Unique in .45 Colt

[Skinny 1950]

I am new to re-loading and have so far only loaded black powder in .45 Colt, I am about to load some Unique smokeless and was wondering if the air space in the cartridge is going to be a problem. With black powder light loads I was using wads to fill the extra space. I am going to start with 7.5 grains of Unique which only fills about 1/4 of the available space in the cartridge,is it safe to have the air in the cartridge above the powder???

 

[ykkid]

Unique is a progressive propellant, commonly known as smokeless powder. Most nothing you know about loading black powder cartridges has any relevance to loading smokeless powder cartridges.

So go ahead, and load whatever starting charge a reputable manual shows for Unique in 45 Colt. Space between powder and bullet is not a concern.

 

[Freyr_255]

If you're going with light loads you might want to just use trail boss as in that range it should fill up the cartridge nicely.

If the cartridge is too empty you might get hang fires. I've never loaded that low before so hopefully someone chimes in who knows more about it.

 

[gunlaker]

You'll find that unique works well in .45 Colt. It's all I use in my 1894 Marlin and Ruger New Vaquero. Air space is not a concern, no fillers required.

Chris.

 

[jethunter]

Don't use spacers or fillers. Unique actually needs some empty space.

 

[Kevan]

As others have said Unique works well and in my gun it makes tighter groups than Trail Boss...

 

[crazy_davey]

As others have said Unique works well and in my gun it makes tighter groups than Trail Boss...

Same here. 8 grains of unique behind 250-255g lead seems to be the sweet spot for my 45's.

 

[Kevan]

Same here. 8 grains of unique behind 250-255g lead seems to be the sweet spot for my 45's.

My load exactly....

 

[Ganderite]

Unique is "unique". I works well over a broad range of pressures. Go ahead with your 7.5. It will work well.

 

[NShunter1254]

I use 7.5 grains of unique in my 41 mag as a light indoor load,The only problem with unique is the large amount of smoke it produces.

 

[caperbound]

For some reason I like the smoke and smell of unique Keeps the blackflies down and lets me know where to clean my gun. I pretty much use Unique in everything, just watch you don't double charge if it doesn't fill the case.

 

[jethunter]

I use 7.5 grains of unique in my 41 mag as a light indoor load,The only problem with unique is the large amount of smoke it produces.

Light loads of Unique smoke more than heavier loads because the heavier loads run at higher pressure which increases efficiency.

 

[John Wesley Hardin]

For light loads in 45 colt Red Dot has been a cleaner powder for me.
I have replaced my Unique with Power Pistol for my mid range loads as it also has proven cleaner for me and more velocity at lower pressures.
For case filling light loads that you may be wanting Trail Boss is probably your best bet

Regards
Doc

 

[ckid]

I used 7.5 grs of Unique for many years in my .45 Colts with 250 gr bullets with excellent, but I have since switched to Titegroup due to availability, price, more rounds per pound and the fact that it burns cleaner...

 

[Johnn Peterson]

Unique is a very good choice for a wide range of light to heavy loads in the 45LC. Some great load info has already been posted on this thread, just a word of caution. What firearm are you planning to load for? A number of the reloading manuals available differentiate in loads listed for some of the older weaker firearms and those listed for some of what's being produced these days, with good reason. An old 1st gen Colt won't take the pounding that a Ruger Blackhawk or T/C is capable of handling.

I mention this caution only because of what you've stated as your experience reloading.

 

[Airwolf]

Yep, Unique is a great all around powder, but I've been using Hodgdon Clays, 4.6grs and a 250gr LRNFP bullet for the last 18 years and it burns very clean, very accurate and I've never had a problem....