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.452" or .454" In 45 Colt

peddlerpeddler Member Posts: 881 ✭✭✭✭
edited November 2012 in Perry Shooter Competition Shooting and Reloading Forum
Can I use a .454" lead bullet in a modern 45 Colt revolver with a .452" bore? The reason I ask is a Colt I have has cylinder throats of .458" with a barrel bore of .452". I am trying to get the best accuracy I can. Thanks
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    perry shooterperry shooter Member Posts: 17,390 ✭
    edited November -1
    normally you want a lead bullet to be .001 larger than bore IMHO .002 would not cause any harm however if you really think about it the distance from the end of the case mouth to the beginning of the forcing cone of the barrel is very short . I suspect the bullet even a .452 one would fill up the chamber then forcing cone would resize back down to bore diameter. I would slug the bore some times a revolver barrel when screwed in will be tight and reduce the diameter of the barrel where it goes through the frame so the bullet is reduced to .450 and then goes down the rest of the barrel under sized . Grouping goes to pot. and barrel leads badly.
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    navc130navc130 Member Posts: 1,201 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Short answer - yes. There have been very few articles over the years on the relationship of the cylinder chamber diameter and bore diameter. From what I remember reading, the chamber determines how straight the bullet enters the bore. Therefore, the closer the bullet diameter is to the chamber diameter, the straighter it will enter the bore and improve accuracy. You just have to experiment with the conditions that you have. The only variable you can adjust is the bullet diameter. This,of course, applies only to lead bullets which are easily swaged down in the bore.
    PS is right-on, as usual. The American Rifleman found that a revolver barrel can have the bore size reduced by .001+ when screwed into a tight frame hole. This hinders accuracy. It is debateable whether the pressure on the base of the LEAD bullet expands it back to fill the bore or not.
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    peddlerpeddler Member Posts: 881 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Where can I buy or how can I make soft lead slugs to slug my barrels?
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    navc130navc130 Member Posts: 1,201 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by navc130
    Short answer - yes. There have been very few articles over the years on the relationship of the cylinder chamber diameter and bore diameter. From what I remember reading, the chamber determines how straight the bullet enters the bore. Therefore, the closer the bullet diameter is to the chamber diameter, the straighter it will enter the bore and improve accuracy. You just have to experiment with the conditions that you have. The only variable you can adjust is the bullet diameter. This,of course, applies only to lead bullets which are easily swaged down in the bore.
    PS is right-on, as usual. The American Rifleman found that a revolver barrel can have the bore size reduced by .001+ when screwed into a tight frame hole. This hinders accuracy. It is debateable whether the pressure on the base of the LEAD bullet expands it back to fill the bore or not.
    Round muzzle loading balls are the easiest to use to slug the bore and chambers.
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    jonkjonk Member Posts: 10,121
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by peddler
    Where can I buy or how can I make soft lead slugs to slug my barrels?


    Hollow egg sinkers from your local wal mart or tackle store. Though for a .38 i use a pure lead .375 round ball, pushed through my .363 makarov sizing die first.
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    Riomouse911Riomouse911 Member Posts: 3,492 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    If you can get a .454" mold for round balls, melt down some straight lead and brew up your own. If not, muzzleloader houses should have them. Shove them down the bore using a wooden dowel just under bore diameter, measure lands/grooves with a caliper and you'll get your proper bore diameters.
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    peddlerpeddler Member Posts: 881 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Thanks for all the info.
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