Home Forums Reloading Handgun Reloading New .45 Colt load for hunting

I finally found a box of those .45 Colt Speer 260 grain JSP bullets I have been wanting. Used new Starline cases, and 18.5 grains of 2400. They are a handful in the Ruger Blackhawk, but seem as smooth as glass out of the Rossi Puma lever rifle. Sighted that in this morning with a new Skinner peep sight. Right on target.
These should do well on close range deer and hogs this fall.

I have fired those bullets in a .45 ACP.

I think you'll find they have a fair amount of "whomp".

Peeps on a lever and a good dose of whomp will bring smiles to your face and family to the table.

I found the 260 Speer to be pretty hard, giving minimal expansion on deer at a MV of 1050 fps. Penetration was good, the only one I recovered went through about two feet of deer so it should work well on hogs. The 250 XTP gave much better expansion and is my preferred .45 LC deer hunting bullet.







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I'm not sure of the barrel lengths of your BH or Rossi, but I've found in 45 Colt the rifle will give 200-300 fps more than the same load in a handgun, depending on specific load and barrel lengths. The longer barrel really wakes up the ole 45 Colt.

In my Rossi with 16" barrel, I easily get over 1400 fps with 300 grain Speer Deep Curls using W296.

I would be interested to see what your handgun and rifle velocities are with your 260 Speer if you get a chance to chrono them. That rifle velocity may be a pleasant surprise!

Regards,
Manny

Manny the Rossi has a heavy octagon barrel, 24 inches long. Next week I will chronograph these bullets. I have a couple boxes of the Hornady XTP 250 grain already loaded. I use those in a 4 5/8 inch Blackhawk for hogs

Sounds excellent. Let me know what that 24" barrel does to those bullets.

Regards,
Manny

I recently acquired a 45 Colt Rossi. I have a Model 25-10 S&W and a Uberti replica 1873 Colt also.
The magazine “Handloader” has many articles on the 45 Colt.
I’ve been reading Brian Pierce’s articles, besides many others.
It seems the SAAMI maximum pressure limit is 14,000 PSI.
Mr. Pierce suggests that we can load the modern Colt SA’s from 16,000 to 19,000 PSI. I’d think that would be safe in the Uberti too.
He seems ok to push the pressures to 23,000 PSI in the S&W 25.
He wrote that for the Ruger Blackhawk, Ruger Bisley, Vanquero and Freedom Arms can safely handle 32,000 PSI.
I suspect that the Rossi easily is in this group, perhaps higher PSI??? He didn’t load for a rifle, but he showed loads to 50,000 PSI for what, I don’t know.
See Handloader June 2002, No.17 and
Handloader April 2013, No. 283 For more info.

The load I had been using in my first 45 the 1873 clone is 253 grain cast Keith style, 9.8 grains unique. Which might be pushing the limit. I don’t know.

Ken Waters also grouped “Pet Loads” into three categories. See Handloader March 1975.

He felt that the new Colt SAA fit in Cat II. I’m not sure if the more modern Model 25 S&W was manufactured yet when he wrote that article.

I may likely compare Pierce’s loads and Ken Waters’ revolver loads later.

Then Waters did an article on the 45 Colt in a USRA Winchester Model 94 Trapper Handloader Jan. 1991. I suspect the the ‘92 Rossi is just as strong or stronger than the Trapper.

To the op,
Waters used 18.5 grains of 2400 with SPEER 260 grain JSP. Maybe that’s where you got your load?

I have a good supply of cast bullets made from wheel weights that I cast for the Uberti, I might throw some tin in for the next batch for bullets to be used in the Rossi. All my 45 jacketed bullets are for the 45-70’s and the 45-90 alas.

The 50k psi loads are for FA83's and Redhawks. I tried 'em once, they'll rattle your fillings. The 32k stuff is enough for me.

Amen. I've got 330 and 350 gr bullets loaded up around 1250, and that's been TOUGH for me to learn to shoot well. I wouldn't want more.

