Reloading .454 Casull ... question...

I recently started reloading and have been doing great with 45 Colt and 44 Mag. Quite a bit of fun actually!

Anyway, thought I'd also play around with loads for my Ruger SRH .454 Casull. A few questions here, for those familiar with this cartridge, is it:

1- absolutely necessary to use magnum primers? I have both Lyman 49th and Lyman Cast Bullet handbooks and they both say it is "preferred" to use them over regular small rifle primers. But I have read where actual reloaders say the small rifle primers are fine. I don't mind buying the magnums but I do have a couple of sleeves of SR primers and would like to use them up if possible.

2- I cannot find any reloading data for the 250 gr cast lead bullets I use for my .45 Colt (Oregon Laser Cut Bullets). Is this Cowboy shooting lead not recommended for the Casull round even though the diameter of .451 seems perfect? Closest I could find in Lymans was a listing for 250 gr Barnes XPB HP bullet using 28.5-30 grains of IMR-4227. Picture of the bullet looks very similar to the Oregon, as far as I can tell anyway.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Regarding primers,,, I'd match them to what the loading manuals suggest. Some powders work best with one type over others. Use the manuals,, and follow their recipes.
As for loading a 250 grn cast slug,,, contact Oregon Trail to see what they say.

1- I usually go by what the majority of the published data supports.
2- Oregon Trail does have a reloading manual, may as well get it if you plan on using their stuff.

Just for the meanness of it, drop one of the cast 250gr bullets through each of the cylinders. See if it tends to stick or even has to be pushed through.
Though I have no experience with it (and unless I'm mistaken) Redhawks in 454 are reputed to have cylinders of .454" and not .452".
If that cast bullet falls through the cylinder easily, you may not want to exceed 1200fps regardless of the load data.

My ≤1200fps restriction is based on my lack of information about the 45LC 250gr RNFP .452 from their site other than " No leading
Slick Silver Bearing Alloy yields highest velocities of all Extreme accuracy".

I'd be curious what their Brinell Hardness Number is.

Thanks for the feedback gents, I will definitely give Oregon Trail a call later today and see what they have to say...will also do the drop test with the bullets and report back.

OK, did the bullet test and they do stick, so no worries there...

Called Oregon Trail and they were very fast to answer my questions, they do indeed have data on the 250 RNFP in 454 Casull and were kind enough to immediately email me the chart, I will to cut and paste that info here. Unfortunately, they do not have data on the two powders I have on hand (HI-SKOR 700X and H4227).

Also, they say that the BHN is 24. I understand from the article posted on the Missouri Bullet Company's site that this is good for shipping (no dings or dents) but they imply it may be too hard for proper sealing of the barrel. See that article here: https://www.missouribullet.com/technical.php

I was very pleased with the Oregon Trail customer service, very nice folk and eager to help. The woman I spoke with even had me hold on while she emailed the chart to me to make sure I got it. Unusual in this day and age

Hmmm, having problems with posting the chart...but a sample would be:

250g RNFP
H110 min grains 34.5gr (no posted max) ... FPS 1718 ... OAL 1.677

They also had info on HS6 and 7, HP38, W296, W571, W231, AA#9,and 5744

OK, here we are:

My expierence with shooting hard cast lead .452 bullets in my .454/.45 Colt Alaskan has resulted in leading in the bore even at velocities at 1000 FPS and lower.
Some folks here suggested it may be due to the larger .454/.455 throat diameters of the cylinder.
Even so the gun shoots really good groups from 20 ft to 30 ft.
You just have to give it a good cleaning in the barrel or shoot larger or FMJ bullets.

Mus408 said:

You just have to give it a good cleaning in the barrel or shoot larger or FMJ bullets.

Click to expand...

Or powder coat the bullets?

I used 27.0/H4227/250SWC plain base and they shot well with no leading in my 454 FA 71/2" and Taurus RB
My 454 SRH had very loose dimensions and gave low velocities but shot accurately
-0.10 BCG and .457 Cylinder throats. Sent it back to Ruger and they returned it as "with in factory specs"

You must mean .010" BC gap and not .100" !

Magnum vs Standard primers

My rule of thumb is to use magnum primers for hard-to-ignite powders or if the ammunition will be used in cold conditions (colder than freezing gives a generous margin of safety). Also, if the case is full or nearly so.

Whichever primer you use, work up your loads with that primer brand and type. You can get pressure changes switching in either direction, and you need, NEED, to take care.

If any doubt, follow the powder manufacturer's recommendation as the first choice over all other loading manuals, sources, etc, unless the powder manufacturer does not have a recommendation.

People give too much weight to the coincidence of the word "magnum" on the brass headstamp and "magnum" as applied to primers. Just as a 44 Magnum is a 44 Special slightly larger, a 30-06 is really a .308 Winchester, slightly larger. "Magnum" on the brass headstamp means nothing of ballistic significance. "Magnum" for the primer, however, means a world of difference.

Lost Sheep