references to a "new to you" cartridge is pretty much the same for an experienced shooter; use a tried and true load until you get the "quirks" of a new cartridge worked out, won't take long. I do after 30+ years of reloading...

(FWIW; when I got my Garand I started with 150 gr FMJ bullets with IMR 4895 intill I felt confident with reloads in the Garand. Less than 100 rounds)

Fair enough. As you've probably experienced as well, sometimes you can short-cut the learning curve by asking advice from folks who have done it before you. If half the people who responded had said "HP-38/231 are terrible in .45, try Bullseye!", I'd be inclined to find a pound. HP-38/231 are the fastest pistol powder I've used routinely. I have used Unique, Trail Boss, Power Pistol, Universal Clays, WSF, Longshot, 2400 and W296 though, at various times as the application required.

From the feedback I've gotten, it sounds like I'll have to try really hard to find something that WON'T work at least tolerably in the .45 ACP. This is good, I like having options if Choice 1 and Choice 2 aren't available.

So I'll stick to the original plan of 230gr Berry's/HP-38 for the first few hundred reloads. I'll definitely get some 200gr LSWCs to try, probably from Missouri Bullet as I've used lots of their .38-caliber bullets in .38 Special and .357 Magnum. It was good to read the suggestion to try the softer 12 BHN version instead of the 18 BHN, which is a suspicion I had given that the .45 is fairly low-pressure and low-velocity. Maybe if I stumble across some Bullseye or WST, it would be worth my time to grab a pound and give it a whirl as well.

As for powder bulk and use on a progressive press, I find I tend to value smooth metering characteristics with reasonable case-fill. Unique gave me fits loading .38 Special, but worked like a dream in 9mm Luger, just because I was running larger meter openings with the 9mm charges. Everything else on my pistol powder list has metered great though.

 

[wally]

For the 200 LSWC the OAL should be about 1.255 to 1.260,

Fine if you are only shooting single stack 1911 pistols, but if you expect to use them in other .45ACP pistols they need to be shorter to avoid binding in the magazine -- I had to go to ~1.230" OAL set by the magazine of my Glock 21 if I recall correctly. I won't deal with loading ammo for specific guns, they must work in all my guns or the loads need to be changed. YMMV.

Some non-1911 pistols just won't be reliable with the lead 200gr SWC, my CZ97B comes to mind as an example, curiously my EAA Witness 45 which uses the same magazines works fine with them.

 

[1KPerDay]

My favorite .45 ACP powder is Winchester WST. Meters very well, smells good when it burns, burns clean, and it flat out works.

I have gone through 12 lbs of WST also. In addition to all of the above, it's light grey/white in color and easy to see in the case. So all the hullaballoo about "use bulky powders" is not really relevant IF you look into every case before you place a bullet, and you should.

 

[Walkalong]

Agreed, I also "see" every powder charge I seat a bullet over, and love the light color of WST (And Competition, which is very similar in performance), and accurate. It is also very bulky, nearly fills the 1 Lb bottle. It uses smaller charges than HP-38 though.

WST is good stuff and worth picking up.

 

[Dudedog]

My first rule of pistol reloading is to always use a bulky powder that almost fills the case, so I don't end-up w/ a double charge.

8gr a double charge of 4gr of HP38 (VMD .0926) in a short .45 case is obvious if you are loading 4 to 5gr. (assuming you look) Full to the top of the case I got 16gr or about 1.5cc Even with a bulky powder like Red Dot (VMD .14) 1.5cc would be over 10gr a double charge so a double charge of Red Dot would fit as well.
Promo/Red Dot are the bulkiest powder I have used, maybe something out there bulkier but it would need to be slower as well.

Red Dot/Promo also worked well for me (4.0gr with a 230) and do fill up the case a bit more. HP38/WIN231 (same powderdifferent names) is cleaner IMO.
5gr charge of HP38 about .46cc, 4gr charge of Red Dot about .57cc (these #s are abouts not measured)

HP38 meters better than Red Dot/Promo for me.

Walkalong is making me want to order some WST (never used WST but it looks like a MAX 4.3gr charge would be around .51cc) Double charge will fit.

 

[Ironicaintit]

My first rule of pistol reloading is to always use a bulky powder that almost fills the case, so I don't end-up w/ a double charge. HP38 is not a bulky powder.

I think that's one of the reasons why I like Unique so much. A full case eases my peace of mind.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

My first rule of pistol reloading is to always use a bulky powder that almost fills the case, so I don't end-up w/ a double charge. HP38 is not a bulky powder.

Yep.

