Well, now you have almost scared me. But not quite.
I started loading the old .45 ACP a few years ago and tried all of the usual powders. I ended up preferring Olin 230 of the others for several reasons that now elude me.
Then them rascals stopped making my selected 230 powder. But they did come out with that new powder as a replacement, 231. I tried it, liked it, adjusted my load for it. And for the last way too many years have been loading and enjoying that same loading. Basically any lead 200ish grain bullet, standard large pistol primer, mix and very well used over the years brass and what is now scary, a charge of 5.6 grains.
I have NEVER had any problem with this loading. No leading, no pressure signs, it just keeps on going like that dumb pink bunny rabbit. I get a measured, at 10 feet with my chronograph (something I didn't have back in the early/mid 70's) a consistent 900 FPS. OK, the average of hundreds of test samples is 902.7 FPS. (All from a standard 1911A1 5 inch barrel. Tests with a shortie Spfd [3.something] or 1917 S&W revolver [5 1/2 inch] or Marlin Campgun [16 1/2 inch] do produced different velocities. They have all been safe for me.)
Then I read this thread and begin thinking. That isn't a good thing to begin with. But, I pulled up our friendly Hodgdon's web page to find that I have been running the current 'Maximum Load' all of these years and didn't even know it.
What to do? Should I brake down those few thousands of loaded rounds? Should I just shoot them all up and work out a new loading? Or, what I will do, just smile to my self and continue as if I never read this thread.
My advise:
Do as I say, not as I do.
Don't load to the maximum listed safe loadings with out extensive testing and any change in components would require retesting.
Excuse me, I'll be sticking my head in the sand now.
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