45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

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budrick
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45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by budrick »

I need to know if some ammo I have is safe for my Uberti Model 73 reproduction. I have 100 rounds of 45 long colt , load is 250 gr. jacketed flat nose bullet, 10 gr. of AA5. Loaded for a pistol to get 800 FPS. I'm new to this rifle and I don't want to damage it.
What is a good selection of factory ammo I should buy?
Is the new Hornaday LeverEvolution flextip ammo too hot for my '73 or should I stick with their Cowboy offering?

Looking for your help
Don McDowell

Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by Don McDowell »

Any standard load that is intended for saami spec in a handgun should be safe in your rifle.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by piller »

+1 and if you handload, you might find the slower powders give better velocity without any pressure increase. In case you didn't know, the longer barrel gives time for the powder to burn and some increase in velocity may occur with the slower powders. Hope you have a lot of fun with that rifle.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by O.S.O.K. »

As said standard loads. I would recommend one: 7.0 grains of W231 under a Laser Cast 250 rnfp. That will give you 800 fps from a 4.5" revolver and 1000 fps from a 24" Marlin CB - chronographed. That's the load that I used for all of my years of CAS shooting.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by Terry Murbach »

budrick wrote:I need to know if some ammo I have is safe for my Uberti Model 73 reproduction. I have 100 rounds of 45 long colt , load is 250 gr. jacketed flat nose bullet, 10 gr. of AA5. Loaded for a pistol to get 800 FPS. I'm new to this rifle and I don't want to damage it.
What is a good selection of factory ammo I should buy?
Is the new Hornaday LeverEvolution flextip ammo too hot for my '73 or should I stick with their Cowboy offering?

Looking for your help
THE LOAD YOU NOTE IS IN THE PISTOLVER SECTION OF THE SPEER NUMBER 14 LOADING MANUAL IN THE 45COLT STANDARD LOADS FOR COLT SAA PISTOLS. IT IS THE TOP--THAT WOULD BE LIKE IN MAXIMUM---LOAD LISTED FOR THAT BULLET WEIGHT.
IF YOU ARE PRUDENT, AND SMART, YOU WILL WORK UP TO THAT LOAD WITH A SERIES OF TEST LOADS JUST TO BE SAFE.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by Griff »

Terry Murbach wrote:
budrick wrote:I need to know if some ammo I have is safe for my Uberti Model 73 reproduction. I have 100 rounds of 45 long colt , load is 250 gr. jacketed flat nose bullet, 10 gr. of AA5. Loaded for a pistol to get 800 FPS. I'm new to this rifle and I don't want to damage it.
What is a good selection of factory ammo I should buy?
Is the new Hornaday LeverEvolution flextip ammo too hot for my '73 or should I stick with their Cowboy offering?

Looking for your help
THE LOAD YOU NOTE IS IN THE PISTOLVER SECTION OF THE SPEER NUMBER 14 LOADING MANUAL IN THE 45COLT STANDARD LOADS FOR COLT SAA PISTOLS. IT IS THE TOP--THAT WOULD BE LIKE IN MAXIMUM---LOAD LISTED FOR THAT BULLET WEIGHT.
IF YOU ARE PRUDENT, AND SMART, YOU WILL WORK UP TO THAT LOAD WITH A SERIES OF TEST LOADS JUST TO BE SAFE.
Let me re-iterate: THE LOAD YOU NOTE IS IN THE PISTOLVER SECTION OF THE SPEER NUMBER 14 LOADING MANUAL IN THE 45COLT STANDARD LOADS FOR COLT SAA PISTOLS. IT IS THE MAXIMUM LOAD LISTED FOR THAT BULLET WEIGHT.
IF YOU ARE PRUDENT, AND SMART, YOU WILL WORK UP TO THAT LOAD WITH A SERIES OF TEST LOADS JUST TO BE SAFE.


And just to be accurate... there is no such thing a "long Colt". There is a .45 Colt and a .45ACP. Unlike their .38s, Colt doesn't have a "long" and "short" Colt rounds... only the one .45 Colt which is an entirely different cartridge than the .45ACP.

Truthfully, I'm not familiar with Hornady's Leverlution ammo in .45 Colt. While velocity is an indicator of pressure, it's really a result of pressure, and some cartridges have a higher pressure than their velocity would seem to indicate. Hornady doesn't provide pressure info on their website for that cartridge. But consider that 14,000 PSI is the absolute maximum for the .45 Colt in either Colt SAAs, its clones and toggle link action leverguns (I'd also include the modern replicas of the Colt pump rifles also).
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by .45colt »

