Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns The 45 Colt Squirrel Load..........

No.........I dont have one worked up.......Im lookin for one.It would really be cool to be able to use a 45 colt blackhawk for small game hunting.My main purpose would be shooting coons out of trees when Im coon hunting,so it would be close range.Anybody have any ideas?I wish I could get a sabot or something for a bullet under 38 caliber to shoot out of a 45 colt.........that would be awesome.If not.........Ill have to buy a ruger single six in 22 mag.Then I have to carry the 45 and the 22 while coon hunting.Ill keep the 45 incase I run into a bear or another unfriendly critter,and the 22 for the coons.Ill look like Yosimete Sam tredging through the woods at night......... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

it depends...... how big are dem squirrels??

you lookin for hot loads???

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Any SWC lead bullet that clears the muzzle and is accurate at whatever distance you'll want to hunt, will make a great squirrel load. Accuracy should be the primary concern, and that will take some tinkering to find what your gun likes. Your question is like asking if there's a good load for the 460 Weatherby that would kill deer so you don't have to buy a 308 Win. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Well the only reason I said squirrel load is because I meant something very light.But really,Id be using it on coons.A 45 caliber hole in a coon skin is a pain.Oh well......I may just have to get another gun..............(sigh) lol

Pretty Dam* big! Wouldnt want to be caught alone in the woods with one of these ferocious Virginia squirrels with nothin but a 22 magnum............or a 357 magnum for that matter.Sometimes a 12 gauge slug cant even put one down quick enough to save your life.Just makes them more mad.

Not that safe a shot to put that big a bullet in the air without a backstop. I limit myself to the 22 or birdshot for that.

Yeah.........thats another reason.

Lyman makes/made a 45 cal bullet that goes 148 grains, a collar button bullet. A light load under that wouldn't go far. It probably wouldn't be too slick to shoot straight up, though

DixieBanjo, you pop a 'coon -- or any other small, thin skinned animal such as that -- with a .22 Magnum, and you'll blow a bigger hole through the hide than if you were to load a .45 Colt with a 200 grains H&G 68 Semi-Wadcutter lead bullet, and about 6.0 grains of Unique. (Taper crimp die, of course.)

FWIW. L.W.

I can't remember if I've shot any, but if so, it's been a long time ago. How 'bout a .454" round ball and about 2 gr. of Bullseye, or whatever fast powder you've got laying around? Don't know where it'd hit relative to your sights, but some experimentation and maybe that could be worked out?

If a .457" round ball will seat in your case and chamber, I'd go with that diameter. The bigger the ball's diameter that your gun will chamber, the more of a bearing surface it'll have, and likely the more accurate they'd be.

FWIW?

If you want to knock them out for a kill dog to handle, a .45's hits a mighty lick, and you may get the kill dog peeved using it, but I'm not sure. Some coons take a lot of killing. Ain't nothin' like the woods at night, is there?

No sir.............nothin like the woods at night.

Many years ago I read somewhere about using a 410 cut down to fit. Never tried it, don't know if it would even fit.Seems this feller was going across country horse back and loaded every other one with the 410. ???? Mutt

How would you keep the shot charge?????????????????

Thats interesting..................NEF makes a gun that shoots 45 colt and 410 http://www.hr1871.com/firearms/index.php?cat=6&subcat=5

The shotshell loads I made up for my .45 colt in a Blackhawk used a inverted gas check over the shot load and a gas check as a wad, between the powder and shot.

Worked great, not much range, but I wasn't looking for much more than 10-15 ft.

Dan in Dayton