Reloading .45 ACP

[fine ape]

Swc will punch a smaller hole on thinner paper, but will punch a clean .451 hole on cardboard/construction paper.

Pistol shooting much more fun when you can see the holes at 25 yds

[hard h2o]

Thanks everyone for the help. Reloading for pistol cartridges seems to have a few quirks over reloading for rifle rounds. I was a bit more concerned and cautious than it turned out I needed to be but If I wasn't and I took off a part of my anatomy that I need or injured someone else at the next bench my wife would be very angry. I do not like when the missus is angry.

I bought the Lee Carbide 3 die set. It came up on sale at Cabela's. Powder is Winchester 231. Primers are Federal Large Pistol. Bullets are 185 grain Hornady XTP. The bullets were also on sale at Cabela's

Not used to such small powder charges. Had to turn the powder measure quite a ways from my usual .30-06 or .300 WSM marks.

I was concerned about double charging. Seems like it is one of the major ways you can get in trouble with pistol rounds. I intentionally double charged the first case to see visually what it looked like compared to the correct charge. The .45 case seems to give you a gaping view into the case. With a single stage press and verifying each step it is just something I will need to be vigilant about.

It was a bit strange at first to not lube cases. It was nice to be able to forgo that step both for the time savings and the mess.

The decapping pin on the die was not as tight as it should have been out of the box. That was easily remedied.

The bullet seating die was turned quite a ways in from where I needed it out of the box. Ended up having to pull the first round due to the bullet being seated too far into the case.

With a few issues I ended up with my first batch of what I hope will be many .45 ACP reloads.

[Seismic Sam]

Hopefully one step in your routine is when all 50 or 100 cases are charged, to look up and down each row with a strong light overhead to verify that all the levels are the same. If you want to put a double charged case somewhere in the middle, that's good too, and after THAT case has been put in the block, close your eyes and rotate the block a few times so you lose track of where the double load is.

[hard h2o]

That was for sure part of my process.

At the beginning I compared a double to a proper charge. At the end I did a double on the last. Did not put it in the loading block. I did not want to inadvertently leave it in and seat a bullet atop the double. I dumped it and single charged, placed it in the block, then did another look to make sure.

Now to just get some range time at OGC.

[andrewP]

XTPs are really nice bullets. They produce some of the most accurate loads out there, but they're also typically very expensive. (The price I found on your 185 grain XTPs was ~21.5 cents/bullet, ouch!) You may want to look into some other options when you get close to shooting through those:

http://www.acmebullet.com/bullets-reloading-brass/45-ACP-Lead-Bullets?product_id=438
https://www.thebluebullets.com/product-p/1mfr-200swc-45.htm

Both of those are <10 cents/bullet when you order by the case, and there are plenty of other, similar offerings out there.

Even the Montana Gold jacketed bullets can get as low as $0.16/bullet:

http://montanagoldbullet.com/index.php/catalogsearch/result/index/?cat=15&q=.45

[hard h2o]

XTPs are really nice bullets. They produce some of the most accurate loads out there, but they're also typically very expensive. (The price I found on your 185 grain XTPs was ~21.5 cents/bullet, ouch!) You may want to look into some other options when you get close to shooting through those:

The dies, powder, and primers ended up being around $16 out of pocket from Cabela's after using my points. Went back later to buy bullets. I did not want to start off with 250 or 1000. On the shelf they were on sale for $22.09 for 100. At the checkout they scanned at the full price. Informed the guy they were on sale. He had me walk him over to the shelf and show him. I was correct.

I was not too worried about cost right now. Just wanted something 185 grain and jacketed.

Thanks for the heads up. I will check out the ones you linked.

[hard h2o]

For the 185 gr JHP from Montana it is $30.50 per 100. My $22.50 that I walked in and bought off the shelf was a bit cheaper.

[smurfman]

You might want to try Shooter's Pro Shop (http://www.shootersproshop.com) for "inexpensive" quality bullets. They are the authorized distributor of Nosler overruns, clearance, and/or blemished bullets and pften have them at very good prices, even counting shipping.

Nosler's 185 gr bullet is one of the better ones as it now states on the box they are the "standard" (or some such verbage) if that means anything. The only negative is the availability of any particular bullet can vary due to the nature of the supply. Otherwise, some pretty good deals can be found.

[aprilian]

You might want to try Shooter's Pro Shop (http://www.shootersproshop.com) for "inexpensive" quality bullets. They are the authorized distributor of Nosler overruns, clearance, and/or blemished bullets and pften have them at very good prices, even counting shipping.

I found that I got a lower per-unit price for the non-blems 185gr Noslers at Brownell's due to free shipping.

[andrewP]

For the 185 gr JHP from Montana it is $30.50 per 100. My $22.50 that I walked in and bought off the shelf was a bit cheaper.

That's because you're looking at them per 100 bullets, which is the most expensive way to buy them. Take a look at the case quantities. (Edit: $370/2300 bullets = 16.1 cents/bullet.) They're MUCH cheaper per bullet that way. Basically, find a bullet you like and buy a ton at once and you save a lot per bullet. The only problems are that you spend a lot in one financial hit, and that your mail delivery person will hate you for the 70 pound package.

[hard h2o]

For the 185 gr JHP from Montana it is $30.50 per 100. My $22.50 that I walked in and bought off the shelf was a bit cheaper.

That's because you're looking at them per 100 bullets, which is the most expensive way to buy them. Take a look at the case quantities. (Edit: $370/2300 bullets = 16.1 cents/bullet.) They're MUCH cheaper per bullet that way. Basically, find a bullet you like and buy a ton at once and you save a lot per bullet. The only problems are that you spend a lot in one financial hit, and that your mail delivery person will hate you for the 70 pound package.

Someday my shooting and my budget will need and allow those types of bulk purchases. For now I am at the 100 or 250 level.

[andrewP]

Fair enough. Just be aware that when you can justify them, bulk purchases really do save you significant money. (That goes for powder and primers, too, not just bullets.)

[Seismic Sam]

Oh - seeing as you are used to reloading rifle brass and NOT pistol brass, I wanted to mention one point that you may not know: With stuff like 9mm, 38,and 45 brass, don't even bother to measure cases or think about trimming. I got some WCC 72 45 ACP headstamp brass I picked up in 1973, and I'm still shooting some of it today, and I think I wasted 10 minutes measuring cases 15 years ago and found it was still shorter than the trim length.

[hard h2o]

Oh - seeing as you are used to reloading rifle brass and NOT pistol brass, I wanted to mention one point that you may not know: With stuff like 9mm, 38,and 45 brass, don't even bother to measure cases or think about trimming. I got some WCC 72 45 ACP headstamp brass I picked up in 1973, and I'm still shooting some of it today, and I think I wasted 10 minutes measuring cases 15 years ago and found it was still shorter than the trim length.

Thanks for confirming that. For the rifle I trim with Lee case length gauge and holder. I bought one for the .45. It was only something like $2.99 for the gauge and holder for the .45. In my reading I saw the same advice that you offered about not needing to trim. I will measure as I go and, I am sure, come to the same conclusion as you and most everyone else that it is not necessary.

I have acquired quite a bit of once fired brass already. I do not like the idea of range pickup brass. Never know how it has been treated prior to ending up discarded on the ground or floor of the range. Easy enough to buy brass or a box of ammo and know 100% where the brass came from.

[linksep]

I'm in the same boat. I want to buy projectiles in bulk, but I need to find the best projectiles for my guns (coated lead, plated, jacketed, flat-point, hollow-point, light-weight, mid-weight, heavy-weight.)