Reloading 45ACP with Unique powder and 250gr lead

mackles

mackles

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I just started reloading and I'm looking for some recipes. My current supplies are as follows:
250gr LRN projectiles (1000 so don't tell me to go with 230's or such. This will maybe last 2 months so I'll try other projectiles after this.)
Unique powder
CCI primers
assorted brass
Dillion rl550b

I'm shooting a SA XD tac.
What is a good powder load to start with? I was thinking of starting with 6gr and working up if needed.
 
the recipie i've got calls for 6.4 as the top end, and 5.8 for the bottom- but a thousand rounds of that is going to be awfully rough on the frame-
 
I would suggest you call Alliant Powder 1-800-276-9337 an see what they reccomend for starting load for Unique.............Bruce
 
Here's some info on heavy bullet loads for the .45 ACP:

http://www.americanhandgunner.com/CTT0907.html

I think that 6.0 grains of Unique would be on the hot side. The article suggests that 5.0 grains would be a better load for general use.

Let us know how it works. Russell's here in Calgary often has the Plains Ammunition supply 250 grain RNFP bullets in stock and I have often wondered how they would work in .45 ACP.
 
6gr of Unique is pretty hot for a starting load. If you haven't done so already, go buy yourself a couple of good reloading manuals and cross reference your loads. Take anything you read on the internet, including load recipes with a grain of salt! Always double check!
 
5.2gr of Unique works like a dream. I had a few failure to fire shells that jammed the pistol but that may have been a rookie mistake (not completely seating the primer). I'll run another 50 through this week and see if they're any better.
I noticed that Unique burns really dirty. Anyone here use any cleaner burning powders for their 45's?
 
You don't want to hear it, but I would suggest you forget the 250 and buy some 230 or lighter. Perhaps sell off the 250 to someone shooting a .45 Colt revolver. As you can see, you are having difficulties finding a load, and depending on what you are trying to do, unlikely to get a load that will be satisfactory. If you intend to be shooting enough to go through the 1000 in a couple of months, just skip the 2 months and get the bullet you want to use.
 
Why would he get rid of'em if he found a good load? I had a lot of fun shooting some 250s out of my 1911, only had a few feeding problems because of the soft points but other than that they were fine.
 
I removed my barrel to test the feed/fit, and tightened my crimp up as a result. I'm going to load up 50-100 with 5.2-5.4 gr tonight and test them tomorrow.
 
The load worked great today. I only had one round fail to load. It looks like the case was ballooned slightly in the middle. Any tips to avoid this?
 
Get yourself a Lee Carbide Factory Crimp die in 45ACP. It will post size the entire loaded round for proper feeding. Great die for all auto pistol reloading IMO.
 
"...sell off the 250 to someone shooting a .45 Colt revolver..." Um, no. Having 1,000 bullets is a reason to buy a .45 Colt revolver.
 
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