What are you shooting in your .45 Open tops?

[RRio]

What are you shooting in your .45 Open Tops? Is 6.0 gr of Trail Boss under 200rg round nose too much?

[45 Dragoon]

Well, I've got a pair of '60 Army's ( Uberti's) that have Kirst 45acp cylinders in them. The first one of the pair was the first 45acp to hit the range for Walt. Since the beginning  ( second trip to the range) I've always included 20 rounds of acp+p 's. It puts a smile on your face  you can't wipe off !!  I don't  do it to test the cylinders, I do it to test the platform.  I built these specifically to be testbeds  for the platform.  I have a Pietta  '60 Army with a Kirst 45C  cyl which I will be testing some "acp" pressure rounds  (21,000 psi) as a testbed specifically  for Pietta's.
Also, I'll  be sending some +p rounds (23K psi) down range in my Dragoons ( 45C) which also have been fitted with Kirst cylinders.
  So, that's what I have been / will be shooting in my open-top  revolvers. All of these revolvers are set up with close tolerances  with a tight.002" endshake,  corrected arbor length and captured wedge driven in  ( "captured" is a setup I've used for all my wedges and some customers which insures they can't come loose while shooting).

  As far as Uberti's factory '71/'72 Open Top , I have never owned one in 45C  but I've tuned a few and the cylinders  are SCARY thin!! That being the case,  I'm not sure I'd push them to a regular  diet of 21K psi loads ( if at all, even though they are proofed  to about that) mush less 23K!!   But, I'd feel perfectly safe with any tier 1 loads in them.

Mike

[RRio]

I guess I am okay. According to the Hodgdon reloading chart, the MAX load of 6.5 grains with a 200 gr RNFP bullet  is 855 FPS at 11K PSI. I am well below that at 6.0 grains.

[Coffinmaker]

Oh Goodie Goodie 

Absolutely love this question.  First up, I MUST agree with the Dragoon.  The original 71/72 Open Top cylinders have scary THIN chamber walls.  I have worked on several that had spit the super thin little piece out of the bottom the locking bolt slots.  I have been of the opine, the Uberti 71/72 Open Top should NEVER have been chambered in 45 Colt.  My pair were very early guns and were chambered in 45 Schofield.  Won't accept 45 Colt.  My particular guns were the pair of Open Tops originally sent around to the Scribes when the Open Top was released.

Now we get to get down to the real "Brass Tacks."  I don't like, have never liked, and don't miss Trail Boss.  I have always used TightGroup.  Now the kicker > > > My 71/72 Open Tops are chameleons.  I have fitted .44 Special Cylinders/Barrels and .38 Cylinders/Barrels to my guns.  I no longer shoot smokeless powders, but my Go-To smokeless "was" tightGroup.  These days I shoot APP in everything.  Keeps it real, real simple, and real FUN!!  When I was foolish enough to shoot smokeless, I shot 3.8 to 4Gr TightGroup with 130Gr Barnstormer bullets in Either 45 Schofield cases or C45S cases.  Nice manly "Bark" and low recoil.

Then we have to consider some "other" Open Tops.  I also shoot a pair of Pietta 1860s with Kirst Konverters.  I managed to do something really stupid and ruined my original Kirst cylinders.  I replaced them with the Second 45 ACP cylinders from Kirst.  Some Kind of FUN you betcha.  I load them with Cowboy 45 Special cases with 3f APP and 130Gr Barnstormer bullets, or, 45 ACP cases with 3F APP same same for bullets or 160Gr RNFP.


Yes Agnes, People ARE Hazardous to Yer Health

[45 Dragoon]

Agreed,  mine was a .44
I have used T.G. for years but now I'll be trying some CFE Pistol  powder.  I'm almost at a thousand rounds in "Beauty and the Beast " ( the original one) and all have been factory rounds.  The rest will probably be  reloads  including the +p's. 
Looking forward to shooting the Dragoons with some "proper " loads !! Lol
And, I meant to say RRio, that load sounds like a good load!!

Mike

[Reverend P. Babcock Chase]

Howdy RR and others,

I have a .38 OT (no help there). My other OT is .45 Colt; however it is a 3rd model dragoon converted by Hoofhearted. So, my 6grs. of American Select under a 200 gr bullet feels pretty mild. Given the size of the cylinder, I could probably go much hotter but I use the same load in all my 45's. So the forgoing was probably of little help.

Glad I could participate,

Rev. Chase

[DeaconKC]

I have settled on a load of 7.5 grains of Unique under a 200 or 250 Grain RNFP cast bullet. My Opentops, Schofields and my 73 carbine all run well with it.

[Abilene]

I don't have an OT in .45, but my load for my SAA's is 200gr bullet with 4.6gr of Clays (Hodgdon's minimum.  They say 777 fps).  It is a pussycat to shoot, very clean, the brass is clean and falls out of the cylinder.  If I run out of Clays, I have Clay-Dot to switch to.