325 PD ammo

[Jerry in SC]

I'm having a bullet unseating issue with my 325 PD (4") so far CCI Lawman 230 ball is the culprit. The bullet unseated about .090". This was the last round of six in the moon clip. It has worked well in our 1911's.

I haven't checked my UMC or Speer Gold Dot's yet.

Any recommendations as to factory ammo for the 325 would be appreciated.

Jerry

 

[Spotteddog]

Jerry,
Does the PD come with a grain of weight ammo stipulation in it's paperwork? And has any other brand of ammo ever been tried in her? Results? With as stepped up as ammo production lines are these days, finding some that may not have been crimped enough isn't outside the range of possibility, either!

 

[LoboGunLeather]

Bullets unseating under repeated recoil can be an issue with any revolver. The .45 ACP can be particularly prone to this, as the typical 230 grain ball projectile has no cannelure and the case mouths are not crimped.

During WW2 .45 ACP ammo for military contracts was assembled using an asphalt cement around the bullet circumfrence. This minimized both bullets unseating under recoil, as well as bullets being pushed down into the cartridge case during feeding into the chamber.

Best solution for factory ammo would be ammunition loaded with bullets displaying a cannelure where the case mouth is engaged, allowing the taper crimping to better grip the bullet. For handloading, any bullet having a cannelure or crimping groove, seated with a taper crimp die, would be preferable to avoid this problem.

 

[Jerry in SC]

There is no warning concerning recommended bullet weights with the 325, just checking for bullets unseating due to recoil. I did shoot some UMC and Speer Gold Dots but in all honesty didn't check the last bullet in each moon clip.

There are a few members with 325's and I was curious as to what ammo they were using without encountering unseating issues.

I loaded the .45 Auto Rim in the 70's and I guess I could start loading again, but being a lazy sort I was hoping for a simple solution.

Using regular .45 acp is easy, moon clips and all. I know that Buffalo Bore and Black Hills are loading the Auto Rim but I wasn't wanting a cast bullet load. I have some reservations using cast lead considering the difficulty in cleaning the titanium cylinder. The BB loads are thumpers and take the fun out of shooting the rascal. The Black Hills loads (255 @ 750) might be an alternative but again, I'm skeptical about using lead in this particular revolver.


The gun is pretty comfortable to shoot, about like a full .357 magnum load in a 19 or 66.

Thanks,
Jerry

 

[flop-shank]

Jerry, I see a skull and crossbones and a post count of 666!

Seriously, If .45 ACP uses the same diameter bullet as .45 Colt (IIRC it does, but I'll let you do the leg work), a Lee Factory Crimp Die should be able to press a roll crimp into a jacketed bullet even if it doesn't have a cannelure. Problem solved if you'll carry handloads...............but, I wouldn't crimp a factory cartridge any further than it left the factory!!!!! The Pressure could get Icky! I'm a handloader and will use and carry handloads only when my factory ammo is gone, so consider the source of the info I posted above. A full FCD roll crimp should solve your problems.

 

[Jerry in SC]

The recoil of the 230 grain just didn't seem heavy enough to cause a bullet jump. It moved .090" but didn't come close to separating from the case.

By no means am I going to try to re-crimp a factory cartridge, but thanks for the caveat.

I may try the Buffalo Bore 200 grain Gold Dots in .45 Auto Rim (standard pressure). They put a hefty crimp on their revolver ammo.