40 SW & 454 Cassull Loads

by **PigFeathers** » Sun Jun 06, 2010 2:59 pm

Anyone have any advice on loads for these to guns? I have never tried loading for pistols but do loads for a half dozen rifle cartridges.

I'm also looking for anything I really need to watch out for.

By the way, I am going to be using a PT 140 for my concealed carry and those are the loads I am most interested in for it.

My Cassull is a hunting pistol mostly for close quarter bear. I am interested in hunting rounds and also some more tame practice rounds.

Thanks,

Stu

by **beltbuckle** » Mon Jun 07, 2010 1:58 pm

I'm not a reloader, but someday I should get into it. Unfortunatly time isn't a luxury with my current lifestyle.

You mentioned tame practice rounds. Run 45 long colts thru the 454. It will save a couple bucks, the recoil will nearly vanish and it's not going to hurt the Cassull a bit!

I have a 460 and typically run hornady ammo thru it. If I want to use it for bear I may switch to a round with a hard cast lead bullet vs using a jacketed round.

by **PigFeathers** » Mon Jun 07, 2010 8:17 pm

Yeah - I already do run 45 Colts through it. Honestly, it is the only ammo that is truly fun to shoot with it - not to mention the fact that 50 costs me less than 20 Cassull rounds. So point well taken on the practice rounds. Do you know if the same dyes are used for loading both 454 and 45 Colt? I honestly haven't looked into it yet.

I like things that go bang as much as the next guy but plinking with a 300 grain plus round in a pistol isn't something I prefer when heading to the range. I wouldn't mind coming up with a round that is a good load in say the 240 - 260 grain range and then doing some lesser practice with the big boys.

By the same token, I also feel that when gearing up for a hunt, you should dance with the gal whose toes you've been stepping on.

All that being said, are you using a hard cast in the same weight as your jacketed? And if so, are you doing so because of the cost or do they somehow shoot more friendly?

Thanks for the input.

Stu

by **beltbuckle** » Tue Jun 08, 2010 1:14 pm

Cost is the biggest factor, and I agree. If I would make sure to run a few rounds of what I'm going to be hunting with before going out.

I run a few types thru my 460. I use primarily either Hornady with a 200 grain jacketed bullet or Buffalo bore with a 360 grain hard cast bullet and sometimes I'll run 45's or 454's to plink around with.

Hornady 45LC 225 960 460

Hornady ~$35/20 200 gr 2200 fps 2149 ft lbs

Buffalo ~$65/20 360 1900 2860

For thick skinned game the 360 is going to have a much greater advantage than a light jacketed hollow point imo which is why I'd use it exclusivly in bear country.

by **PigFeathers** » Tue Jun 08, 2010 2:30 pm

Good point about the hard cast. Not sure why but I didn't even think about it. I carry 320 gr JHPs to hunt with. But on bear, that's kinda stupid - eh? I guess I got all wrapped up in that size matters thing when it's really how far you penetrate. HA!

Think I'll have to check my loading manuals and try out a few hunt loads. Part of why I wanted to know if anyone knew of some good loads out there was so that I didn't have to shoot too many rounds through that beast as I'm trying to figure out my best load. It's a little more friendly shooting my rifles from the bench. A bunch of rounds through a Cassull is just too much like work - if you know what I mean.

Thanks,

Stu