45 Colt - newbie question

[Lekes]

I am new to reloading. I use a RCBS Rock Chucker. So far I've only loaded some 9mm. I got everything from a guy that was getting out of reloading. Amongst everything was a box of Hornady 45cal 250gr XPS. I thought I would load some (haven't yet) for my Judge.
I ordered some once fired brass (qty 125). About 40% have a depressed ring around them (see pic). What is this for? The ridge on most are located like the one on the left but some are like the one on the right. The remaining bass have no ring.

 

[troy fairweather]

The ring is to prevent the bullet from being pushed into the case

 

[Lekes]

Thanks Troy, I figure as much. But is that to keep from packing the powder or just a "convenience" feature. Is that something more for cowboy action rifle shooting loads? I assume they are safe to use in my Judge.

 

[Obturation]

They're fine to use . only thing I'd do is look down in each case and make sure there isn't a raised ridge (shouldn't be, never have seen that in 45 colt). Just size them and work up to a load you like. Mixed brass will be inconsistent for length and case volume (to some extent ) I don't use mixed brass for max loads, at the ragged edge minor differences make a big difference . for more sedate loadings, it won't matter much.
Do you have a desired load in mind?

 

[Walkalong]

As you size and fire them the indentation will smooth out a little, very rarely do they interfere with loading. The one on the left is a deep as any I have seen, but if it doesn't cause a bulge that interferes with chambering, if the bullet needs to be seated below that, you're good to go.

 

[bersaguy]

Just a guess, but the one on the left was probably originally loaded with a 200g projectile, the one on the right with 250g. I've never had a problem loading cases with the cannelure, though have not loaded for 45 Colt

 

[Lekes]

Thanks Troy, I figure as much. But is that to keep from packing the powder or just a "convenience" feature. Is that something more for cowboy action rifle shooting loads? I assume they are safe to use in my Judge.

 

[Charlie98]

Just FYI, I’ve been reloading for 35 years, and loading .45 Colt for about as long. I recently picked up some .45 range brass, I found it to be all over the map as far as case length and wall thickness... it was crazy. Make sure you use a good roll crimp to hold those bullets in place.

 

[Lekes]

Thanks all!

 

[orionengnr]

The .45LC is a seriously low-pressure cartridge.
The case on the left looks a little sketchy, but as long as you are firing it through a quality revolver, I think it will iron out and be okay.

Just don't double-triple-quadruple charge it (easy to do with a huge case and a low powder volume).

 

[Pat Riot]

Just a guess, but the one on the left was probably originally loaded with a 200g projectile, the one on the right with 250g. I've never had a problem loading cases with the cannelure, though have not loaded for 45 Colt

Bingo! Correct.

Lekes, those cannelures won’t hurt anything. As Walkalong said, they will smooth out.

One thing I never do is use cannelure brass in a lever gun. In the past I have had cases get stuck and the extractor pulled the back half of the case out leaving the front in the chamber. Makes for a pain in the butt to get the chamber clear and puts a damper on your Cowboy Action match.

 

[cfullgraf]

After two or three reloadings, the cannelures will be seen on the outside of the case but will be ironed out on the inside of the case. As said by many, they cause no interference with reloading.

You also see alot of 38 Special cases from factory ammunition with a cannelures.

 

[Ru4real]

The ring is a fill line. Fill it up with black powder to the line.

 

[NeroM]

The ring is a fill line. Fill it up with black powder to the line.

Any proof to this statement?

My opinion, otherwise think it is bovine scat.
It is a case cannelure,
Seen often with "range" brass.

 

[Driftwood Johnson]

Howdy

It is called a cannelure. Yes, the purpose was to help prevent a bullet from seating further into the case than desired.

Here are a couple of old 38-40 cartridges with decidedly heavy cannelures.

The ring is a fill line. Fill it up with black powder to the line.

Not really. If one were to be using a bullet that actually seated exactly to that depth, one would want to pour in enough Black Powder to slightly above that line, so that when the bullet was seated the powder would be compressed completely.

