New to reloading, .454Casull, .45Colt, .45ACP

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GunHawk

Single-Sixer
Joined
Nov 24, 2013
Messages
116
I have a FA .454 with a twist rate of 1:24, Ruger .454 5 shot with a twist rate of 1:24. Using .454 brass with a 250 gr cast bullet how fast do I have to push it to stabilize the bullet with the 1:24 twist? I guess the whole point of this is I want to use .454 brass at the lowest level that will stabilize the bullet. Powders I have are Unique, H110, H4227 and am using CCI 550 small magnum primers. I have loaded a few .45 Colt loads and shot them in the .454, but they seemed to be lacking in accuracy. Thanks for any info. Brad
 

Jimbo357mag

Hawkeye
Joined
Feb 22, 2007
Messages
10,350
Location
So. Florida
Using the Hodgdon website I found the start loads for Universal (similar to Unique) and H4227 and H-110.
http://www.hodgdonreloading.com/data/pistol

Universal - 10.8 gr with a 250 gr bullet gives 1,221 fps at a pressure of 25,700 CUP.

H4227 - 26.0 gr with a 250 gr bullet gives 1,580 fps at a pressure of 40,800 CUP.

H-110 - 27.5 gr with a 250 gr bullet gives 1,725 fps at a pressure of 45,100 CUP.

I am going to make no recommendation and I don't know how the data for those bullets compare with yours but it is easy to see that Universal has the lowest start load and I would assume that if you were to substitute Unique your results would be about the same. You could then increase to get the accuracy you want. The H4227 and H-110 have much higher start loads.

I have also heard that H4227 loads can be reduced quite a bit but I have no experience with that powder so I can't say that for sure.

Good Luck.
 

GunHawk

Single-Sixer
Joined
Nov 24, 2013
Messages
116
Thanks for the info, I guess what's holding me up is jacketed or cast in the same weight. If the bullet is hard cast (22bhn) can you use the same load data as you would for a jacketed bullit? Or do you get more pressure building up with the cast?
 

protoolman

Service-Sixer
Joined
Oct 15, 2001
Messages
2,553
Location
MN and MT
You get less pressure with cast. Lead deform way easier than jacketed. You can use any jacketed data for lead but you may get extensive leading. Slow down the lead. I would try 10 gr. of Unique to start with. You will get better accuracy in the 454 brass since the bullet has less of a gap to jump compared to shooting 45 Colt in a 454 chamber.
 

dddddmorgan

Bearcat
Joined
Feb 8, 2018
Messages
11
Location
Meridian, Id
Yes, to second what has been stated, less pressure with the cast.

One question you might look into is case volume. Are you using fairly small powder charges in those big cases? If so you might want to look into some dacron wadding. I did this for 45/70 light loads, solved ignition and accuracy problems by promoting consistent burn of the powder.

To do this simply place a small pinch of dacron pillow stuffing into the case and poke it down into contact with the powder with a pencil eraser or some such fancy device.

I have heard of some bullseye shooters doing this with their HBWC pipsqueek loads.

Of course this is FWIW. You can find subject matter on this process in a lot of places.
 

mike7mm08

Buckeye
Joined
Mar 14, 2005
Messages
1,709
Location
Milwaukee Wisconsin
Other thing to consider with lower pressure loads is hardness and diameter of your cast bullets. When fired the bullet will expand slightly from the pressure. However if the bullet is too hard or not properly sized the expansion of the bullet may not before enough to properly engage the rifleing and seal the bore. This can lead to poor accuracy or excessive leading.

If you are running true hardcast , 22 to 25 hardness you are properly going to need to push them fairly fast to generate the pressure needed to get a good grip on the rifling. If reduced lead loads are your goal look for a bullet around 15 to 16 hardness.
 

DHD

Single-Sixer
Joined
Sep 12, 2016
Messages
128
Location
Low Country South Carolina
Not exactly apples to apples here, but shooting a 7.5 FA83 with a 45 Colt cylinder using either 11.5 HS-6 or 7.5 Universal with a powder coated 300 grain LFNGC shoots fantastic at 50 yards. These bullets are cast with WW and after PC can't be more than about 12 bhn. No need for more hardness or the GC at this velocity, but I've found a GC never hurts for accuracy.

I personally would have thought they would need a bigger kick in the butt, especially with a relatively slow twist, but they don't @ 50 yards. Nice easy recoil too.

You can always up those charges considering the extra volume between 454 and 45 Colt cases. This particular revolver may never see a jacketed bullet (it lives up to the hype!)

I don't cast anything less than 280 grains for the .452's, but you'll never know til you try using what you have. The lighter and slower bullets sure are friendly on the wrists and hands.
 
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