Home Forums Reloading Handgun Reloading 45/454 light bullets

Anyone have any data/experience with light bullets (185 - 200 grs) in the 454 or Ruger/TC 45 Colt loads? I have seen some 454 VV data but that's it.

Not 454 but in 45 Colt I run a cast 200 gr RNFP with 5 gr of Trail Boss for around 600 fps from my 3.75" Bisley. I call them my Bunny Fart loads. Pretty accurate too.

Hodgdon has many .45 LC loads with bullets down to 160 grains. Sierra has data down to 185 grains. You won’t find high pressure/light bullet data for the .45 LC or the .454 since those light bullets are not suited to High pressures.

https://www.hodgdonreloading.com/data/pistol

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sierrabullets.ReloadingManual&hl=en_US

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It's not load data, but maybe of passing interest:

I disassembled some Hornady 460 S&W factory loads with the 200gr FTX bullet, and found 51gr of a powder that resembles H110. (I'm not saying it was H110, only that it looked similar.) That is definitely a high pressure load. I don't recall if it was a compressed load, but it was near 100% full either way.

51? holy shmoly! had to be compressed you'd think.
my hots with my 454 ruger were in the 20+ level but they were 300g GCHC's

Tx to all who replied. I don't have the Sierra app so I can't see what's there for the 185 gr bullets (maybe I'll spring for the $5). Can anyone send me that 185 gr data? The Hodgdon hi pressure 45 Colt data stops at 225 gr.

Again I don't see any issues, just that no one has done it yet. Over in the semi-auto world, the top dog is the 460 Rowland which shoots a 185 gr bullet at 1500+ ft/sec. No one has doubted the effectiveness of this round. I think a Ruger 45 could do better with the same bullet (although I generally prefer cast bullets in revolvers because I think they behave better when pushed into the forcing cone).

I have a 7-1/2" Blackhawk. These are pretty light. I originally loaded some 325 gr cast performance bullets and recoil was brutal, so that's another reason for going lighter on the bullet weight.

51 grs of powder in a 460 S&W? Wow...

If it was compressed, it wasn't very much. 460 brass is basically straight wall 308 brass with a rim. (And 444 Marlin is just slightly longer than the 460 but very close to the same thing otherwise.) It's a pretty significant step up in capacity from 454 Casull.

9x23 - it's not that nobody's done it, just that it's uncommon for reloaders wanting to hunt with theirs. IIRC plenty of the "cowboy load" 45 Colt factory ammo is done with 200gr lead bullets.
I've used some 200gr loads in 45 Colt and 454 myself, but that was long ago before I started keeping good notes. I remember using some of the 185gr(?) Taurus Hex bullets (which were just Barnes bullets) in my 454; I recall that with H110 it was hard to get good ignition even with a full case and a heavy crimp. If you pursue this, I suggest something in the Blue Dot burn rate for hot loads. For mild loads there are a ton of powders that'll work well.

I have the latest Sierra app, the 45 Colt data only shows 240 and 300gr bullets.

This is from the latest Sierra online data. Light jacketed bullets are generally not suitable for high pressures, they upset too much in the forcing cone.


[img]http://[img]https://i.ibb.co/WGYQXwz/869258-E7-88-A0-4-EF2-99-FA-1-AC6-ABA027-F0.png[/img][/img]

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"Light jacketed bullets are generally not suitable for high pressures, they upset too much in the forcing cone."

That would be my concern. I wrote to Sierra about their 185gr Sports Master, let's see what they say. Looks very similar to the 180 gr 44 bullet, which I know people have pushed to close to 1800 ft/sec.

Where did you come up with that jem? You should run that by Hornady; reference that 60,000 psi 460 S&W load I mentioned above since it's their ammo.


Also, are you confusing Sierra with Hornady? That sure looks like Hornady data, not Sierra. Sierra usually only publishes data for their bullets.

fyi here is what Sierra said...(question was using their 185gr bullet in hi-pressure 45 Colt loads)

"For mild loads I think a taper crimp would probably work. But for heavier recoil loads, you would definitely need a crimping groove (cannelure). Also be advised there is data available for mild loads using lighter bullets, but generally for higher pressure loads, heavier bullets are used. In my opinion, I don’t feel real comfortable with the short bullets, in a large case with a lot of air space."

BTW here is Hodgdon data for 225gr bullets

[Linked Image]

Note the jacketed lead bullet performs better. However Barnes does sell a 200 gr XTP which has a cannelure.

I think 1600-1700 ft/sec is attainable with the right 180-200 gr bullet, if one can be found.

Looks like you’re the one who is confused here. Freedom Arms doesn’t recommend light bullets in their .454 revolvers, check the website. Ditto Speer and some others, due the soft core and jacket upsetting in the forcing cone. That’s a shiny gem just for you. But you knew that, right? Too, please note that I stared “generally”, not absolutely.

The data chart is Hodgdon data Copied off their website. Their charts are rather distinctive, guess you’ve not visited their site before. To be helpful, here is a link:

http://www.hodgdonreloading.com/data/pistol

You’re now on the ignore list with the others. Ur welcome.


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Dude... You said it was Sierra data, I'm not the one confused here. I said it looks like Hornady because that data is all Hornady bullets, but I use the Hodgdon data quite a bit as well, thanks, and it does look a bit different than what you posted, at least on my screen.

I'm also not confused about the factory ammo Hornady offers. If you're going to make some off-the-wall claims, be prepared to back it up instead of getting pissy about it. Not all of the light bullets are lightly constructed. It's light/thin jackets and soft cores that results in issues at high pressure, not light bullet weight, and there are plenty examples of that in the heavier weights too. That's a bit different than what you said.