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  #1  
Old 07-03-2017, 01:15 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Default Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?

What would be the best powder for my .45 Colt Mountain Gun?

I) Unique?
II) Titegroup?
III) Clays?

Something else? Primarily, I'll use the rounds as range ammo. Punching holes in paper. Been using Titegroup for awhile. Haven't really branched out from that though.
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Old 07-03-2017, 01:41 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Being bulkier, Unique will fill the case better &, depending on the charge's weight, will reduce the likelihood of having a double-charge.

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Old 07-03-2017, 02:57 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Clays by Hodgdon powder is not position sensitive. So it won't have hang-fires! Depending on the bullet, a target load will be in the 5 to 7 grain area. Winchester 231 (HP-38 is the same powder) is another good 45 Colt powder and charges will be in the 6 to 8 grain area.

I have used bot of these and Unique and prefer both over Unique.

Don't let the price per pound of powder sway you. There are 7000 grains to the pound, so you get around 1000 rounds per powder, plus or minus 100 won't change your costs to make a difference in the economy of target shooting! (So if you like Tite-Group, stick with it!)

Ivan
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Old 07-03-2017, 08:49 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Just for paper punching I would skip the unique . I'm not a fan of unique in the 45 Colt anyway so either of the other two you asked about would be fine . I have never used the other 2 you listed in the 45 Colt . I have used titegroup in 9mm and 38spl with good results so using it in the 45 colt would probably be my choice .
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Old 07-03-2017, 09:20 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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For some reason, the most accurate handloads in my .45 Colt Mointain Gun were made with 800X. Unfortunately, it does not meter well through any powder measure. If you don't want to weigh charges, and I couldn't blame you if you didn't, you might consider 231, or HS6 heavier loads.
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Old 07-03-2017, 09:23 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Unique is my favorite powder in the 45 Colt. I don't load target ammo for it, but full power, or close to it.

Same for 45 ACP.
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Old 07-03-2017, 10:19 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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I prefer Unique.
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Old 07-03-2017, 10:39 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Try a 250/255 grain lead bullet with 8.0grs of Unique.

BE-86 is a good alternative to Unique in 45 Colt.
I use the same 8.0grs with a 250gr RNFP bullet.
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Old 07-03-2017, 11:11 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Laser-Cast 255SWC and 9.0 grains of Power Pistol
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Old 07-03-2017, 11:18 AM
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I have used all three in my 45colt Mt.gun. I bought the Colt as it was slightly lighter and handier for all day, everyday carry. I found the 45 better suited for low to midrange loadings say 800 to 950 fps than the same in 44. For myself, Unique feels more like a blackpowder shove than the snap of the other two powders. This is why in these large volume cases I have settled on Unique. Always availabe, always consistent, and a margin of safety.
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Old 07-04-2017, 02:40 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Went to Hodgdon's data website and besides Titegroup, it's all Clays. Has anyone used Clays?
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Old 07-04-2017, 06:17 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Try AA9 with cast bullets.
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Old 07-04-2017, 06:37 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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For plinking/informal target shooting I use either Trailboss or Red Dot with a 200 grain RNFP sitting on top.
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Old 07-04-2017, 07:06 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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For mild paper punching loads, the list of suitable powders is longer than my arm , and all have people who swear by them .

If you wanted loads of 250/255gr, to approach 1,000fps , while under a particular pressure threshold, that would be a more focused discussion.
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Old 07-04-2017, 07:21 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jski3 View Post
Went to Hodgdon's data website and besides Titegroup, it's all Clays. Has anyone used Clays?
Yes and Clays does seem to work fine. I can't explain why, but I prefer TiteGroup, Trail Boss, and Red Dot over Clays.
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Old 07-04-2017, 10:26 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Unique. No doubt.
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Old 07-04-2017, 11:53 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Unique. I've tried accurate 5 and power pistol but coming back to the old tried and true unique.
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Old 07-05-2017, 11:36 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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My everyday " go to powder " in the 45 Colt is Winchester Super Field . I quit unique years ago and won't go back . My brother in law switched to Ramshot Zip yrs ago and wouldn't even consider going back to unique either . We use 255 gr cast bullets .
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Old 07-06-2017, 07:40 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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I use Unique with lead, partly because I am working off an 8 pounder of the stuff. More specialized for your target shooting would be Trailboss, Tin Star, and the like that do a good job of filling the case more like black powder. For jacketed I use Power Pistol, because that is what Hornady says gave them the best results.
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Old 07-06-2017, 11:54 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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I used to use a lot of W231 until I tried HS-6. Now that's all I use. I will be trying W572 soon and I can also recommend AA#5.

