Would you like to start a nice argument on a forum? Well, here’s a good way to do it…
A while back I ran low on primers - very low. Local shops did not have my usual brand and style of pistol primers, and my Scottish blood wouldn’t let me pay a hazard fee to mail order the things. The locals also were out of my back-up type. So, I bought some magnum type lg. pistol to get me through.
Then, I made my mistake… I dared to ask on a forum as to how much change I should expect in my 45 Colt loads!
The HORROR!
You’d think a war had started. I got everything from “Don’t fret - load and SHOOT!” (from John Taffin and about half the group), - to - “You’ll blow your gun to hell and gone!” (from the other half of the yahoos).
Seems there are some serious disagreements on how primers effect the pressure levels in pistol cases - especially the big ones like the .45 Colt. I ended up just starting from scratch and rebuilding my loads just to be safe. Here’s what I’ve found from my trials:
- In modern guns and with moderate loads, it makes no real difference.
- With the slower burning powders magnum primers can be a benefit to ignition.
- With the use of the ‘Holy Black’, (that’s black powder for you ‘guns are evil’ Socialist out there), magnum primers are a very good thing! A 255gr SWC slug at just shy of 1000 ft/sec with all of the smoke, fire, and ROAR! from a 4 5/8 inch barrel.
- In the .45 Colt, (and I suspect any case from the .41 Magnum up), don’t fret unless you are near the top end of the pressure scale for our gun.
- It’s about accuracy, not that last 30 feet per second or 25 ft/lbs.
- Finally, you can avoid the entire issue by using Winchester Lg. Pistol primers when you work up your loads. There are no regular or magnum, just WLP.
One last note: Seems there must be a new addition to the .45 Colt lore. We have those old beauties, the early gen 1 & 2 Colts that are best viewed, not shot (IMHO). Then we have the later Colt SAA’s, the Ruger Blackhawk/Vaqueros, then the carbines and T/Cs. Now we need to add yet another level of power in the oldest .45 - the Ruger NEW Vaquero. This sweet little gun fits right between the Colt SAA and the Ruger Blackhawk/Vaquero in the strength of its frame. The cylinder is somewhat stronger than its Colt counterpart.
Despite the SAAMI limit of 14,000psi for the .45 Colt, it seems that loads keeping to no more than 21,000 - 22,000psi are safe enough in this little Ruger on a daily basis according to the better known gun writers of the day and my experience. DO NOT use the powerhouse loads listed for Ruger in the manuals. I spoke to Ruger Co. myself and was told that the RNV is proofed with the same load that the Blackhawk is - but they refuse to specify for legal reasons.
As is usually added at this point, “Your Mileage May Vary”. Load and fire at your own risk! Don’t go suing me if you blow up your firearm. Besides, I’ve got nothing worth taking anyway
Avoid the hassles - restock your loading supplies often!
Malon Labe!
Bull, out! ![]()
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