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45 ACP - Slide not going into battery

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Gil P. View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Gil P. Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: November/19/2014 at 12:08
My RCBS full length sizing die is set up so  that it just kisses the shell holder. Maybe i'm do something wrong? The bulge appears behind the case mouth after I seat a bullet. My cases measure .472-.473 in that area (that is the area around the case where the bullet is now sitting once it has been seated inside the case. I then crimp the case mouth to .469-.470.
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Gil P. View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Gil P. Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/06/2014 at 13:58

I found some faster burning powders...

I used a near max load of H Hi Skor 700X and in 50 rounds, experienced 0 malfunctions.

I used 6.1 grains of Unique and experienced no malfunctions.

I used just over 9 grains of Accurate No. 7 and experienced the same malfunctions I did before.

I'm going to continue testing to be sure it was just the Accurate No. 7 powder that was causing malfunctions, but right now, that seems to be the case. I cleaned my 1911 in between shooting the different types of powder.

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Alan Robertson View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Alan Robertson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/12/2014 at 09:09
Howdy Gil P.
I hope the faster powders solve your problem. With autoloaders, timing is everything and this type of issue can crop up for multiple reasons.

.45ACP has always done well with faster powders and chief among them is Bullseye, which is the old standby in .45acp. Another great powder for .45 is W231, aka HP38. It's faster than Unique and I feel naked if I don't have a couple of pounds of it on hand. HP38 is also a small flattened ball and runs through powder measures like water, giving very consistent measures.
I've seen Hodgdon Clays recommended for .45 (but not by me) as it is close to Bullseye in burn speed, but it doesn't really work well in .45acp for standard 230 Gr loads, or lighter 200 Gr. People praise Clays for giving a smooth recoil pulse, but really, I think that soft feel is just because heavy bullet loads are low velocity, as Clays pressures up before reaching anywhere close to standard velocity. If you like to shoot softer 230 Gr loads, Clays might work. Clays does work very well with 185 Gr bullets and you can build some ripsnorter ammo with it, but I personally won't be buying more. You can't make major with 230 gr. bullets and just barely can with 200 Gr. with Clays in .45acp.

in re: Xtreme bullets- they can cause some feed issues, as the meplat on some of their bullets seems to be too thick, or at just the wrong place, somehow... this may be a phenomenon of the bullet plating. I'll explain: I have 2 barrels (Barsto) which require seating Xtreme bullets deeper than for other barrels. Completed rounds will fit perfectly in my Wilson gauge, but the Xtreme meplat contacts the rifling in the barrels too early and the rounds won't drop completely into the chamber (they fail your "plunk test",) so the slide won't close. As result, I use the barrels themselves as case gauges and have found that I need to seat the Xtreme bullets about .020" deeper than non- target barrels, just to fit in chamber.  For instance, with Xtreme truncated cone bullets in all weights, minimum seating runs (1.181" vs stndrd 1.2" c.o.a.l.) and really, they work best even shorter than that, down to 1.151" oal. That's really invading powder space >>> watch pressures<<<
I've had no trouble with Xtreme's 200 Gr semi- wadcutters and they are accurate and while more expensive than standard cast bullets, obviously have zero leading issues, as can happen with commercial, carelessly alloyed bullets.

Springs of all sorts can cause feed issues, including the hammer spring. I've seen magazine catchs that were worn ever so slightly, dropping the magazine a bit short causing issues, as well as worn slots on the mags themselves (feed lips, followers, springs, dents, you name it)

Finally, a guy can easily get into the habit of bumping the slide closed by hand when feed issues develop.
That is an exceedingly bad habit. Don't do it.

Squib loads are a fact of life. It is possible to stick a squib bullet in the barrel just at that point where the slide just "almost" goes into battery and a quick bump can close it. With all the noise and distractions on the firing line, the squib can easily go unnoticed, as the next round "almost" feeds. I've had that happen and that little feeling... "better not"... (you know the one?) saved my bacon.




Edited by Alan Robertson - December/12/2014 at 09:24
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Alan Robertson View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Alan Robertson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: December/12/2014 at 09:23
Ps Best practice for failure to go into battery is to unload the pistol, rack the slide back and peer down the barrel, then proceed.

Clays powder was listed in earlier (vintage?) manuals such as Hodgdon #26 with loads giving good velocities across the board in .45acp, but current manuals do not list such stiff loads. Either the formula was changed over the years, or too many high pressure issues were reported back to Hodgdon.
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