There are probably two dozen powders that will work well from Clays to Power Pistol with Red Dot and Unique in between.
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Old 07-06-2017, 12:53 PM
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I am not a TG fan for anything but depends on your use. If you want mild to wild, Unique would be my choice of those three. For light target loads I actually prefer RedDot. I shot #s of it in my CAS days. It fills the case better than TG, not as finicky as Clays at the top end.
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Old 07-06-2017, 02:10 PM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Unique seems to be the gunpowder that everyone loves to hate. Several years ago, Alliant released the 'new Unique' which they claim burns more cleanly than before. In my experience, it is a bit more energenic than the old Unique. After trying Blue Dot, HS6, and several others, Unique is still my favorite for standard 45 Colt loads. I use 8.5 grains with a 250 to 255 grain bullet.
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Old 07-09-2017, 08:03 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Red dot works for me "a little goes a long way"
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Old 07-09-2017, 08:16 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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When I used to do CAS I used a lot of Trail Boss. It filled up the case more and was easier to see in the case before seating the bullet..
I will say I only used it for the lighter 45 cal. bullets..
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Old 07-09-2017, 09:45 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jski3 View Post
What would be the best powder for my .45 Colt Mountain Gun?

I) Unique?
II) Titegroup?
III) Clays?

Something else? Primarily, I'll use the rounds as range ammo. Punching holes in paper. Been using Titegroup for awhile. Haven't really branched out from that though.
Of the three powders you list, the only one I have any familiarity with is Unique, and it has been very popular for many years (since about 1900) with .45 Colt shooters. I am something of a traditionalist, and I tend to stick with the old "tried and true", so out of the three I would recommend Unique.

Having said that, though, Unique is not my personal "go to" powder for pistols and revolvers. For me, the first choice is always Bullseye. Need more velocity? Then move up to Unique. Want more "oomph" than that? Well, that's where Blue Dot and 2400 come into play.

Honestly, my recommendation would be to load up a series of test cartridges with each of the three powders you listed, starting low and working up, and see which gives the most joy.
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Old 07-09-2017, 11:09 AM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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What I don't like about titegroup is that it is so dense that just a couple of flakes and that's your load, by weight . Not hardly any powder in the case. For target loads , Red Dot would be my choice . Red Dot is not so dense so it fills the case better . 6.0-6.5 grs works well with a 255 gr cast / plated bullet . You can load lighter , that was the sweet spot for me . It's been used for target loads in revolvers for many a year.

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Old 07-09-2017, 06:47 PM
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Would it not be prudent to determine what the performance goal is when considering the powder? I'd assume that with the paper punching as a goal, the "standard" (250-255 grain) bullet weight at roughly 900 fps would be ample. The next piece to me would be deciding the bullet configuration (I'm a reactionary and would use SWC about all the time in that caliber and especially for that purpose). BTW, such a load would also do darned near anything you needed for personal defense whether the predator is two legged or four.
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Old 07-22-2017, 12:36 PM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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I copied a post I made on another forum it has information about the performance I got with Hodgdon's CFE-Pistol powder and GOEX Black Powder. The BP stuff is probably of no interest to you but the performance of CFE-P maybe.

Velocity report for 45 Colt in New Vaquero 5.5"
Test fired my new SASS set of Ruger New Vaquero's in 45 Colt with 5.5" barrels.
My load recipe is:
Cases - Starline. Almost all the starline cases did not require trimming as they were already a few thou shorter than the trim to length of 1.275" as shown in my manuals.
Primers - CCI 350 Magnum primers were used because I read a test were they proved best for BP in the 45 Colt.
Powder - Goex 2fg the charge weight was 35 grains. The charges were weighed on a digital scale.
Bullet - 261 grain LRNFP soft cast BHN ~11 from JetBullets.com. Purchased unsized and unlubed because I wanted to try out my new SAECO lubrisizer. Bullets sized to .452" and lube with SPG bullet lube which added the 1 grain of bullet weight.
The powder was compressed with a powder compression plug installed in the expanded die.
Bullets were seated directly on the powder no wads were used and a roll crimp applied just over the forward drive band, for a COL of 1.565”.
Shooting Chrony results for 3 ten shot strings with BP, velocity in feet per second:
String #1) Lo 803.7 Hi 832.2 Av 819.5 Es 28.51 Sd 8.77
String #2) Lo 809.5 Hi 835.2 AV 823.0 Es 25.70 Sd 9.05
String #3) Lo 776.1 Hi 834.0 Av 815.0 Es 57.92 Sd 17.11


