45 Colt Possible Issue
- Thread starter verisimilitude
- Start date
Did the ammo come that way or where the bullets pushed in because of the tube mag on the Ranch Hand?
If they are loaded to the old black powder pressures (as most factory ammo is) and are being fired in a modern firearm it is unlikely it will cause a catastrophic failure but it could still happen. The ranch hand action in 45 Colt is the same as for 44 mag which can obviously handle the 44 mag pressure. The 45 Colt is 16,000 CUP which is somewhere around 17,000psi and the 44 mag is 36,000psi. Will the bullet being that far into the case cause it to spike above 36,000 psi? Possibly. Would I risk it personally? No.
I'd put them aside and wait until you start reloading (which is inevitable with 45 Colt unless you are made of money) and just pull them with a bullet puller. Toss the powder, melt down the bullet if you get into casting, and reuse the brass and primer.
If they are loaded to the old black powder pressures (as most factory ammo is) and are being fired in a modern firearm it is unlikely it will cause a catastrophic failure but it could still happen. The ranch hand action in 45 Colt is the same as for 44 mag which can obviously handle the 44 mag pressure. The 45 Colt is 16,000 CUP which is somewhere around 17,000psi and the 44 mag is 36,000psi. Will the bullet being that far into the case cause it to spike above 36,000 psi? Possibly. Would I risk it personally? No.
I'd put them aside and wait until you start reloading (which is inevitable with 45 Colt unless you are made of money) and just pull them with a bullet puller. Toss the powder, melt down the bullet if you get into casting, and reuse the brass and primer.
Thanks all for the advice. I'll put them aside as "Do Not Shoot".
The bullets were pushed in while inside the mag tube, but not while firing, just by cycling the action. Luckily I noticed it (I always inspect ammo as much as possible) before attempting to fire, which is a habit I will reinforce from here on.
The bullets were pushed in while inside the mag tube, but not while firing, just by cycling the action. Luckily I noticed it (I always inspect ammo as much as possible) before attempting to fire, which is a habit I will reinforce from here on.
Hey, thanks for the advice on the 30 cal Collet puller. Will borrow a friend's to do it, or just salvage the three primed cases.
Newer question: as these were factory loads that were pushed in (just by being loaded and cycled, but not fired), does anyone know how to avoid this from happening again? Did I do something wrong? Is the spring in the mag tube too strong or something?
Newer question: as these were factory loads that were pushed in (just by being loaded and cycled, but not fired), does anyone know how to avoid this from happening again? Did I do something wrong? Is the spring in the mag tube too strong or something?
If they are cowboy action rounds they should be designed to work in a lever gun as well as a revolver so being pushed in is odd. My guess would be there simply isn't enough of a crimp on the rounds to hold the bullets in place. To avoid it you could try to load fewer into the mag to reduce spring tension or put them through a crimp die on a reloading press (which can be difficult if you don't have one.) If it is just from spring tension in the mag tube you didn't do anything wrong that I can tell from your description. The factory just didn't crimp them firmly enough as far as I can see.
