New to reloading. Need powder guidance

[Uncle Duke]

I like that reloading gives you the options. Going down through Dad's reloading ledgers, it was interesting seeing the stuff he reloaded from when he started recording it in 1958 until he passed in 1997. He did a fair amount of experimenting, partly because I think he was trying to find good performance, and partly because he liked to experiment.

Also, in those earlier years, I think reloaders had to do a lot more work on their own because they didn't have a resource like we have with the internet, social media forums, etc.

He spent some time working up a load with a 200 gr cast lead semi wadcutter in 45 Auto that would work well and cycle his Thompson SMG, and he did the same thing for his M1 Carbine.

Once he got his Dillon, he did more loading for his machine guns. There's a page in his last notebook where every line is almost all 5.0 gr of Bullseye with a 200 gr LSWC. (that load was the very first thing he loaded on his Dillon) It was that or 7.0 gr Unique under that same 200 gr LSWC. Without having him around to ask, my assumption is that those loads were for his Thompson SMG. Interestingly, unless he was loading a defense round, almost everything he loaded for 45 auto was a 200 gr LSWC - it's possible that it may not have necessarily been his favorite bullet, but that was the Lyman mold he had and cast, and what he had on hand, so therefore it was what he used.

The 200 grain Hensley and Gibbs #68 SWC was and remains a good feeding and a typically extremely accurate bullet in 45acp. That bullet was (and remains) classic in the 45acp, similar to what the 148 grain HBWC was to 38 special, and in the same era.

 

[trickg]

The 200 grain Hensley and Gibbs #68 SWC was and remains a good feeding and a typically extremely accurate bullet in 45acp. That bullet was (and remains) classic in the 45acp, similar to what the 148 grain HBWC was to 38 special, and in the same era.

Dad was a fan of the Lyman 452460 mold for 200 gr SWC - I know he cast some other bullets for 45 auto, but overwhelmingly he used that particular Lyman mold.