I also test fired a smokeless handload made using the same load recipe mentioned above just swapping out the BP for 9.0 grains of Hodgdon's CFE-Pistol powder. This charge weight is a little under the max charge in the Hodgdon's 2017 Annual Manual. I choose this powder due to the high velocity number shown in the Hodgdon Annual.
Smokeless Shooting Chrony results for 3 ten shot strings, velocity in feet per second:
String #1) Lo 1002 Hi 1061 Av 1040 Es 58.62 Sd 17.52
String #2) Lo 996.2 Hi 1070 Av 1043 Es 74.55 Sd 23.60

All chrono testing was done with the revolver with the odd serial number.
The even numbered revolver was just test fired for function.
Both guns were first test fired with Wolf brand factory ammo made in Kingston Ontario. The Wolf ammo was made with new Starline cases and have hard cast 250 grain LRNFP bullets.
Shooting Chrony results For Wolf Factory smokeless load:
String #1) Lo 788.5 Hi 865.0 Av 823.8 Es 76.42 Sd 25.78
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Old 07-22-2017, 03:37 PM
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For the .45 Colt I use Unique.
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Old 07-22-2017, 07:06 PM
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I still use 7.5-8.0 gr in my 3 45 Colts. Have a 1950 Target a Ruger Vlackhawk(wifes gun) and a S&W 4 inch mountain gun. 7.5 of Unique works in all with a 250 gr cast SWC...8 gr for a little more oomph
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Old 07-22-2017, 10:03 PM
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Unique in my opinion - tons of published reloading data out there for it. Works great with lead/cast bullets. Your other two powders are too fast for this cartridge in my opinion.
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Old 07-22-2017, 11:08 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by andyo5 View Post
Unique seems to be the gunpowder that everyone loves to hate. Several years ago, Alliant released the 'new Unique' which they claim burns more cleanly than before. In my experience, it is a bit more energenic than the old Unique. After trying Blue Dot, HS6, and several others, Unique is still my favorite for standard 45 Colt loads. I use 8.5 grains with a 250 to 255 grain bullet.
Me too.................
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Old 07-22-2017, 11:33 PM
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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For CAS pistol I have used 5 and 5.5 grains Trailboss with 180 grain RNFP lead of course... Also used Federal primer's..
Our pistols were action tuned by the Arizona Thumber so we had to use the softer Federal primers...
Would be a pleasant load for your Mountain gun..
Also used a heavy bullet load for our rifles but could not locate it for you. If I do I will add it to my post..
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Old 07-31-2017, 07:38 PM
joeymfd joeymfd is offline
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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I use 9gr of unique with 185 grn hornady xtp. I find this to be very dirty. is my bullet weight not enough to burn cleanly?
or maybe a magnum primer? thoughts
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  #35  
Old 08-01-2017, 10:45 PM
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SLT223 SLT223 is offline
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Has anyone tried Keith's 18.5gr of 2400 under a 250gr bullet? He shot this load in the old colts.
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  #36  
Old 08-02-2017, 09:11 AM
cowboy4evr cowboy4evr is offline
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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Yes , I have . It didn't do anything that 9 grs of unique didn't do except used up more powder . My favorite load in the 45 Colt using 255 gr swc is 9.5 grs of WSF or 13grs of Blue Dot . A real nice target load is 6.5grs of Red Dot , same bullet .
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  #37  
Old 08-06-2017, 05:31 AM
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bananaman bananaman is offline
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Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun? Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?  
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My 25-15 functions quite well with 230 gr. plated bullets & Titegroup in 45Colt. Bob
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