More important, it is important with any bullet be seated deep enough that the crimp groove in the bullet line up with the case mouth. Seating a bullet to the cannelure may or may not make that happen.

Yes, 45 Colt is a fairly low pressure cartridge, so cases may or may not 'stretch' in length from repeated firings. With range brass, or other once fired brass it is not a bad idea to measure a few and see how consistent they are for overall length. I have been loading 45 Colt for many years, and I have never found a shell that stretched significantly, but all my loads are fairly low pressure and most are loaded with Black Powder.

 

[Pat Riot]

The ring is a fill line. Fill it up with black powder to the line.

Any proof to this statement?

My opinion, otherwise think it is bovine scat.
It is a case cannelure,
Seen often with "range" brass.

I too, would like to know where you heard this regarding a black powder “fill line”. This is Bull!

 

[buck460XVR]

The ring is a fill line. Fill it up with black powder to the line.

^^^This is why folks recommend verifying any reloading related info given by random strangers on the internet with some form of published manual.

Just sayin'.....

 

[Jim Watson]

I was just wondering what was going to set the bullet back in a .45 Colt.
Then I remembered, late 20th century found us with .45 lever actions with tube magazine springs.

 

[Driftwood Johnson]

I was just wondering what was going to set the bullet back in a .45 Colt.
Then I remembered, late 20th century found us with .45 lever actions with tube magazine springs.

Yes, it is the magazine spring and follower slamming the column of cartridges in the magazine backwards that can tend to telescope a bullet back into the case. I pretty much only shoot Black Powder cartridges in my 44-40 and 38-40 rifles, so there is a 'plug' of powder preventing the bullet from moving backwards. But when I run my dummy rounds through the action, with no powder or primer, lots of times the action of the magazine follower will cause the bullets to telescope into the cases. This is because the brass at the case mouth of 44-40 and 38-40 is so thin, and does not make a really strong crimp. 45 Colt brass is much thicker at the case mouth and the bullets are less likely to telescope backwards if there is no 'plug' of Black Powder behind them.

 

[BobWright]

These cannelures do shorten case life. In time they will develop splits after having been reloaded many times. My routine is to load every case with full magnum or full power charges for a maximum of ten times, then mild loads until cases split.
Split case mouths and splits along these cannelures in .45 Colt cases have led me to make these cases the .45 Special.

Bob Wright

 

[BobWright]

And further from a "know it all:" In some cases those cannelures have been a means of load identification. The Remington-UMC .38 Special Police load with the 200 gr. RN lead bullet was identified by having two cannelures around the case. This because the bullet nose profile was the same as the 158 gr. lead load. The Winchester/Western round had a very blunt profile and were identified from bullet profile only.



Bob Wright

 

[Charlie98]

I was just wondering what was going to set the bullet back in a .45 Colt

recoil in heavy loads?

 

[Jim Watson]

No.
Recoil would act to pull the bullet, calling for neck tension and crimp. Maybe a case cannelure into a bullet cannelure to reinforce the crimp.

Mid-case cannelures are of greatest benefit in an automatic, to prevent bullet setback against the feed ramp.

 

[Pat Riot]

I think the cannelures aid in manufacturing. They keep the bullet from going too far into the case on the automated presses. This is my theory. I do not know if this is for sure.

I have also heard that cannelures are put in to keep bullets from setting back into the case when hitting the feed ramp during the cycling of a semiautomatic firearm but that really wouldn’t be the case with .45 Colt.

 

[Ru4real]

The ring is a fill line. Fill it up with black powder to the line.

A couple of points.

1. Virtually everyone is a random stranger on the internet. Even on THR there are not that many people that actually met / spent time with / know each other.

2. This is the 25th post in this thread, total. And there has not been one factual post yet. This thread is still a popular opinion poll, like the vast majority of posts on the interweb. “Fill line” happens to be the least popular opinion currently, but like your post, it is an opinion, none the less.