.45ACP Easiest To Load?

[ACP230]

I am back to making target .45s so my son has practice ammo to shoot before going to the Nationals at Camp Perry.

Having loaded .41 Magnums and .38 Specials just before this, it seems to me that the shorter, fatter, .45 ACP fits my fingers better. JMB's old .45 strikes me as the easiest handgun cartridge to load. I'm using a 200 grain LSWCs, Winchester Match brass, Winchester LP primers and Bullseye powder.

Presses are a Lee C and a Lee Turret. My rate per hour seems to be higher when loading .45s than with either of the other two rounds. Fewer cases are getting loose and falling on the floor too.

When I started loading .45s it took me three tries to find an accurate, powerful load. Some other calibers (9mm for one) have never shown me as much accuracy as the .45, despite more effort being expended in the search for a good load.

What do you guy think? Is the .45 easier for you to load than other handgun rounds?

 

[Lowpower]

I load through a Dillon 550B and it came with a milled slide bar that drops 4.8 grains of W231 every time. There's no adjustment. My .45's love the load. 4.8 grs is not the most powerfull load but it's very accurate in my Colt's so I stick with it. I get a very high turnout rate of finished .45 acp's because I only have to spot check every once in a while. I'm amazed that every spot check is on the money. I do have a light that shines down on the case after powder drop as a back up I always check the drop on every single load. So far (I hope this doesn't jinx me) I haven't had a squib in many years.

All my other calibers require I snapshot every 10th round or so and I get settled in to knocking out a few hundred. The powder drops seems to vary +/- .1 to .2 from time to time.

LP

 

[epj]

I would agree that the .45 ACP is perhaps the easiest cartridge to reload. It is short and fat, and easy to see into. I also use a Dillon 550 and it is one cartridge that I can really easily see the powder charge as I place a bullet on the case at station 3. A .38 Spc on the other hand, is so tall and skinny that there is little way to easily see the powder charge. 9mm's are so small they are hard to handle at times.

 

[GyMac]

I find the .45 very easy to run through my press (also a Lee Classic Turret). Maybe it's a bit smoother than my most-loaded round, the .38 Spl. As far as finding an accurate load goes, that has never been an issue as I only shoot off-hand and the gun always shoots better than I do. I use established loads to replicate factory ballistics and have always been happy with the results.

Chris

 

[ACP230]

I dislike loading the 9mm. Cases on the floor all the time, crummy accuracy, etc. I gave it up when I could get 1,000 rounds of FMJ 9mm for just over $100. I'm using up the dregs of those buys now and will have to load 9mm sometime this year. Into each loading life some rain must fall, eh?

 

[m657]

My favorite to reload IS the 45 ACP. Using the 650 Dillon it's just way easy to get a ton of range fodder in short order.

On the other side of the question, 9/40 are tied for most annoying PIA cases. I don't even like to shoot them because of that.

Even the 380 cases are more enjoyable than 9/40 IMHO.

 

[SW CQB 45]

my issues with 45acp is primer seating with my D550B. they seat crooked, so I give it a spin and hit it again. I discussed this with Dillon and they could not find the problem. I adjust my plate right next to the point of being tight.

I just started loading "nina" and primer seating is far easier. in fact I am using CCI because they go in too EZ for me.

yes, 45acp I can see the powder, "nina" have to look hard to confirm.

LOW POWER, what do you mean by a milled bar that throw 4.8 grains every time? its set for that throw? are they custom made for various powders and throws? I prefer 4.9 - 5 grains of 231.

 

[Jellybean]

I've never noticed the .45 ACP being easier than other .40ish calibers, even while loading on a single stage press. But I did notice the .50AEs look like tea cups.

 

[TSQUARED]

Using my Dillon 550 the short fat cases do not wiggle on the shellplate as much as the longer/slimmer ones. The 45 ACP cases seem to glide into sizing die while i do get some stoppages with the longer 357 mag cases.

 

[Fishslayer]

I dislike loading the 9mm. Cases on the floor all the time, crummy accuracy, etc.

Try the blue nitrile gloves from Walmart. They really help with gription on those dainty li'l cases....

Having said that, I drop more .357 than .45. Prefer loading the .45.

 

[zercool]

I prefer loading .38s to the .45 ... but they're both nice easy cartridges to reload. I can crank out about 100/hr on a single-stage when I get into a rhythm.

 

[David Sinko]

I will take this a step farther and say that the .45 ACP as a REVOLVER cartridge is the easiest to reload. In a revolver it does not depend on pressure to function properly and the revolver is not demanding in regard to cartridge OAL. The revolver will also handle .45 Super equivalent in ACP brass. The revolvers are also great with very heavy bullets. No doubt about it, the .45 ACP is a fantastic revolver cartridge.

Dave Sinko

 

[ACP230]

My .45 ACP "hardball" reloads have been fired in a bunch of semiautos, a Smith 1917(Brazilian Contract) and a few .45ACP subguns. They've worked fine in all of them.

 

[LAH]

Is the 45 ACP easiest to load?

I don't know if it's easier for me than say a 38 or 44. Both are easy to find loads for & with my smaller hands I have no problems with the longer cases when seating bullets.

But the 45 ACP IS an easy case to load. I've loaded thousands with the H&G 68 & 5.7 grains of 231. This is a great load & very accurate. Before tearing my shop apart & moving from Dry Creek I loaded every piece of 45 ACP brass I had with a 230 FMJ bullet, WW primer & 5 grains of Bullseye. Not sure how many but more than a few. The little Dillon just kept cranking them out.

I find both the above loads work great in every 1911 they've met so far. So I lean toward your statement & won't necessarily disagree with you...........Creeker

 

[Paul5388]

I suppose my least favorite case to load is .25 ACP.

I really don't see where .45 ACP is any easier to load that most full sized cases. So, I load most of them and don't even think about what's easy. I tend to think of what I want/need to load, which is rarely anything like a factory load.

 

[Dew]

For me the easy case of all of them to load is the .45 Auto Rim.

 

[chucka]

Hi all, For what's it's worth....
Regarding being able to "see" into the cartridge when loading. I use a LED bore light on gooseneck stuck onto the D550. Gives good light and easy to adjust. I primarily load 45 ACP.
Chucka

 

[LAH]

Welcome to the board Chucka................Creeker

 

[Beans]

I have had no problems loading the .45 ACP cartridge.

It took quite a while to get the .40 S&W dies to produce a cartridge that would feed in my Glocks. Now the problems ahve been adjusted away.

I agree the 9mm is a PITA to load.

The straight wall pistol cartridges are easy to load. .38, .357, .41 mag, 44 Mag, 45 schofield.

I rate the 45 Colt as being up there with the .45 ACP for ease of loading.

All loading is done on the Dillon 650/550b.

 

[btruman]

I've always considered the .38Sp the easiest to reload but nothing hard or complicated about the .45ACP either.