HardCast Bullet .45 OAL

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Coolray

New member
I'm loading my first batch of 230 lrn hardcast bullets. These are burgess bullets out of Moses Lake WA,(got a call into them) these are .452 Dia.
I'm using 5.1grs W231, most load data shows the OAL to be 1.27.
If I seat the bullet to 1.27 it looks like it is hardly in the case. and the lube ring is almost exposed. If I seat the bullet to where the case top is even with the top mold mark on the bullet it is at 1.20 OAL.

The bullet is the same length as a FMJ/RN.

I have some factory PMC FMJ/RN that measures at 1.20 and my load manuals all list that bullet at 1.26.??

Ever wanting to be safe I need some input. What would be a safe OAL with the Hardcast, and why is a factory 230FMJ/RN so much shorter.
 
Y

yankytrash

New member
I load thousands of rounds of 45ACP FMJ RN 230-grain bullets with 7.3 grains of Unique at 1.26.

I measured it against a factory load of American Eagles I had laying around and it's right on time.

My particular book I normally use calls for 1.275 max OAL.

I've found 1.26 to be a good measurement for most autos. As long as it's crimped and you can't push the bullet in by hand, I'd try a few rounds.


Edit - Don't listen to my gunpowder weight until I hear back from another post. I just heard that 7.3 of Unique may be too much for most pistols. But the lengths still stand.
 
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Mal H

Staff
Coolray - Checking several reloading manuals, most lead RN's I found have the OAL set to 1.260". As long as the lube ring is covered by the case, you should be good to go with that OAL. If the ring isn't covered, then go a little deeper until it is. It is not at all unusual to see factory rounds set deeper than the norm. And it is not unusual to see a fairly wide variation in their OAL in the same box. Bottom line: don't fret too much about it. Unless you really have the bullet set way too deep and then crank down on the crimp too hard, you won't do any harm.

yankytrash - Checking the Midway Loadmap for 230 FMJ, 7.3 gr. of Unique is at or near the max for the majority of them. It is over the max by a few tenths for the others. You might want to rethink that load. I personally would go ahead a shoot them up instead of pulling the bullets because that load isn't anywhere near the safety margin applied to the loads in the manuals.
 
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yankytrash

New member
Mal - Found out the new Speer lists a max of 6.8 grains of Unique. With the gun I shoot, 7.3 shouldn't be a problem. But I think I'm gonna have to stop giving those same loads to friends with pistols.

Time to re-calibrate....
 
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