I have started reloading .45 again after an 20+ year hiatus. I am using 230gr. Berry plated bullets with 4.5 grns. of Bullseye. The COAL of the .45 is 1.275 and I loaded mine at 1.250 as instructed by Ruger in Prescott, Az. Today at the range I had 3 FTF (failure to feed). 2 of them were my reloads and the 3rd was a Remington 230gr. round ball. I took the rounds home and measured mine and the Remington factory load. I had a variance of .002-.003 on my reloads so I decided to measure the Remingtons. MY COAL used was 1.250 and I found that the Remingtons ran from 1.248-1.260 which really surprised me!! I thought that factory loads would be much closer in tolerances. I measured some Hornady Critical Duty and they measured @1.245 and fired them. Everyone of them fed without any problems. I am wondering if anyone has run across this before and if so, please let me know and which type of ammo it is. For the present I think I am going to use 1.245 as my COAL and see how they cycle. This is for my SR 1911. I did the "plunk" test before I shot them and they all passed and I was trying to seat my bullets as close to 1.250 as possible but due to different casing lengths, it's hard to get them exact. Please advise me on any of your experiences. Tommy:dizzy:
Tommy, 3 questions, 1. The bullets you reload..do they have a cannelure for crimp ? 2, Im confused as to why the casing length makes a difference in COAL, as you can seat the bullet where you want, (unless theres a cannelure) 3 Did the feed ramp come already polished on your SR1911? Just shooting(like the pun) in the dark here. jim
Jim, Berry's bullets are plated so there is no cannelure to crimp on. The casing length depends on which powder is used as it determines the CUP pressure. If the round is too short, the casing pressure will rise. If too low, then you run the risk of squibs. It's essential to make sure that the COAL is correct so you can regulate how fast and how much pressure you need to get the proper velocity and accuracy. And no, the feed ramp on the SR1911 is not polished. I thought I would put a thousand rounds through it before I did any modifications to the pistol. I did load some lead rounds that had the cannelure on them and I ran the bullet to the cannelure and then did a taper crimp which I do with the Berry plated bullets. The Remington bullets have no cannelure either so they must seat them the same way and use the bullet depth to regulate the CUP pressure. The bullets I loaded have enough pressure to fully actuate the slide assembly so it is on full charge when another round is chambered. Tommy
I know that I have had that problem withother guns, and after a little simi-chrome or flitz and a dremel buffing tool applied to the feed ramp, making it look like glass. The problem diassappeared. I have seated bullets to .005-.010 below specified COAL to avoid any feed problems , when using them in a semi auto mag fed. I have never had a problem. I think a lot depends on the gun and the type of bullet . I have even had to reseat bullets way below the spec COAL to get the round to fully chamber , and end up with a .005 clearance in chamber. That I cant explain. All by the book but still too long to fit any of 4 guns . Id polish the ramp before trying it again. Jim
Thanks Jim, I will try to polish my feed ramp. My little brother asked me about that yesterday and I told him no, I hadn't even thought of it. I also know that some 1911 mags are different and some do have feed problems. I never knew about Flitz until yesterday and now. I have a dremel, I just need to get a swab for it and then try to locate flitz. Question for you: do you ever get nervous when you "underload" a round regardless of what the book says? I tend to worry about CUP pressure although it's tough to blow up a 1911. I don't want to create any damage. Tommy
By "underload" do you mean low charge, or under the called for COAL? I never undercharge a case with low powder. The shorter OAL I worry about only if its in magnum calibers, or if its excessively under. .005 to .010 I dont worry about it. Sometimes bullet lenth will vary that much.I dont worry much, unless its WAY short. I check the fired case for any signs of overpressure though. Even bullet weights will vary 2 to 5 grains, (unless its match target high quality grade) not enough to be a problem, but will affect accuracy. If Im loading for PURE accuracy, I weigh every bullet, I trickle charge every case with powder, I weigh and measure length of every case, I measure length of every bullet, then measure OAL of every round. I try to keep everything within .001. Then hand polish each round. Now, I dont do that just for normal target shooting and fun shooting. Jim
Hi Jim I don't underload my powder charge as I am trying to come up with a fairly accurate range round. Now if I were doing match rounds such as yourself, I would be using both my digital scale and my balance scale. I have seen some charts that show COAL @ 1.2 but that is all they say and never mention the powder type nor the amount used. So when I see that, I just discard that info. I also check all my fired casings as I pick up some range rounds too. I check them when I sort and then again when I re-size with my Herter's single stage. If they are iffy Jim, I pitch them and go on to another round. I think I am going to have to experiment with different charges and powders and work up my own formulas for accuracy and range. I do enjoy doing the accuracy rounds though as it raises eye brows when the target comes back and it looks good. One more thing I am going to do: I am going to buy a different box of ammo when I can afford it and start cataloging different lengths with different manufacturers and see what I come up with. Tommy
