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Post by sixshot on Jul 27, 2017 12:09:53 GMT -5
You can try some bullets that cost less for every day practice & plinking & save the MBW's for hunting. There are several different commercial casters out there & many of them sell a cheaper bullet, although I would stay away from the bevel base bullets myself. Also no need for a gas check bullet in most cases but sometimes they are necessary & sometimes they will shoot better than a plain base bullet. If you want to shoot a softer bullet at higher velocity you will need either a gas check or powder coating or you will get leading. One last thing, have you tried any powder coated bullets? A much cleaner alternative to regular cast bullets & good for everything from bunnies to Bovines!
Dick
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Post by 2 Dogs on Jul 27, 2017 23:51:27 GMT -5
I have shot the 45 Colt a good deal. I went thru the heavy 45 Colt stage with the 300 plus grain slugs and came back down and worked with the 250 grain XTPs jacketed HPs. My sixguns have ranged from the FA97 to to tight chambered long cylinder customs by Clements. You really have to pay attention when loading for a tight chambered sixgun.
The 45 Colt is fickle. I say that because in my experience it is far easier to find a good load for the 44 special or 44 magnum. I really couldn't put my finger on why that is so, but having owned more than my fair share of custom sixguns, all carefully built with precise dimensions I believe I can say that a 44 special or magnum will shoot a greater variety of loads well than will a 45 Colt. Still, that's the kind of thing that just drives me nuts and makes me work harder.
So don't give up. And for damn sure don't go painting yourself into a corner with a certain bullet. Let your sixgun tell you what it wants. You might have to buy a few extra molds but then again, there are always other sixguns down the road!
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Post by oddshooter on Jul 28, 2017 10:42:38 GMT -5
Hey sixshot,
Thanks for the reply on MBW costs. I can't agree more about bullets in a hunting application. I think to get a humane kill is a requirement and the best bullet available should be used. Forget cost.
And it sounds like plinking is different for you as well.
I am a handloader and I normally pay around $.10 for pre-lubed cast gas checked SWC or RN. Yep, I have tried and liked the powder coating of my non-lubed cast. The process takes quite a bit more time with the oven than tumble lube with Deluxe Liquid XLox. The powder coated are pretty. The Xlox can occasionally be a little tacky. It's easy to clean my fingers, but my seating die needs a good cleaning after a 1000 or so.
I am one of those folks who believes you normally get what you pay for. I am always trying new recommendations and thoroughly enjoy the search.
I have found it very difficult to get real world comparisons of bullets. Not enough people have tested and recorded in a table format. The text descriptions from the net are near worthless. Have any of you seen such comparisons where group size was used?
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Post by oddshooter on Jul 28, 2017 10:49:05 GMT -5
2 Dogs,
My experience has been the same, however, I have a question.
Is the 45 Colt fickle or is it the 45 colt firearms that are used to shoot them?
Three tiers of strength and cylinder/barrel measurements varying widely.
Prescut I do listen to my guns and they do tell me what they want. It's just that each of my 45 hawglegs keep telling me something different.
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Post by sixshot on Jul 28, 2017 11:22:44 GMT -5
What the "Dawg" says is fact & almost any 44 special or magnum can offer up good groups with about any load you put in it if you are up to the task because dimensions have been pretty much spot on for many years now. You might have to juggle bullet size .001" but that's about it & you will find a sweet spot, usually right around .430". Switching to the wonderful 45 things can get a bit more complicated, not always but sometimes & that's where a new shooter can work himself into a lather trying to figure what's going on. With a troublesome 45 you have to take it one step at a time, don't go making multiple changes all at once, that's always a deal breaker. Pin gauges are a big help or a short text to the short necked Tex! He loves me! Fermin has outlined in previous posts about undersize throats, barrel thread restrictions, etc. and it's all very good information & easy to follow. He can walk you through, step by step on how to correct it. Many times the latest Ruger 45's are shooting amazing right out of the box with nothing but a good trigger job. That big 45 case holds a lot of powder & in a full size Ruger or Freedom Arms is an extremely powerful handgun, capable of taking just about anything in North America short of the big bears & "Hondo Hamburgers" & even then with proper loads can get the job done if need be. Once you hit that sweet spot with a good 45 it's about as good as it gets.
Dick
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