Just an FYI, my little search for the perfect .45 lever rifle load ended up with 22.3 grains of H110 with a 225 grain FTX at around 1450 FPS. Very nice to shoot and accurate.

FS jeeper

What action lever gun are you using?

Thanks

For my son's and my Blackhawks, the RCBS 45-250 KT and 18-2400 is all we need. Dead deer.

Rossi 92, 16" barrel.

Got some 250 FTX coming this way.

A 50k psi Ruger. That said, once done I did no more.

Beautiful Ruger, EdM... I really like those grips with that finish!

I'm guessing that speaks to you when you pull the trigger.

Where in the psi range does a 300gr XTP loaded with 23gr of H110 fall? My new (to me) Ruger Blackhawk shoots them well enough for me, but I get slightly better accuracy from 250gr XTPs using 25gr of H110.

I have found the heavier bullets (300 gn) are more accurate with 2400 than H110. I load 2400 15-18% less than H110, so your 23.0 grains if H110, would fall right on my accuracy load if 20.0 grains of 2400 with a 300 grain bullet. My Rugers and FA’s shoot clover leafs with this load. Great fir hunting too.

good info, thanks Bearskinner

I've loaded some extremely accurate loads with H-110/296 from 300 to 325 grain in my Rugers and FA-83s
I much prefer H-110/296 for my top end loads. In my younger days a litter bottle wasn't safe at 120 yards with those loads

Someone might have already mentioned it, but the Ruger flattop .45s have a smaller frame and can't handle the pressures of the .44 frame, full size New Model Blackhawks.

Beauteous piece.

Have any of you guys tried hodgedon longshot ?

Yep.

11-12 grs works well keeping bullets 280 on down in the "Smith 25" category.

I've used it with a custom 300 too, but that bullet is not commercially available and recommending a 280 with standard cast bullets keeps it in the safe range for that class of 45.

I loaded up some 250xtp with it for my Blackhawk and it seems like a house fire load to me but I havnt put it into any varmints yet.

I've played with the 270-SAA Keith bullet (286 grains) for the last decade or so.
Fired many of them over 9.0grn. H-Universal for 1,000fps. More accurate than I am out of my Bowen tuned Bisley.
20grn. of 2400 gives 1,200fps for a bit more oomph.
25grn of 296 for 1,350fps and more recoil than is fun anymore.

I think my next load will be 18.5 of 2400. Should be 1,100fps out of the Bisley and about 1,300 out of the Henry. Seems perfect, after a decade of tinkering.

Sadly, I've never killed a darn thing with the Bisley. Though saboted 270-SAA's out of my Knight have whacked a few.

Something like this is about the most I want these days. I used to make similar loads with bullets I cast from a Walt Melander made NEI 454-270-PBK mold.

I wish I shot well enough to see how well that load actually shoots. A lot of paper and steel ain’t had a prayer.

Not in 45 colt but I have a new cylinder to try.

Here is 15.0g in 44 Mag, 5 shots at 25 yards. My initial impression of Longshot is that is has a lot potential. All of the bullets were touching.

If anyone has a copy of Hodgdon's original Longshot edition of the 2004 Annual Manual, it has loads up to 30,000 CUP for the 45 Colt.

I can find it for data if anyone is needing it.


My load above was from starting loads with 300gr. Sierra JFP's.
Starting 11.2grs 21,100 CUP 1005 fps. MAX 12.5grs. 29,200 CUP 1136 fps.

The only other load is the Hornady 250 XTP at 12 grs starting 22,100 CUP 1129 fps and MAX 13.4 grs. 29,900 CUP for 1252.

Oddly the data ISN'T under Ruger, Freedom Arms T/C only, but under the regular 45 Colt column and I don't recall seeing it since, but I've never checked their online data. The STARTING load is a decent but top level Smith 25 45 Colt load, but I keep the bullet weight below 280.