44 Mag and .45 ACP common powder loads

[deputygene]

We are in the same boat, I will be loading for 45acp and 44 mag. I just got some 200gr 45 SWC's in, my pistol liked the load I tried, which was around 4 gr bullseye, but I believe it may be a touch light. I have just ried a very light loaded .40 S&W with a 155 plated bullet and 231 powder. This is a soft shooter. I have used tightgroup for years with lead bullets, but it is a fast hot powder that will give you some smoke. I gonna experiment some.

[Garrison Joe]

Large numbers of .45 auto shooters use WST powder for target loads (which is essentially what we fire in WB).   With a 200 grain bullet, you can go well above the necessary velocity for WB.  (A 230 grain, you have very limited range of data for getting a safe pressure load that also is safely above the Power Factor).  WST burns clean and cool, compared to TG.       

The Semiwadcutter bullet will not be as versatile as a Truncated Cone or Round Nose Flat Point.   Using the H&G 68 design 200 grain SWC, load that so the top edge of shoulder comes just barely above the mouth of case and taper crimp down to about 0.471" OD right at the mouth.  At least, that was my recipe for 30 years of shooting the SWC, before switching to TC design that is a little more forgiving on having an exact seating depth.   The sharp shoulder on a SWC seated slightly long will jam on the rifling that starts very close to the chamber on a standard throated 1911 barrel.  Leading to failure to chamber during the last 1/8" of slide travel.

And, WST will work fine for a light loading in the .44 Mag, too.

Good luck, GJ

[J. Frank Norfleet]

Large numbers of .45 auto shooters use WST powder for target loads (which is essentially what we fire in WB).   With a 200 grain bullet, you can go well above the necessary velocity for WB.  (A 230 grain, you have a hard time getting a safe pressure load that also is safely above the Power Factor).  . . . Good luck, GJ

What? ? ? ? ?

Don't let Joe lead you astray.    The softest shooting load I've found for Wild Bunch is 4.0 gr. WST under a 230 gr. RN bullet for a 162 PF. I can't begin to count the number of Wild Bunch shooters that use some variation of that load. The felt recoil is less because you get more of a push with that load.

5.2 gr. of WST with the 230 gr. is the load I can shoot full auto through my Thompson SMG and keep it from walking off the target.

The 200 gr. bullets require more velocity to reach PF so you get more recoil. So I don't recommend them.
JFN

[Garrison Joe]

Go read Hodgdon's online data for .45 auto and a 230 LRN bullet and WST. 

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

You will see they call 4.3 grains of WST and the 230 LRN bullet the MAX load.   Making 812 FPS, which would be a PF of 187.
Yep, I agree, 4.0 WST is a great load under a 230 grain slug. Some 1911s might even need 4.1 or 4.2 grains.

WST is still a great powder, but I seriously think you are way over recommended pressure if you shoot 5.2 grains under a 230.
Maybe that data is wrong, but it is what the powder manufacturer themselves are publishing and have published for as long as I've used WST (over ten years).

Be careful out there!

[Abe E.S. Corpus]

Lots of suitable powders; many have been mentioned.

If you like the faster burning powders you might like Clean Shot from Shooters World.  It is a very fine grained powder.

If you prefer a midrange powder such as Unique, consider Universal or IMR's Unequal which is its "answer" to Unique.

[lostvaquero]

Trailboss has loads for both as well as other calibers.

For Cas I shoot 38s and data for those is just the same amount of powder as 45acp.  If I use small primer 45acp then I can load my 38s and 45acp without powder change and primer change.  Just change shell plate and dies.