.45 ACP Lee Recommendations?

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...i want to order a casting die for .45 acp since i am ordering a lee case trimmer ...i have a rifle (custom) in .45 acp and am currently signed up for my rpal course in a two weeks ...assuming i receive my rpal (no reason i can see to be turned down) i will be buying a 1911 ...are there any bullet designs that are a cause for concern re feeding through a 1911? ...anyone recommend a lee die that is 200 - 230 grain that i can load heavy and use in both guns? ...never used a 6 bullet mold, is it worth it or does accuracy suffer? ...do you recommend a sizer as well? ...yes i have shot pistol before but not now in 20 years and never cast my own back then (.22, 9mm, .41 mag, and .45 acp)

thanks for your advice
 
230 GR round nose would be the most common mold suggested. I have a bunch of molds ranging from 185 - 250gr, the one I use the most is the lee 6 cavity 200gr SWC mold. These feed and shoot well in everything I have used them in. I have a 2 cavity 230GR RNFP, these don't feed well in my 1911s. I have a couple of dual cavity 230gr RN I use often and a 185gr TC mold I use for carbines only. Lee molds come with a lube groove or a tumble cross hatch at the base. Are you planning on investing in a lube/sizing setup or do you just want to tumble lube them without sizing? You'll need to decide before choosing a mold. You can tumble lube any bullet design, but you may need to clean more often if you don't carry enough lube down the bore.
 
how do you plan to lube your bullets?

for the best feeding i would recommend lee's 230gr round nose mold 2cav or 6cav, i want to try their truncated nose mold as well, but i have a couple 45cal molds so it's not a rush for me.

i would go for the 6 cavity (you need their 6cav mold handles FYI) for mass production or you could get 2 or 3 of their 2 cavity molds and while 1 mold is cooling, you fill the next mold. i haven't tried this but i've read it works pretty good once you get a rhythm going.
 
...thanks

...i am already set up to lube bullets for my .30 cals and larger ...wondering if you size pistol bullets for better accuracy or is it worth it?
 
Depends on what the mold drops at and what your gun will accept.

Whether I tumble lube, traditional lube or powder coat I will size all the time.
 
The 230gr RN micro band is what I like. The 200gr SWC doesn't feed as reliably in my sr1911 and doesn't feed at all in my jr carbine.
 
With the price of raw lead today I stay away from heavy bullets. The nice people at LEE make a number of lighter bullets for most caliber's and all it takes for firing is an adjustable rear sight. Lee makes a very nice 200 grain SWC bullet which is pretty much the industry standard today for target. While most of the big makers typically make the 230 FMJ for 45acp, 200 grain bullets are really the way to go....you use less lead, the powder charges are typically light with fast burning powder, and unless you are knocking down bowling pins, the 200 grainers are perfect for target use.
 
hatman1793 said:
With the price of raw lead today I stay away from heavy bullets. The nice people at LEE make a number of lighter bullets for most caliber's and all it takes for firing is an adjustable rear sight. Lee makes a very nice 200 grain SWC bullet which is pretty much the industry standard today for target. While most of the big makers typically make the 230 FMJ for 45acp, 200 grain bullets are really the way to go....you use less lead, the powder charges are typically light with fast burning powder, and unless you are knocking down bowling pins, the 200 grainers are perfect for target use.
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that's the fight i always have with myself; heavy bullet/less powder or lighter bullet/more powder. not much of an issue with 9mm or 45acp but with the 500mag it can make a difference of 10gr of powder.
 
You don't have to resize unless your bullets are oversize. Bullet should be .001 to .002 inches larger than groove diameter. Lee makes some molds that are designed to be shot as cast with no sizing, and tumble lubed. They have a series of shallow lube grooves instead of the deeper grooves that conventional cast bullets have. They shoot really well and are a great bullet to start casting with for a new caster.
 
I have the 2 cavity 230 grain TC mold with the tumble lube design. I don't use it much since I just cast .45 for my father in law but he seems to like the bullets and they are more than accurate enough for shooting steel plates at the range. I powder coat them using the shake and bake method instead of normal lube.
 
Loki610 said:
I have the 2 cavity 230 grain TC mold with the tumble lube design. I don't use it much since I just cast .45 for my father in law but he seems to like the bullets and they are more than accurate enough for shooting steel plates at the range. I powder coat them using the shake and bake method instead of normal lube.
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is that being shot in a 1911? i got a box of DRG truncated nose bullets and they seem to feed good so i was considering that mold (6cav) for my next 45cal mold purchase.
 
As said earlier, 230gr RN would be the 1911s best bet for reliable feeding. If you want to pay for postage, I will send you 10 each of what I cast in 45 ACP.

I can send:

185 gr TC - this does not feed in either of my 1911s, but does well from the Thureon carbine (Glock mag)
200 gr SWC, sized and lubed in the groove (this is what I use the most, saving 30gr of lead per round is a good thing)
230gr RN, sized and tumble lubed
230gr RNFP, sized and lubed in the groove
 
Spawn-Inc said:
is that being shot in a 1911? i got a box of DRG truncated nose bullets and they seem to feed good so i was considering that mold (6cav) for my next 45cal mold purchase.
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Yup a wartime 1911 as well as a more modern Double Eagle, works great in both of them. I regret not getting the 6 cavity mold but I wasn't sure how well they would work. I shoot the 124 grain 9mm version out of my Sig P226 with good results as well.
 
Thots -

- get a six-cavity mould; it's real drudge-work feeding a hungry .45 with a 2-cavity mould.

- I have 2 Lee 6-cavities, the 255gr RNFP and the 230gr TC. I don't use the 255gr anymore; nothing wrong with the bullets and both our ACP's and the Webley like it just fine, but the S&W 4506 didn't like that bullet because it snagged the slide-lock and locked the slide open every shot. My main complaint is that I get 28 bullets per pound of lead - which is why I don't use my Lyman 255gr SWC mould anymore either (unless I'm reloading .455 - it loves those bullets).

- if you're familiar with the 230gr DRG TC bullets, the Lee 6-cavity TC bullets are identical and shoot every bit as well - I use both - and both our .45's cycle well with 3.5gr Trail Boss. I can't recommend Trail Boss though, it's a dirty powder (both .45's like that bullet with 3.2gr Trail Boss, but it smokes-out the whole range. I hope to switch to Vihtavuori N320, solely for a cleaner powder).

- I have a SAECO 200gr SWC mould, a 2-cavity that I want to put more effort into. I haven't had a lot of luck with 200gr SWC's; need to do some load development this Winter. Anybody have a light mid-power load for the 200gr SWC's? I have to load light for fear of bursting the Webley.

- Edited for spelling...
 
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