For me, I enjoy accuracy shooting all by myself, I have my own range and shoot alot. I accuracy test/shoot several different calibers that I reload , but whats fun is .22 lr at 100 yrds. IF you measure length and weight of most brands of .22lr , you will be amazed at inconsistentcy. If you want to pay 20 cents a piece for High quality stuff from Champions in Nashville, it will shoot great and is consistent in all measurements. I like SK, Lapua, Eley, and Wolf. http://www.champchoice.com/store/Main.aspx?p=CategoryBody&c=APRASK Jim
I used to short long and short range rifle and you are right-.22 at 100 yrds. is fun!! I still have my Remington 541S with a 50th anniversary Bill Weaver scope I bought when they first came out. I have never seen another but we used to go to the range and shoot silhouettes. I would use Ely, Remington thunderbolts and Winchester Wildcats. My Remington would not shoot accurately with the Thunderbolts and the Ely was a slow moving round and I had to hold high and steady, but the Winchester Wildcats were the best ammo for that rifle to digest. Those were fun days!! Tommy
Well, I have seven or maybe 112, 22 rifles, but for precise shooting I have a Savage FVSR 20" bull barrel with a YH muzzle brake, with a 6x20x50 scope that doubles as a spotting scope. Now on a 72 deg day with no winds, and low humidity and me not breathing , and my left eyebrow leaning east, I have shot a 1" group of 6 shots, on the 100 yrd range . A lot of variables come into play with a 40 grain 22 cal bullet at that distance. Hey, I am not a marksman, just a country boy that likes to shoot. Jim
Jim, I have never tried those positions, but if they work for you more power to you. I don't know if I could see a hundred yards anymore let alone hit a target out that far. Good shooting buddy and keep it up!!!! And variables do make the difference and I totally agree. Tommy
.45 Auto is my favorite auto pistol round. I load all my 45 auto 230 grain rn bullets to 1.250". They may vary a couple .000s either way. I have used them in all my .45 pistols including my SR1911 without malfunctions. That is many thousands of rounds. I'm not sure what happened in your case, but that is my go to COAL in pistols ranging from XDs and PM45 to FNP-45 and several 1911's. The Hornady Critical duty rounds measure slightly shorter but also have a different profile. They are much more cone shaped than the round nose Berrys. Let us know what works out for your pistol.
Jim, The COAL that you are using for your .45 is the same I am using on my Ruger SR1911. My lengths will vary .002-004 but pretty consistent at 1.250 and that is my guideline. Of course part of the variance is due to different length of casings. I measured a Blazer .45 aluminum store bought bullet today and it's COAL was 1.262 which is under max however still .012 over the lengths we use. The following is my speculation and speculation only: the people who are building ammo today that they are so back loaded with orders, in order to fill the orders they are cutting down on quality control. I could be wrong however when we had the 9mm shortage, and I started reloading those, I barely noticed the difference in sizing. I haven't bought any 9mm lately as I have about 2K rounds of reloaded in stock. Tommy
I knew you used that COAL in your pistol when you had the FTF malfunctions. I was just saying that a 1.250" round nose is perfect in every 45 I have owned and that shouldn't have caused your problem. I fire 45 auto cases until I lose them and have never trimmed one. I don't think the cases can vary enough to cause problems. One thing to consider is the magazine that you were using when the problems occurred. 1911 mags are notorious for causing problems if they don't deliver the round properly.
Jim, I was down at the range on Sunday and picked up a Chip McCormick 7 round magazine and I tried it out for fit and tried the spring assembly. I have to admit, the spring assembly is much lighter than the ones that Ruger puts in their box. I do think you are right that 1911's are notorious for having feed problems. I guess I had forgotten that as I have used my Colt Combat commander for so many years that my mags are older and haven't had any feed problems. I think I am going to pick up some more mags and sees what happens. I looked at the Wilson's but price wise they are a lot higher. I might have to invest in a couple of them for self defense as I use mine as my concealed/carry. You made this old man have to use his worn brain again. Thanks. Tommy
You are welcome Tommy. I use whatever magazines come with my pistols along with some Wilson's and Chip McCormick versions. I really can't say I've had many malfunctions with any of them but know it to be common. They are kind of the weak link in the 1911. Many of the problems are from abuse, like dropping them on a hard surface and bending the lips, but some never seem to work right. I'm getting up there in age too. It seems better than the alternative...