Budrick,Welcome to the Leverguns :) . The load You show for the Colt is in the Lyman 49th edition Reloading Handbook on page 390.it is listed as a "starting load" with a velociety of 777fps out of a revolver. given the extra barrel length of a rifle it should shoot about 1100fps out of Your '73. I think this to be a safe load in the '73 as a maximum load is listed at 11gr of AA#5.
I would not shoot the Hornady ammo thru a '73 unless I called them first and they approved it. I owned a Uberti '73 Sporting Rifle(24" barrel) for three years,it was one of the finest guns I have owned. I loaded mine with 200gr Hornady bullets over 13gr of HS6(from the 06 Hogdon manual and got about 1350fps out of My '73. I later backed down the charge to 12.5gr under a 200gr cast bullet for 1298fps as I only wanted to duplicate the original 44-40 blackpowder load. Any standard loaded ammo would be fine if You don't reload.Good Luck withe Your rifle.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by J Miller »

budrick wrote:I need to know if some ammo I have is safe for my Uberti Model 73 reproduction. I have 100 rounds of 45 long colt , load is 250 gr. jacketed flat nose bullet, 10 gr. of AA5. Loaded for a pistol to get 800 FPS. I'm new to this rifle and I don't want to damage it.
What is a good selection of factory ammo I should buy?
Is the new Hornaday LeverEvolution flextip ammo too hot for my '73 or should I stick with their Cowboy offering?

Looking for your help
budrick,
Welcome to the forum. If you haven't been chased away yet by all the stern warnings and comments I'll add my two bits worth.
The toggle link action of the Henry, 1866, and 1873 Winchester designs is not the strongest design. Within the pressures it was designed for, around 14,000 PSI or so it will live a long and useful life. Once you exceed these levels the rifle wont exactly self disassemble, but the links and other contact points will begin to wear fast and the frame (it's just a hollow shell with open sides) can begin to stretch.

As you load for them, or contemplate your ammo purchases think, Colt SAA level only. Don't fudge it, don't try to add some oomph, just stick with Colt SAA level only ammo. If you stick to that, you're good.

Terry said the load you mentioned is max in Speer #14, .45Colt said it's a starting load in Lyman #49. There is where a lot of confusion gets started. No two loading manuals will agree. I've suggested many times that a person should purchase as many loading manuals as he can find. I've lost count of mine. They range from 1937 to the present. Read them, study them and realize that variables are always present. But for the most part the loads listed as being SAAMI level are (or were when the data was complied) still SAAMI level and safe.

My favorite factory .45 Colt load is the Winchester 255gr lead cartridge. It is a standard pressure load, not a light cowboy style load, and works great in everything I've shot it from. A near perfect duplicate of it is 7.1grs of Win 231 under a Lyman 454190 bullet cast from 20-1 or wheel weights sized to .454" or the current Remington 250 .45 Colt bullet which is .455".
You can substitute 8.0grs Unique for the 231 and get the same results and you can substitute most any of the current 250-255gr RNFP bullets for the Lyman or Remington bullets.

Hornady's gummy tips are a 225gr pointed thing they call a bullet seated in a shortened case (shorter than a .45 Colt, longer than a .45 S&W) that is still a bit longer and may not feed properly in a length critical rifle such as the 1873. See pic:
Misc .45 Cartridges.JPG
(Hornady Leverevolution .45 Colt is 4th from right next to the W-W 255gr Lubaloy cartridge.)
However it is loaded to NOT EXCEED SAAMI specs so would be safe pressure wise.

The cowboy loads will work fine if you can find some that have any accuracy to them. Most I've tried were pathetic in that department. You just have to try them. OBTW, Cowboy loads are loaded light for the folks that shoot CAS, not because of the guns they use them in. CAS shooters like to shoot squib level ammo so they can shoot real fast. Accuracy is only a secondary concern. No comparison to real world shooting.

Hope this helps a bit.

Joe
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by budrick »

Thank all for your information. Looks to me like I might have these rounds reloaded to be a bit milder. I would rather not take any chances of damaging this new rifle. I hunt upstate New York and Vermont where it's real hilly and thick. My shots are infrequent but when I do get an opportunity, generally about 40 to 60 yards. I have a lot of favorite places to take my new '73.

Thanks again and I sure welcome any more information pertaining to loads and this rifle in general.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by J Miller »

budrick wrote:Thank all for your information. Looks to me like I might have these rounds reloaded to be a bit milder. I would rather not take any chances of damaging this new rifle. I hunt upstate New York and Vermont where it's real hilly and thick. My shots are infrequent but when I do get an opportunity, generally about 40 to 60 yards. I have a lot of favorite places to take my new '73.

Thanks again and I sure welcome any more information pertaining to loads and this rifle in general.
budrick,

Two more things:
A> Several years ago I purchased a box of ammo in Jacksonville, IL loaded exactly as your ammo is. I had forgotten about it till I re-re-reread this thread. It was loaded with 10.0gr AA5 and a Hornady 250gr HPXTP bullet.
This load was fired from my Marlin 1894 Cowboy and was VERY mild. Even for your 1873 copy I wouldn't worry about pulling them down and having them reloaded. From my 20" Marlin I was hitting the 200yd steel ram time after time. It isa good load.