In 38 Special, it would be possible for me to triple-charge the case and not have it spill over the top. That prospect scares me enough that I have an added step in my reloading procedure checklist for a triple check on the charge of 38 Special.

I can not agree at all. Powders like W231/HP-38, Zip and the even faster Bullseye are GREAT choices for the .38 Special and 45 Auto and I will not ignore them on the outside chance of a double charge. If a double charge happens it's my fault, not the powder. My results with W231 in the .38 Special and 45 Auto are too good to let fear of making a mistake turn me away from that powder.

Bullseye has been used in the 45 Auto for longer than most of us are alive and is a celebrated Bullseye match powder, no reason to change that....

Look into every case before you seat the bullet and you can use any powder you want without irrational fears. (all IMO of course)

 

[Jack B.]

Been using Bullseye in 45ACP and 38 Special ever since it was Hercules Bullseye and it came in a yellow metal can. Always have taken reloading ammo seriously and have never had a double charge or anything like that. Great powder.

 

[Fishslayer]

Berry's plated are excellent bullets, HP38 is a popular powder. I didn't have a whole lot of luck with W231 but lots of people like it. I always use Bullseye or Green Dot.

.45ACP is a very forgiving round. I found I got my best accuracy about midrange in the loading data. 1.24" - 1.25" OAL with a plated 230gr RN should feed in just about anything. Make sure you plunk test.

Cast bullets are a different kettle o' fish. You need to be careful of shaving lead. This is a situation that I really like the LFCD. I like to do the de-flare & crimp in two steps. Makes life easier.
Cue the LFCD haters who call it a bandaid for sloppy reloading practices...

 

[sbwaters]

Can’t argue with the other recommendations. I tried them and settled on TiteGroup. It measures well, fills the case enough so I can see a double load, and shoots clean.

 

[hdwhit]

ArchangelCD, I didn't say anything about ignoring the less bulky powders. In fact I pointed out that I not only use them but because of the possibility of a double or triple charge, had added additional steps to my reloading procedures - and if you think about it, someone doesn't add steps to control for a risk they have eliminated by abandoning it.

 

[1KPerDay]

8gr a double charge of 4gr of HP38 (VMD .0926) in a short .45 case is obvious if you are loading 4 to 5gr. (assuming you look) Full to the top of the case I got 16gr or about 1.5cc Even with a bulky powder like Red Dot (VMD .14) 1.5cc would be over 10gr a double charge so a double charge of Red Dot would fit as well.
Promo/Red Dot are the bulkiest powder I have used, maybe something out there bulkier but it would need to be slower as well.

Red Dot/Promo also worked well for me (4.0gr with a 230) and do fill up the case a bit more. HP38/WIN231 (same powderdifferent names) is cleaner IMO.
5gr charge of HP38 about .46cc, 4gr charge of Red Dot about .57cc (these #s are abouts not measured)

HP38 meters better than Red Dot/Promo for me.

Walkalong is making me want to order some WST (never used WST but it looks like a MAX 4.3gr charge would be around .51cc) Double charge will fit.

I used a lot of red dot and promo when I first started reloading. About 21 lbs of it. Great stuff and I would happily start using it again. However I like WST better for general range ammo for all non magnum calibers. It burns cleaner, easier to see, and meters better, and for me produces at least the same accuracy if not better. Red Dot is considered more versatile but I imagine that's because it's been around for a hundred years and people have used it for everything out of necessity or curiosity.

 

[mdi]

My first rule is safety. I don't rely on a powder's bulk to keep me safe/stop double charges. I learned from the first reloads I assembled (1969) to check each powder charge before seating Bullets. I choose a powder for it's performance, not to keep me safe. I like the "classic" load for my "just in case" 45 ACP loads; 5.0 gr Bullseye under a 230 gr. FMJ. I use other loads, 200 gr. LSWC, 230 LTC, and a 200 gr LRN, but the 230 FMJ feeds in both my 45s quite well. but I have about 500-600 of these "in case" loads handy. If I didn't look in each case before I seated a bullet I'd be a bit uncomfortable, but my reloading procedure includes safety.

 

[TheDomFather]

It's a fun caliber to reload. Using carbide dies eliminates the need for lube. I only use the large primer pocket cases and fmj bullets. I load 5.0 gr of Bullseye. Just check the OAL and such in your reloading manual. Good luck.

I use bullseye as well also for 9MM it works great is readily available and relatively inexpensive. I am loading Ranier https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1...er-451-diameter-185-grain-plated-hollow-point

I am using them for 9mm as well and get great results out of them. Stay a bit under max with plated bullets.