I went to Hodgdon's data website and noticed that for Ruger & Freedom Arms .45 Colts there is an H110 recommendation. If I go to the "others" .45 Colt data, there's no data for H110.

Is there a safe H110 load for the Mountain Gun?

The reason I ask is that I reload for the .30 Carbine & .357 Mag and it's easier to stick with H110. At simple matter of convenience. I'm not looking for anything "stiff".

H-110 (Same powder as Win-296) is a poor choice for less than full power loads in the 45c, or .357 mag. for that matter. This powder needs high pressure and a firm crimp to burn properly. It does not do well with reduced loads.

Powders in the fast to medium range like Unique, Red Dot, Win-231 would be better choices for "less than stiff" loads.

Ruger type loads in a 45c using 296 powder will run close to, or as high in pressure as full power .44 mag. loads.

My personal opinion is I would not use these type loads in an N frame Smith. The cylinder is the same diameter as the .44 mag. version, but the chambers are of course bored larger in the 45c, which means less steel between the chambers and cylinder stop notches. Some of guys load these guns hot, but I wouldn't.. There is a reason they are called "Ruger only loads"

Larry

When I had 2 S&W 25's in 45 Colt, The best factory ammo in that round was Federal 225 lead SWC-HP-Hollow Base. Velocity is about 1000 fps. Accuracy was far better than me and/or the guns.

Back in 1980 K-mart had it in 50 round boxes for about $9. The only places I can find it now are Midway and Cabela's in the premium ammo line up, 20 round box about $22. I also had very good luck with Winchester Silver Tip Hollow Points, always has been a premium ammo and priced that way.

My 45 Colt load for target and enjoyment is 6.7 of WW231/HP38, and 230 cast RNFP sized .452" with a medium crimp.

Ivan

It is generally not recommended to "Magnumize" .45 COLT in S&W revolvers. Ruger Super blackhawks, and Freedom Arms are rather heavy-for-caliber guns, which is why they have their own loads in reloading manuals.

I agree with all of the above. S&W guns are not strong enough to utilize the same loads as Rugers, and H110 does not perform well at the power level appropriate for S&Ws. I shoot 250g to 255g bullets over 8.5g of Unique. This is a 'classic' load for 45 Colts and is also safe for single actions like Colts and Ubertis. Blue Dot is another option, but is not better than Unique, just different. I have not tried W231 yet.

I keep seeing this claim about H110 and have come to the conclusion that there is a lot of Internet Lore (myth) in this claim. The reason is very simple, there is a WIDE spread of charge weight published loads for this powder in 357 Magnum if you compare multiple sources.

As an example, for the Hornady 158 grain Hornady XTP, Hornady lists a starting charge weight of 12.7 grains and a maximum charge weight of 15.6 grains. Look at Hodgdon's data for this exact same bullet and you'll find a starting charge weight of 15.0 grains and a maximum charge weight of 16.7 grains, a weight 4 full grains heavier than Hornady's starting charge weight. This is about a 25% difference in charge weight between two trusted sources for reloading data.

Note, in my 1892 Winchester I've found 14.8 grains of H110 with the 158 grain XTP produces the best accuracy and over a chronograph the average variation in velocity was just 7 fps. in a 5 shot string. So, either H110 is more tolerant of sub maximum charge weights than these internet claims or Hodgdon's data is well over the SAAMI maximum pressure for the 357 Magnum. My hunch is that H110 is actually very tolerant at less than maximum charge weights as long as a Magnum primer is used to provide ignition. I will also note that while their charge weights could be regarded by some as overly conservative, in 357 Magnum, 300 Blackout, and 223 Remington I have found my most accurate loads using the Hornady 9th edition.

Ivan, I would suggest that you do some testing to insure your primers are fully seated, because I suspect that this may be a large factor in your issue. BTW, as someone who has actually worn out an RCBS handprimer to the point where it wasn't seating primers fully I have first hand experience with what happens. In my case semi auto calibers worked just fine but double action revolver loads started exhibiting misfires.

Testing for this is really really simple, just hit the misfires a second time and see if they fire. If you find that 100% will fire on the second strike IMO your problem is primers that aren't fully seated. If you still have some misfires then you may want to try replacing the strain screw for your 460V. BTW I have also found that the Stainless Steel strain screws will peen over at the tip a lot faster than the blued steel strain screws. When this happens you not onle see a sharp ridge of peened steel form around the tip that makes removal difficult but after 2000-3000 rounds downrange I was starting to see misfire issues. For me it was enough of a problem that I have now replaced the stainless strain screws in my model 620, 625, 617, 610, and 67 revolvers with blued steel versions just so I didn't have to deburr the tip of the strain screw every 4th cleaning.

Yeah, I have a bit of a "thing" for stainless S&W's. In my defense I do have a blued model 19-3 and a blued Dan Wesson 15-2.

Here is one of the better articles on the 45 Colt.

Big Bore Revolver | Cody | John Linebaugh Custom Sixguns

With heavy bullets, note the 3 tables of pressure ratings

RCBS mould 45-270-

https://www.riflemagazine.com/magazi...246partial.pdf

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Still Running Against the Wind

H110 will definitely work with heavy hard cast lead bullets in 45 Colt. However, your short barrel may limit your gains and reveal some extra muzzle blast.

WILDPIG

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I ain't from around here.

Different reloading manuals can be all over the map. I prefer to check with the manufacturer for data if there is a large difference in two manuals. I would keep N frame 45's to mid range pressure loads which rules out H110, IMO.

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Front sight and squeeze

Don't restriction or limit your reloading capabilities by wanting to stick to one common component.

No reason to try to use H110 for 45 Colt loads in S&W revolvers. The slowest I use is 2400. A much better choice for 45 Colt (+P) loads. Or any of the moderate speeds powders: Unique, Power Pistol, LongShot, CFE-P, etc.

.

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Waiting for the break of day

You mentioned that you were not looking for " anything stiff " . I would spend a few bucks , get a pound of a different powder .
Alliant lists Blue Dot w/a 255 gr bullet exceeding 1000fps and within SAAMI limits of 14Kpsi . If you want less , around 850 fps , Unique , WSF , WST , Red Dot , Imr 700X , Bullseye , Universal etc will all get you there . They will be enjoyable to shoot , economical and accurate .

I'd roll with 2400 in that Mountain gun.

41

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This ain't no coon hunt