B> The Uberti, actually all the European made firearms, are proofed to the European CIPs specs. CIPs is their version of SAAMI. ALL the CIPs specs I've seen are higher pressure than our SAAMI is. I used to have a link to their specs but no longer know where it's at.
You won't hurt that Uberti 1873 by shooting SAAMI spec loads in it.

Joe
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

The more I play with the .45 Colt cartridge (and it has been a lot here lately) the better I think this advice is:

"My favorite factory .45 Colt load is the Winchester 255gr lead cartridge. It is a standard pressure load, not a light cowboy style load, and works great in everything I've shot it from. A near perfect duplicate of it is 7.1grs of Win 231 under a Lyman 454190 bullet cast from 20-1 or wheel weights sized to .454" or the current Remington 250 .45 Colt bullet which is .455".
You can substitute 8.0grs Unique for the 231 and get the same results and you can substitute most any of the current 250-255gr RNFP bullets for the Lyman or Remington bullets."

Thanks Joe.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by Pisgah »

Just to answer your questions without adding stuff to impress you with my vast knowledge --

Yes, the handload you quote is fine in your rifle, as will be any handload or commercial load not designated as a +P or "Ruger Only" load.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by J Miller »

Thanks Scott.

Every now and again someone will post an old thread I commented on like this one. And I am amazed at my past ability to make cohesive informative posts.

I haven't been shooting in many years, moving to the mid west has destroyed that part of my life.

There is an old saying: "If you don't use it, you loose it." This could not be more true.
I need to escape this area before my brain completely atrophies.


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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

I sometimes miss Terry's ALL CAPS responses.....lol!
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by JimT »

Scott Tschirhart wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 8:51 am The more I play with the .45 Colt cartridge (and it has been a lot here lately) the better I think this advice is:

"My favorite factory .45 Colt load is the Winchester 255gr lead cartridge. It is a standard pressure load, not a light cowboy style load, and works great in everything I've shot it from.
Thanks Joe.
I bought my first Colt SAA .45 in 1969 .. just after I had served 3 years in the US Army. I was up on my Grandpa's Ranch in Eastern Washington State and on the Section Line east of the house .. 350 or 400 yards away .. was an old 41 Ford coupe my Dad had stripped and left there years before. I had the Colt loaded with factory Winchester-Western ammo and decided to see if I could hit that old Ford. I held the gun two-handed, raised up about half the front sight above the rear sight with the car on top of the front sight and touched it off. In a few seconds I saw a large dust cloud past the car. I lowered the front sight and held the same aiming point and fired again. This time there was a dust cloud short of the car. I split the difference on the sight and touched it off once more. There was no dust cloud and then a distant CLONK came back on the breeze. Those WW loads were always accurate for me in that gun.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

I've been sort of duplicating that load with the Hornady 255 gr Cowboy bullet. It is dry wax lubricated it shoots very well over 8-8.5gr of Unique.

Nothing fancy, but that bullet is dead soft and it shoots well in anything I have tried it in. However, I don't consider this a "cowboy" load in the modern sense because it hits pretty hard.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by JimT »

Scott Tschirhart wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 4:56 pm I've been sort of duplicating that load with the Hornady 255 gr Cowboy bullet. It is dry wax lubricated it shoots very well over 8-8.5gr of Unique.

Nothing fancy, but that bullet is dead soft and it shoots well in anything I have tried it in. However, I don't consider this a "cowboy" load in the modern sense because it hits pretty hard.
Yep. Depending on the gun that load probably runs 800 to 900 fps. That is nothing to sneeze at.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by Ysabel Kid »

Scott Tschirhart wrote: Wed Aug 10, 2022 3:01 pm I sometimes miss Terry's ALL CAPS responses.....lol!
Me too! :lol: :lol: :lol:
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by samsi »

I've pretty much settled on 8.5 grains of Unique, Universal or Power Pistol with 250-255's. They're close enough to use interchangeably without any fussing with sights. Earlier this year I picked up an old 454190 mold, cast a bunch out of WW and loaded them over PP. With the rear sight of my carbine on the highest notch it was consistently ringing steel at 200 yards - I was pretty tickled with it.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

7 gr of 231 gets there too. It seems to shoot really clean with no leading in rifles and revolvers. This Winchester 66 really likes this load with an Oregon Trail 250 gr RFP.
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Re: 45 long colt loads for Uberti 1873 repro

Post by oldebear1950 »

I was born in Oklahoma, and my granddads were city marshalls, one in Enid, and the other in Shawnee, and the both carried single action colts, both 44-40 and 45 colt. That was in the 1920s and 1930s. They always laughed when they heard someone say 45 long colt, as there was no such thing. The knew some of the old gun fighting lawmen of Oklahoma , Chris Madsen, Bill Tilghman, and Hec Thomas. They also carried Winchester 73s, and Marlin lever guns, and said they never felt outgunned. Oklahoma did not become a state till 1907, so during the oil boom, and was really wild and wooly. They taught us to shoot, and bought my brother and I our first gun. That was a Winchester 67A a single shot 22.
I was 10 and my brother was 8. Been shooting ever since.
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