Pitbull

So my dad and I are fairly avid shooters. He shoots .45 ACP and a bunch of .22 and I shoot .45 ACP and 9mm... It made sense for one of us to pick up a reloading press so for Christmas he got me a Lee Classic Turret.

I've been reading lots on reloading and feel comfortable with the mechanics and all. That said, I set up my press today and did a couple "dry runs" (no powder) to make sure my dies were properly set up.

Couple questions:
1) What's a good powder to use for .45 ACP? Preferrably one that I can start with the Lee dipper set b/c my Pro Auto Disc is on order. I'm using 230 gr Speer TMJ.
2) What OAL should I be going for? The max, according to my load sheets, is 1.275." Having played with my bullet seating die a bit, I've set a few at 1.273" and one at 1.214" OAL. For reference, my Federal Hydra-Shock is 1.209".
3) How do I know if my factory crimping die is working? I feel it applying pressure when I raise the ram , but don't know if its something I'll be able to see?

Thanks guys, I'm sure I'll have more questions as I go but I'm taking my time and making sure I understand each step of the process and how my equipment is working before I start shooting.

Andy

BJ

Might want to get a couple of manuals (Lyman Accurate Arms Hodgdon ) as of right now I am using Tight Group For strate cartrages and AA 2,5,7,or 9 bottle neck rounds B.J.

houdini

I use aa5 powder.with a 230 bullet head

Pitbull

Yeah, I have several manuals, plus the reloading info that came with the dies...

Thanks.

Pitbull

Okay - Here's another set of questions:

According to the Lee Reloading data for .45 ACP using a 230 gr Jacket-ed bullet and Bullseye:
The starting powder grain wt for the load is 5.0 gr and the max grain wt is 5.0 gr. Am I to read that as there is NO room for error?

That said, I just reloaded 10 with that configuration: 230 gr fmj, 5.0 gr Bullseye and weighed my finished rounds, just to double check and the final weights were all over the place. I took the ones that were way heavy apart and double checked the powder and re-weighed the components. None were overcharged and the bullets were both 230 gr. Could the cases, besides all being Winchester White box have had several grains of weight difference?

If that's the case, I take it weighing final rounds as a last check is useless, right?

Thanks!
Andy

Jeff F

Absolutely, case weights tend to vary quite a bit in the same lot. When you get to making precision target reloads some will sort cases into lots of varying weight.

My preferred powder for .45ACP is Unique.

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ncffp163

My recipe is 4.7 grs of Win 231 with the 230 gr FMJ

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dukalmighty

I use unique for everything and load 5grns behind a 230 grn lead bullet

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coffeecup

Another vote for Unique. Loads most everything from Field loads for shotshells down to .25ACP, including lead bullet loadings for rifles. It truly is UNIQUE.

Fmr18z

1) I use Bullseye and Titegroup, with your 230 gr TMJ the Bullseye will work great, though I've found it to be a little dirty. If you're using a Lee .5cc dipper that came with your kit, it actually is only giving you 4.8 gr of Bullseye with a level scoop, at least that's what mine measures out to be, so you're below the max load. When I load 230 gr FMJ I put 4.8 gr of Bullseye behind it. I would recommend you get a scale when you can, as each pistol is different and you can work up your own loads.

2) 1.275" in the max OAL, I've been told if you use a micrometer and measure the OAL of a factory 230 gr FMJ, you can see what their OAL is and can use that for your loads. The minimum OAL (1.190") is the shortest, safe Over All Length with maximum charges. Checking my FMJ's from my last batch I set them at 1.250", but this is just what I use.

3) What type of die set do you have? If it's the Lee Deluxe Pistol Die Set (4 dies) just follow the instructions that came with the dies as how to set it up in your loader and it will give you the crimp that you want. I've had to turn the adjusting screw 3/4 turn versus 1/2 turn to get the crimp that I want, but once again start out with what they recommend and then adjust from there. I can't see the crimp (probably bad eyesight) but can barely feel it when I run my fingers over the casing, also a micrometer would show you how much of a crimp you have.

Now I mainly shoot lead RN and SWC for IPSC because of the cost and have had to make up new loads for these. Sorry this was so long, but hope it helps in some way.

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