Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles 45 Colt Rifle Practice Loads

Guys,

I recently purchased a 16" Winchester 94 Trapper for deer hunting this year. Going to try and work up a hunting load using H110/W296 this weekend.

I'd also like to work up a mid-range practice load for use with 250 grain lead bullets. Do any of you have any recommendations for powder? After searching the internet, it seems like Hodgdon Titewad and Unique are popular, but wanted to ask around before I purchase any. Would like something that fills the case as much as possible but not a requirement. Trailboss does fill the case but velocity with a full charge barely breaks 1000 fps. Thanks in advance!

I have used quite a few of these and the data is pretty accurate.

http://www.realguns.com/loads/45coltr.htm

I have been loading red dot.

It shoots real good in both pistol and 2 rifles.
As far as filling the case it won't happen with most of the powders that work with this case.
Trail boss is the only one that i know of that fills the case.

I use Unique 8-10 grains gives 800-about 1000 fps out of my 5 1/2" Bisley. I use 18 grains 2400 with a 265 grain Keith style for 1100 fps from that same revolver. I bet you could do better fps wise with a 16" barrel. Another powder that works good is Lil' Gun. H110/W296 seems to work best at close to full house loads. H110/W296 and Lil' Gun run about 19-22 grains and come close to filling the case.

If you can find Unique, it is an outstanding powder for mid range handgun loads and for many cast bullet rifle loads. You can load up to 10 gr of unique under a 250 gr cast bullet, but best accuracy might be slightly under that. I'd expect ~1200 fps from a 16" rifle with the 10 gr charge.

Thanks to everyone who responded. Good point about finding red dot and unique. Bought some red dot about 5 years ago for some 12 gauge loads and haven't really seen it since. Might be able to find some unique though.

Titewad, HS-6, Unique, W231/HP-38, pretty easy if not all case-filling. Then again, there's nothing wrong with just loading up W296 with whatever you're shooting and go with that. I generally just shoot 250s in my revolvers for plinkers and shoot W296 and 300s in my Trapper.

Unique, Herco, 2400 all work well. And WW-296 & H-110 for heavy loads.

I use Unique in my .44 Magnum deer rifle for lead bullet practice loads, should also work well in the .45 Colt.

I bought a .45 Colt Trapper not long after they were introduced; still have it and shoot it occasionally.

I've used the Lyman #454424 260 grain flatnose bullet almost exclusively. Unique may certainly be the most popular powder for the cartridge. However, HS-6, Herco, and 800X also work well. Never had great luck with 231, but others have.

All of my loads are in the 1050-1150 fps range. With a 50 yard zero, bullet drop is several inches at 100 yards, probably not a great deal flatter than using the cartridge in a handgun.

Forgot to mention that TiteGroup is very accurate in all of my .45 colts.

Thanks again everyone...just picked up a pound of titegroup to try out, couldn't find any unique, of course! I tried a mid power charge of 4227, got unburned powder everywhere, but accuracy seemed ok.

Also tried a 26gr. charge of H110, great accuracy, primers not flat, but case expansion seemed excessive where the extractor groove was cut. Anyone seen this before?