One of the most fun things I have ever done!

Beruisis Posted 19 July 2008 04:56 PM I just measured the throat on my 25-2 & it is .456....a bit much IMO but is there any adjustment that needs to be done in the reloading or bullet sizing process to accomodate this larger throat size????

Berusis;
The current practice is to size the bullet to the throat size. However, you MAY have a problem finding a bullet mould that casts a bullet that large (the current "standard" for Smith throats is .452"). I would want a bullet no smaller than .455". An alloy of WW+2% tin is my current "standard" for pistol and revolver bullets. However, my moulds cast probably .453"-454" and I size to .452" to fit my two 625's and they shoot extremely well without leading with the above prescription (one is a 625-6 (5") and one is a 625-8 JM Special (4"). Both chambered in .45 ACP, of course.

Dale53

And then we wonder how Skip knew that was a Russian?

I think it's pretty obvious that he looked at it and saw it wasn't a feral hog, because there's a difference between the two.

The hog I posted was much larger than Skip's, even though I didn't weigh it, but it was also a feral hog. That's about all we have around here, from the old practice of free ranging stock and because some idiots thought they would make money selling hunting leases for hog hunting after hauling some in and releasing them. They're more destructive than fire ants!

The air gun kills were Russians or Russian crosses.

BTW, my 625-6 throats slug at .452" and the bore/barrel is .450". I cast a .454" bullet and size them in a .452" sizing die. The little bit of spring after sizing must be enough for them to fit right.

quote:

Beruisis Posted 19 July 2008 04:56 PM I just measured the throat on my 25-2 & it is .456....a bit much IMO but is there any adjustment that needs to be done in the reloading or bullet sizing process to accomodate this larger throat size????

If your throats are that bit you are going to have some real problems with leading my friend. What I would to is have a gunsmith look at it and see what they think.

If all else fails call Smith. Ask them if that seems to be out of tolerance by their production standards. If so, send it back and get that issue resolved.

With casting some of that can be taken care of but it would still be a chore. The harder your alloy the bigger the bullet will be but that means you have to drive it harder to get it to seal off the bore, obturate. Now you may have caused a bigger problem by driving a bullet harder that still doesn't fit the bore quite right.

I vote to send it back to Smith and tell them your troubles. Ask if it would be possible to have the fit like Paul stated, throats .002" bigger than the bore and at .452". I'm sure they have a cylinder or two around there that might fit your handgun!

Well, I have to say, if you are thinking of sending your cylinder to a gunsmith, then you could put all of your concerns to bed by sending it to Jim Clark (Clark's Custom Guns) and have him convert it to a .460 Rowland. You can still shoot .45 acp through it, but you can also shoot a 250 grn SWC at over 1,350 fps. That is .44 mag territory and beyond.

There would be no argueing your capabilities then!

Cayoot,
That would only work though if the throats weren't too big already. I know Clark can do some amazing things but a cylinder with big throats is a cylinder with big throats, right?

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Originally posted by smith crazy:
Cayoot,
That would only work though if the throats weren't too big already. I know Clark can do some amazing things but a cylinder with big throats is a cylinder with big throats, right?

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That would depend upon how much oversized they are. Depending upon the size of the throats, it might be as simple as having the bullets sized to .454 or .455 instead of .452.

If the throats are too large to cure by sizing (say .457 or larger)..then he might have to ask Mr. Clark if he has a cylinder laying around the shop (I'll bet he does), then before he installs it, have him convert it for the .460 Rowland.

The pure Russian strain is always one color, never mixed & their hairs always end in a split end. Check it out next time.

