Home made 45 ACP shot shells - now with video

[PA4476]

I stumbled across a video the other day talking about some dies made by RCBS for making your own 45 acp shot shells. The guy in the video used the RCBS dies and then made some shells using standard dies.

It got me experimenting on my own. I used 45 acp sizing die and a 40 S&W sizing die a tubing cutter and some 270 and 30/06 brass to make some. Below are some pictures showing how I done it.

These fit in the 45 mag and will feed right from the mag. I have yet to get them hot enough to work the action of the gun yet though. So you have to manually work the slide to eject the spent case and chamber a loaded round.

I shot some soda cans from my back porch by throwing them into the air and shooting them. It worked incredibly well. I was amazed how hard it hit the cans, and soda sprayed everywhere. I will try and make a video when I get time.

 

[Nonliberal]

Neato

 

[jglenn]

if you want to try and make them feed form the Mag then go find a 10 lb recoil spring( Wolf makes them) and cut off a couple of coils

 

[atljetmech]

Those would leave a nasty little wound!
Would be pretty cool if they could cycle a semi auto....

 

[PA4476]

if you want to try and make them feed form the Mag then go find a 10 lb recoil spring( Wolf makes them) and cut off a couple of coils

Good idea, I just put all new springs in my old Remington Rand 1911. I will take the old recoil spring and tinker with it and see if I can get it to cycle.

Thanks

 

[PA4476]

Here is the video that got me into this.

 

[RamRoddoc]

That's cool. I really like the 10# spring cut down to operate the slide recommendation.

 

[Fear Itself]

The "Jungle" shot we used to see was crimped around a single 0 buck with a few fives behind it! They would always cycle my Colt. Neat stuff!

 

[PA4476]

The "Jungle" shot we used to see was crimped around a single 0 buck with a few fives behind it! They would always cycle my Colt. Neat stuff!

I normally use 5.3 gr of Red Dot powder behind a 230 gr fmj bullet in my 45. The problem is, the shot charge only weighs 110 grains. So there's not enough mass to provide the recoil needed to cycle the action.

Soon as I get home today though, I will put my old recoil spring back in and tinker with it and see if I can get it to cycle. The old spring is 50 years old and pretty weak, it may just function with it.

 

[JSoko]

That's Awesome
many, many, years ago I knew a Capt. at Ft. Benning that made the same for a .44 mag; he used .303 British cases
I don't recall any particulars, but as stated above they were fun to shoot