Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns 44 Magnum or 45 Colt. Which one would you pick?

RJM,
With your obvious experience, knowledge, and abilities, I hesitate to question anything you say about handguns; but your statement about there not being much 44 magnum brass used when loading for a Smith Mountain Gun (44 mag) brings out a question. Why would you not just download the magnum brass to the velocity you choose. I have always felt, maybe wrongfully so, that accuracy from a 44 mag cylinder would be better using the longer brass. No argument intended here; I'm just inquiring as to the reason.

Nothing wrong with that. I love both cartridges and their ancestors and I think the .45ACP has a lot to offer in a single action. I've wanted one of the .45 convertibles for a long time but have put it off because I'd rather have an Old Model .357 converted.

I know you didn't just reference those .410 thingies!!!

In a technical sense the .45 Colt is a big caliber, large capacity case that must operate at low chamber pressure compared to many magnum rounds. The fact that it has more capacity allows this to happen. In general loadings the .45 Colt will do anything the .44 magnum will do with about 6000 to 10,000 CUP less chamber pressure, depending on the load and bullet weight used. With standard weight slugs the difference is not as wide as it is with heavy slugs. This is the same rule that applys to calibers in rifles. A 250 gr slug is unheard of in a 7 mm mag, but neck the same case to .338 and the 250 gr slug is perfectly balanced. But like magnum cartridges the secret behind the .45 Colt's potential is the powder used to drive the slugs. For years Hercules 2400 was considered to be the finest magnum handgun powder available. Pressure data has shown that this is not true and the finest sixgun powders available today for heavy handloads are Hodgdon's H-110 and Winchester's WW-296. These powders are basically the same and can be fully interchanged as to charge weights. I've probably shot over 50 lbs of WW-296 in all my testing and twice that much H-110. I feel H-110 is kinder to lead bullets than W296 but H-110 does vary from lot to lot more than W296. I have never seen a "hot" or fast can of H-110 but have used some that was a grain or 2 slower than normal. The only way you can tell this is with Pressure equipment or a chronograph. With these powders VELOCITY MEANS PRESSURE. If you're not getting normal velocities, your powder is slow and not generating normal pressure. By working up carefully 1/2 gr at a time till your normal velocity is acquired you can continue to use these slow cans of powder. NEVER EXCEED OUR RECOMMENDED VELOCITIESOCITIES

I had to make the choice sever months back. I went with the 45 Colt in a 5 1/2" Blackhawk. I am as happy as I could be.

I am getting the fierce wants for one of these... not quite the $1K+ wants, but fierce ones nonetheless.

No one ever mentions meplat diameter. With cast bullets, the only dimension that matters is meplat diameter.

Outdated information.

All the nonsense about "less pressure" is akin to a used car sales pitch. It yields the shooter nothing.

The .45 doesn't handle heavier bullets, or handle them "better", whatever that means.

The .45 doesn't penetrate better.

The .45 isn't always bigger.

The throats on this 45 are perfect.

Unless they're Keith SWC's, where the shoulder plays a role as well.

Outdated information.

All the nonsense about "less pressure" is akin to a used car sales pitch. It yields the shooter nothing.

The .45 doesn't handle heavier bullets, or handle them "better", whatever that means.

The .45 doesn't penetrate better.

The .45 isn't always bigger.