My 45acp loads

3265 Views 9 Replies 4 Participants Last post by pokute, Apr 5, 2015

pokute

Discussion Starter · Oct 8, 2014 (Edited)

Since nobody is posting in the reloading area, I thought I'd give it a little bump. I shoot my 1911's for fun, and also shoot them in Silhouette competition.

So, these should be considered warmer than normal target loads, but extremely accurate to at least 100m. OAL determined by "plunk test" in individual barrels:

200gr SWC (H&G-68, hard cast): 5.5gr Bullseye

230gr LRN (swaged or cast very soft): 6.5gr Unique

Both these loads are hot enough to expand a modern case sufficiently to seal the chamber. This is a concern these days since brass has been made crazy strong to handle the poor case support in Glock barrels. Both loads ARE within SAAMI spec.

For old guns that don't feed everything and may not be fully heat treated, reduce loads by 0.5gr. If your older gun will not feed lead, ask me how to adjust the barrel ramp if you are feeling brave.

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pokute

Discussion Starter · #3 · Oct 25, 2014

Zippo_Guy said:
I have been using 4.0 grains of Bullseye with the Bayou Bullet 200 grain SWC lately and find it very accurate. I can get the powder coated bullets in green, red, and yellow. I use different colors of bullets when trying a new load or loads for different guns of the same caliber. So far the guns have been easy to clean, no mess while reloading, and no smoke when shooting.

Interesting! Folks have been using Epoxy as a bullet "lube" for around 50 years, I think. I have some old test reports somewhere that were very positive. I would guess that the epoxy Bayou uses has Boron Nitride added to it. Coated bullets reduce lead exposure, which is especially important when shooting at indoor ranges, Doubly important if you have small children around where you reload.

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pokute

Discussion Starter · #4 · Oct 25, 2014

New reloaders are probably scratching their heads over the different loads that Zippo_Guy and I use. Zippo's load is a classic target load used out to 50 yards. Extremely accurate with properly sized bullets. My loads are for Silhouette shooting out to 100 meters (110 yards), and "bump up" the bullet, somewhat reducing accuracy, hence the huge difference in load.

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pokute

Discussion Starter · #6 · Oct 26, 2014 (Edited)

I haven't shot paper at 100m, but in Silhouette competition I've picked up 3 out of five rams a few times. Those are 5 moa, so about the same as you reported with your 4.5gr load. My gun is tuned for my 5.5gr load - 18lb spring and a Tungsten guide rod. And a monstrous Aristocrat sight to slow the slide down.

Ah, I have a 50m offhand target from last year (some fliers, oh well - And looks like I cheated and was shooting 4.6gr BE then! - Even worse, I wasn't shooting my competition gun - I don't shoot at paper much!!):

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pokute

Discussion Starter · #9 · Nov 3, 2014 (Edited)

cloaker said:
Wait... The load takes into account the guide rod??? I know NOTHING. Lol

Everything on the gun affects the balance and recoil impulse. The idiotically heavy Springfield Omega barely nods while shooting a 200gr bullet at 1200fps. But really, it only starts to matter when you are shooting to 50 yards and more and need to shoot hot loads with precision.

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pokute

Discussion Starter · #10 · Apr 5, 2015

Solely in the interest of improving my score, and throwing caution to the four winds, I am now shooting 200gr 45acp bullets over 6.0gr Bullseye. The results are phenomenal. Every time I bump up the load, the long range accuracy improves a lot.

I'm using Zero swaged bullets right now. They are dead soft. Because they are swaged, they are entirely free of voids. They shoot like they are wire-guided. Here's a not very good micrograph of one:

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My 45acp loads

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