Quote:
Originally Posted by scottmandue
Seeing as this thread has gone off on hand cannons a question for Jeff.
Can you use 45 colt in a revolver chambers for .454 catsull?
No, I am not shopping... still saving for a Ruger .357... if they are still on sale by payday I will be in trouble with the wife.  |
Varmint is correct in that yes, you can. As far as factory ammunition, anyway, there is no problem with this at all. Just like shooting .38 Special in a .357 magnum, or .44 Special in a .44 magnum.
There can, however, be a problem with certain bullets when hand loaded in the .45 Colt. Then it depends on the gun. Interestingly, the Freedom Arms revolver has a short cylinder when compared to a Ruger Blackhawk, and will not accept loads made to take advantage of that longer Ruger cylinder. This is where it gets kind of interesting and fun for those of us who like to play with such things.
There exists a small, but dedicated bunch of us shooters who have been playing with hot .45 Colt loads since about the mid 1980's. The zenith of this little niche are the Ruger Blackhawks fitted with five shot cylinders by gunsmiths John Linebaugh and Hamilton Bowen. With these revolvers, we can easily surpass .454 Casull performance, at much lower pressures. We are taking advantage of the increased powder volume made available by seating bullets way out to the maximum length allowed in the Ruger. These won't fit in the Freedom Arms cylinder - they are too long.
Anyhoo, I sold my five shot Ruger many years ago. It was simply too much of a good thing. I now shoot loads tailored to a standard six shot cylinder, which are loaded to a good deal lower pressures and velocities. My 300 grain loads "only" do 1,200 fps. The "five shot" loads topped 1,500 fps... Ouch...
Since we are so far down this little rabbit hole already, I'll mention that these guys also chamber the five shot Rugers in .475 Linebaugh, .500 Linebaugh, and .50-70 Government. They will, however, try to talk you out of buying one, believe it or not. These are very specialized tools for folks who really need them, not for the guy who just has to have the biggest and baddest at the gravel pit. These will actually do physical harm to you, the shooter, if you shoot them too much. Mr. Linebaugh actually recommends you wear a bicycle helmet the first time you touch one off...