Hornady 300 grn 45ACP .458 => pistol??

allen-1

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I'm going to load .45ACP when I go home in a couple of months. It's a round I haven't loaded before, and I'm planning on loading it for bowling pins. Standard 45ACP is 230 grn at .451 or .452. I've been planning on picking up some 255 grn bullets from my usual vendor.

I was in a local gun shop this morning and a guy came in who was selling a lever action rifle and reloading components to the shop owner. The bullets were Hornady XTP 300 grn .45ACP .458 diameter. I've never seen a 45 bullet that heavy. Came home, googled it a bit, and it looks like it's for .45-70.

So, probably stupid question - is it usable for a .45 cal pistol load? I like the 300 grn, but the .458 concerns me.
 
You would have a hard time finding low data for that weight.
The diameter is another issue. Way too large for a pistol cartridge.

Normally .451/.452” for pistols and .458” for rifles.

I really don’t know much about pin shooting but I vaguely remember reading something about bullet design being important. should be able to find data for 250 grain bullets pretty easy. I would look for a Elmer Keith style 453423 bullet. They run about 250 Grains and have a big flat nose that should smack pins pretty hard. The other option would be an Ohaus bullet which I believe was around 270 grains also designed for the 45 but the auto rim version. It was designed to seat very shallow in the case vs a “normal” bullet of that weight. Making the most of the small case.

I have a bunch of PDF copies of heavy loads in the 45 auto rim that will work fine for the ACP, other than the issue of trying to get a bullet to cycle if it’s a bottom feeder and not a wheel gun.

If you shoot me a PM I can email copies to you.
 
You would have a hard time finding low data for that weight.
The diameter is another issue. Way too large for a pistol cartridge.

Normally .451/.452” for pistols and .458” for rifles.

I really don’t know much about pin shooting but I vaguely remember reading something about bullet design being important. should be able to find data for 250 grain bullets pretty easy. I would look for a Elmer Keith style 453423 bullet. They run about 250 Grains and have a big flat nose that should smack pins pretty hard. The other option would be an Ohaus bullet which I believe was around 270 grains also designed for the 45 but the auto rim version. It was designed to seat very shallow in the case vs a “normal” bullet of that weight. Making the most of the small case.

I have a bunch of PDF copies of heavy loads in the 45 auto rim that will work fine for the ACP, other than the issue of trying to get a bullet to cycle if it’s a bottom feeder and not a wheel gun.

If you shoot me a PM I can email copies to you.

Thank you for the clarification(s). I'll pick up the 255 from my normal vendor and work up a load for it. There appears to be manufacturer data available, so I'll hold off on asking you for the PDFs at this time. And, yeah, it's a bottom feeder - worse than that, it's a Glock. :)

EDITED - those 255 grn loads are for 45 Colt, not 45 ACP. So, I'll be going with 230 grn bullets. It's all theoretical right now, I'm in CT and my press is in GA. Just trying to figure things out before I get home...
 
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Thank you for the clarification(s). I'll pick up the 255 from my normal vendor and work up a load for it. There appears to be manufacturer data available, so I'll hold off on asking you for the PDFs at this time. And, yeah, it's a bottom feeder - worse than that, it's a Glock. :)

EDITED - those 255 grn loads are for 45 Colt, not 45 ACP. So, I'll be going with 230 grn bullets. It's all theoretical right now, I'm in CT and my press is in GA. Just trying to figure things out before I get home...
I would look for data on a 250 is possible. The old cast bullet or Lyman manuals will have data for the 453423 and the older Speer have data for a 260 in auto rim.

The 453423 is designed to feed in a 1911. Maybe your plastic piece of garbage will choke on a design from by gone days when guns were made of steel and only men had balls but hey it’s worth a try. 😂

If you’re local I can toss you a bunch to mess with. They’re about 245 grains and have a stout shoulder on them. Supposedly less glancing blows on the pins this way.

My understanding is that mass is more important than speed in that game.

You can see some of them mixed into this batch of test loads I had.

E5B21A31-1822-4D74-9B8B-1A86E731962E.jpeg
 
I was a pin shooter and I can tell you light & fast is not the way to go. Projo soar right through the pins leaving them standing up. Heavy is better and the wadcutters are best.

When the pins start to collect embedded lead, it is harder to knock them down.
 
I was a pin shooter and I can tell you light & fast is not the way to go. Projo soar right through the pins leaving them standing up. Heavy is better and the wadcutters are best.

When the pins start to collect embedded lead, it is harder to knock them down.

Yup. I tried out my G31, (357Sig), this Fall on pins - it chewed them up, but didn't push them off the table. That's why that 300 grn projectile caught my eye.
 
As others have said slow and heavy is better than fast and light but that bullet is designed for a .45 caliber rifle and is too big. You can get .452 300 grain bullets but they're for calibers larger than .45acp. I've shot many pin matches with the .45acp, mostly out of a Colt 1911. I use HST +P 230 grain hollow points. (because I get them for free and I'm a cheap bastard) but any fairly heavy flat point or hollow point will work. Just make sure it will feed reliably.
 
As others have said slow and heavy is better than fast and light but that bullet is designed for a .45 caliber rifle and is too big. You can get .452 300 grain bullets but they're for calibers larger than .45acp. I've shot many pin matches with the .45acp, mostly out of a Colt 1911. I use HST +P 230 grain hollow points. (because I get them for free and I'm a cheap bastard) but any fairly heavy flat point or hollow point will work. Just make sure it will feed reliably.

Thank you.
 
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