Beruisis,
This is option for you www.proshootpro.com the Leadhead Bullet Company,when i dont have time to cast I use these 2 bullets with great success PM45-255 they're a 255 grainer sized .452-.454 and then PMK45-270 Keith it's a 270 grainer sized .452-.454 they're both plain base bullets with a wide meplat and have BHN of 20-22 and out of the AR or Colt they do a great job,I know the first time i took the 25-2 to Monterey,Tenn. to the wilderness hunting lodge the owners were skeptical of my handgun and load,they'd never heard of a autorim,and thought i should rethink my caliber choice,but after it was over and my single kill shot at a roughly estimated 60 yards on the Russian was placed in the neck they had a new respect for the little squatty autorim round,I don't think you'll have any problem,most of my feral hog hunting around here is done with a 22 magnum with 40 grain TMJs out of a Savage 93 heavy barrel,of course we're talking a whole different species of hog and size,the heaviest ferals I've killed here are in the 150lb range and fall easily to a single headshot with the .22 mag.Then over the years when we where raising hogs to slaughter they allways fell from a single shot from a 22lr from a Colt Woodsman or S&W K-22,but again were talking about pin raised hogs here.Any way if you choose the AR or the same load out of the acp or super case you want be dissapointed with the performane.
Equalizer

Thanks Equalizer...I'll try both weight bullets.
I also have a 5" 38/44 HD Bowen converted to 45 ACP that throat measures .452" dia. so they won't go to waste. Did you use plain base bullets or the gas checked?
Where do you hunt?
Regards,
B

B,
I use plain base bullets in just about all my cast bullet loadings,I did buy some 335 grain LBTs with gaschecks to load for my Blackhawk in 45colt,these are only fired from a 5 shot cylinder from Hamilton Bowen,I've used this round once on a whitetail just to see what kind of performance I'd get,and it was devastating.Most of my hog hunts have been paid hunts in Monterey, Tenn. at the WildernessHuntingLodge.My feral hog hunts have been here in southwest Va. right on the eastern Kentucky border,Va does'nt recognize wildboar as a game species,I think that's the way it is in Texas isn't it?Most of the feral hogs here pour in across the Va./Ky. line so they're fair game when they cross the line.Do you all keep your hogs that you kill for meat or just sport?Since I've been hunting feral hogs I hunt them for meat.I'd eventually like to get some dogs to hunt them with. Normally like I said,I use the .22 magnum,but occasionally I'll drop the hammer on one of 45s whether it be one of my 25-2s,625 5" or my 625-6 Mountain Gun in .45colt or the Blackhawk.I just got a Ruger New Vaquero stainless 4-5/8" in 45colt that Im working the 270 grain bullet up in standard pressure 45colt I'm planning to hunt with,the 270 grain loading whether you cast or buy it already casted is outstanding for game,I normally carry it in the 45 colt when there is a chance of a bear or wildboar.Mt Baldy Bullet company offers a good HardCast 270 if your interested in this weight.My other hog round out of a handgun is the 10mm,but I've totally got off the thread with the 45colt and 10mm,we were talking about the autorim,sorry about that.
Equalizer

Thanks Equalizer. Here in Texas hogs = varmits to be shot year around no limit.
We eat all ours...alot of it goes on the smoker.
July August & most of Sept is too hot for me to chase them but I bear down on them hard usually.
Prefer hog meat over venison so things are good here. Largest one I killed was perhaps 250 - 300 lbs on the hoof but I dropped him with a deer rifle. The majority of them are around 80 - 100 lbs. Just right for the frying pan.
B

B,

You need to stop shooting those little ones and start shooting those big sows! They're the ones producing all the litters that we are trying to deal with where you hunt and eastward.

The last two boar hogs we killed just ended up being coyote bait. I don't eat hog meat, so it didn't bother me a bit.

B,
You fool with scraping yours or do you just skin'em out?I just skin mine out and smoke the hams and fry the tenderloin.Used to do the whole deal scraping and everything to get my bacon,but with these feral hogs I just skin'em and then butcher them,grind a little sausage from them.My fiance's son lives north of Houston and his father in law has a farm and is eat up with feral hogs,we're planning a trip down his way around October to hog hunt don't know if it'll get to happen this year or not.Let you know how it turns out.
Equalizer