Loading 45acp question

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I have 231 Winchester...

What do you like  ??

Bullet,,  shapes ,, size..

Powder load .

Thanks SM 😃

[Garrison Joe, SASS #60708]

Conventional (historical within the game) cast bullet load with Win 231 would be 225-230 grain round nose (so called ball) bullet, over about 4.3 grains of 231 to make about 160 power factor.   (This is the starting load on Hodgdon's data site by the way). 

 

Seat the bullet so only the rounded part of nose sticks out from mouth, not any of the full diameter bands of the shank of the bullet - the 1911s all have very short "throats" at the end of the chamber, and you can get failures to chamber completely if the full band sticks out the mouth of the case.  Taper crimp to just return the diameter of the mouth of the case to about 0.472".  This gets rid of any seating bell that you put on the case before seating the bullet. 

 

Either a powder coated slug or conventional lubed slug sized to 0.452".  Brinnell hardness of slug between 9 and 11 is best, to prevent the conventional hard cast bullet tendency to lead the barrel due to gas cutting of the base of the slug with the low pressures this load will generate.

 

good luck, GJ.      

[Rafe Conager SASS #56958]

If your using it for wildbunch  I load 4.2 with a moly coated 230grn. Bullet,  i have switched to wst as it is not as temp. Sensitive. 

Rafe

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What lbs  spring would you recommend  ?😃

[Garrison Joe, SASS #60708]

Dropping the recoil spring to 15 pounds AND the mainspring (in the housing in the lower section of the grip frame) down to 19 pounds lets most 1911's run with easy slide retraction but still enough force to chamber rounds and strip rounds from magazines that are in good shape.   Colt factory originals are usually 16 and 23  pounds, respectively.   Change both, don't run one factory and one lighter than factory.  good luck, GJ

Edited January 26 by Garrison Joe, SASS #60708

[Sedalia Dave]

What will you be using these loads for? WB or plinking?

[Three Foot Johnson]

It depends - my light CAS revolver loads with 160 grainers won't even cycle my 1911. For WB, nothing has worked better for me than a 230 grain rebated round nose bevel base and 4.0 grains Winchester WST. 

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Wb i,,,,n ruger with factory springs 

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Thanks 😁

[Tall John]

Welp,  GJ’s responses here will be added to my permanent album.   Great stuff Joe!  

[Go West]

Bear Creek has a nice moly coated 230 gr. RN that runs well in 1911s.

 

https://www.bearcreeksupplybullets.com/

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

Use 5.5gn of WW231 or HP-38( same powder)and 200-230gr Bearcreek moly-coated bullet. 

I use the 200gn SWC shape. 

[Crisco]

200 grain LSWC (H&G#68) with 5.5gr of W231.  OAL 1.240”-1.260.

[Stump Water]

Same 160 gr RNFP I use for 45C. 

 

5 gr Red Dot.

 

Have not shot WB since it became "official" with a PF, so I have no idea if that load will make the PF.

 

 

[Crisco]

160 grain bullet would not be legal for Wild Bunch, and I have never been able to make one of those RNFP bullets run in any 1911 anyway (long, short, in-between...).  I see people use them, but don't know how.

[Griff]

I use the same RFN 200 grain bullet for WB in the 45 Auto as I do for cowboy in the C45S.  To make  the 150 PF for the 1911, you may be able use as little as 5 grains of 231, but you won't have a very wide margin of error on your loads.  And in some guns, you might not make it.   I load mine to run about 825 fps to have a fairly wide  margin.  Minimum bullet weight is 177 grains.  

[Three Foot Johnson]

6 hours ago, Stump Water said:

Same 160 gr RNFP I use for 45C. 

 

5 gr Red Dot.

 

Have not shot WB since it became "official" with a PF, so I have no idea if that load will make the PF.

 

 

 

I think the minimum bullet weight for WB pistol rounds is still 177 grains.

 

(edit) Oops, that was already pointed out. 

Page 31 in the WB shooters manual says, "The minimum bullet weight for the 1911 pistol is .45 ACP".    

Edited January 26 by Three Foot Johnson

[SHOOTIN FOX]

200 gr RNFP over 4.7 gr Promo. Makes power factor and will cycle most factory 1911s. Have not tried them all, so I say most.

[Garrison Joe, SASS #60708]

My personal load ( which some other folks expressed pain over) is a 200 grain TC bullet, conventional lubes, at Brinnell 9 hardness, over 4.7 grains of WST.  Clean, clean, clean and very accurate.  Makes 168 power factor every time my 1911 is tested.   Takes down every KD target. 

(TC is truncated cone, NOT a semi-wadcutter!)

 

good luck, GJ

Edited January 27 by Garrison Joe, SASS #60708

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Thanks.   garrison joe

I checked case size at crimp 

Was .465 adjusted to. 471..472

😃😃

[Garrison Joe, SASS #60708]

.45 auto headspaces on the mouth.   So it needs about 0.471" so the case stays a little proud of the slug, not making the case mouth disappear by crimping into the bullet!  It is very different than a conventional revolver cartridge that spaces on the rim and CAN take a good rolled crimp.   good luck, GJ

Edited January 26 by Garrison Joe, SASS #60708