Best powder for my S&W .45 Colt Mountain Gun?

[jski3]

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.

 

[BLUEDOT37]

Being bulkier, Unique will fill the case better &, depending on the charge's weight, will reduce the likelihood of having a double-charge.

.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

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

 

[cowboy4evr]

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 .

 

[M29since14]

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.

 

[Warren Sear]

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.

 

[max]

I prefer Unique.

 

[JBnTx]

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.

 

[Barbarosa99]

Laser-Cast 255SWC and 9.0 grains of Power Pistol

 

[riversalmon]

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.

 

[jski3]

Went to Hodgdon's data website and besides Titegroup, it's all Clays. Has anyone used Clays?

 

[gaijin]

Try AA9 with cast bullets.

 

[wpriest]

For plinking/informal target shooting I use either Trailboss or Red Dot with a 200 grain RNFP sitting on top.

 

[Biggfoot44]

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.

 

[442w29]

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.

 

[scattershot]

Unique. No doubt.

 

[Hasbeen1945]

Unique. I've tried accurate 5 and power pistol but coming back to the old tried and true unique.

 

[cowboy4evr]

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 .

 

[at_liberty]

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.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

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.